I tried searching, but couldn't find a thread that lists all of the available coilover options for the C5.

I will be in the market next season and I'd like to try and compile all of my options in one place so I can compare.

If there are certain brands that you guys recommend, please post them up. If you can list any of the pros and cons of the particular brand you posted that would be great (especially if they offer something exclusive that no other brand has).

Thanks!

 

Lurk

 

I don't know which ones are truly the BEST because I only have experience with one brand.

I can say that I really like my LG GT2 Coil overs.

They have allowed me to lower my car (which I love the look), and still maintain a very nice quality ride.
I can make it softer, or harder a ride easily with the turn of a ****.
I had my car this low with the stock suspension and it was horrible to drive around town (too rough).
Its much more noticeable how the bumps are soaked up with the coil overs now that the transverse leaf springs are gone.
Handling is much improved overall compared to stock.
There is not the body roll like with stock suspension.
There is no front end DIP when hitting your brakes like with stock suspension.

I have not found a downside to them yet.

Hope this helps
Toque

 

I have Pfadt Inverted Coilovers. They are the lightest coilovers I have ever held. They have adjustment ***** on the bottom and are super easy to get to. I think they are the missing puzzle piece for the C5.

 

Do a search...there have been many threads on coilovers. Look under my user name for a detailed discussion a few years ago, along with pics of the installation.

 

There are several companies offering coil over kits for C5. LG, PFADT, Stance, QA-1 just to name the ones I am aware of. They all have users on the forum and will undoubtedly all have those who love them and those who have nothing but criticism. I chose the Stance for pricing reasons. They seem a copy if not a purchase of an earlier PFADT design. They are adjustable though not as easily as some others, but unless you are constantly adjusting for track use that may not be an issue. They allowed me the stance (no pun intended), lowering, and comfortable ride and performance I was looking for. My reasons may not be the same as others and hence they may have chosen another brand for other reasons. You will just have to do your research, comparisons, and make an informed decision. If you can ride in cars with different brands that would help. Good luck.

 

Thanks for all of the input so far guys.

$$$fromnuttin' I'll see if I can find your thread, thanks for the heads up.

Basically I'm hoping this thread will be a great place to find a lot of information in one place. Obviously everyone will have their preference, but I hope that if someone comes in here and slams or praises a product, they can back it up with evidence.

Keep it coming guys!

 

I had Pfadt single adjustable coilovers and light rate sway bars installed last Monday; just completed my first real drive after bringing it home. All settings were placed at the Pfadt recommended street settings. Also had the Pfadt recommended street tire street/track alignment. Looks like a successful mod.

The OEM felt under damped (particularly on rebound?), tended to porpoise, and it seemed like vertical motion would get translated into horizontal motions and the whole thing would shake. That's all gone; much better control, much better damped.

Car is significantly flatter in turns and under acceleration or braking.

OEM ride was plush to a fault. It is more firm now, but not at all unpleasant. I think I would need to put a lot more miles on it before making a damping change; the street recommendations seem very good. Good suspension should give ride quality and control.

Car got lowered beyond the 1" drop recommended by Pfadt; not too happy about that. Looks like an additional 0.6/0.7" in the front and 0.5" in the back. However the car is not making much contact with the ground. I'm supposed to put 1000 miles on it and go back for another alignment, and depending on how the driving goes I'll ask them to raise it.

In principle, one should be able to make damping adjustments without jacking up the car. I've reached the adjustment *****, but I'm not sure I'd be able to do the turning that would be required. Maybe if the car is raised to the Pfadt recommendation it will be just a little easier. Again, I'll drive a bit and see.

So far I'm very happy, and would recommend.

 

I'm going to go with Stance Coilovers, $2k for LG or Pfadt is kinda crazy for the average street guy like myself. Stance are around $1200 and will make a huge inprovement over the leaf springs! But thats just me!

 

When I was searching for coil overs spent many many hrs researching, searching and reading the many threads on the forum. "Toques" article was excellent. I ended up choosing LG's. Seriously looked at Pfadt's was literally a coin toss between LG and Pfadt. Very happy with them and their performance.
Very interested to hear about real reviews on Stance. Price is attractive, just be interested to read about them on Corvettes.

Blitz, pls let us all know how the instal and road testing goes!

 

Thing I like about eh pfadt (don't know enough about LG's) is not only the light weight, they mount upside down making the unsprung weight almost nothing compared to other units. And the adjustment ***** are on the bottom, making them very easy to get to.

 

Ditto, took Toque's recommendation love them!

 

I also ran the GT2's. I loved them Not sure why anyone would run anything else. They were designed by a company that knows Vettes and even uses their parts for racing.

 

Nice to have choices now..

No kidding those Stance's look exactly like the original pfadt coilovers.
Those were pretty good (still have them on mine) so as long as the internals are fine I'm sure they'll be okay.


HOWEVER

I have coilovers on both of my cars. I'd suggest also factoring-in the ease of adjustment.
For both kits it took awhile to get the right setting dialed-in. I'm talking just the shock valving part too.
The corner weighing, alignment is more $ and time.

My GTI's Koni's require that I dismount the rear coilovers and compress them to adjust.
There is some ways to cheat that, but it's still a pain. I pay a shop to deal with it so it's their pain, my $.
Still not 100% happy with the GTI's ride, but that's a story for another forum.

The original Pfadt's I am able to adjust these myself at least.
But these require holes in the back storage area floor, and it's also very easy to strip the adjustment screws.

So, my vote goes for the new Pfadt's (not sure how the LG's are adjusted) as they've come a long ways, and the have an easier non-obtrusive adjustment designed in.
At 2k they're a bargin compared to what was offered several years ago which pretty much was QA1's or Penske's that were over 5,000.

 

I've got Pfadt coilovers on my car. I don't know that they're the best, but that's what I chose and the ride is great,

 

Toque and I tend to agree to disagree.... I'm a Pfadt man....


that being said.... when I was considering adding coilovers "Toque" took me for a nice spirited spin in his car.. I was SOLD immediately on the G2's.. I am local to LGM and was no stranger to them. At the time ( 4 yrs ago) they would not budge on price. So I wne tto Aaron @ Pfadt.. Lets just say I got a sweet deal. The stance speaks for itself. the ride is incredible. I have since added the Pfadt light Sways...

 

Another vote for Pfadt. I installed their Featherlight SA c/o and more recently, their light weight sways in my garage. Couldn't be happier. Install was easy, instructions were clear and precise. Completely transformed the attitude of my car- I don't mean that only as it pertains to looks, but also in regards to the ride quality as well. I have my car lower than Pfadt recommends, (i have to jack up my car to jack up my car...) yet adjusting the dampening settings and ride height is still a piece of cake.

As far as price- shop around. You'll find that the $2k quoted here is higher than what you might be able to find by making a few calls or emails. Best bet is to find a local shop that carries them. Ask me how I know...

Last point- Customer service. I had an issue with one of my coilovers. PM'd Pfadt, they called me, spoke with me about the issue, and promptly set the wheels in motion to get me a replacement.
Hard to put a price on that kind of service.

Good luck with whatever brand you choose. Best mod ever!

 

Lots of great info here guys, thanks!

Anyone else is more than welcome to join the conversation!

 

Man that is one slick ride!

 

Well thank you Sir...