Real World Suspension Setup (Not Track) - Camaro5 Chevy Camaro Forum / Camaro ZL1, SS and V6 Forums

LYCAN · 01-23-2011, 03:08 PM

Ok Folks,

I have been talking with Apex Chase and I am going to have him put a package together for me. But before I do any suspension modifications I want to ask, in reality (meaning real world street driving) what modifications are really going to improve the handling capabilities of the SS without going overboard?

I already had a Vette ZO6 that had an aftermarket track suspension on it, and to be honest it hurt the car more than it helped it. Driving it on public roads was so stiff and harsh that hitting a bump would literally make the car jump. That's not good on real public roads that aren't smooth like a track. At times in the car modification circles people tend to go way overboard with 800 RWHP cars running race suspensions. That basically creates a useless car that has to be babied all the time. I don't want to repeat ZO6 experience.

So, I am thinking about the Pfadt coil overs to start. Do I need to go with sway bars as well to balance the Camaro? The more I think about this, the car is going to be 100% for street driving.

Regards,
John

Apex Motorsports · 01-23-2011, 03:26 PM

John, it has been good talking with you and I look forward to doing business with you. Sway bars are a must, even for 100% street applications, when it come to these cars. A good set of sway bars will reduce body roll and understeer by increasing rear roll resistance and bring more balance to the overall feel of the cars handling. Another weak link in these car's stock suspension is the mushy rear cradle bushings. Upgrading those reduces rear end step out and creates a more predictable and controlled feel, especially under heavy throttle.

Hwystr · 01-23-2011, 03:37 PM

Apex could you be good enough to post up all the recommended parts, I'm in the same boat, car is going to Lingenfelter on Wed. for the engine work and next thing on my mind is a "real world " suspension upgrade for a car that is never going to see a track. I'm looking for a good handling car without it being harsh. thanks

Apex Motorsports · 01-23-2011, 04:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hwystr

Apex could you be good enough to post up all the recommended parts, I'm in the same boat, car is going to Lingenfelter on Wed. for the engine work and next thing on my mind is a "real world " suspension upgrade for a car that is never going to see a track. I'm looking for a good handling car without it being harsh. thanks

PM sent. I prefer to custom tailor these things but the big weak points are the sway bars and rear cradle bushings. Huge bang for the buck there.

Doc · 01-23-2011, 05:13 PM

If you're never going to track your car, then I'd suggest a mix of Pedders and Pfadt mods. Pedders bushings are designed to be street mods that can be used on the track, whereas Pfadt is specifically designed for track racing and priced accordingly.

As a minimum I'd recommend Pedders rear bushings, and Pfadt sport sway bars front and rear including their endlinks. If you want to go beyond that then there are several things that are beneficial. Coilovers are great for lowering the car without compromising ride quality. I'd recommend Pedders Xa coilovers. Replacing the rear trailing arms makes a noticeable difference in calming down the rear suspension under acceleration and eliminating wheel hop. I'd go with Pfadt rear trailing arms.

Although somewhat pricey, I'd highly recommend RacingBrake 2-piece brake rotors for their reduction of about 6 lbs each of unsprung weight which improves the cars performance in many ways besides braking because of the weight reduction. I'd also change to braided stainless steel brake lines too which improve braking and give a much better feel to the pedal when braking.

There are other things you can do besides these things of course but just doing the above will give you a seriously respectable street machine.

baranowski · 01-23-2011, 05:30 PM

Real world..... Sport sway bars and endlinks and drop springs. same your money on the coilovers.

I went with Pfadt for my brand because I called to speak with them twice and Aaron (the owner) answered the phone both times. There is just something about a owner, who does not have to answer the phone, who answers then phone. He was just an honest guy who told me that a "Off Track" car does not need much and most of the other parts that you can buy you would never even notice.

I am not a race car driver, nor a weekend track guy, nor have I had a bunch of newer expensive cars with better handling. I drive a Fire Truck at work and have built a few muscle cars in the day. I noticed a difference on the on and off ramps, general cornering, and highway emergency reactions with these mods.

I hope this helps,
Bill Baranowski

camaro4mybday · 01-23-2011, 07:00 PM

pedders cradle and radius rod bushings and soultions b sway bar package is all you need tighten up the car but keep the suspension nice and firm but not harsh. if you want to add lowering go with the pedders xa coil overs

LYCAN · 01-23-2011, 08:58 PM

Chase,

I'll plan to stick with the list that you send me when I am ready to go. I'll ready out to you and order within the next 90 days. Tony's Corvette in Gaithersburg is going to install it all for me.

John

BMR guy · 01-24-2011, 08:35 AM

Springs, sway bars, and bushings. These 3 parts alone will wake the car up without destroying your ride (as long as you don't go crazy with springs). Then, if you have wheel hop, a set of Trailing Arms. These parts should be done to every new Camaro, V6 or V8, whether it is just a stock daily driver, weekend track car, or cruiser...

