Camaro5 Chevy Camaro Forum / Camaro ZL1, SS and V6 Forums - Camaro5.com - View Single Post - And she has been lowered! Pfadt lowering Springs on a 2012 ZL1

Erik@Torq · 05-10-2012, 07:28 PM

Personally I am very pleased with the looks of the car, the ZL1 comes somewhat lowered from the factory compared to the 4x4 stance that the SS had so in my opinion it did not need a huge drop. Plus as a road racer I think about things like suspension travel, chassis geometry and much more and I know that a "slammed" car is not really the best for performance. We measured about 3/4" drop in the fender wells and about 1" body drop. These might settle a bit more once we put some miles on them but I am happy it does not have a crazy slammed look. Also, by lowering it any more I think the front splitter will be the most common part to be replaced on these cars!

I drove the car for 15-20 miles on the road and was pleasantly surprised. I already knew the trailing arms and rear toe rods would be a great upgrade for the rear, but I was curious to see how much (if anything) the springs changed the car. I do plan on taking it to the track very soon and get some REAL feel for it but I did get to test it on some bumpy and twisty roads!

In my opinion, the car feels much better compared to stock than an SS with lowering springs compared to stock. You can tell these MRC shocks are soooo much better and the car rides really nice. I went through all the different settings in the suspension to confirm they still worked and I found them all to be fully functional.

As mentioned we will be putting it to the test when I take our own ZL1 project bone stock vs this one to the track and compare them side by side. now THAT will be a fun day at work

I will mention that install is pretty much the same compared to an SS except for one very important thing which you will see in the photo below! The sensor cable for the rear shock goes right through the shock and rear upper shock mount. There is no way of getting the stock spring off with this in place. If you are not comfortable with wiring, I would recommend having these springs installed by a professional!

STOCK RIDE HEIGHT SPLITTER CLEARANCE

LOWERED RIDE HEIGHT SPLITTER CLEARANCE

STOCK RIDE HEIGHT SIDE SKIRT

LOWERED RIDE HEIGHT SIDE SKIRT

FRONT FENDER STOCK RIDE HEIGHT

FRONT FENDER LOWERED RIDE HEIGHT

AND HERE ARE SOME BEAUTY SHOTS

05-10-2012, 07:28 PM	#8
Erik@Torq Drives: '10 SS + '04 Z16 Z06 S/C Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Miramar, FL Posts: 1,196	Personally I am very pleased with the looks of the car, the ZL1 comes somewhat lowered from the factory compared to the 4x4 stance that the SS had so in my opinion it did not need a huge drop. Plus as a road racer I think about things like suspension travel, chassis geometry and much more and I know that a "slammed" car is not really the best for performance. We measured about 3/4" drop in the fender wells and about 1" body drop. These might settle a bit more once we put some miles on them but I am happy it does not have a crazy slammed look. Also, by lowering it any more I think the front splitter will be the most common part to be replaced on these cars! I drove the car for 15-20 miles on the road and was pleasantly surprised. I already knew the trailing arms and rear toe rods would be a great upgrade for the rear, but I was curious to see how much (if anything) the springs changed the car. I do plan on taking it to the track very soon and get some REAL feel for it but I did get to test it on some bumpy and twisty roads! In my opinion, the car feels much better compared to stock than an SS with lowering springs compared to stock. You can tell these MRC shocks are soooo much better and the car rides really nice. I went through all the different settings in the suspension to confirm they still worked and I found them all to be fully functional. As mentioned we will be putting it to the test when I take our own ZL1 project bone stock vs this one to the track and compare them side by side. now THAT will be a fun day at work I will mention that install is pretty much the same compared to an SS except for one very important thing which you will see in the photo below! The sensor cable for the rear shock goes right through the shock and rear upper shock mount. There is no way of getting the stock spring off with this in place. If you are not comfortable with wiring, I would recommend having these springs installed by a professional! STOCK RIDE HEIGHT SPLITTER CLEARANCE LOWERED RIDE HEIGHT SPLITTER CLEARANCE STOCK RIDE HEIGHT SIDE SKIRT LOWERED RIDE HEIGHT SIDE SKIRT FRONT FENDER STOCK RIDE HEIGHT FRONT FENDER LOWERED RIDE HEIGHT AND HERE ARE SOME BEAUTY SHOTS