Cannonbear

I'm looking into mods for a gs430 and am wondering if a type of suspension (coilover or spring/shock) set up will help acceleration. Anyone have any suggestions?

rominl

iTrader: (4)

how exactly do you expect springs/shocks to help accel? just curious

Cannonbear

better suspension can lead to better power delivery to wheels, according to friends of mine runnin supras and vettes!

lexforlife

iTrader: (7)

in other wors less rear end squat during lauch can equal alittle less driveline trq loss.. i beleive that to be true for drag racers talk about the ability to get a better holeshot with getting rid of rear end squat..

RON430

IRS isn't necessarily the hot setup for pure acceleration. Obviously, the posi rear end won't hurt with a big gear and high stall speed torque converter to let the GS get up to where it wants to breathe. Pure acceleration favors weight transfer to the rear wheels and as much traction as you can get in there, street drag slicks and as big as you can fit. Shocks and springs to resist a lot of squat in the rear end would help but who knows if they are available for the GS. To help get the front end light, light weight rims and tires with a 90/10 valved shock which will extend easily but resist compressing. I doubt you will find them for the GS. Might just let it go by getting a posi and relocating the battery to the right rear of the trunk. Unless you heavily mod the engine, you shouldn't need to get too radical. A street drag slick has a lot of grip and I am not sure suspension is going to limit your acceleration ability. If you are talking about getting power down coming out of a turn, that's a different matter and something the GS doesn't do very well but it doesn't have much to do with the suspension.

Good luck.

redgs4

For pure straight line acceleration you want some front to rear weight transfer [unless you are front wheel drive]. All the aftermarket suspensions I'm familiar with for the GS are designed to help looks and handling around the curves. This usually means lowering [less travel], increased spring rates and higher dampening - none of which help you in a straight line.

I'd suggest a good 2.0 way LSD [clutch type handles more HP than the Torsen] and torque converter, height and dampening adjustable coil overs [you can set the back softer when you are drag racing] and perhaps the Tom's 6 link braces. I'm hoping to verify the latter helps reduce rear end hop on hard launches later this year. And tires, get yourself a dedicated set of rear rims and some drag slicks [no big brakes for you]. Or try out some of the new breed of street/strip tires although they don't seem to be made in our usual sizes.

Sorry, looks like a lot of what Ron430 already said. As he mentioned, you can also change the weight distribution of your car by moving some stuff from the front to the back.