914 racer...suspention questions...

[CHA914]

I have been looking on past posts and here is what I am looking to buy...

Shocks (Koni Sport)
Adjustable Perch Kit
SwayBar - Front 22mm
SwayBar - Rear - only for track use -
weltmeister adj. Drop Links - needed?
Camber Plates - these needed?- pricy!!
Hollow Torsion Bars 22mm? is hollow worth the extra 40bucks?

I already have 180lb springs in the rear, plus I have the chassis stiffening kit to weld on...bushing ideas? don't know much about these...

John, you mentioned an adj. front sway bar in your article...advantages/disadvantages? price?

How does this sound so far?

thanks for the help,

Tony

[campbellcj]

Tony,

As far as I know, all aftermarket (i.e. 22mm) swaybars are adjustable. Therefore you don't need the weltmeister droplinks separately - the adjustable arms & links should come with your new 22mm bar.

In terms of bushings, you probably will be fine on the regular "street" hardness polygraphite bushings. The "race" ones, as well as the spherical metal bearings ($$) are *really* stiff.

The tubular swaybars supposedly don't make any real difference in handling, but they are slightly lighter. I'm going with them on my car.

The 22/22 front and 180lb rear is the exact setup I'm going with also. I have heard that is a nicely balanced configuration.

I don't know if the strut tower camber plates/spherical bushings are worth it or not. I wasn't planning on doing that anytime soon.

Cheers,

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Chris C.
73 914 2.0
70 911E Targa
campbell.chris@gte.net

[Dave at Pelican Parts]

The only time camber plates are really worth it is if you can't get enough camber or caster out of the front suspension with the stock adjustments. Even then, you can lengthen the adjustment slots and get more out of it that way. If that's not enough, camber plates are a must--and you've got a really gnarly alignment!

The camber plates can be a bit easier to adjust than the stock setup, but that mostly makes a difference if you're doing lots of adjustments.

--DD

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Pelican Parts 914 Tech Support

A few pics of my car: http://www.pelicanparts.com/gallery/Dave_Darling

[John Rogers]

As noted earlier, if you get the complete swaybar kit it comes with the drop links, but call to make sure. Being able to adjust one side could be an advantage. Depending on what the front tires do you may not have to modify the upper front strut mounts. Setup the negative camber and do some runs and read the tire temps, if the outside is more than a couple of degrees hotter than the inside then more negative is needed. Good luck.

[clubracr]

You may eventually consider the camber plates when you can afford them. I put a wheel off the track a few years ago and it shot the strut through the stock strut plate and into the hood. I also run 22mm front, 180 rear, front adjustable sway bar, and NO rear bar. Remember to unhook the front bar in the rain.

[CHA914]

Thanks for all the replys...I cant wait to start working on the suspention...Right now the car is too high in the rear and too soft in the front (and I still think it handles great) so I cant wait to see what this car can do with the proper setup

I am sure I will ask more questions when I start pulling stuff apart!

Thanks again,

Tony

[Joe Bob]

The rear sway bar is not recommended in a lot of cases unless you have a limited slip differential. Even then, I never used one and most of the top competitors that I chased used them either.

The four best places on shock, sway and t/bar prices are GPR, Pelican, Paragon and Dave Turner Motosports in San Diego. Don't be afraid to call and compare prices.

[speedemon666]

CHA914,
Check to see if your struts will accept the koni shocks before you purchase them. You may have to replace your struts if you REALLY want to change shock brands. I recommend that you get Bilstiens instead. My maechanic talked me out of Koni's when I had my front suspension upgraded. And be sure to get a set that are adustable for the rear suspension. Everything else sounds good.