GT350 Dampers

[Jabooh1]

Do we know what dampers the GT350 will have and if they will work on the 11+?

I believe my front struts are shot (or going) on the LS and will need to upgrade soon.

 

[86Fbody]

I don't think they will since I believe the front spindle is different on the S550.

 

[kevinatfms]

Do we know what dampers the GT350 will have and if they will work on the 11+?

I believe my front struts are shot (or going) on the LS and will need to upgrade soon.

Koni Sports (yellows) are all you need. The S550 spindles are different as stated below.

 

[86Fbody]

Koni Sports (yellows) are all you need. The S550 spindles are different as stated below.

+1, plus the GT350 uses a magnetic ride suspension, which 1. is going to include more than just shocks and 2. is way more complicated IMO then they need to be.

 

[Jabooh1]

I have tried to determine the difference between the LS (D-Spec??) and Koni Yellow. I am trying to determine of my OEM dampers are bad. I have access to another 2013 LS (my fathers car) and the dampers act different.

 

[kevinatfms]

I have tried to determine the difference between the LS (D-Spec??) and Koni Yellow. I am trying to determine of my OEM dampers are bad. I have access to another 2013 LS (my fathers car) and the dampers act different.

I thought the stock LS dampers were made by Dynamic Suspension?

 

[86Fbody]

I thought the stock LS dampers were made by Dynamic Suspension?

The stock LS shocks/struts I believe are Ford specific valved D specs. OP from what I have heard the D specs are harsher rides but guys seem to love them on the track. The Koni's, though I came from the stock Boss setup, seem stiff and are stiffer but they aren't jarring, they seem supple when hitting hard bumps. In fact I hit a huge pot hole the other day coming back from the track and though I cursed all the road gods I wasn't really any worse for it physically.

 

[Grant808]

No, they're Tokico Illuminas not D-specs. Not sure if Dynamic had a hand in the valving. LS units are stiffer than base Boss.

Konis are harsher than either on the street even on full soft.

 

[86Fbody]

No, they're Tokico Illuminas not D-specs. Not sure if Dynamic had a hand in the valving. LS units are stiffer than base Boss.

Konis are harsher than either on the street even on full soft.

Thanks for clearing that up Grant, would you say harsh though or stiff? IMO the Koni's felt better, of course I had lowered the car and the stock dampers were way under dampened but the Koni's though stiffer were much more comfortable.

 

[101blur]

I have always thought that fords performance shocks are tokico Blue's just painted black unless donated the Blue and yellow Bilstien's

 

[Jabooh1]

So the illumina is 5 way adjustable and the d-spec is "infinitely" adjustable. The dampers on the LS are 5 way. So they are either regular of ford specific valved Illuminas.

I will be watching Koni Yellows as the upgrade. Had them on a 95 GT and loved them.

Can't decide on dampers or sway bars next. Need to chat will Kelly at BMR.

 

[86Fbody]

So the illumina is 5 way adjustable and the d-spec is "infinitely" adjustable. The dampers on the LS are 5 way. So they are either regular of ford specific valved Illuminas.

I will be watching Koni Yellows as the upgrade. Had them on a 95 GT and loved them.

Can't decide on dampers or sway bars next. Need to chat will Kelly at BMR.

I would think dampers would be the better upgrade as they can also get rid of a little body sway, however sway bars will not help with bumps etc. on the road.

 

[Jabooh1]

Right. I am trying to determine if the Koni's are that much better than the LS. I normally drive with the dampers on 3 (of 5). Stuff doesn't bother me.

I need to educate my self on sway bars and how bigger front or rear effects the car.

 

[senderofan]

Right. I am trying to determine if the Koni's are that much better than the LS. I normally drive with the dampers on 3 (of 5). Stuff doesn't bother me.

I need to educate my self on sway bars and how bigger front or rear effects the car.

I can't comment on the LS dampers....but the Koni Sport ( Yellows ) were a very nice upgrade. Yes, they can seem a little stiff on soft...for cruising some of the rougher roads....but very nice to dial in for the track.

As far as bars go.....a nice option for aftermarket bars is the adjustability. You can alter or impact the level of grip of either the front end or rear with changing the stiffness setting of the bars. I have settings for running a set of square slicks for the track that is very different than running the staggered set up for the street. Again....having the ability to fine tune according to driving requirements is very nice.

Good Luck....I would do Koni Yellows for my Boss again in a heart beat.......If I had unlimited funds....I'd go coil overs with Penske's or something similar.

