Sorry, back on topic. How close is the exhaust to the Watts Link? With so many different exhaust manufacturers, any chance the Fays2 or Steeda will make contact with a specific brand of exhaust? Nice pics!

Dave

 

Your tires say HTR Z.

Haters.

It's a joke

 

I *think* just about any axle back systems that use factory hanger positions will probably work. If it is a full cat back system, that's where I see some possible variance and issues starting to arise. The manufacturers could take some additional pipe routing liberties that could cause problems.

Ok, I'm dense, and that's funny. I didn't know if it was a Fast and the Furious reference. Some ricer who lives near me made some reference to the Sumitomo tires I had on the car, but I didn't get it. He said it was from the movie. These tires are so much better than the Pirelli P-Zero Neros I had on the car. I referred to those as P-Zero Tractions.

 

Dave--

I appreciate that you think I might be worrying too much, but the fact is it's happened, and more than once.

Further, I'm not exactly a secretive guy. And sure the driver is a big part of the equation too, but it you have a great driver in a car not setup as well as a good driver's car--the good driver will likely win, so the car setup is still critically important. You could kill an intruded with a .22, but my bet is most would prefer something bigger.

I will happily help folks with setup, ask Jason. In fact I don't even hide those "details" you speak of from my customers, but it takes a little goodwill to get a little goodwill, it's still business. And with all due respect if you've not experienced the way people can be when searching for such information you really can't understand.

I hide nothing and folks can see the parts, and in fact I have mentioned more than once what I use for parts. Hell, the entire setup of my Camaro, parts-list wise was published in GM High Tech Performance a few years back, and I did a setup for one of their staff cars too.

And finally, I know it's maybe stupid to many, but I prefer to discuss parts with folks to make sure they understand them, or even need them for their use. This is how I choose to run my business. I'm not a mass-marketer, I'm not Summit or Jegs, or even American Muscle. I'm more niche than them, I'm hands on, I want to not sell parts, but sell a package that works complete with details. But I will not just lay the parts open for all to see, because folks can and do make half-assed decisions and if you get lost, more parts make it worse--not better.

 

Any exhaust that is well made and fits correctly won't be an issue. There are some that suck... many have issues with Pypes systems not even fitting well over the axle. Anytime you start combining multiple aftermarket parts you can run into more issues. These two Watts links run straight across from the PHB brace mounts, in actuality there is a touch more room for exhausts to clear, but again if you get one that doesn't fit well, there might be an issue. Of course that's the same situation with a PHB & brace too, stock or not.

 

I can see why Sam may be a little defensive about folks taking his knowledge and then going out penny pinching. I've only been in the Mustang scene for 5 months. I frequent four Mustang forums, three of which Sam is active on (speaking of such, Sam you should be on the one you're not on, but I digress). I can tell you with certainty that I have seen at least 4 or more times where Sam engages the customer with a ton of great information never trying to push his gear on them. He lays out his opinion along with facts to back it up. You come back a week later and see the same person's picture thread and them bragging how they saved $20 over buying from Sam on a $1k purchase and then rub it in that they got a free keychain or t-shirt. I've spent ~$2,500 total with Sam during this time. If I had shopped out every individual part and gotten them from the cheapest place, I may have saved $100 total. Peace of mind knowing that I can call somebody who knows their stuff if I have a problem or a question is well worth that extra $100. I value my time, and I respect the value of other people's time. I promise you I've gotten at least $100 worth of his time and knowledge in the phone calls, emails, and forum posts in which we've spoken. Just my $.02 worth (or in Sam's case my $2.5k worth).

 

total cost??

 

Whole suspension - ~$2,500 give or take a few $

Steeda Sport springs, Steeda HD strut mounts, Koni Sports, Strano Sways, Fays2 Watts Link, BBR LCA's, GT500 strut mounts (to make the Steeda mounts work on an '11 GT)

 

JSNYNG.....Do yourself a favor and try moving the propeller bolt down one notch. My car is also dropped an inch, and the difference in feel by lowering the roll center a notch is significant...

 

Will do sir. It was getting late when my mechanic and I were getting finished up. We put everything in the "middle" and figured I'd tinker with it in the coming weeks. I think I've got too much rear bar dialed into the car right now as well. I may just change the propeller bolt setting this weekend and see how the car reacts. Thanks for the tip.

 

I certainly think he should try... but there is a pretty significant difference between Steve's car and Jason's. Steve, you have more rear bar, and that does tend to like a lower rear RC height. Jason went to my adjustable 22, which is a little softer (and I think a little better overall I also changed my car to it).

The nice part of having options is you can try 'em and run what you like best. Eventually he'll move stuff around when he gets his race tires again anyway.

 

I'm just glad my new Dewalt Cordless Impact Wrench is being delivered via
Amazon today. It gets old using my little 2 gallon Delta portable compressor to remove one bolt, wait for the tank to fill up, remove another bolt, wait for the tank to fill up...

 

Hey Sam --

Any benefit in going two slots lower than center?? I read through the info on the Fays2 site, and there was a good write up of the difference between up one hole (drift time) and down one hole (quite stable), but he left off before saying what it was like two holes down. Just wondering if you have any experience with it. Not too hard to change out, but it's still a hassle just as an experiment.

 

As they say "your mileage may vary". Running the highest position isn't dangerous or anything like that, in fact it's about the same RC height as a car with a PHB. And they way I tend to like my cars and the way I have tuned the bars and such I do tend to run my RC height higher.

This is a very personal thing, some will run lower some higher. The heavier the rear springs or rear bar, or the less sticky the tires are you'll probably prefer lower. If you run sticky tires, use a more moderate spring/bar setup, anything that sticks the car better, then you'll likely tend to run a little higher RC height relative to others with a more loose base setup.

 

Love this set-up. I wish Koni would start making the Yellow's again.

 

They have started. I'm going with STR.Ts though.

 

SAY WHAT?!?!? So they're being shipped out now?!?!

 

I believe so, I saw someone post that actually called Koni and they said they have started shipping.

 

Uh-oh... I shouldn't have read this thread. I am serioulsy envious of this setup and I have spent the last 15 minutes day dreaming and trying to figure out how to afford a similar setup for my car.

Awesome pics and information...

Would any of these components on their own be worth installing for folks who don't have 2.5Gs to drop all at once? Which components make the biggest difference?

 

You don't need $2.5g's....

Springs $200
Shocks $400-$700
Watts link: $600
Strut tops: $85

Springs, shocks and strut tops first.