Apex Chase can vouch for the value of our Suspension Packages. I am sure his recommendations match what I have listed and if you choose BMR, our matched packages can save you some green...

Apex Motorsports · 01-24-2011, 05:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LYCAN

Chase,

I'll plan to stick with the list that you send me when I am ready to go. I'll ready out to you and order within the next 90 days. Tony's Corvette in Gaithersburg is going to install it all for me.

John

Sounds good, just let us know when your ready.

72Rookie · 01-24-2011, 05:55 PM

Sway bars definately. Drop springs Im not sold on yet. Ive had them in for about a month and mine is my daily driver. Unless youre on smooth highway pavement the ride is noticably worse. I drove for a few days with just the sway bar swap and it really is a night and day difference. Then I added the drop springs and I will honestly say they do not inspire confidence if your cornering on anything other than very smooth road surfaces.

Personally I am considering adding the trailing arms and end links or pulling them back off and going with the coilovers.

I may get some differing opinions on this but my opinion is that the sway bars are a perfomance mod and drop springs are mostly a visual mod

VR Baron · 01-24-2011, 09:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 72Rookie

Sway bars definately. Drop springs Im not sold on yet. Ive had them in for about a month and mine is my daily driver. Unless youre on smooth highway pavement the ride is noticably worse. I drove for a few days with just the sway bar swap and it really is a night and day difference. Then I added the drop springs and I will honestly say they do not inspire confidence if your cornering on anything other than very smooth road surfaces.

Personally I am considering adding the trailing arms and end links or pulling them back off and going with the coilovers.

I may get some differing opinions on this but my opinion is that the sway bars are a perfomance mod and drop springs are mostly a visual mod

About sums it for me on the springs. Great visual and only good on smooth to normal roads.Any irreglar one wheel at a time bumps through the road surface or bad pavement and the ride sucks no matter what anyone says and doesn't feel controlled. It is not enjoyable on a weekend drive to jerk up and down. Fortunetly most roads AREN'T that bad, and the ride is comfortable enough on MOST surfaces but This car is no better in that respect with springs then the 4 th gen was and I have 10 years experience on my 98 with the best springs and Koni shocks that adjust to whatever you like. Less wheel travel, stiffer springs and shocks that are good but not optimum for the stiffer springs makes for a ride that is not good on all surfaces.

Just the way it is.

bob vogel · 01-24-2011, 10:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 72Rookie

Sway bars definately. Drop springs Im not sold on yet. Ive had them in for about a month and mine is my daily driver. Unless youre on smooth highway pavement the ride is noticably worse. I drove for a few days with just the sway bar swap and it really is a night and day difference. Then I added the drop springs and I will honestly say they do not inspire confidence if your cornering on anything other than very smooth road surfaces.

Personally I am considering adding the trailing arms and end links or pulling them back off and going with the coilovers.

I may get some differing opinions on this but my opinion is that the sway bars are a perfomance mod and drop springs are mostly a visual mod

+1 . i found out the hard way.

ssmike · 01-25-2011, 07:53 AM

What springs did you use and did you do the bushing timing during the alignment? Just wondering. I just ordered the BMR level 1 and I also worry about ride quality!

01-23-2011, 03:08 PM	#1
LYCAN Tattooed K9 Drives: E63AMG Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: Germantown, MD Posts: 278	Real World Suspension Setup (Not Track) Ok Folks, I have been talking with Apex Chase and I am going to have him put a package together for me. But before I do any suspension modifications I want to ask, in reality (meaning real world street driving) what modifications are really going to improve the handling capabilities of the SS without going overboard? I already had a Vette ZO6 that had an aftermarket track suspension on it, and to be honest it hurt the car more than it helped it. Driving it on public roads was so stiff and harsh that hitting a bump would literally make the car jump. That's not good on real public roads that aren't smooth like a track. At times in the car modification circles people tend to go way overboard with 800 RWHP cars running race suspensions. That basically creates a useless car that has to be babied all the time. I don't want to repeat ZO6 experience. So, I am thinking about the Pfadt coil overs to start. Do I need to go with sway bars as well to balance the Camaro? The more I think about this, the car is going to be 100% for street driving. Regards, John

