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I want to upgrade my car’s suspension as the stock feels unstable has wheel hop and a lot roll around corners (if that’s the correct terminology)
I want a strictly STREET setup I don’t go on the track. I do like taking mountain roads and hard corners tho.
Here’s what I had in mind please correct me and give me any suggestions or input as I don’t wanna spend a fortune to achieve a good street ride for me and my wife.
1. Blistein shocks and struts kit (comes with springs)
https://www.steeda.com/bilstein-b12-suspension-pro-kit-11-14-all-395-46-228871.html
2. Steeda heavy duty strut mounts
https://www.steeda.com/steeda-mustang-upper-strut-mounts-555-8120.html
3. BMR suspension components for the rear
1. A arm support brace
https://www.americanmuscle.com/bmr-aarm-support-red-0514.html
2. BMR Adjustable pan hard bar
https://www.americanmuscle.com/bmr-panhard-rod-adjustable-poly-red-0514.html
3. BMR upper pan hard rod support
https://www.americanmuscle.com/bmr-upper-panhard-rod-support-red-0514.html
4. BMR lower control arms non adjustable
https://www.americanmuscle.com/bmr-rear-lca-poly-red-0514.html
5. BMR non adjustable rear upper control arm
https://www.americanmuscle.com/bmr-uca-poly-red-1114.html
4.white line adjustable front and rear sway bar kit
https://www.americanmuscle.com/whiteline-adjustable-front-rear-sway-bars-0514.html
lastly I considered these control arms for front
5. BMR non adjustable a arms
https://www.americanmuscle.com/bmr-mustang-non-adjustable-front-lower-control-arms-polydelrin-standard-ball-joint-red-aa754r.html
what do I need and what do I not out of this to obtain a “Stable” safe comfortable ride or do I need to cut back
whats the order recommended to proceed with this? Shocks springs rear control arms and pan hard bar? That be enough maybe for what I need?
I Would Like You To Take a Look at This Introduction and See if Any of The Interaction Rings a Bell For You. It s a Lot About Expectation and an Older But Looks New Car and Also Someone Who Is Going From One Type of Current Late Model Vehicle to an Older One. I'm Wondering If Your Car is At The Top of its Game or Does it Have Simple Worn Out Parts and Being a Convertible Which will Have a Lot of Body Flex Which Has Prompted the Search For a Complete Revamp of Suspension.
A Little Back Story On Your Part on Your Car Past Ownership Experience and The Overall Condition of Car Would Also Help Greatly For Input From Others.
That is a very complete "kit" that you listed; probably more than you really "need" to firm up the ride a bit and fix the wheel hop. I don't have time to go in to full details right now, but quick run-down:
1) to firm up ride and reduce body-roll in corners: lowering springs and struts
the kit you listed seems OK, but does not say how much those springs lower, just says "up to 40 mm"
I would avoid more than 1" drop in the front, 1.25" in the rear to level the car a little ... Steeda "Sport" springs are good for this, but the kit does not way what springs are included
Bilstein struts/shocks are a pretty good choice; Koni STR-T is another option
to re-center the rear after lowering, you need the adjustable panhard bar, if you care that the rear axle is a little off-center
upper mounts can be replace with GT500 mounts, or the Steeda adjustable ones. Without adjustment the camber will be on the negative end of the spec range at 1" drop. The GT500 mounts can be reversed to remove the extra camber, or you can keep the camber for better cornering
2) to eliminate the wheel hop, you need better rear lower control arms - the ones you listed should be fine
adjustable rear lower control arms are only needed if you plan to fine-tune the thrust angle
an adjustable rear upper control arm is a good idea if you want to adjust pinion angle later ... probably not needed, but doesn't hurt to get an adjustable one while you are replacing it
I would probably start with just these two things and see how it works out, before I spent the money on all that other stuff
I Would Like You To Take a Look at This Introduction and See if Any of The Interaction Rings a Bell For You. It s a Lot About Expectation and an Older But Looks New Car and Also Someone Who Is Going From One Type of Current Late Model Vehicle to an Older One. I'm Wondering If Your Car is At The Top of its Game or Does it Have Simple Worn Out Parts and Being a Convertible Which will Have a Lot of Body Flex Which Has Prompted the Search For a Complete Revamp of Suspension.
A Little Back Story On Your Part on Your Car Past Ownership Experience and The Overall Condition of Car Would Also Help Greatly For Input From Others.
I can see that being the case for sure 😂. And definitely see your point.
Backdrop on me I have history working as a mechanic and have replaced quite a few suspensions particularly on trucks such as f 150- f350 Silverado 1500 to 3500. I have good understanding of how it works and the components as a whole. That being said I am not as knowledgeable on this particular car in specific but am as a whole. To sum it up I can a least under stand what’s being said and have an intelligible conversation about it as a whole.
thanks for taking the time and for everyone’s patience this is my 2nd convertible mustang first was a 94 and I absolutely love this car.. went from a Camaro fan to mustang overnight!
Car was purchased last week. Has a ford dealership premium warranty to 106000 miles
currently has 70000 miles one owner no accidents. Was barely driven and serviced well. Was told the sway bar and links were replaced. I haven’t gotten the car on a lift to check bushings, tie rods, ball joints, wheel bearings, shocks and struts as of yet and agree that wear very well could be the culprit. As this car did sit and wasn’t driven a lot hence the mileage.
