Suspension wizard wanted
Discussion
I want to upgrade the handling and feel of my '96 MR2 Turbo, but am having some difficulty planning the "upgrade path".
When I read up on the various elements, almost ALL of them have great feedback ("these really transformed the handling / steering feel!"). As such, its hard to know which parts to look at first. More importantly, its hard to get an idea of how certain parts will work in isolation or in conjunction with others.
The options I am looking at are:
Thicker anti roll bars
Strut tower bar (or any type of chassis brace e.g. subframe connectors, sway bars etc)
Poly bushes (some of them? all of them?)
Lower & stiffer springs
Pillow ball mounts
Pillow ball tension rod / torque rod
My car already has yellow Blistein shocks on it, which are reputedly pretty good, and are in good condition. The car doesnt get much track time so I'm not intersted in coilovers or anything that makes major sacrificies in ride quality for ultimate cornering, or that is more suited to flat ractracks than our bumpy roads. In fact, more composure over bumps is something I want to add.
My priorities:
More composure over bumps
Better steering feel when cornering
Ideally, i would love to drop into a workshop and have someone explain to me what the pros and cons are - can anyone recommend?
I'm london based, btw. Thanks chaps
/edit: I've already had a laser alignment at Wheels in Motion. Those guys are great, but I wasnt sure whether they got involved with the oily bits of suspension as well, or just wheels & tires?
When I read up on the various elements, almost ALL of them have great feedback ("these really transformed the handling / steering feel!"). As such, its hard to know which parts to look at first. More importantly, its hard to get an idea of how certain parts will work in isolation or in conjunction with others.
The options I am looking at are:
Thicker anti roll bars
Strut tower bar (or any type of chassis brace e.g. subframe connectors, sway bars etc)
Poly bushes (some of them? all of them?)
Lower & stiffer springs
Pillow ball mounts
Pillow ball tension rod / torque rod
My car already has yellow Blistein shocks on it, which are reputedly pretty good, and are in good condition. The car doesnt get much track time so I'm not intersted in coilovers or anything that makes major sacrificies in ride quality for ultimate cornering, or that is more suited to flat ractracks than our bumpy roads. In fact, more composure over bumps is something I want to add.
My priorities:
More composure over bumps
Better steering feel when cornering
Ideally, i would love to drop into a workshop and have someone explain to me what the pros and cons are - can anyone recommend?
I'm london based, btw. Thanks chaps
/edit: I've already had a laser alignment at Wheels in Motion. Those guys are great, but I wasnt sure whether they got involved with the oily bits of suspension as well, or just wheels & tires?
Edited by Wadeski on Thursday 18th September 12:40
Edited by Wadeski on Thursday 18th September 23:19
hey mike,
Thats why I'm going to go with the bushes all around first. As you say, it might tighten things up enough. At the moment the steering feels a little "dead" around the centre, and when cornering it just doesnt feed back enough.
The rear billies are only a year old, and I'm replacing the front ones (which are older) soon. It could also be that the difference in wear between the shocks is affecting things.
if it still isnt tight enough, then ill tighten up the chassis, and go with the pillow ball rods.
Thats why I'm going to go with the bushes all around first. As you say, it might tighten things up enough. At the moment the steering feels a little "dead" around the centre, and when cornering it just doesnt feed back enough.
The rear billies are only a year old, and I'm replacing the front ones (which are older) soon. It could also be that the difference in wear between the shocks is affecting things.
if it still isnt tight enough, then ill tighten up the chassis, and go with the pillow ball rods.
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