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Best Suspension Package

39K views 232 replies 23 participants last post by  ikutoisahobo 
#1 ·
What is in your opinion the best STREET (not drag strip) performance suspension setup for an MN12?

I'm looking to do my suspension and especially my front end since it needs new lower control arms and probably tie rods and other various bushings (depends what the mechanic finds). I've wanted to do lowering springs (Vogtland) for a while, but at the same time I want some performance benefits too so what shocks do you guys recommend for lowered springs? I know there are Tokico Blues and I believe the KONI options but I'd like to know what you guys recommend through experience. Post your setup too and let me know how it affects the balance.
 
#2 ·
KONI's are discontinued for the MN12.

Do this: Tokico's in front, Bilsteins in back, fresh bushing all around. Get as many of the solid bushings from Jay as you can. See this thread for details.

Get the Vogtland springs you mentioned, a 1-1/4" ADDCO bar in the back and call it a day.

There may be other recommendations for front shocks but this will get you a solid performance suspension.
 
#3 ·
All of this is excellent advice. If you can find them, 89 SC front and rear sway bars are a nice upgrade (unless you go Addco). I am a big fan of chassis bracing. The more solid the chassis is, the more responsive to cornering inputs it will be since it will reduce flex through he metal. Front and rear tower braces, front and rear subframe bracing, etc.
 
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#4 ·
As was mentioned, the Koni's are discontinued. In my opinion, the Bilsteins in the rear are too stiff for a street car. I ran them on my MarkVIII for a few weeks, and the rear was so stiff it was jarring, so I pulled them off and went with the Tokico blues. In my opinion, for a car that gets driven on the street, a set of Eibach springs with the Tokico blues, and SC sway bars is the way to go. The Eibach's are a progressive spring, so the ride will still be comfortable for normal driving, but then they stiffen up when you load them up in a corner, and their spring rate matches nicely with the Tokico shocks.
 
#191 ·
I also am looking to infact do my suspension firsts soon before my engine work over the winter and next spring
It seems like my 91 5.0 sport is rough over bumps in comparison to the two 95-97 4.6 tbirds I had ...what can be done just short of air ride suspension to make a grand Marquis like ride quality for instance... I'm sure I won't get that quality but close would suffice
According to online records 5.0sport had the sc adjustable suspension but I don't see anything like that .
It's to stiff over bumps ... All my bushings on the other hand are all perfect I just think it could be just shocks are ancient or struts are crap but the bearing plates are all good on a bounce check from under the hood don't see any play all it's just not what I recall from my past cars these cars should float pretty well .
Any rate I want to do struts and lower it at the same time all around . Could it be shocks more so the issue then anything else ? Rims tires are 17s eagle GT tires .
I hate the firm ride and I cannot imagine it being this way in 1991. I want the softest ride quality performance and still lower it some if that even exists with modern suspension components 26 years later .
Rock auto lists economy and daily driver struts .. i dont want to throw money away if it's just shocks that can fix this and coil overs was a thought but I only see scperformance offering them at over 1200$ for a set of 4 . What's the best option ?
 
#5 ·
Tower braces are convenient to lean on when changing plugs :D

The 89 SC front bars aren't as thick as the TCCoA sway bar chart says(1.20"), the actual size is only 1.13", verified by myself and others -89 sway bar question - barely bigger than the V8 bar, considering the hassle of changing them and the more convoluted oil filter clearance issues they're not even remotely close to worth it IMO
 
#6 ·
Crap; that means I owe someone $50. I'll see if I can find them. :(

We need to talk Racecougar into making some more bracing; I need front STB's. :)
 
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#8 ·
Okay, I'm now leaning towards Eibach springs and Tokico on the front and Bilstein (cobra shocks im guessing) in the back. I don't think I want to spend on those hard bushings, I think I'll do new stock bushings. And that Addco swaybar.


If you guys have a lead on where to get these parts the cheapest it would be great, I'm willing to buy used springs and swaybars but not used shocks. Let me know.

Also probably going to do a hub swap since it'll cost me the same as finding good looking TBird wheels that aren't replica Cobras or Speedstars. So a handy link to where I can buy the hubs (especially the rear ones) would be appreciated, the front ones are available on Rockauto (I'll just buy Dorman ones).
 
#9 ·
EEEKKK!!!!!!


Put down the mouse and step away from the computer!!!


IOW - you're doing this ALL wrong.

You can save on the sway bar if you use the hard bushings; that'll firm up the ride quite a bit.

And Dorman *shudder* You ARE aware that Dorman is after market for "Nobody else makes it, so we don't have to worry about quality" combined with "We don't care who else makes it, we STILL don't care about quality!" (For most parts, anyway.)

Spend the extra few dollars; get the Motorcraft, Timken, SKF, or Moog front hubs.