01-23-2011, 05:13 PM	#5
Doc Dances With Mustangs Drives: 2010 1SS/RS MT Join Date: May 2009 Location: USA Posts: 3,819 View My Garage	If you're never going to track your car, then I'd suggest a mix of Pedders and Pfadt mods. Pedders bushings are designed to be street mods that can be used on the track, whereas Pfadt is specifically designed for track racing and priced accordingly. As a minimum I'd recommend Pedders rear bushings, and Pfadt sport sway bars front and rear including their endlinks. If you want to go beyond that then there are several things that are beneficial. Coilovers are great for lowering the car without compromising ride quality. I'd recommend Pedders Xa coilovers. Replacing the rear trailing arms makes a noticeable difference in calming down the rear suspension under acceleration and eliminating wheel hop. I'd go with Pfadt rear trailing arms. Although somewhat pricey, I'd highly recommend RacingBrake 2-piece brake rotors for their reduction of about 6 lbs each of unsprung weight which improves the cars performance in many ways besides braking because of the weight reduction. I'd also change to braided stainless steel brake lines too which improve braking and give a much better feel to the pedal when braking. There are other things you can do besides these things of course but just doing the above will give you a seriously respectable street machine. __________________ Blue Angel is here!! 1SS/RS LS3 M6 IBM

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01-23-2011, 03:26 PM	#2
Apex Motorsports Drives: 2000 Camaro SS Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Louisville, Ky. Posts: 25,179	John, it has been good talking with you and I look forward to doing business with you. Sway bars are a must, even for 100% street applications, when it come to these cars. A good set of sway bars will reduce body roll and understeer by increasing rear roll resistance and bring more balance to the overall feel of the cars handling. Another weak link in these car's stock suspension is the mushy rear cradle bushings. Upgrading those reduces rear end step out and creates a more predictable and controlled feel, especially under heavy throttle.

01-23-2011, 03:37 PM	#3
Hwystr GM Millwright Drives: 2011 Camaro 2SS/RS M6, Lingenfelter Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: Fort Wayne, IN Posts: 62	Apex could you be good enough to post up all the recommended parts, I'm in the same boat, car is going to Lingenfelter on Wed. for the engine work and next thing on my mind is a "real world " suspension upgrade for a car that is never going to see a track. I'm looking for a good handling car without it being harsh. thanks

01-23-2011, 05:30 PM	#6
baranowski Drives: 1968 Bronco,2001 Fatboy,2010 SS Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Southeast Posts: 713 View My Garage	Real world..... Sport sway bars and endlinks and drop springs. same your money on the coilovers. I went with Pfadt for my brand because I called to speak with them twice and Aaron (the owner) answered the phone both times. There is just something about a owner, who does not have to answer the phone, who answers then phone. He was just an honest guy who told me that a "Off Track" car does not need much and most of the other parts that you can buy you would never even notice. I am not a race car driver, nor a weekend track guy, nor have I had a bunch of newer expensive cars with better handling. I drive a Fire Truck at work and have built a few muscle cars in the day. I noticed a difference on the on and off ramps, general cornering, and highway emergency reactions with these mods. I hope this helps, Bill Baranowski

01-23-2011, 07:00 PM	#7
camaro4mybday "Camaro Joe" Drives: 2010 SILVER ICE 2LT/RS CAMARO Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: long island ny Posts: 2,366	pedders cradle and radius rod bushings and soultions b sway bar package is all you need tighten up the car but keep the suspension nice and firm but not harsh. if you want to add lowering go with the pedders xa coil overs

01-23-2011, 08:58 PM	#8
LYCAN Tattooed K9 Drives: E63AMG Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: Germantown, MD Posts: 278	Chase, I'll plan to stick with the list that you send me when I am ready to go. I'll ready out to you and order within the next 90 days. Tony's Corvette in Gaithersburg is going to install it all for me. John

01-24-2011, 08:35 AM	#9
BMR guy Drives: 2010 1SS Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Tampa, FL Posts: 1,002	Springs, sway bars, and bushings. These 3 parts alone will wake the car up without destroying your ride (as long as you don't go crazy with springs). Then, if you have wheel hop, a set of Trailing Arms. These parts should be done to every new Camaro, V6 or V8, whether it is just a stock daily driver, weekend track car, or cruiser... Apex Chase can vouch for the value of our Suspension Packages. I am sure his recommendations match what I have listed and if you choose BMR, our matched packages can save you some green...

01-24-2011, 05:55 PM	#11
72Rookie Drives: 2010 SS/RS Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Manassas Va Posts: 21	Sway bars definately. Drop springs Im not sold on yet. Ive had them in for about a month and mine is my daily driver. Unless youre on smooth highway pavement the ride is noticably worse. I drove for a few days with just the sway bar swap and it really is a night and day difference. Then I added the drop springs and I will honestly say they do not inspire confidence if your cornering on anything other than very smooth road surfaces. Personally I am considering adding the trailing arms and end links or pulling them back off and going with the coilovers. I may get some differing opinions on this but my opinion is that the sway bars are a perfomance mod and drop springs are mostly a visual mod

01-25-2011, 07:53 AM	#14
ssmike BL1ZZRD Drives: '16 Camaro 2SS, '20 Equinox Redline Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Buffalo, NY Posts: 7,840	What springs did you use and did you do the bushing timing during the alignment? Just wondering. I just ordered the BMR level 1 and I also worry about ride quality!