oh ... right that does make sense
well I guess I'll have to save a bit more and go with 17s
thing is brakes are very important for me, the way I drive I better have good brakes

by the way if I go 17 should I go with even wider tires ?


Thank you
Dan

 

Rich has been giving you some VERY good advice. If you are on a budget, his tire recommendations will work well. 16's aren't bad. Chuck the 235/55s. You will be amazed when you swap on the Dunlops or the Kuhmos. I run the 255/40 8000's on 16 x 8 wheels on a Sonoma ZQ8 suspension which came with 235/55s. BIG difference. Forget C5 brake conversion on your budget. Buy some good pads and new rotors. I like Performance Friction for the street. Auto Zone.

Don't bother with new stock springs unless your car sits lopsided. If they have sagged over the years, that's good; lower is better. They don't lose spring rate, they just sag. Since the shocks were free, try them. Don't get carried away with trying to adapt Vette parts. They aren't interchangable, and you'll proabably hurt more than help.

Summary for cheap thrills: the good 16 inch tires, the free shocks, some good brake pads and new rotors, and a GOOD alignment.

After you've scrubbed the rubber off that first set of tires, and you will if you like hard cornering with sticky tires, you might consider tuning the handling with some anti-roll bar changes. Live with the original setup first, however.

We're talking $600-$750 depending on the tires you choose, and if you have to have the shocks installed professionally. The next $600 I would spend would be for a good 1-day driving school like Skip Barber to learn how to performance drive . You hammer on their cars, including a Viper. Again, you won't believe the difference....in you!

My $.02.

 

If you want the best performance for the moeny get a 98+ camaor front brake upgrade. This will upgrade you to a new spindle,LARGER ROTORS, LArger 2 piston Calipers (like the vette ones your talking about) and when you want ot get brake parts for it like rotors and pads that come ina set you can jsut say 98+ camaro cuz you will have the camaro stuff. these brakes are awesome. you can get the powerslot SLOTTED rotors (not drilled) and combine these with the 98+ front brakes and some performance semi-metallic friction to go in there and you car will stop on a dime bro. I got the conversion from


fpartssalvage.com I think if ont then fpartssalvage on ebay. 175 dollars shipped. Might save on shipping if you dont want the stock rotors cuz you order new ones.


Whaterver you do get quality friction material. Just like a cluth dont get an awesome flywheel and a****ty clutch. Dont get awesome brakes and ****ty rotors.

be wise. later

 

Thank you everybody !

really appreciate all your advice !!!



Dan

 

#1 is shocks for sure, Ive done everything on that list and i started with tires first. I am here to tell u the biggest improvement i noticed by far was with the heavy duty bilsteins hands down! You have to have good tires yes or you cant hold the road (very bad if u cant do that). If you dont have good tires you will end up like my buddy in his impala ss (lost control and went into a pile of bricks). The lower control arms definitely helps on traction, didnt notice too much as far a handling. Another thing that was left out is a poly-end link kit (a.k.a. where sway bars mount to car), it will take the slack out of your steering. The only things on that list i dont have are a torque arm and eibachs, which im getting within a month or so.
My current setup is:
-bmr boxed subframes
-granatelli lower control arms
-hd bilsteins
-poly end link kit
-17 inch zr1 with goodyear f1
-bmr double adjustable chromoly panhard rod
-bmr relocation brackets

The best brake solution for the money is ls1 fbody brakes, You cant get 13 inch rotors and two piston calipers. complete kits can be found for around 250 or so. It is by far the best bang for the buck, if u can find c5 brakes for decent money then go with those, but those will prolly be a pretty penny. good luck. -Michael

 

how bout 4 piston calipers How short do you need to stop? Personally i wouldn't go spending thousands on brakes till you did the rest and made it handle well. But Baer makes some good brakes i hear.

get subframes they are awesome.........take a corner at 35 without them and take a corner at 35 with them the rear will stay in line with the rest of the car instead of swinging out---less corrective steering and can stay on the throttle

 

Lower control arms, subframe connectors, shocktower brace, DMS sport springs, 1LE front/rear swaybars

 

Finally found springs a shocks I wanted...now......So for SFC's...I was thinking BMR, but then a shop rambled on on that the BMR's are weak and that they flex. What's a strong Subframe? I hear everyone is popping a woody for Kenny Diamonds? So, what would be the top three...

Thanks.

edit: KD's are three point right...but which SFC has a good strong two point.

 

thats a good question what is the best subframe connector? im looking for something really strong because they will be my next mod. and if you are looking for some good prices on suspension parts check out thunderracing.com i got alot of stuff thier and i couldn't be happier with thier customer service

 

That's just BS

 

I agree,
You want to come and flex my boxed sfc?
I jack the car on those and they don't even squeek.

 

HAL shocks are NOT a great handling shock. They are a great drag racing/street shock, bu tnot a handling shock.

 

1. Koni SAs up front w/ Bilsteins in rear
2. 17" wheels with sticky tires (I prefer Nitto 555R IIs)
3. upgraded brakes (LS1 or C5 with good pads)
4. springs and front swaybar

With my car stock, with the Nittos, Koni DAs up front and LS1 brakes with Carbotech XP pads (race), I was able to run 1:33s at our local roadcourse. That was after one 15 minute session (only track time I have in that car), and I feel there was easily another second or two that I could have pulled out of it. By comparison, my 92 Vette with suspension upgrades ran a 1:34 and was as fast/faster than stock C5 coupe/verts, and my Z06 ran a 1:29 really pushing hard. Of course, you need to remember, that my car already had SLP lowering springs, 32mm front bar and 17" wheels as part of the LT4 Firehawk package.

What's really amazing is that if there is another second or two available from the car, that will put it within a couple of seconds of the Z06. A car with 40RWHP more, 400lbs less weight, IRS rear and a tranny that's roughly equivalent to 3.73 gears on the f-body.