'89 Suspension Set-up - from scratch
Thread Starter
Instructor
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 110
Likes: 0
From: Cleveland Ohio
'89 Suspension Set-up - from scratch
Going over the suspension changes I wanted to make before spring, I recall reading in one of the Vette mags awhile back that the ideal set-up on a C4 for the street/high performance street, was ‘softer’ base springs w/Z51 Bilsteins and 30mm/24mm (Corvette Challenge) sway bars.
Has anyone else heard of this set-up?
Has anyone else heard of this set-up?
Melting Slicks
Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 2,168
Likes: 16
From: Phoenix AZ
Re: '89 Suspension Set-up - from scratch (johnboy89)
I gave this same reply to someone on the forum a day or two ago: put a base spring in the rear and use the Z51 spring up front. Your ride will improve greatly and IMO your handling will too, because too much spring in the back does not allow enough weight transfer to the rear wheels when accelerating. If you stop to think about it a C4 doesn't have that much weight in the back, so why would you need so much spring? I'm just telling you what I learned from my experience at the track and I have a whole bunch of coil springs in storage that I went through in testing to find just the right combination. Everyone's car will be different though according to weight distribution, horsepower, braking, tires, ect.
As far as the sway bars go, you will need to do some SOTP testing on a track to see what works. Generally speaking, if you soften the springs you will need to compensate with larger sway bars.
As far as the sway bars go, you will need to do some SOTP testing on a track to see what works. Generally speaking, if you soften the springs you will need to compensate with larger sway bars.
Team Owner
Joined: Aug 2000
Posts: 40,156
Likes: 45
From: San Pedro CA
Re: '89 Suspension Set-up - from scratch (johnboy89)
My 92 has the base FE1 suspension.
from the few fellow vette owners that I have spoken too, the FE1 is a nice compromise. The softer springs make for a good ride and still allow for good tire contact.
The key is maintaining tire contact with the road.
and a softer suspension will work for bumpy surfaces.
For example, at Sebring, a track noted for being bumpy... the cars are set up with very soft (relatively speaking) suspension.
from the few fellow vette owners that I have spoken too, the FE1 is a nice compromise. The softer springs make for a good ride and still allow for good tire contact.
The key is maintaining tire contact with the road.
and a softer suspension will work for bumpy surfaces.
For example, at Sebring, a track noted for being bumpy... the cars are set up with very soft (relatively speaking) suspension.
Thread Starter
Instructor
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 110
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From: Cleveland Ohio
Re: '89 Suspension Set-up - from scratch (bogus)
Thanks for the input guys - here's vettracer's aforementioned post:
“ My suggestion would be to try replacing your rear spring only with a base car spring from a salvage yard. In my opinion the only problem with the Z51 (84's especially) ride is that the rear is way too stiff. I replaced the rear spring on my '86 Z51 with a base suspension spring and I love the ride now. The bilstien shocks used on the softer springs are different from the Z51, if you want to change those you could but I didn't and the ride seems fine.
Another benefit I think you will see is that the car will hook up better on acceleration. I learned from tuning the coil-over’s on my race car that too much spring in the rear of a C4 is a very bad thing. You get much better weight transfer on acceleration with softer springs. A larger sway bar can be used in the rear to compensate if you really want to dial in the handling. “… vetracer
“ My suggestion would be to try replacing your rear spring only with a base car spring from a salvage yard. In my opinion the only problem with the Z51 (84's especially) ride is that the rear is way too stiff. I replaced the rear spring on my '86 Z51 with a base suspension spring and I love the ride now. The bilstien shocks used on the softer springs are different from the Z51, if you want to change those you could but I didn't and the ride seems fine.
Another benefit I think you will see is that the car will hook up better on acceleration. I learned from tuning the coil-over’s on my race car that too much spring in the rear of a C4 is a very bad thing. You get much better weight transfer on acceleration with softer springs. A larger sway bar can be used in the rear to compensate if you really want to dial in the handling. “… vetracer
Thread Starter
Instructor
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 110
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From: Cleveland Ohio
Re: '89 Suspension Set-up - from scratch (johnboy89)
Researching the Bilstein Z51 shocks - there appears to be a few variations of out there. Also, there is an autocross set available, but that may be too aggressive for a street set-up.
:banghead:
:banghead:
Drifting
Joined: Dec 2002
Posts: 1,861
Likes: 4
From: Houston TX
Re: '89 Suspension Set-up - from scratch (johnboy89)
For the shocks, if you want to have a comfy ride on the street and still have aggressive handling at the track, I'd spend a little money and get the Koni yellows. They're 5-position adjustable, adjusting both jounce and rebound at the same time (unfortunately, but double (and more) adjustable shocks are more $$) and you can adjust them when you go to the track for handling, and then soften them at the end of the day for the street.
Drifting
Joined: Jan 2002
Posts: 1,261
Likes: 4
From: Middle River MD
Re: '89 Suspension Set-up - from scratch (CorvetteZ51Racer)
My 89 FE1 equipped Vette has the 26t/22s setup. I like the smooth ride it provides, but wouldn't mind a bit sharper handling. Would I gain any handling capabilities with just a switch to a 30s/26s setup as on Z51/Z07 cars? Am I correct in assuming a step up in sway bar size while leaving the springs alone will sharpen handling and retain the decent ride?
Safety Car
Joined: Apr 1999
Posts: 4,623
Likes: 2
From: Ohio
Re: '89 Suspension Set-up - from scratch (HeeHaw89)
The short answer is yes.
You should also consider re-bushing the car if it's not already been done. Twelve year old bushings are hammered out and dry. If you're going to put even more stress on the control arm bushings and the camber rod bushings and trailing arm bushings (not to mention the diff carrier bushings) by increasing the anti roll bar sizes, they become the next weakest link.
You should also consider re-bushing the car if it's not already been done. Twelve year old bushings are hammered out and dry. If you're going to put even more stress on the control arm bushings and the camber rod bushings and trailing arm bushings (not to mention the diff carrier bushings) by increasing the anti roll bar sizes, they become the next weakest link.
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