2002 Suspension Upgrade - what would you do?
You should get drop links with adjustable heim joints - stock links are fixed length. This is essential for the front, where there isn't a lot of clearance for the bar between the axle and the lower control arm. If you adjust the height af the car, you need to also be able to adjust the length of the drop link to avoid interference on these two parts. GMG, Tarrett, TRG and others have been used successfully.
I adjust the length of the drop links like this:
> Tighten the upper joint, leaving the bottom one out of the bar
> Lower the front wheels onto ramps so that the front is fully loaded, but you can still get underneath.
> Adjust the sway bar until it is about 1/3 of the way up from the lower control arm.
> Adjust the drop links' length so that they fit easily into whichever hole you want to use.
> Turn steering to full lock in each direction to be sure the bar doesn't rub the axle, then tighten the links and jam nuts
On a scale of 1-10, this job is a 2.
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This is actually not 100% accurate. My car has PSS9s and with the stock rear suspension we were able to pull as much or as little camber as we needed (up to -2.2) on a GT2 ride height (my car is an 01TT). In order to get to my track settings of -3.0 front and -2.5 rear, you'd need dogbones and GT3 lower control arms, along with other useful stuff. But for an agressive street alignment, he shouldn't need it, even at GT2 ride heights.
Also, knowing what I now know about how soft the driveline bushings are. I'm not sure I wouldn't put upgraded tranny and motor mounts on the list AHEAD of suspension upgrades.
I'm with heavyChevy on this one... I'd do the PS10s, some HR Swaybars with upgraded HEIM JOINT style drop links and a good alignment.
On a side note, has any one had luck getting the tarett drop links to be a little more quiet.
Make sure you get the car set up properly. A good suspension guy is worth his weight. I personally recommend getting a car scaled, but some will chime in and say "It's a street car, don't worry about it". Scaling the car will allow the suspension engineer the ability to equalize the static load right to left on each axle/end of the car. Ride height is only a part of the equation. Getting someone in your area experienced with 996s is great, and if they have TT experience, even better. We are using Michelin PS RIBs and I've had great luck running more aggressive alignment with the car... I'm able to run -1.5 camber up front and -2.0 on the rear with stock caster, along with toe recommended by your shop. I run zero toe on my setup, but it's "twitchy" and "nervous" feeling for some. Some toe is a good thing for street only driving.
Call it done after that, unless you plan to track it. Then if you do, still, don't do anything beyond good rubber until you're an intermediate to advanced student...Then we can give you a whole list of ways to spend your money!
Mike
Also, knowing what I now know about how soft the driveline bushings are. I'm not sure I wouldn't put upgraded tranny and motor mounts on the list AHEAD of suspension upgrades.
I'm with heavyChevy on this one... I'd do the PS10s, some HR Swaybars with upgraded HEIM JOINT style drop links and a good alignment.
On a side note, has any one had luck getting the tarett drop links to be a little more quiet.
Make sure you get the car set up properly. A good suspension guy is worth his weight. I personally recommend getting a car scaled, but some will chime in and say "It's a street car, don't worry about it". Scaling the car will allow the suspension engineer the ability to equalize the static load right to left on each axle/end of the car. Ride height is only a part of the equation. Getting someone in your area experienced with 996s is great, and if they have TT experience, even better. We are using Michelin PS RIBs and I've had great luck running more aggressive alignment with the car... I'm able to run -1.5 camber up front and -2.0 on the rear with stock caster, along with toe recommended by your shop. I run zero toe on my setup, but it's "twitchy" and "nervous" feeling for some. Some toe is a good thing for street only driving.
Call it done after that, unless you plan to track it. Then if you do, still, don't do anything beyond good rubber until you're an intermediate to advanced student...Then we can give you a whole list of ways to spend your money!
Mike
You had much more luck with rear camber than I did. I was stuck at negative 2.5 camber (great for the track but destroyed inner tire edges on the street) and couldn't pull anymore positive camber out of the stock eccentrics. It could be the 19" with 325's on the back that contributed to the problem. I needed the dogbones to put less camber in the back. The dogbones have the added advantage of limiting camber changes during aggressive driving. Althought not cheap, they are a bargain compared to having to buy a set of rear tires and having a corner balance and alignment done twice.
On a side note, has any one had any luck in getting the tarett drop links to be a bit more quite?
Last edited by Duane996tt; Jan 2, 2010 at 03:17 AM.
Duane, That's helpful information to include in a suspension post. It is definitely the 19s/tire size combo effecting your lack of camber adjustment. The eccentrics have a range based on the specs of the OEM tire height and width (P-Zeros). Beyond that and all bets are off!
For the Tarred Drop links, are yours clanking or squeeking? For squeeking we used white lithiium grease. For the clanking, we found that the angle was slightly off and making slight contact with the control arm. Simple adjustment took care of that!
Mike
For the Tarred Drop links, are yours clanking or squeeking? For squeeking we used white lithiium grease. For the clanking, we found that the angle was slightly off and making slight contact with the control arm. Simple adjustment took care of that!
Mike
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Go for Eibach. Fits perfect with stock links and PSS9 or 10 and car behaves REALLY good, on street, and track.
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Get a rear GT2 sway bar, it's a direct bolt on, OEM quality, and not too expensive. That way you can dial out some of the understeer.
