Worthwhile suspension mods for handling?

1191 Views 19 Replies 11 Participants Last post by reddeadg8, 2 mo ago

Contradiction

Discussion Starter · 2 mo ago

Hi everyone,

I want to do some suspension upgrades soon to my 16 SS with magride and I’m debating what else is smart to add for parts besides the springs. I plan on doing King SSLs front and rear.

I don’t have any plans to drag race. I’m not trying to turn this into a dedicated autocross or track car, but it’s likely that I will do a few autocross events throughout the year for fun and I may eventually do an infrequent HPDE. I’ll also want to get more into doing some Northern GA mountain runs over time.

So I have some questions for what I may want to install at the same time. I’m trying to figure out how far down the rabbit hole I want to go in terms of cost and driving comfort, as this is my daily driver too.

Are adjustable end links necessary for a lowered car (1.5” drop on the SSLs), or do a just want a better quality fixed end link? I’m thinking of the Whiteline adjustable if I go that route.

I see BMR offers a lot for these cars rear suspension. How much of that would benefit me?

I don’t think I want to bear the expense of the Lower Control Arms and a full front and rear bushing kit for them either.

I am curious on whether or not the non adjustable trailing arms and toe arms are really that beneficial for handling, not drag racing?

More power to the ground is great, but do I need both?

Are the trailing arms enough?

How about rear diff bushings? Are those a must do? At least a poly kit? I don’t think I want to deal with the NVH of solid ones.

And finally, are poly rear subframe cradle bushings worth it?

Again, I want to improve handling, but I also don’t want to sacrifice all of the comfort for a daily driver too.

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RRoberts

· #2 · 2 mo ago

Welcome to the forum, and you are starting with a complex subject. There have been several threads in the past, and a diversity of opinions. Searching for and reading past threads will help you understand the issues and the trade-offs, as well as identify the firms supplying parts.

One cautionary note: BMR offers some parts that will fit the SS, but these are an extension of its investment in the 5th generation Camaro which is based on an Australian chassis design and was sold in far greater numbers. To be specific, the rear lower control arms sold by BMR are Camaro parts, and will cause the SS to sit higher off the ground. The parts appear similar, but a side-by-side comparison will show the difference in the shock absorber pick-up point. The rear lower control arm on the SS is not at all the weak link in the rear suspension, aside from too-soft bushings.

Reactions: 5

SaberOne

· #3 · 2 mo ago (Edited)

I have the BMR trailing arms and adjustable tie rods, but not installed yet. I have installed the BMR frame connectors, spacers, end-links, and that helped to stabilize the ride, and eliminated creaking when negotiating driveway slopes at an angle. I also installed Whiteline sway bars, and that made a profound difference in handling. If I had to do it over again, I would’ve started with the rear bar. Current set up; no regrets.

Reactions: 5

willy92

· #4 · 2 mo ago

When you say "worthwhile" suspension mods, unless you are a serious racer, I wouldn't bother with harder subframe cradle bushings, diff bushings and stuff like that because you are going to transfer more noise and harshness vs the little benefit you would receive. I would do f/r sway bars, bushings and links, and then subframe connector with tunnel brace. But then, I had a 2014 which had stiffer springs, too.

IMHO

Reactions: 4

GXPaycheck

· #5 · 2 mo ago

1st question is what do you want to do with the car? It does pretty good in stock form. Ask Randy Pobst😁

Reactions: 5

Contradiction

Discussion Starter · #6 · 2 mo ago

GXPaycheck said:
1st question is what do you want to do with the car? It does pretty good in stock form. Ask Randy Pobst😁

It is great out of the box! I just want to lower it slightly and see what I can do to improve body roll mostly.

As mentioned in my original post I'm not looking to make it a dedicated track car, I'm just looking to improve handling if I can mainly for occassional AutoX and mountain roads.

15SuperSport

· #7 · 2 mo ago

Contradiction said:
It is great out of the box! I just want to lower it slightly and see what I can do to improve body roll mostly.

As mentioned in my original post I'm not looking to make it a dedicated track car, I'm just looking to improve handling if I can mainly for occassional AutoX and mountain roads.

I'd listen to that @willy92 guy's post above. Not only will you find a few race cars in his signature, but he's also been around the block a few times. Okay a lot of times. Like maybe even in a covered wagon amount of times.

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boiler

· #8 · 2 mo ago

I don't mind the body roll..... I actually prefer a car I can feel move around

Reactions: 5

willy92

· #9 · 2 mo ago

15SuperSport said:
I'd listen to that @willy92 guy's post above. Not only will you find a few race cars in his signature, but he's also been around the block a few times. Okay a lot of times. Like maybe even in a covered wagon amount of times.

Yeah. Be careful when you start modifying for an occasional autocross. Here's my street car,(from many years ago,of course) turn autocross car, turn race car.

Tire Wheel Car Vehicle Hood

IMSA RS Series Group | William Spencer, Mazda RX-2, two different years at ... https://m.facebook.com/groups/2555393484738972/posts/3014995702112079/

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Contradiction

Discussion Starter · #10 · 2 mo ago

RRoberts said:
One cautionary note: BMR offers some parts that will fit the SS, but these are an extension of its investment in the 5th generation Camaro which is based on an Australian chassis design and was sold in far greater numbers. To be specific, the rear lower control arms sold by BMR are Camaro parts, and will cause the SS to sit higher off the ground. The parts appear similar, but a side-by-side comparison will show the difference in the shock absorber pick-up point. The rear lower control arm on the SS is not at all the weak link in the rear suspension, aside from too-soft bushings.

