Im looking to do some suspension upgrades and Im not sure where to start. I drive a couple of pretty windy roads to and from work,pretty fun actually. My only problem is that my Z feels a little "sloppy" for lack of a better term.

Im all stock except for Tein S tech springs. I dont really want to do coil overs because I dont really want to lower it any more,so Im looking at other options.

What would stiffen up my Z a little, Hotchkis sway bars? I was even looking at Tokico D Specs...Im not sure what would be best. I will eventually get both but for now its one or the other....Any suggestions?

 

Dampers, stabilizer bars, and chassis bracing. Check bushings for wear and damage.

 

bushings, sway bars, shocks/struts. any order you want. all will help improve handling

 

Ok cool,thanks. I think Im going to start with sway bars first.

 

Get some quality end links when you upgrade the bars.

 

Yup, but the order i would use is.

1. Check out bushings, if the car will require an alignment, replace the LCA and compression arm bushing at minimum.

2. Dampers, stock dampers do not fare well with drop springs. The will wear out quick, if you are satisfied with the drop, just swap to quality shocks.

3. Sways, since your bushings and dampers are now in good order. Sway bars are a great way to improve the feel on a street car. Just make sure that the feel you are getting is not caused by a problem first.

 

Agreed

 

I have to agree here for the sake of the consumables. Bushings are exposed to the elements, so they take a ton of abuse. The dampers, although nitrogen charged, are oil filled and oil degrades. Beyond that you should pursue the mechanical. Excellent advice by terrasmak, in my opinion.

 

Also, forgot to mention, alignment causes sloppy handling. Was the car aligned after lowering?

 

Like mentioned above get good end links with the new sways; I'd highly recommend Powergrid end links.

 

Thanks for all the replies guys. Maybe I'm making sound worse than it is. I would just like it to handle a little better, maybe get rid of some of the body roll. It's not a mechanical issue it's a personal issue. The car has only 39000 miles on it. I'll most likely just get the sways for now. What do you all recommend for end links?

 

I am very interested in this thread being that I have clunking and squeaking going on in the front of my car. I had it in the rear, and all it took to solve that was a new gasket for the rear passenger (the OEM was dry and crusty). So naturally I figured the fronts shocks both needed new gaskets, so I took the front shock off....and it doesnt even have a gasket . Yeah that was 6 hours wasted on saturday, as well as making sure that all of the sway bar bolts were tightened to spec.

So the next step is the end links before I just give my car to an effing shop. I have a hotchkis sway bar and the end links i see people suggesting are SPL ($200) and Powergrid ($150). Is SPL worth the extra $50? How does one adjust theses? To the height of the stock end link?

And i really hope this is the answer, I do NOT want to be switching out my LCA bushings.

 

Its not that bad with the bushing press you can rent from Autozone. Did both LCA bushings after taking the LCAs off and using the hand crank bushing press. Took about 1 hour per arm with Whiteline bushings.

 

right but ive never used a press and i have no idea what i'm doing. And I read the photo guides someone made but they assume that people know how to use a press.

 

If you can line up a C-Clamp and turn a ratchet, you can do it. Do a quick search on YouTube for it. Not too bad and can save a lot of money at a shop.

 

so what took you the hour then? Lining it up? Turning the crank?

 

Hardest part is getting the arms off the car since those bolts tend to be the most stubborn. About 5-10 minutes per bushing then reinstall.

 

Ok awesome, i thought you mean using the press took an hour. I have gotten the arms off before when I was replacing the shocks (well, all but the last nut was removed, but still).

Assuming I want to replace them all for performance and not because of wear, how many bushings do I need to replace? There are the two in the LCA, then I hear of people wanting to replace the ones that are in the shock. Then people want to replace the differential bushing, but this causes (on purpose) a large whine and they can hear every gear shift...the cost of performance, I am told.

 

There are 2 for each LCA. You can replace bushings under your car until your heart is content. Whiteline has a "Total Kit" that runs about $300. Start with the bushings closest to the outer parts first, then work your way in. Typically they wear the fastest and will yield the most improvement.

 

This OP ^

Install everything and your golden