Wayne

 

[Jabooh1]

Koni yellow it is. Found a set on another forum with only 5,000 miles for $420 shipped.

Can you point me to a good read on sway bar adjustability? I understand the concept but need to educate myself more.

 

[Grant808]

Thanks for clearing that up Grant, would you say harsh though or stiff? IMO the Koni's felt better, of course I had lowered the car and the stock dampers were way under dampened but the Koni's though stiffer were much more comfortable.

I'd say a tad harsh for the high speed side for compression. So you'd feel the road imperfections more than the LS dampers on '5'. Other than that, the Konis are better all around IMO.

 

[darreng505]

Right. I am trying to determine if the Koni's are that much better than the LS. I normally drive with the dampers on 3 (of 5). Stuff doesn't bother me.

I need to educate my self on sway bars and how bigger front or rear effects the car.

Monotube shocks will perform the best. Fyi.

Keep in mind you have to "design" an entire suspension for a particular purpose. You can't just get this or that part and start mixing them together. Write down your goals. It's notoriously hard to design a suspension that has street manners and track performance which is what the stock suspension tries to do but favors street.

Swaybars control front or rear roll centers. During cornering the inside suspension will unload and the outside carries more load. This causes a shift in the roll center. The more the roll center moves the more weight is loaded on the outside. After a certain amount that weight works against you and you lose traction. A swaybar or (anti roll bar) reduces the amount of distance the roll center moves keeping more contact tire patch on the pavement.

But this is also a case of less is not more. You need "some" roll center movement to increase outside tire grip with "some" additional weight. Exactly how much will vary from car to car and tire to tire.

when using swaybars front and rear it's important that their spring rates be in agreement. Too stiff up front and the car is going to push. Too stiff in rear and it will be loose.

 

[Grant808]

Koni yellow it is. Found a set on another forum with only 5,000 miles for $420 shipped.

Can you point me to a good read on sway bar adjustability? I understand the concept but need to educate myself more.

Depending how far you want to dig into understanding, I think Chassis Engineering by Adams or maybe Competition Car Suspension. Both have a lot that don't apply specifically to street cars, but a lot of the principles are laid out pretty simply even though they cover a lot of the math and physics.

Simply put, anti sway bars work by transferring weight to the outside tires. This increases roll stiffness and reduces grip on that axle.

Monotube shocks will perform the best. Fyi.

Keep in mind you have to "design" an entire suspension for a particular purpose. You can't just get this or that part and start mixing them together. Write down your goals. It's notoriously hard to design a suspension that has street manners and track performance which is what the stock suspension tries to do but favors street.

Swaybars control front or rear roll centers. During cornering the inside suspension will unload and the outside carries more load. This causes a shift in the roll center. The more the roll center moves the more weight is loaded on the outside. After a certain amount that weight works against you and you lose traction. A swaybar or (anti roll bar) reduces the amount of distance the roll center moves keeping more contact tire patch on the pavement.

But this is also a case of less is not more. You need "some" roll center movement to increase outside tire grip with "some" additional weight. Exactly how much will vary from car to car and tire to tire.

when using swaybars front and rear it's important that their spring rates be in agreement. Too stiff up front and the car is going to push. Too stiff in rear and it will be loose.

I think you're talking about the dynamic shift and control? Sway bars don't control static roll centers. That's all in the control arm and joint geometry. I agree with what you're saying, but I think those are more advanced effects that you're trying to explain. You know, for the people who don't spend most of their waking hours thinking about suspension crap! ;-)

 

[darreng505]

Hehe. Well he said he wanted to know about them so I obliged!

Yeah. Maybe there is another term for the body roll induced geometric point that moves when the suspension articulates. Gotta double check what it's called.

Edit: roll couple distribution.

Clear as mud now. Lol

 

[Jabooh1]

Thanks guys for the suggested reading.

It's hard, as was stated, to get the most out of the car and still enjoy driving to work withou stopping at the chiropractor on the way home.

For now I'm hoping to eliminate brake dive and decrease front roll a little. There is a nice freeway entrance ramp on the way home that I can get 0.8 g's on the street tires, but the front rolls like a boat.

I had an issue with the rear raising under hard braking but I think I fixed that by raising the rear LCA point up a hole on the relocation brackets to be more parallel to the ground.

The Koni's I got should be here Monday and on the car Tuesday.