Rear:
Bilstein w/ MM coilover kit, MM bearing mount
MM pan-hard bar
MM adjustible rear sway bar
MM prototype torque arm for 9" housing (very nice!)
Currie 9" housing and axles
Front:
Bilsteins w/ MM coil-over kit
MM caster chamber plates
MM k-member brace
MM strut tower brace
MM steer-rack bushings
Flaming rivers steering shaft
MM full length sub-frames
I have done a good bunch of suspension tweaking, most of it came after researching many options from many manufacturers. My setup is basically for the Street and ocassional RR or AutoX.
It is a CHEAP setup, made from closely reasearched parts and manufacturers.
Starting at the front, i have 700lb linear rate springs matched with TOKICO non adjustable struts. Most of the rubber has been changed to urethane: steering rack, A arm & Strut bushings.
New endlinks added, plus urethane spring isolators.
CC plates and Steeda's X ball joints will be added some time in the near furture.
At the rear: 170lb linear rate springs with Tokico non-adjustable shocks, no quads, poly spring isolators, NO swaybar and Global west LCAs with stock uppers.
Chassis: Steeda Subrframes with X brace.
Now the reasons i choose these parts
Global West LCAs: help locate the axle lateraly without binding using DELALUM bushings on the axle and spherical bearings on the frame.
They do a pretty good job at locating the axle, nice for street and ocassional AX or RR.
Linear Rate springs 700/170: recommended setup when using GW LCAs without panhards which require STIFF rear springs. Linear rates are PREDICTABLE but not smooth as some progressives, but overall i rate them 100% better on the street that EIBACH Pro Kit and way more than that better for RR or AX.
Poly Bushings: not much to it, just get rid of any sponginess to improve overal response. Good bushings help in making the suspension and steering response predictable.
Poly offset A Arm bushings: better front geometry, nice handling improvement.
Good Struts & Shocks: need adjustables to tune the combo better but regular TOKICOS do pretty good.
Overal impressions:
This is a very nice and inexpensive setup, the rear is pretty stable under cornering without much rear-end steering or hop. Removing the rear sway makes it handle tons better on the street.
Using soft rear springs with the GW LCAs seems the way to go, thats why i removed the swaybar, it doesnt help any on reducing roll, just acts like a lateral axle location device (barely) and increases spring rate.
The front is acceptable, theres not much body roll, or nose dive. The CC plates will make a ton of a difference when installed. Using poly steering rack bushings improved steering response noticeably.
I rate this setup with 8, 5 being STOCK. It is nicer on the street and can drive pretty agressively on the twisties. On a long radius 45° turn i can do 70 without the tires getting loose.
The front is still my weak point, the CC plates and the Xjoint from Steeda will no doubt improve that.
From all of the research I have done on late model mustang aftermarket suspension systems, Griggs and Maximum Motorsports come out on top. Both companies research, design, construct and test, test, test their products to ensure it all works together as a well designed high quality, high performance suspension system that works. There are others such as Steeda who also makes very good mustang suspension components but IMHO Griggs and Maximum are at the top. Choosing between the two was tough. I eventually decided to go with MM because I felt their system was a little better designed for a street driven stang.
So far I have installed MM chassis stiffening kit, camber/castor plates, rear lower control arms and panhard bar. I have purchased their torque arm which I hope to get installed along with H & R springs, coil over kits front and rear as well as bilstein struts and shocks. After that comes the K Member. I am currently running Tokico 5 way adjustables and suspension technique springs which has turned out to be a nice combination. Looking forward to seeing how the new setup compares. I also have a few other little upgrades installed such as the Baer bumpsteer kit, Flaming River one piece steering shaft and Energy Suspension Polyurathane bushings all around.
Another reason I prefer Griggs and MM products over other companies such as Global West, is that they design and build a complete suspension system solution for the Mustang, where companies like Global does not. When I bought my MM suspension components I knew that I could eventually install their complete package and have the advantage of knowing all of the system components were designed, built and tested to work together to deliver maximum handling performance. Mixing and matching suspension components from different companies can not only deliver unpredictable results but it can also become costly as you may have to swap out earlier upgraded components as you work towards improving your suspension.
