Best Road Course/AutoX Suspension 2015 SS

[AFRLS3]

I'm looking for the best available set-up for a road course/autox build. Currently on stock SS suspension and looking to get the most out of the car. On 19x11 forgelines with RE71R tires.


I've been looking @:


DSE, RideTech, Chevy Performance Z28 or 1LE kit, and just recently came across Penske's offering. I still drive the car somewhat regularly but don't mind a slightly stiffer ride.


What would you go with if you could drop it all on the best performing suspension??

[wakespeak]

Originally Posted by AFRLS3

I'm looking for the best available set-up for a road course/autox build. Currently on stock SS suspension and looking to get the most out of the car. On 19x11 forgelines with RE71R tires.


I've been looking @:


DSE, RideTech, Chevy Performance Z28 or 1LE kit, and just recently came across Penske's offering. I still drive the car somewhat regularly but don't mind a slightly stiffer ride.


What would you go with if you could drop it all on the best performing suspension??

Solid cradle bushings are a must for real track work. The 1LE track pack works well, if understeering a little. You need to max out front camber to its limit, about -2deg. I might have used the ZL1 front bar (in the middle between SS and 1LE) to allow a little more weight transfer.

Next the z/28 upper control arm bushings take out more rear lateral bouncing. Do those with the cradle bushings for access.

Upgrading to a Detroit TruTrac made a huge difference for me in terms of putting down the power with confidence. Get 3.91 gears at the same time. The 3.45 is just too tall for most tracks, particularly in 4th gear.

I have the CTS-V 6 front piston calipers and 2-piece rotors. No difference on the street but very noticeable on the track to get you confident with later braking, which is key with a big car like this.

I left the engine stock other than z/28 intake, which sounds a lot better .

[bkevind]

Wakespeak has great advice overall.

Focusing just on suspension...

MCS is at the top of my list, and I'm replacing Ride Tech HQ with MCS 2wnr, which is mid level in the MCS line up.

Best performing is not a straight forward answer. It becomes very application focused the deeper you go. You can spend ridiculous money on high end race shocks from Ohlins, Penske, or moderately ridiculous money with MCS, JRZ and others.

I've known guys that spend 3500+ per corner on custom shocks alone to compete in stock Autox classes.

I chose the MCS 2wnr due to budget concerns and proven results in racing. I ordered through Vorshlag so I could include their camber plates, and they make a nice mount for the rear shocks.

I could have spent a little bit less on Ohlins R&T - but that is not a motorsports level product, nor is it intended to be. It's 50/50 road and track setup (it's in the name!) - and I'm sure is damn good at doing that. Probably better than I ever will be as a driver honestly. And to be fair, FusionofIdeas here on the forum is racing with a customized set of Ohlins R&T on his Z/28, which replaced his stock Multimatics.

All that said - the 1LE suspension is pretty darn good in it's own right. The RideTech HQs are a minor upgrade. For hustling along on a back road, the 1LE setup was excellent. A tendency towards more understeer than I would like, but at any sane back road pace - more than capable. Nice thing about the Ridetechs, the adjustable rebound does make a difference (every 3 clicks), they are much lighter than OEM suspension so you save some weight, adjustable lowering is always nice to have - you can corner weight the car. The spring rate is decent. I found they are better on the track than on the road, and they were decent on the track.

I was tempted to go back to 1LE, but I do find the Ridetechs offer better control when pushing the pace. Downsides to the RT HQ is less travel, a bit of harshness on impacts etc. Also it can take a bit of trial and error to get the front and rear shock adjustments in harmony so you're not pogo'ing down the road, when on soft settings. Cranking up the rebound though really buttons it down nicely for the track.

[So Cal Camaro]

Call JJ at Ultimate Performance, he will get you set up right. JJ has worked on some of the fastest cars in the nation and the coilover set up you want is made by JRI, they are the best for what you are wanting to do. https://upspeedshop.com/ A local shop in So Cal is JCG Performance and Restorations in Oxnard, CA, Cris works with JJ on many of the cars they work on as well.

[AFRLS3]

First off, Thank you everyone for such a detailed response.

It is obvious from reading your responses I have a long ways to go understanding this suspension stuff like I do engine internals. I was under the impression I could purchase a package and get everything I needed but it seems like I would still be missing a few key components (LSD, gearing, etc). My goal is to get as much done at once while using proven combinations.