I do want some degree of suspension upgrades and modifications even if the symptoms are wear and tear on the components so any advice is much appreciated. Also being a convertible is there any upgrade or weak points I should be mindful of in addition?
thanks for everyone’s time in input i greatly appreciate it!
That is a very complete "kit" that you listed; probably more than you really "need" to firm up the ride a bit and fix the wheel hop. I don't have time to go in to full details right now, but quick run-down:
1) to firm up ride and reduce body-roll in corners: lowering springs and struts
the kit you listed seems OK, but does not say how much those springs lower, just says "up to 40 mm"
I would avoid more than 1" drop in the front, 1.25" in the rear to level the car a little ... Steeda "Sport" springs are good for this, but the kit does not way what springs are included
Bilstein struts/shocks are a pretty good choice; Koni STR-T is another option
to re-center the rear after lowering, you need the adjustable panhard bar, if you care that the rear axle is a little off-center
upper mounts can be replace with GT500 mounts, or the Steeda adjustable ones. Without adjustment the camber will be on the negative end of the spec range at 1" drop. The GT500 mounts can be reversed to remove the extra camber, or you can keep the camber for better cornering
2) to eliminate the wheel hop, you need better rear lower control arms - the ones you listed should be fine
adjustable rear lower control arms are only needed if you plan to fine-tune the thrust angle
an adjustable rear upper control arm is a good idea if you want to adjust pinion angle later ... probably not needed, but doesn't hurt to get an adjustable one while you are replacing it
I would probably start with just these two things and see how it works out, before I spent the money on all that other stuff
thanks for the input! I’ll reach out to steeda and see what springs are included with the bilstein strut and shock package or I could buy them individually and pick the springs separately!
Lower 1 inch would be perfect as that is what mine is. Another thing is to cut the bump stops in the rear. I used the GT500 mounts rotated 180° that will give you almost neutral camber. Bilsteins work great. Make sure the strut is compatible with the mounts as there were some changes on shaft sizes. More expensive after market mounts are great if you want to track the car and need caster camber adjustments.
1/2 inch off the bump stops.
SUPERCHARGED RED ROCKET ------------------Master-Moderator
Joined: May 11, 2006
Posts: 10,390
Likes: 2,293
From: Carnegie, PA
Agree 100% with all the above... If you're looking for both handling and optimum ride quality, I would also suggest Bilstein B6 struts/shocks and pair them with either Roush or Steeda Sport Springs as mentioned... However, I would stay away from Koni dampers, including the Koni STR-T as they've been well known for having quality control issues... I also wouldn't suggest BMR springs unless you're willing to sacrifice some ride quality just in order to improve your suspension's handling... If only I were able, to do it over again, I would have gone with the Bilstein B6 struts/shocks and Steeda Sport Springs over my Koni adjustable yellow struts/shocks along with Eibach Pro Kit Springs, due to the increase in suspension stiffness and overall sacrifice you give up in ride quality in order to improve the suspension handling...
Last edited by m05fastbackGT; 4/24/24 at 01:37 PM.
Stiffer Rate Components Would Increase Flex. From What The Reviews Said it Seems This Might be a Good Starting Point. I Don't Have any On Hands With The Kits But Anybody That Has Some Real World With These Please Chime in! I Found The Reviews By The Vert Owners to Be Encouraging! Wheel Hop as Well Was Mentioned!
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Joined: December 17, 2012
Posts: 2,256
Likes: 1,120
From: Western NC
Convertibles are a different breed for sure. You have worn out parts at 70k miles. It's that simple. My old 60,000 miles 2007 GT/CS 'vert was 'night and day' different from when it was new. Age, wear and tear, whatever, and most of that mileage was highway on top of that with no abuse. Parts just get old. That crisp handling through the 'twisties' here in the mountains of western NC was really decent. I was due for all new suspension parts for 'top of the line' handling but I had to sell the car unfortunately.
Fast forward to my very low mileage 2014 GT convertible and I have all the crisp clean handling I need. You would have to literally race the car and push the limits to really feel a difference with those high cost performance pieces. If that is what you want, fine, but you mentioned that you did not go to the track. My GT is not the same as my two Corvettes or the Z3 I once owned but is darn close for those days that I like spirited driving. and there would be no reason to spend BIG $$$ on upgrading. You may feel different and that's your call. Good luck with whatever you choose.
Zero issues handling the Tail of the Dragon in my Mustangs with stock suspension.
2009 C6 2002 Z3 was like a go-kart 1996 C4 Z51 2007 GT/CS 2014 GT
having more flex disqualifies the same suspension components? Or just warrants additional suspension support?
the flexibility of the chassis just means that it will bend around a bit more than the coupe .... I doubt any normal person would notice the difference though
The convertible is also a little heavier than the coupe, that is why they sometimes offer different springs -- but the difference is very small. If there is a convertible-specific part, that is probably better than a non-convertible-specific part
they say that bracing on the convertible is more important that on the coupe; such as strut-tower brace and rear seat x-brace; also I think there are some under-side braces that can be added, in addition to the ones that are already there
4/21/24 | 09:48 PM
