What would Tokico shocks add? how about a sway bar? WOuld they be worth the money? DO the shocks lower the car at all? Don't be pissed about the stupidity of my question.

 

I've heard thew tokico blue shocks handle a little better than stock, and keep most of the stock ride quality. Good price/performance mod.

 

I have Tokico shocks and Eibach springs arriving this month to replace the OEM. The current struts are completely worn out (131K miles and original) and need to be replaced.

I'll let you know how they work out.

Ral

 

Tokicos would add better wheel control and more sporty feel over bumps that send the stock suspension making you feel out of control or loose.

Sway bar would add more stability around turns but will make the ride a little rougher.

Shocks do NOT lower a car. Ride height is controlled mainly by the springs. Eibach Pro Kit springs would hence drop the car and make it ride a little rougher with better handling.

No question is stupid...but try doing a search for information if there are general questions. If you did do a search and still have questions...some try the FAQ's etc. But feel free to post any others that havent been answered before.

Lastly, anytime you change the geometry or swap suspension parts, you will need to have your car aligned. The suspension bolts are dual purpose, they hold parts on and they also hold the suspension adjustments into compliance. Factor in about $75 to get a GOOD alignment after you change the parts and drive it for a week or so.

MW

 

what exactly is a sway bar? how is it different than a strut bar? where does it go, and how expensive/easy to install is it?

 

There is no stupidity in your question -

A sway bar (properly referred to as an anti-sway bar or anti-roll bar) simply put will help keep the tires footprint flat(er) on the ground when cornering, buy means of preventing the tire from "rolling" laterally on its axis as the suspension travels up and down.

Strut bars prevent the cars chassie (sp?) from flexing under the extreme conditions of cornering. The body of the car will actually torque and bend ever so slightly, messing up the suspension geometry just a tad, throwing things off. The strut bar keeps the struts parallel w/ each other and lowers the amount of twisting of the suspension parts, and is mounted directly between the tops of the two front struts. Performance minded strut bars will need to be triangulated with the fire wall to truely serve its purpose. A lot of ricers just use the single bars for decoration. Though single bars do stiffen things up, castor, amung other things, still gets thrown off when cornering; castor being the front / back angle of the strut; i.e. the single strut bar will torque in of itself). Sometimes people can actually lose performance with a non-properly installed (adjusted) strut bar. Attend some local autocrosses and talk to the racers or just get some books from the library. Strut bars are either hit or miss. But usually miss- so be careful. They are pertty to look at, but if not put in right, they can push the suspension OUT of a symmetry. So be careful.

Sway bars are easy to install, just remove the tires and remove the end links, and mounting brackets, etc. Reinstall new parts. Most have different holes for differnt adjustments. Follow the instructions. As you stiffen the front, you increase understeer. As you loosen the front to increase oversteer. Beefing up your sway bars (Hint: Plural) are a good simple way to gain some performance on the street and the track.

Strut bars, on the other hand are a B!TCH to adjust. They install easy - unscrew the strut nuts on both sides, install brackets, tighten down to specified torque, mount the firewall bracket, but then adjusting the thing is a nightmare. The vehicle needs to be jacked up off the ground; then the bar needs to be tightened to specifications, then put back down on the ground, settle the suspension, then align the car (car will be way out of alignment). I'm not even sure if they make a 3 or 4 point strut bar for the SC BTW. But I wouldn't bother installing one unless you do serious racing, or you just like the way it looks. Streetable gains are usually not lickely, streetable losses sometimes are. There is such a thing as Too stiff for the street. With pot holes and uneven pavement you will lose tractin if the suspension as a whole is too stiff.

The Tokico's are awsome - great stock alternatives. The blues are just all around performance over stock, and the "illuminas" are 5-way adjustable. All are great products that LAST. Every car I've ever owned had these struts put in them, and I have never had to replace them, except once: I had a Tokico racing series coil over once start to leak over 40,000 miles after they were installed, it still worked, but somehow a little oil leaked out- I didn't understand, but you could see drip marks? Tokico replaced both front struts (over $200 ea) under warrenty- Thats customer service.

For the street performance minded person - I'd recommend the Tocico Blues with Eibach springs. They will keep the balance of the car in tune. Remember if you change one aspect of the suspension you must change the rest so everything equals out. Don't just buy a stiffer front sway bar, get the rear too, to balance things out, or else you will be understeering like hell. Don't intall a strut brace unless your sway bars are matched, etc. Playing with the suspension is a touchy subject. Its hard to "Buy" performance. You have to understand HOW things work. People will tell you I'm ****, but I've been racing for almost 15 years now....not street racing BTW. I've been tweeking suspensions more than engines over the years. Big coilovers and oversized brakes and strut bars look all nice and flashy, but there are better, safer ways to enhance your car if you only drive it on the street. Start small, and work your way to the top. I've seen too many rich wanna be's drop thousands of $$$ into their car, expecting to win, just to find out there's more to racing than buying expensive parts. Be smart, think before you install, and understand what you are doing before you do it. Then you will be pleased with the outcome of the final project.

Good luck with what ever you do, and maybe some day I'll meet you on the Track!

Keith

 

Very nice write up. Thanks for ur time.