For the rear - the least expensive may be to get your old hubs redrilled to the Mustang pattern; if not, you can buy Cobra hubs, but those you need to count on $150 to $200 each (!!) (Yes, you can find them for less sometimes. Still, count on that.)

Also, don't skimp on those rear bearings - you don't look like Kenny Rogers ("You picked a fine time to leave me, loose wheel!")

Spend the money for that.

The rubber will deflect; the Delrin, not. So the handling will become much more dependable at the edges.

Sometimes the rear hubs show up on RockAuto, depending on availability; however, a quick Giggle turns up Ford Performance IRS Mustang Wheel Hub M-1109-A (99-04 Cobra) - Free Shipping for today as I type this.

You'll have to get rotors redrilled anyway, or a relocation bracket to use Cobra rear calipers and rotors.

You can find the factory OEM rear spindle nut; however, be sure to keep an eye on the torque on them! I just munched a rear hub and bearing due to not paying attention to that ... let my mistake not be yours!

RwP
 
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#11 ·
Alright Ralph.

I won't do Dorman.

But I don't see why I need to shell out so much for those bushings. Heck, I could buy the whole stock front suspension for how much those bushings are. I'm not sure I wanna put that much into them. What bushings in specific will give me this godly suspension/ handling? Lower control arms, UCA? Which one? I just can't justify hundreds of dollars on a few bushings.

Redrilling my existing hubs and a set of rotors seems like a decent idea. Would I be able to do it on a craptastic Harbor Freight drill press or does it require more than that?
 
#12 ·
The main problem the rear end has is the rubber that's back there for NVH (Noise Vibration Handling - and notice the Handling is third place!)

The Delrin firms that up.

At least go poly and realize that they may have to be replaced in a few years.

The most important bushings appear to be the spindle bushings and the LCA bushings. The UCA/frame bushing needs to be truly adjustable, but rubber there is fine unless there's excessive play elsewhere.

As to the front - use the good suspension parts, and you'll go far. The front doesn't shift around under torque like the IRS does.

Or more accurately, we don't have the torque load on the IFS that the IRS has to handle once you start building the motor any *grins*

As to redrilling the rear rotors and hubs - I'd get someone with precision equipment to do that; I'd not try it on my own. Then again, I'm no machinist (my idea of "Good'nuff" is "Within a foot" *grins* ) The holes do need to be precision sized and positioned on the hub. The ROTOR, OTOH, can be egged out a bit and work fine, since they're hubcentric. (I wouldn't DO that, being rather preferred to have the holes cleanly drilled, but logic and physics dictate that they'll be fine, to a higher level than the rubber bushings in the LCA and spindle.)

For the front, they're cheap enough and if you go Mustang GT PBRs (recommend 2003/2004 since they use the same banjo bolt as the MN12s do), you can also use the matching Mustang hubs and rotors. Easy peasy on that end.

RwP
 
#13 ·
Basically poly anything on the front suspension = bad(the LCA side strut rod bushings, sway bar bushings and steering rack bushings being the lone exception, but don't expect any noticible driving differences in those areas). Poly or UMHW in the rear is generally good except the UCA inner pivot. For outright handling don't expect them to transform your car though, it's mostly a "feel" effect but the feel of rubber not winding up or binding as the suspension articulates can help with precision at the limit - realistically all you'll notice on a street car on street tires is some extra harshness. Most subjective observations are A-B comparing between worn deteriorating rubber and brand new Poly/UMHW, of course the latter is going to be better. But with stock bushings not being available new anymore, these are the way to go and in the case of UMHW in particular should last the lifetime of the car. They also are the most effective cure of wheel hop.
 
#14 ·
Okay, I think you guys have a way better idea of this than I do. I'm a Honda guy and we use eBay springs, swaybars and shocks and some chassis bracing it goes a long way lol (quality is usually decent since Hondas are so damn common and quality parts are available at dirt cheap prices)

That being said, can you guys link me to these bushings, preferably cheaper poly ones. Dunno if I drive enough to wear them out that quickly...7k miles a year tops.
 
#15 ·
Prothane Suspension Parts - Precision Polyurethane Bushings

Energy Suspension Parts - Polyurethane Suspension Bushings

You'll have to study up here; they don't sell LCA bushings per se, but there's some that will fit and work fine. Prothane's seem to fit just right; the Energy Suspensions need to be massaged a bit.

You'll still need to put something in to fill up the space between the bushing and the frame, unless you also put the toe link compensator back in.

(Jay's bushings have a mushroom to replace the unneeded toe comp; that's about $80 to $100 right there!)

RwP
 
#16 ·
Search feature if your friend. Jay is 98Mark8LSC, he makes the UMHW/Delrin stuff, and the polys can either be had(at substantial markup) from supercoupeperformance, and reasonably from prothane or energy suspension - rear LCA inner pivots from a 99-04 Mustang Cobra kit and their rear spindle kit for our cars. I don't have the part numbers memorized. Poly tends doesn't really wear out in a traditional sense, it will essentially settle and reshape itself under compression and in some places it'll last and perform despite that, in others it'll "squeeze" out(that's why the strut rod bushings are a bad idea)

Hondas don't have a thousand extra pounds of mass to wrestle with, so no doubt cheap ebay specials may work fine. The trouble with our cars is the low end replacement parts seem to be engineered to bu used on a light low powered Honda.
 