Now to get into
Quote:
the most popular ways to make your Pony handle well on AutoX, Road racing, etc.
could lead into some very interesting discussions such as:
_ Global Wests delrin aluminum rear lower control arms vs traditional rear lower control arms and panhard combination.
_ The advantages of three link vs four link setups.
_ Globals Trac Loc vs Torque arm
and thats just for starters, so what do the rest of you think the best and most popular setups on the market today is for road racing, corner carving mustang enthusiasts.
__________________
Scott Halliday
Site Administrator
1992 Red 347 Automatic Limited Edition Convertible
1991 Red 5.0L 5-Speed Hatchback
1989 Black 5.0L 5-Speed Coupe
GW was the first to come up with this design, MM followed with a similar aproach except that the spherical bearing is on the axle and they use urethane at the frame not alum sleved Delrin.
For the street and ocassional AutoX or RR, i find the GW LCAs to be pretty good, they deliver what GW says. But they are not the best for hi-perf RoadRacing. For that an IRS or 3 link would be a better choice.
The all urethane arms are not as good IMHO, theres some binding happening at the axle and the torque box. And even though they more less locate the axle lateraly they feel jumpier on bumps than the MM or GW arms.
Now, MM vs GW, well i find them to be equally good performers. But the GWs are noisier, probably since the spherical bearing is on the frame and that transmits more noise.
Now about brands...even though i sell Steeda i really dont like their arms that much because they use urethane all around including the uppers, good for straights but not RR.
Saleen is just a bunch of rebranded parts, their struts and shocks are just regular Carrera's with Saleens brand. Their arms i come also from another source. Their springs are just regular Eibachs..etc.
The first mod I made....besides the K&N one everyone does was to put GW LCA and Indy 700/170 springs on. I have been really impressed by just this mod. A good friend of mine couldnt believe it when I took him for a ride and slammed it through a corner. I am now getting up in miles and want to do more to my suspension....but not spend a huge chunk. Should I just do the urathane bushings up front, ball joints, and tie rod ends?
How long will my stock shocks/struts last? I have 145,000 but almost all from my 3 year college commute. It now is a pleasure craft about 20k a year.
With regard to MM vs GW rear lower control arms there is a big difference in application and performance.
At the time when Maximum first released their rear lower control arms, just about everyone said they had the spherical bushing on the wrong end and Globals design was the better way to go. Well it's been interesting to watch opinons change since then and I think now there is little doubt if any, that Maximum's design is not only correct but also superior, when used in combination with a panhard bar. An added side benefit is that the 3 piece bushing combination is also alot quieter and much easier on your torque boxes.
GW RLCA uses delrin aluminum bushings that are designed to also do the work of a panhard par. If you use GW RLCA then you [u]do not[/] use a separate panhard bar. The GW control arms instead does the work of a poor mans panhard bar by providing lateral support. While this works great for most street applications when pushed hard in the corners, such as in road racing appplications, they will induce suspension bind. A more expensive but better performing combination is to run a high quality set of rear LCA's like those from MM, along with a separate panhard bar. To even further improve this combination you can then add on a torque arm, get rid of the uppers and away you go.
I am assuming you would already be running a decent spring, strut/shock and tires combination.
If you just install GW or MM rear LCA's with out a panhard bar then the GW would outperform MM's simply because of the lateral support provided by the Delrin Aluminum bushings. For this reason they will outperform MM rear LCA's, unless of course you are running the MM's with a panhard bar, then its a different story.
In short if you plan to only ever install rear lower control arms and have no intention of making additional suspension improvements such as panhard/torque arm in the future, then GW rear lower control arms would be the cheapest and best way to go. Otherwise, if you plan to or want to leave your options open for future mods then go with a rear lower control arm design and panhard combo, like that offered by Maximum.
Hoes that for a little rant
__________________
Scott Halliday
Site Administrator
1992 Red 347 Automatic Limited Edition Convertible
1991 Red 5.0L 5-Speed Hatchback
1989 Black 5.0L 5-Speed Coupe
Emery, you are absolutely right. From everthing I have heard the GW rear lower control arms are great performers and have a great track record.