Originally Posted by wakespeak

Solid cradle bushings are a must for real track work. The 1LE track pack works well, if understeering a little. You need to max out front camber to its limit, about -2deg. I might have used the ZL1 front bar (in the middle between SS and 1LE) to allow a little more weight transfer.

Next the z/28 upper control arm bushings take out more rear lateral bouncing. Do those with the cradle bushings for access.

Do any packages come with these two key components upgrades or should I just upgrade them by themselves?

I have the CTS-V 6 front piston calipers and 2-piece rotors. No difference on the street but very noticeable on the track to get you confident with later braking, which is key with a big car like this.


I left the engine stock other than z/28 intake, which sounds a lot better .

Are they really worth upgrading from the stock Brembos? I'm about to supercharge the car so stopping power will be needed (looking @ 600+ rwhp). I always kinda put off brakes as not needed since it already had the brembos.

Originally Posted by bkevind

Best performing is not a straight forward answer. It becomes very application focused the deeper you go.

Priority focus on AutoX with the ability to compete in grand champion style events (autox, road course, drag strip, 3S, etc). As mentioned I am currently driving it on the street and want to maintain that ability (i.e. not too low, not too stiff/harsh, or at the very least with the ability to adjust those two based upon where I will be driving it).


Is there much difference in the performance between the JRI/MCS vs the step-up to penske/Ohlin?


Is it worth it to go with standalone coil overs and piece together a kit vs purchasing the DSE kit 3?

Originally Posted by So Cal Camaro

Call JJ at Ultimate Performance, he will get you set up right. JJ has worked on some of the fastest cars in the nation and the coilover set up you want is made by JRI, they are the best for what you are wanting to do. https://upspeedshop.com/ A local shop in So Cal is JCG Performance and Restorations in Oxnard, CA, Cris works with JJ on many of the cars they work on as well.

Just spoke with JCG, thank you for the information

[wakespeak]

Originally Posted by AFRLS3

First off, Thank you everyone for such a detailed response.

It is obvious from reading your responses I have a long ways to go understanding this suspension stuff like I do engine internals. I was under the impression I could purchase a package and get everything I needed but it seems like I would still be missing a few key components (LSD, gearing, etc). My goal is to get as much done at once while using proven combinations.



Do any packages come with these two key components upgrades or should I just upgrade them by themselves?




Are they really worth upgrading from the stock Brembos? I'm about to supercharge the car so stopping power will be needed (looking @ 600+ rwhp). I always kinda put off brakes as not needed since it already had the brembos.






Priority focus on AutoX with the ability to compete in grand champion style events (autox, road course, drag strip, 3S, etc). As mentioned I am currently driving it on the street and want to maintain that ability (i.e. not too low, not too stiff/harsh, or at the very least with the ability to adjust those two based upon where I will be driving it).


Is there much difference in the performance between the JRI/MCS vs the step-up to penske/Ohlin?


Is it worth it to go with standalone coil overs and piece together a kit vs purchasing the DSE kit 3?





Just spoke with JCG, thank you for the information

No, the cradle bushings and Z/28 upper control arm bushings are separate purchases. I have the Pegasus solid aluminum cradle bushings. The Z/28 pieces are not expensive. There are several threads on installing the cradle bushings. I did the heat/torch technique. Not as bad as it sounds. Propane torch at Home Depot for about $20.

I am really satisfied with my braking upgrade, but its a track upgrade. Ie braking from 100+mph to a hairpin. They are also Brembos, just 6 piston. You need 1LE tires (285 width) and with ~200 treadwear to take advantage. Not needed for 1/4 mile or street use. I can use "performance" GM street pads (made by Ferodo) that can take a weekend at COTA and still have half the pads left.

[Mike_G]

Originally Posted by So Cal Camaro

Call JJ at Ultimate Performance, he will get you set up right. JJ has worked on some of the fastest cars in the nation and the coilover set up you want is made by JRI, they are the best for what you are wanting to do. https://upspeedshop.com/ A local shop in So Cal is JCG Performance and Restorations in Oxnard, CA, Cris works with JJ on many of the cars they work on as well.

I have JJ building me a set of shock for my AC Cobra replica right now, love the JRI stuff. I ran the detroit speed coilovers on my camaro when I had it. These will be a custom set of double adjustable JRI shocks paired with hyperco springs. I was considering these, Penske and Moton. JJ was one of the lead engineers for the Penske race team before starting JRI and everything I have seen says the JRI struts out perform the Penske in a road course application. Moton was going to be 10-12k so I decided against that.