Im going to drop it 1.5 all around, what is the reccomendation for springs? Also what else should I get to prevent ruinining anything?

 

That depends on your definition of ruining things, that said, you might want to consider the following; adjustable rear upper control arm, lower rear control arm relocation brackets, relocating balljoints, bumpsteer kit, camber plates and possibly an adjustable panhard rod. All of this will correct the changes that result from lowering the car and its effect on geometry.

Springs of course will be a matter of preference, but by correcting the geometry of the lowered car, less sping and swaybar is needed to counteract the negative effects that normally occur.

If your not intent on replacing the struts/shocks, find a spring that will function properly with your struts/shocks - always think system, not individual components.

lastly, if your doing the work yourself, make sure you have a good torque wrench and use it, all of the suspension stuff uses torque to yield bolts, Ideally, you'll want to replace every fastender that you use, but that gets pretty costly unless you tight with the Ford counter man (looks at 200.00 bag of bolts in box) otherwise its loctite and proper torque (well always proper torque)

http://forums.bradbarnett.net/showth...=447906&page=6

this will be helpful - I linked to the last page for easy reference to the suspension torque specs, but read the entirw thread through for some useful information.

 

It sounds all greek to me... Im a noob. Cant I just lower it and not sacrafice a ton of performance?

 

1.5" is a fair bit of a drop. If you were going 1.25" or less you wouldn't have to worry about switching anything else. Once you hit 1.5" or more of a drop you change the suspension geometry a fair bit. The other stuff (lower control arm relocation brackets, bumpsteer kits, etc) puts the suspension geometry back where it is supposed to be.

That stuff isn't 100% necessary but it will fix problems that are created but too much of a drop.

 

FRPP claims a 1.5" drop on all 4's, that's what I run with a Spohn adj panhard bar. My alignment required camber bolts, so plan on that. The rest of the stuff is the 'correct' way to do it, buy MANY people, including myself, don't invest in it. I'll slowly add other things as time and budget allows. I do plan on my struts wearing out a little sooner than normal, but I'll be ready for another mod by then anyways.

 

When you drop your car 1.5" you are giving up 50% of your bounce travel. You also lower the front roll center as a result. This is not good because it will increase the roll couple on the front as well as increase the amount of roll the front makes compared to the rear. You also severely mess up the rear suspension instant center, not to mention drive-shaft u-joint angles, and lastly your chance of getting the front suspension settings (caster / camber) correct are about zero to none. These are most of the things you sacrifice with a 1.5" drop, along with ride comfort as you will be experiencing suspension bottoming out more than you can ever imagine, which particularly affects the controllability of the car in a turn.

I think Bob gave you good advice, you will see I have done so similarly for others on other posts in this forum.

If you just want a lowered car for the macho look and are willing to make those other sacrifices, then go ahead and lower 1.5" and accept the handling and ride degradation. If you want to lower the car and have good ride and handling characteristics as well, you will need to consider doing the other mod's in concert with the lowering the car. In any event, a lowered car will never ride smoother than what is possible at stock height.

 

Get some sportlines and some camber bolts. This way your tires won't wear abnormally in the front.
Unless you drive frequently on a autocross course, no worries.
You will have a stiffer ride but it's the macho thing to do.
I commited the cardinal sin and cut my springs. Added some camber bolts and 20k miles later, still happy as a clam...that is if clams are happy creatures...