Shock Poll
Le Mans Master
Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 5,727
Likes: 38
From: Fremont CA
Re: Shock Poll (ScubaJKD)
Thumper that is the exact reason I started this pole. I have the VP mac performance suspension installed with bilsitens and the ride is very hard. I would like to find an alternative that will soften it up a bit and still be valved for the fiberglass front and rear springs. Thoughts anyone ?
I don't think Vette Brakes is going to like my thoughts and they may be damaging to many people's egos but, here we go: GM spent millions of dollars on the C2/3 suspension design and engineering, how much do you think Vette Brakes spenty on it's engineering and reliability testing? You are the field engineering team on their products. I have been following the changes to their catalog over the year and within the last 3-5 years they have introduced a "specially valved" shock for their composite rear spring. The front stuff is absolute JUNK! in my opinion and I hold the same opinion for the dual mount rear spring set-up. I crewed on race teams that ran SCCA Trans Am events and we used stock style suspension locations and did quite well with them, we also tried the Guldstrand 5 bar rear end set-up and for all the money and effort, it really didn't return a great deal of performance but, was much easier to align the back end of the car. I have driven the Vette Brakes front/rear transverse leaf spring set-up and am not the least bit impressed with the spring rates or dampening of the shocks. My 1972 LT-1 with a somewhat stock F-41 set-up will kick a** on Vette Brake stuff at our local autocross races (has and will continue to do so!) There are areas of the car where money is better spent, for $1600-$1800 bucks, I am buying a second set of lightweight wheels and some sticky race tires for my C3. I don't care how those pretty catalogs read, the stuff dosen't work in the "real world". Vette Brakes does have the parts avalible to build a F-41 style car, I drive my car for pleasure on the weekends and it still has an acceptiable ride while being able to win at the races when I take the car there on race weekends. Everything is a compromise, the F-41 is pretty easy to install and offers a predictable suspension when you are throwing your car around aththe autocross races. The F-41 is a 550 in/lb front ciols/ 330 in/lb 7 leaf rear, the Vette Brakes composite leaf may work better than my 7 leaf with the main leaf substituted for a Guldstrand main but, I need the clearance the Guldstrand leaf gives my tires, what you probably cannot accomplish is the time I have spent on setting up the suspension I have on the car, things like alignment, corner weights, sway bar installation, and others I refuse to disclose because some of my competitors are probably reading this post and have way more $$$ than I do and I need my "Unfair Advantage" like Penske and Donahue worked hard for! My humble opinion of C2/3 Vette suspension based on years of busting knuckles on these cars!
Moss
I don't think Vette Brakes is going to like my thoughts and they may be damaging to many people's egos but, here we go: GM spent millions of dollars on the C2/3 suspension design and engineering, how much do you think Vette Brakes spenty on it's engineering and reliability testing? You are the field engineering team on their products. I have been following the changes to their catalog over the year and within the last 3-5 years they have introduced a "specially valved" shock for their composite rear spring. The front stuff is absolute JUNK! in my opinion and I hold the same opinion for the dual mount rear spring set-up. I crewed on race teams that ran SCCA Trans Am events and we used stock style suspension locations and did quite well with them, we also tried the Guldstrand 5 bar rear end set-up and for all the money and effort, it really didn't return a great deal of performance but, was much easier to align the back end of the car. I have driven the Vette Brakes front/rear transverse leaf spring set-up and am not the least bit impressed with the spring rates or dampening of the shocks. My 1972 LT-1 with a somewhat stock F-41 set-up will kick a** on Vette Brake stuff at our local autocross races (has and will continue to do so!) There are areas of the car where money is better spent, for $1600-$1800 bucks, I am buying a second set of lightweight wheels and some sticky race tires for my C3. I don't care how those pretty catalogs read, the stuff dosen't work in the "real world". Vette Brakes does have the parts avalible to build a F-41 style car, I drive my car for pleasure on the weekends and it still has an acceptiable ride while being able to win at the races when I take the car there on race weekends. Everything is a compromise, the F-41 is pretty easy to install and offers a predictable suspension when you are throwing your car around aththe autocross races. The F-41 is a 550 in/lb front ciols/ 330 in/lb 7 leaf rear, the Vette Brakes composite leaf may work better than my 7 leaf with the main leaf substituted for a Guldstrand main but, I need the clearance the Guldstrand leaf gives my tires, what you probably cannot accomplish is the time I have spent on setting up the suspension I have on the car, things like alignment, corner weights, sway bar installation, and others I refuse to disclose because some of my competitors are probably reading this post and have way more $$$ than I do and I need my "Unfair Advantage" like Penske and Donahue worked hard for! My humble opinion of C2/3 Vette suspension based on years of busting knuckles on these cars!
Moss
[Modified by Solid LT1, 8:58 PM 4/27/2004]
Team Owner
Joined: Feb 2003
Posts: 30,183
Likes: 313
From: Lake Norman NC
Re: Shock Poll (ddecart)
KYBs here. Not impressed with them. Wish I could tune them myelf!!