I would go (have gone ) urathane all around. It is inexpensive and works great! By getting rid of the soft rubber bushings, it gets rid of some of the slop and tightens thing up for better handling. Well worrth the few bucks.
Another inexpensive upgrade is investing in a good set of camber/caster plates to provide much needed camber to your stang, especially if its been lowered.
Hope this is of some help.
__________________
Scott Halliday
Site Administrator
1992 Red 347 Automatic Limited Edition Convertible
1991 Red 5.0L 5-Speed Hatchback
1989 Black 5.0L 5-Speed Coupe
After it was lowered I went to a alignment shop and they tweaked it for me. I asked about the necessity of camber/caster plates and I was told that they are overkill....out there for AF companies to make a few bucks. However he did say the only reason plates would be needed is if my application was to go hardcore roadracing.
He used an adjustable screwbolt that allowed him to tweak and get the extra camber he needed to straighten it out. Best alignment I have ever had and I have never seen any uneven tire-wear.
It runs true...if I ever have any pull it is because I need a extra lb of air in a tire. I have the settings somewhere if they would be of intrest......I think in the dash. Ill look @ lunch.
OK, I'm getting ready to begin the buildup on my 83. I want a top notch Road Racing setup, but I also want it to remain drivable on the street so no drastic lowering for me. After studying the underside of the car, the rear axle housing has some really bad pitting corrosion, it was a NY car for over 15 years. Every bushing is torn and/or dry rotted. I'm thinking an all new suspension is the way to go. All the parts have pitting corrosion somewhere. I just looked at the MM website. They used to have an entire new suspension as a package, but I guess they discontinued it because I can't find it anywhere.
What I'm thinking is a Torque arm setup with ~170-200 lb linear rate springs in the rear with a beefiy anti-roll bar and adjustable shocks. For the front, switch over o a coil over setup with another beefy roll bar and 700lb linear rate springs. Caster/Camber plates and somewhere between 1-1.75 inch drop. I want to do all urethane bushings fron and rear.
My question is does MM have all the stuff I need and is that the best route to go?
I'm seriously thinking a 5 lug conversion and a 9 inch axle since it has to be replaced anyway.
__________________
Sometimes I think that government fits that old-fashioned definition of a baby: An alimentary canal with an appetite at one end and no sense of responsibility at the other.
- Ronald Reagan
After many months of research and wanting a complete package I went with the MM Road and Track package (goto their web site to get all the details of what comes in this package) and added on full coil overs and their tube front arms and the Autopower full roll cage. I put it on in stages so I could feel the difference. Major improvement was the coil-overs, however, at this point to me the car is no longer streetable. I am running 350lbs springs up front and 250 lbs in the rear. I am going to put 500lbs in the front and 450 in the rear come winter. The next stage was the final stage, panhard bar, strut tower brace, and shaved Toyo RA-1 tires (255-40-17 up front and 275-40-17 in the rear). With this set-up I am running very fast on the track. When I first started I was completly stock and was getting killed by just about everything out there (I was beating a stock 944, an older Subaru, and something else). Yeah, I know pretty bad. Just finished a SCCA Divisional and took 1st in my class (beat a Griggs GR-40 mustang by a mere .289 seconds). Out of 39 cars I ran 6th fastest. I got beat by a WRX Sti with over 450hp (he took 1st), Mustang Cobra S/C 2nd (GR-40 set-up), Vette with over 525hp 3rd, another STI, another cobra and one more sti. Those are the cars that beat me in time (if I remeber right, I could be wrong). If you want to know what I beat I'll get into that, but I don't want to be to much of a braggard.
Anyway, I personally feel the MM set-up is the way to go. And they have the BEST support team in the business. Plus, what was important to me is it was a complete package, not pieced together from a bunch of different suppliers. Next is a torque arm and I should be complete. I spent $3K on my suspension so far and got about another $2k left to go before I feel I have done everything I can to get the most out of my baby. Just my .02 and I hope it helps.
justnlx,
Your car will amaze you at well it will handle!!! Put the best tires on it, anything else is a waste of money. I run shaved Toyo's and they are pretty damn good and VERY predictable. I want to know about that twin turbo motor and what do plan on doing with you car? Road racing I hope.
Tell us about your suspension mods for road racing 
