blackztpi

list some common setups you guys have on reasonable budgets. I like driving straight and in corners, so i'm not going hardcore either way. here's what i'm thinking...
bilstein HD shocks, 1-1.5" lowering springs, 1le sway bars, adjustible panhard rod, strut tower bar, and lower control arms in the rear. i already have subframe connectors. I was thinking this would make a decent road course car if i ever got around to going to one. List your setups! damn, this board is dead.

bsim

It seems tough to find people on this board that want to turn their cars. I guess skinny's don't handle that well.

Bilstein HD's are great shocks for the $$. It depends on what you really want from the car. Based on your post, that would be a decent track day car.

Me, I have north of $1700 in Bilstein race shocks, GC coilovers in front, 800/200 spring rates and stock roll bars. Plus rod ended everything. Drive it on the street? No way, but then again it's a racecar.

bsim

BTW - call Sam at stranoparts.com - he'll hook you up...

Johnnynsac

Some revalved Bilstein are nice. Mine are great for on and off track use.

EastLa

I have a set of Bilstien HD shocks. They are nice, but not as good as my Koni SA that I had on my '99. If you are going to be pulling dual duty, the ability to adjust them might come in handy. I know I used to adjust mine different for drag racing than for road course and autocross.

But yeah, call Sam, he'll hook you up.

TEG99SS

Yeah, this forum is dead!

Try FRRAX - you will get more of a response. I would worry more about brakes than suspension. Especially for road racing! My car is completely stock, it handles - ok, but brake fade is bad. Remember how heavy a camaro is, it takes a lot to get it stopped!

blackztpi

how much are koni's?

Chris Wilson

I have run a bunch of track days at Watkins Glen International and my car is pretty much stock. The best upgrade for the track was the C5 brakes. I also have bilsteins with eibachs, Nitto 555R2s tires, and a power stearing cooler is a must. Even with stock suspension, the first time out you probably won't be able to out-drive the car. At first, the driver is the weak link in my opinion. But, it is way more fun than going in a straight line.

blackztpi

where do you ge powersteering coolers and how much?

Chris Wilson

you can get an aftermarket power stearing cooler for about $40 from summit or Jegs. They are easy to install. Just make sure you put it on the return side of the PS system.

Jeff94TA

I used this one from Summit. I mounted it on the bottom of the radiator core support on the passenger side and as mentioned above make sure to put it on the low pressure side.

I bought my suspension from Sam Strano and for a relatively low dollar set up it works well. It's Eibach Pro Kit springs for an LS1 car, Koni SA's up front, Bilstein HD's for a 3rd gen out back and a Suspension Techniques 35mm front bar. It's very streetable and works good enough on track to have a great time with it.

nfa

I use my car as a daily driver, drag racing and lapping days. Here's my setup

BRAKES
If you have an LT1 camaro, the brakes are just not going to cut it. There is simply not enough capacity in the stock brakes to haul down a car of this weight. I have the C5 conversion which is a great bang for the buck set up.

SUSPENSION:
Im a believer in using softer springs with fat roll bars to control body roll for street/track cars. I dont think the bilsteins have enough dampening for high rate lowering springs.. if you go that route, pony up for the koni's. Bilstein HD's, stock springs, global west upper control arms for increased negative camber, relocation brackets, custom adj panhard bar, SFC's, 35MM/21MM sway bars. I dont think that STB's do anything for these cars. I wouldnt waste my money on one.

Wheels:
Im using 17x9 SS wheels with Falken RT615's right now for combined street /track duty. I should have opted for 11" wide rims all around...

Other stuff:
A power steering cooler or a turn-one pump is a must.. otherwise you will be puking out ps fluid from the high rpms.

JakeRobb

I'm going to be taking my Z28 to its first autocross in a couple weeks. With runs no longer than 60 seconds at a time, and lots of time between runs, do I need to be worried about a power steering cooler yet?

nfa

you probably wont have to worry about it. if it starts puking, then its time to either invest in the cooler or more extensive fixes.

blackztpi

quite honestly, I'm not that hardcore to cough up the extra 400 bucks fro konis'. the bilstein HD's are a well rounded shock and much much better than stock. stock ones are doing me okay right now. like i said, I'm not hardcore. I'm not out to beat ZO6's on the course, but i thought it'd be fun to try and not get lapped. lol the LT1 front brakes suck, but the rears are good. arguably better than ls1 rear brakes. doesn't the c5 conversion kit cost about 550 for the front all said and done?? For that, i could get the Baer track kit for another 200 bucks and have a better looking and performing brake system. Strut tower bars don't do much for handling performance, but they do a nice job of reinforcing the shock towers of flex...flex can change the TOOT (toe out on turns) a slight bit and it can allow for minimal camber change in turns. for 70 bucks from UMI, i'm probably going to pick one up. what is the stock swaybar size on the lt1? Is the front 1LE sway bar a good swap or not worth it? i can get them fron GMpartsdirect.com for pretty cheap.