Trade my IRS? Your Opinion

[MountainDew]

I recently got into a small accident with my Cobra, all is good just a few broken pieces but while it's at my buddies shop he proposed to do the SRA swap from his fully built 93 Cobra clone. It has 3.73s and maybe has 100 miles on the axle where as my 03 Cobra has close to 94k miles, leaky diff, broken half shaft, and a broken knuckle, and worn out bushings.

He road races his 93 and I told him I get to drive it after its been swapped I don't road race and I hardly drag race but if I do race, it's only in a straight line. I like the IRS and the way it looks, but I'm not attached to it. So this is my dilemma, would you do the swap? Do you think it's an even trade?

 

[Mystic-SVT]

I'd do the swap if the IRS needs that much work, but if you do the swap to a fox body rear end then your wheels will tuck in quite a bit. Unless the rear end he has is from a 94-98. If thats the case then the wheels will only tuck just a bit. Sounds like a good deal for you but depends on the width of the axle...

 

[MountainDew]

Anyone else with an opinion?

 

[SlowSVT]

I would keep the IRS. Ford did not go thru all the expense and hassle of equipping the Cobra with an IRS if it did not have an advantage over a straignt axle plus your car will maintain its value, handling qualities and ride quality with the IRS.

 

[Jomo1994z71]

I would keep the IRS. Ford did not go thru all the expense and hassle of equipping the Cobra with an IRS if it did not have an advantage over a straignt axle plus your car will maintain its value, handling qualities and ride quality with the IRS.

X2! Just reseal the diff. If the accident wasn't your fault. Maybe use some of the money for a new bushings kit.

 

[SickBlackMach]

X2! Just reseal the diff. If the accident wasn't your fault. Maybe use some of the money for a new bushings kit.

X3! Get the replacement parts, drop the IRS and replace all the bushings. The difference is night/day IMO. My only regret is not doing my bushings sooner!

 

[rotor_powerd]

Love my SRA, best modification I've done to the car. No wheel hop, handles/rides just as good, tucks fatter rubber, and saves ~120 pounds.

 

[RAPTOR5V]

I would keep the IRS. Ford did not go thru all the expense and hassle of equipping the Cobra with an IRS if it did not have an advantage over a straignt axle plus your car will maintain its value, handling qualities and ride quality with the IRS.

enough said its a terminator keep the irs, get it fixed.

 

[SUPERSEXY32V]

My IRS performs AMAZING. bushings + a good shock/spring or coil over setup and you won't be disappointed.

 

[SlowSVT]

Love my SRA, best modification I've done to the car. No wheel hop, handles/rides just as good, tucks fatter rubber, and saves ~120 pounds.

An SRA is a great modifcation for straight line drag racing but no road racer in his right mind would choose one over an IRS let alone a street car.

 

[thomas91169]

X2! Just reseal the diff. If the accident wasn't your fault. Maybe use some of the money for Steve's bushings kit.

fix.t

www.fulltiltboogieracing.com

Keep IRS. SRA is only a benefit if you BUILD IT UP; meaning you will have to spend quite a bit on making it anything useful, and even then you still have a shitty stick axle that sucks for any driving other than when its being pushed to its limits (either Drag or RoadRacing).

for half that, you can go through and rebuild the IRS to be even more competitive, and it will have all the refinements of any IRS equipped vehicle out there.

people make the whole "yeah, well a solid rear with a panhard par and this and that will dominate a IRS", in which i go "yeah, a stock IRS, lemme spend the same $1500 and see what happens with a reworked IRS". End of argument.

Dont waste money with the whole DSS Lvl5 halfshafts; they are a waste and not a weak point as many the solid rear naysayers will say they are. They snap due to the shock of a hard launch on DR; any drag racer who is still on stock IRS (not modded) run soft sidewal slicks and they are on stock halfshafts with hundreds of passes. Why? Cause a soft sidewall slick soaks up the shock of the launch and does not transmit it into the halfshaft, whereas a DR would without remorse.

Please dont neuter another 03/04 due to misinformation by brainwashed masses who think a 50 year old stick axle with a few mods is a "better idea" or cause they say so many road racing/drag racing guys have them, its because there are more solid rear equipped vehicles to start out with, thus their voices are more prevalent, and not at all correct.

 

[bluecobra]

Love my SRA, best modification I've done to the car. No wheel hop, handles/rides just as good, tucks fatter rubber, and saves ~120 pounds.

wow,120 lbs., you gotta be kidding. is the irs really that heavy.

 

[MountainDew]

Thanks everyone for your opinion. I'm gonna keep the IRS and build it.

 

[rotor_powerd]

An SRA is a great modifcation for straight line drag racing but no road racer in his right mind would choose one over an IRS let alone a street car.

Tell that to these guys

Griggs Racing Products

I have afeeling they're a little more serious than 99% of people on this site, and they are doing it all with solid rears.
:beer::beer:

 

[mu22stang]

Tell that to these guys

Griggs Racing Products

I have afeeling they're a little more serious than 99% of people on this site, and they are doing it all with solid rears.
:beer::beer:

There is no question a solid axle can be made to handle, especially when you throw several grand at it. There is no question the geometry of an IRS has an inherent advantage over a SRA in the handling and ride quality departments. There is no question it is less expensive to make an IRS handle better than a modified SRA.

 

[Slow99x]

The IRS can be great if it's done right. The same thing can be said for a SRA but I'd rather keep my nice ride of the IRS that go with a clunky feeling solid. I do 100% of my driving on the street and I never take my car to the track though.

 

[SlowSVT]

Tell that to these guys

Griggs Racing Products

I have afeeling they're a little more serious than 99% of people on this site, and they are doing it all with solid rears.
:beer::beer:

Dude, I don't think anyone at Griggs is going to stick their necks out proclaiming a solid rear axle superior to an independent rear suspension. Just the name alone speaks volumes.

 

[SlowSVT]

wow,120 lbs., you gotta be kidding. is the irs really that heavy.

Actailly the IRS assembley weighs about 425 lbs not 120. Then again the IRS reduces unsprung mass by 65 lbs at each wheel. Not only that, you can adjust camber and toe-in which is not possible with a SRA.

 

[GR-40 Pat]

Dude, I don't think anyone at Griggs is going to stick their necks out proclaiming a solid rear axle superior to an independent rear suspension. Just the name alone speaks volumes.

A properly designed IRS is a great thing, however the packaging problems of the Mustang do not allow an IRS to be designed properly...

The IRS is a major improvement when compared to the stock 4-link design SRA in the Mustang, however put a torque arm/panhard bar or watts link on it and it's a much better system. Can you spend some money on the IRS and make it work better, yes... but it's not the IRS that's under a Corvette... Understand that the IRS in the Mustang is a big fat compromise...

In the (road) racing world that these cars run in (NASA AI/AIX, SCCA ITE) most choose to work with a properly designed SRA. A proper setup will handle just as well as a upgraded IRS, with less tuning and less chance of breaking.

 

[GR-40 Pat]

To answer the OP's question, this all depends on what you really want to do with the car and how much you want to spend...