Suspension upgrades

** I've got Steeda Heavy Duty Rear Sway bar & Steeda subframe connectors on the ** way... I really hope this makes as big of a difference as everybody claims ** =)... b/c my spending cash is *gone* now lol... ** ** -Mike ** 98 Mustang GT **

The performance difference you seek may not live up to your expectations.

I'm not wild about either of Steeda's SFC offerings. The full-length SFC's aren't nearly as strong as tubular SFC's; they twist pretty badly and I've seen them break apart under hard acceleration when used without an STB. The heavier tubular offerings are only 3/4-length, and don't run all the way from firewall to torque boxes, as a really well-designed SFC should. The 'cross braces' are junk, from what I've personally seen. They're way too light and are not properly gusseted. The single folded seam creeps fore and aft, and will fatigue and crack over time.

The handling difference with the HD rear sway bar may surprise you. It looks to be a 38-40 lb. solid bar that is used OEM on solid axle Cobra models. If used with stock GT springs, you will notice 4 things right off:

1. The rear will corner a bit flatter, as the marketing hyperbole will confirm.

1. The inside rear tire will lift (unload) during hard cornering, and if power is applied, you get traction problems, severe to mild depending on the tires you're using.

2. The subframes and strut towers will flex even more than that do now due to the mismatched swaybar compression rates. The SFC's will help this somewhat, but won't do much for the rear traction problem.

1. Rear suspension harshness will increase considerably.

Anything you can do to stiffen the frame is always a good thing. Some products are better than others at achieving this.

To get better suspension performance, it is always best to upgrade the entire suspension system with a matched set of components that are designed to work well together. Changing out one part of the suspension with something that is stiffer or lighter can result in a degradation of handling performance. Just bolting on heavy swaybars won't turn a GT into an autocrossing terror.

I thought you were holding out for the 5400-A suspension kit?

-JD

________________________________________________________ | | | 1998 Laser Red GT RAMFM Member Since 1998 | | M-5400-A Suspension http:/207.13.104.8/users/jdadams || Subframe Connectors & Seat Bracing, Strut Tower Brace || 4-point K-frame Brace, Tremec T-45 & OEM 3.27:1 Gears ||________________________________________________________|

Hey JD, did it come thru?

Carl

I didn't realize the 5400-A kit came with a rear sway bar & subframe connectors..... i thought those were the 2 things that it lacked & everything else came with it................ DAMMIT woman$#@!!@ *sigH*... well I have faith in Steeda...

-Mike

98 Mustang GT

Doesn't come with the subs. Thought it came with the rear sway bar.

From the owner of a solid rear axle Cobra... I'll tell you that I wasn't real impressed with its handling characteristics. The new wheel/tire combo has helped greatly, and the '83 GT swaybar is doing as well or better than the stock swaybar. It's a little softer in the rear, but I can deal with that.

The stock Cobra setup is basically a GT with stiffer sway bars. I wasn't impressed. I thought it should handle a little better than it did out of the box.

JD's done his homework on the suspension stuff. The M-5400-A kit seems to be a well balanced kit, and some day, hopefully, one will reside under the body of my '97 Snake as well. I may try to find the Mach1 take off stuff though, both cars having the DOHC and all.

What's the woman have to do with this? ;-)

JS

expectations.

I blame it on JD...... the woman.... LOL j/k JD.. you've always been a great guy to me *sigH*...... just crappy that I bought something I didn't need to.. and now when I sell it I'll lose money on it.... lol. Then again... I might just compare them & see which works better.

Man... a Lancer (Rally) was screwing with me on the interstate a few mins ago (I was bored & couldn't sleep... went for a drive to get some air).. and before your mind starts to wonder, yes.. I did play a little bit. We're going 70mph.. I drop into 3rd... waste him.. wave.... we're done.. but I was reminded of how badly my brakes SUCK... what do you recommend as a brake upgrade?

-Mike

performance.

wrote

bigger? :)

LOL....... well I thought I'd go to 2" rotors.... and no brake pads.. I bet I could stop better then!! lol..

-Mike

** I didn't realize the 5400-A kit came with a rear sway bar & subframe ** connectors..... i thought those were the 2 things that it lacked & ** everything else came with it................ DAMMIT woman$#@!!@ *sigH*... ** well I have faith in Steeda...

...and then later:

I'll see if they'll let me... shipping costs I guess I'll just hafta suck up.

-Mike