Appreciate the warning about the rear LCAs! I'll definitely skip those then.

15SuperSport

· #11 · 2 mo ago

willy92 said:
Yeah. Be careful when you start modifying for an occasional autocross. Here's my street car,(from many years ago,of course) turn autocross car, turn race car.

IMSA RS Series Group | William Spencer, Mazda RX-2, two different years at ... https://m.facebook.com/groups/2555393484738972/posts/3014995702112079/

At least now I know where the 92 comes from, I thought it was your age...😁

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Contradiction

Discussion Starter · #12 · 2 mo ago

SaberOne said:
I have the BMR trailing arms and adjustable tie rods, but not installed yet. I have installed the BMR frame connectors, spacers, end-links, and that helped to stabilize the ride, and eliminated creaking when negotiating driveway slopes at an angle. I also installed Whiteline sway bars, and that made a profound difference in handling. If I had to do it over again, I would’ve started with the rear bar. Current set up; no regrets.

Appreciate the info! Yeah I was thinking about the Whiteline RSB too. Sounds like a good upgrade.

Contradiction

Discussion Starter · #13 · 2 mo ago

willy92 said:
When you say "worthwhile" suspension mods, unless you are a serious racer, I wouldn't bother with harder subframe cradle bushings, diff bushings and stuff like that because you are going to transfer more noise and harshness vs the little benefit you would receive. I would do f/r sway bars, bushings and links, and then subframe connector with tunnel brace. But then, I had a 2014 which had stiffer springs, too.

IMHO

Thanks for the reply! appreciate your advice.

heffray

· #14 · 2 mo ago

Get your alignment checked, but you'll need to do that as part of the spring install anyway. Max out front camber, rear camber should be less than front, zero toe or maybe a hair of toe-in. If you don't want to pay a shop (especially for front toe, every time you change something) this method works well: Setting Toe With a Laser Level - NASA Speed News Magazine

I'd do front caster washers pretty early: it's an easy standalone change, and more caster is an improvement. Pedders front camber offset bushings are a way to add more camber and improve steering feel, if you're looking for 2+ degrees.

For rear end links on a 2015+ car, you need something that's a straight rod, and not one of the earlier designs with ball joints. Whiteline's product catalog for this is incorrect, but the included ones with the Superpro adjustable rear bar are right with that change.

Cradle bushings (I did PSR aluminum) aren't trivial to install, but also don't have any NVH penalties unless you go too firm with replacement diff mounts. Install process and price are the same for aluminum or poly.

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SSUP

· #15 · 2 mo ago

Will the BMR subframe connectors work with the Halo supercars driveshaft tunnel brace?

Which bushings should we consider replacing? I just past 60k on my 2016

TrackRat

· #16 · 2 mo ago

boiler said:
I don't mind the body roll..... I actually prefer a car I can feel move around

Nice track vid! What's your preferred wheel and tire setup? I always ask when I see another SS at the track...

boiler

· #17 · 2 mo ago

Started with 255-35 19 and 285-35 19 staggered and tore up the supecars 3s last Nov blistered the fronts really bad in four sessions once I started pushing the car harder. In Feb I switched to a 275-40 18 square setup to help with the understeer and so far I like them. The 40 sidewall was due to the 35s being on back order. On the current set I am around ~150

What are you running?

Reactions: 1

TrackRat

· #18 · 2 mo ago

I'm on the stock wheels with Yoko Advan Apex V601. They did OK at Mid-O, but I was leaning a lot in some transitions and have more aggressive wear on the outside shoulder than I hoped for. I purchased those adjustable Kmac strut mounts, rear bolt camber kit, and sways/endlinks from Whiteline. I'm just trying to have fun with it until I can get my trackrat back up and running, so I'm modding the car a little as possible. I just had a hard time eating tires like that (or so goes my justification). If you see my on here posting about power adders though, stop and talk some sense into me please...

Running square is appealing though. What all had to be done to run 275 in the front? Also, I'd take the 40 sidewall all things considered in my situation, just for the on street comfort! Thanks for sharing.

boiler said:
Started with 255-35 19 and 285-35 19 staggered and tore up the supecars 3s last Nov blistered the fronts really bad in four sessions once I started pushing the car harder. In Feb I switched to a 275-40 18 square setup to help with the understeer and so far I like them. The 40 sidewall was due to the 35s being on back order. On the current set I am around ~150

What are you running?

boiler

· #19 · 2 mo ago

The only change for the square setup was a 3mm spacer up front to clear the struts, I think with a 35 sidewall I might be able to go without them. I love Mid O btw, went to a few ALMS races in 05 and 06 when the Porsche Spyder was beating up on the old Audi R8s

Were you the one that had the issues with the Kmac strut mounts?

How is this for some outside wear....... That was before I switched to the square setup and was running ~-1° front camber its now at -1.7° the most they could get out of the stock setup. That's the nice thing about a track wheel setup I can run a 40 on the street and a 35 on the track. Apex had a great sale over black Friday I picked up those forged wheels for ~$1800

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reddeadg8

· #20 · 2 mo ago

I would not lower the car.

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