Well hi5.0 just beat me too it.
One of the best mods you can install on our Stangs to improve handling are a good set of sticky tires. I just changed mine out this past w/e. The stock P 0 Neros only had ~15K on them, but no matter. The are resting in the garage. Now I have, the fairly common, 18x9 DD rims w/ 255/45 BFG KDW2 tires up front and 18x10 w/ 285/40 in back. Not only can the car grip MUCH better now, it looks much tougher and more like a muscle car should!

 

Wondering what I should replace first: Shocks/Struts or Front and Rear Swaybars? At the moment my only suspension mods are Steeda springs and 275 Nitto's, any help would be appreciated.

 

Struts and shocks control the damping rate of the springs and bars. If you upgrade the bars and springs without upgradng the struts and shocks, you will just have a fast-acting suspension that wears out the stock components even faster.

 

since you already have the spings i would recomnd the struts 1st.

 

MODS, can we stomp this TROLL already?

 

Hey, that sounds like FUN! I'm in L.A. too and would love to do something like that! My only concern is, will I need a whole new set of tires by the end of it?

 

He has been banned already.

 

Cool...good to know

 

No you won't need a new set of tires.

I drove with the stock tires on and they have lots of tread left and I pushed it as hard as I felt comfortable doing.

I say take it to the track as you have it, you'll have tons of fun.

I'm getting some bills payed for but my next event will most likely be january... and i'm getting rims and better tires.

I might try to make a december one but i know a lot of people are usually out of town during this month and next month...

I would love to get a group of mustangs to goto an event.

I was the only one at this last event.

 

Dang, now before I get bars I'm going to need upgraded struts and shocks even though I upgraded the springs? Well that's really bad, as I'm not made out of money.

 

If you are doing it one mod at a time. JMO, I would do it in this order. However, I would probably be satisfied and ready to stop after number 3.

1) springs (what? no adj panhard bar?)
2) shocks
3) front sway bar
4) rear sway
5) adj panhard bar
6) lca and uca
7) stb
8) lca brackets
9) welded subframes

 

Greatly appreciate all the advice!!!! Looks like Shocks/Struts are next...

Neil, the reason behind not purchasing a panhard in conjunction w/ my springs is b/c prior to installing the springs I did some research and found that the alignment in the rear was not alterred with Steeda springs. Now having said that, I want to clarify that just b/c in most cases w/ Steeda springs in is not necessary, I will in the near future install an adj. Panhard... Just wanted to give a little insight.

 

"...where we came in?"

A Mustang owner buys grippy tires to replace his worn stockers.

Compared to the old tires, the car REALLY sticks to the road, but with the extra traction .9g makes the car feel like it's about to rub the the door handles, so....

the Mustang owner buys sway bars and finds that he also could use aftermarket LCAs, UCA and an adj. panhard bar...so more suspension parts are purchased...

Spring and Summer come around and the Mustang driver goes to a tech day or track day and sees how easy shocks and springs are swapped...

So the owner buys adjustable shocks and stiffer springs and everything is good....

After another set of tires the car starts to feel sloppy, and track days are a way of life, so in go subframe braces, along with a strut tower bar, roll bar, race seats and belts.

But then you realize that now you've got a car that ONLY YOU want to ride in.....

So you buy a 2nd Mustang to keep stock....but then the tires wear out....

"Isn't this....."

 

So will my suspension be fine with ONLY these modifications:

-Eibach Springs
-Front and Rear Swaybars

 

yes...

If you look at Eibach's website you'll see that they have "stages" to complete their suspension package or you can get it all at once.

Stage 1 = springs
Stage 2 = swaybars
Stage 3 = dampers or coilovers

You'll be perfectly fine.

Thats all i had on my car for a month until i FELT like spending the money for the dampers.. which weren't really needed, just wanted.

 

K Good, I thought I was being led to believe that I needed the other things because the first two stages would cause undue stress on my suspension. K, I'll need to get those pretty soon, I'm looking forward to some better handling corners!

 

Something you want to add to the list as you get down the road. Since you already have the spring kit, the car is lowered right! CG is lower, great. Well three other things happened when you did that.

1) the front roll center has been lowered, so now the roll couple moment on the front suspension is higher and the front wants to roll more than it did before. This effects the balance of the whole chassis because the distribuion of total roll couple moment has shifted. The fix is to lower the front lower ball joint (Steeda ball joint) and raise the front roll center.

2) the rear suspension instant center is now lower. This makes the rear squat more under accelleration and deters good weight transfer. The fix is to install the BMR LCA axle bracket. They also have a upper bracket for the UCA used to tune the chassis. These mod's allow the instant center to be raised.

3) pinion angle ... you need an adjustable upper and / or lower LCA to correct.

Possibly a 4th in rear axle lateral shift. Easy to determine by hanging a plumb bob off the top of the rear fender lip and measure to the tire or wheel and compare side to side. +/-1/8" is liveable. Any more an you may need to consider an adjustable panhard bar.

I'd do all that before messing with subframe connectors.

If you are doing the sway bars next, do both at the same time. You will really make a pigs ear of the car balance it you ony do one end at a time. If you have tools. jack and jack stands and basic mechanical skills you can install them yourself.

Rear dampers are also DIY. Fronts are as well, but more work involved, better skills and the need for a spring compressor.

My 2 cents

 

Ya, I'm going to install both swaybars next and leave it at that. I've noticed better handling since the springs, not worse balance or anything...

 

BadAndy,
I hate to be argumentative but I think you are being led down the wrong road here. For a daily driver that likes the twisties I'd follow this list of mods (some of which have been stated, but for some reason you chose to disregard):

#1 Tires: Without a doubt will make the biggest difference in handling for our cars. The bigger the better. If you can afford a nice set of 18x10 all the way around shod with a a high performance 275 tire you will love the difference.

#2 Shock/Springs: Tokico D-Specs tend to be a very popular and inexpensive (Under $500) mod that can actually IMPROVE your daily ride quality while being able to go to the track and bring out big grins...if you want. H&R and Bilstien are finally coming out with kits for our cars that can go even further, but for a daily driver on a budget I recommend D-Specs.
Steeda Ultra-lite springs are also a favorite and very inexpensive. Again there are other options but I'm making recommendations based on what you asked for.

#3 LCAs/3rd link...I'd recommend Steeda but BMR may be a better option for the budget conscious. These help mostly straight line accelleration, not handling. however they will help you pu the power to the ground in order to maximize the previous mods (making the twisties that much more fun!

#4 Sway Bars....Eibach are popular. Stick with Street sway bars and remember bigger isn't necessarily better. Any Sway bar should tighen up your car and help in the twisties. I would avoid the adjustable "race" end-links because they will dramatically increase your NVH and really won't do you any good on a street car.

You may want to check Steeda.com FAQ and read through some tech articles. They have some Handling Packs in stages that can save some coin.
Just be careful with what some people tell you. Ask if you can drive their car to see if you like it, because what some guys view as acceptable noise levels, others can't live with. Take it from me...I bought a full suspension Kenny Brown Cobra a few years ago because "it was one of the best" without doing test drives. Yeah the car handled like it was on rails, but Potholes rattled your fillings and long trips weren't fun anymore.
With #1 and #2 above you should improve both your handling and the ride quality.

 

K, now I need to think. Silve05GTwBOOST is right in that on Eibach, there are three stages. The first stage is what I did, the second stage are both swaybars. Do those negatively impact ride quality a lot or no?