suspension handling issues after upgrade
 

Vehicle: 1985 Carrera 109,000 miles

New tires front 205/55/15
rear 225/50/15

set to euro height

installed the following:
bump steer kit
turbo tie rods
ball joints
control arm and sway bar bushings poly flex
new rear standard spring plate bushings
new rear sway bar bushings
new hd bilstein front strut inserts
new bilstein rear hd shocks
corner balance and alignment
new polyflex strut bushings
alignment rear 1.5 deg camber no toe
front .50 deg camber 6 deg caster 10' toe in

complaint: the car handles better around sweeping turns as long as I don't over-steer but floats at higher speeds.
It feels like a boat in water, slow to respond and it feels like if I over correct I might loose control. You know how racers warm up their tires at the beginning of an event by weaving back and forth? This car is slow to respond and not sharp for lack of a better term feels like I'm in sand. My friends 77 with no mods feels tighter.
thanks for any help.

Complementary photos

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Very nice...tire pressure ?

As per factory 34 rear 29 front I believe. You know, a good explanation of the feel I'm getting is just like too little tire pressure.

you should have a little bit of "toe in" in the rear for most street driving. It will make the car feel more stable. Front toe can be at Zero for some better response. But I think most of the time factory toe in is best

what about your front shock inserts? you mention new rears, maybe the fronts are bad that would cause that kind of feeling.

Thanks but they're new bilstein heavy duty inserts.

Don't forget your friends 77 probably weighs less too. Less weight, less roll.

Thanks Joe I know, but this is strange it feels as-though when turning at a good rate of speed if I turn the wheel a little extra I'll lose control of the car.

I have a real heavy Solara and it handles like a rat in a sewer pipe.

Directional tread?

Todd

Yes

I know wrong toe in the rear mostly if toed out will make the rear feel like you have a flat tire.

check steering rack for play... when you turn the steering wheel (even a little) do you see the wheels respond?

What is the bump steer kit? The two washers at the steering rack, or the more elaborate product? The latter made my 74, set slightly lower than your's, into an unresponsive but dangerous feeling beast.

Yes the rack responds with a small amount of effort it seems very responsive.

The bump steer kit is the two washers. Are you saying I should remove said kit?

Pull some strings on it. Could be they messed up the alignment.

I would try some toe-in at the rear.

Re bump steer washers... no, don't remove. I think you've done the right thing. There is a much more expensive variation from Rebel, Elephant and others which can produce bizarre results unless you really know what you are doing and have lowered the car a good deal more than you have. I doubt the washers are your problem. In fact I doubt that any of the hardware changes you made have anything to do with your symptoms. I'll bet it's all in the setup, somewhere.

The more expensive version is meant only for cars with raised spindles.

If you only lowered it to European specs height, why do you need a bump steer kit?

The Cap'n

Are both front and rear tires new? Different tires front and rear can cause very erratic symptoms.
I agree with the Cap'n but doubt your washers would cause the symptoms you're talking about.

When you went back to the shop that did the corner balance and alignment what did they say?? Hopefully you went to a shop that is very experienced with the 911 suspension.

Also, one of the best bits of advice I picked up on this forum is to not set the tire pressure per the door jam spec of 29/36. I have the same setup as you described and I run 34/36 and the handling is much better.

Good luck!:)

Agree with the others that a touch (1/32") of rear toe in could help settle the rear of the car. New tires may need a couple hundred miles to wear in. Which brand tires?

Nice lookng ride. Prussian Blue is the best blue, but I'm biased. You cars looks very much like mine all the way down to the euro tail lamps. -J

+1, bascially more toe in rear vs front. Mine is set zero front and 1/32 each side rear 90MPH+ no issues, but I do have a tail front lip that also helps.

I had the same experience right after I lowered mine below euro height where the car feels like it literally floats or similar to hydroplaning to the other lane until I had the alignment set correctly. Runs tight now even without corner balance.

FWIW my car handles way better now that I removed the sway bars. Rear sway bar bushings were shot and that might have something to do with it, but feels much more stable now. Doesn't want to swap ends in the tire-warming swerve test.

Okay, some progress. I measured the front toe this morning and guess what? Toed out 1/4 inch reset to 1/8" toe in much better but still not right. I'll have to go to another shop for alignment check because the other corners could be off.
Thanks for all your suggestions.

This when I had my 85 Carrera was a huge help. If your running the factory rubber front spoiler without a tali, at high sppeds thhe car is not very stable(at least from my experience). best would be to remove the front rubber spoiler or add a tail.

You have your toe in setting backwards, zero toe in front, 1/16" toe in rear.

Lots of info on the web on rear toe independent suspension settings

Yet another "you need toe in in the rear" opinion to add to the bunch ...