#17 ·
This might help you :). All my costs have not included applicable taxes, shipping, and costs for shop costs of pressing out / in hubs, and other things that I don't have specialty tools for.

 
#19 · (Edited)
FYI, the automotive term NVH stands for Noise, Vibration and Harshness, not Handling!

When I did the big suspension rebuild on my '97 last year, I went with new LCAs with "stock" rubber bushings and new bushings at both ends of the radius arms in front, Delrin bushings for the rear LCAs (Mark VIII aluminum parts), the SCP tubular rear UCAs, Vogtland 1.6" drop springs, rebuilt Koni adjustable shocks all around, factory front bar with new end links and poly mid section bushings, and an ADDCO 1.25" rear bar. This combination rides and handles well with the staggered tire sizes I'm running.
 
#22 · (Edited)
Thanks Trunk Monkey, sorry. My ignorance.

Ordered the B8 Sport Plus shocks for the rear from AJ USA they are 184.00 shipped, couldn't seem to find a better price.

http://www.ajusa.com/2004-Ford-MUST...8-Performance-Plus-Shock-Absorber-ab04ca.html

Ordered the Tokico HP Blues from UltraRev for 171.84 shipped

Ordered the Vogtland 1.6 inch springs from Amazon for 202.00 shipped.

Im at approx ~560 in these parts alone.
 
#24 ·
Thanks Trunk Monkey, sorry. My ignorance.

Ordered the B8 Sport Plus shocks for the rear from AJ USA they are 184.00 shipped, couldn't seem to find a better price.

Bilstein Monotube Shock Absorbers and Struts | 24-185974 | Bilstein

Ordered the Tokico HP Blues from UltraRev for 171.84 shipped

Ordered the Vogtland 1.6 inch springs from Amazon for 202.00 shipped.

Im at approx ~560 in these parts alone.
As an FYI, Summit Racing or Jegs.com will beat any internet price you find and they are both reputable suppliers.
I think I got my rear bilsteins cost $181.47 delivered.
Personally, I think you are also smart to go with the Tokiko Blues vs. Bilstein inserts on a street car (which will require machine work -- see my thread).
 
#27 ·
The rear is pretty light in these cars regardless, I find tokico rears well matched for all the lowering springs available back there. Bilstiens look cooler though :D


Nobody makes 2" drop that I'm aware of, Jamex springs were 2" drop. 1.6" drop looks much lower in person than it does on paper, they will settle lower too. I've never been above cutting brand new lowering springs to fine tune ride height, but I know the fierce resistance to that practice by some :tongue:
 
#28 ·
I'm also a fan of having the same shocks/springs all around unless I'm trying to achieve a specific configuration to resolve an issue. Since my driving is all street, the Tokiko Blues are in my opinion a great choice. They are an improvement over stock, while not forcing you to play with adapters and overcome any issues. If I were going to do some kind of track driving, I'd work on a very custom setup using QA-1 coil overs, or modifying Bilsteins to work.
 
#29 ·
Anyone else find it funny that there are two nearly identical threads asking "what suspension should i buy?"
I'm guessing that there are tax refunds burning holes in some folk's pockets. ;)
-g


BTW, here's another option for the rear for people who insist on spending a ton of money on their tbird. I'll update my stickied thread

QA1 Double Adjustable Rear shocks @ ~$245/ea (yeah, that's $490/pair)
Pros:
- 18 positions for rebound
- 18 positions for compression
Cons:
- Stupid expensive

QA1 TD707: SHOCK STOCKER D-ADJ 13.50 -20.50 STUD/EYE-P | JEGS
QA1 Double Adjustable Rear Shock TD707 (99-04 Cobra) - Free Shipping
 
#35 ·
Found the Vogtland 1.6 inch drops #953058 for 217 on Amazon.

Just playing the waiting game now. I know I need rear springs isolators, I was thinking of using the stock used ones but I'd be stupid to since they're probably old and deformed and since I'm take the old springs out I might as well change those out too. I know some suggest the fancy Prothane stuff but I feel like a simple rubber isolator would do since it has no actual function besides for NVH correct?

Also any other knick knacks that I'd need for this job? New hardware? Quirks? Tips and tricks?
 
#36 ·
Why not just get the MK8 LCAs and get the spring isolators for those like I've done since you seem to be getting yourself deeper into this? :D
 
#38 ·
I myself do not, but they are plentiful. I see people parting out MK8s all day long on the FB MN12-FN10 for sale page. You can probably get them for around $100+ shipping, maybe less?
 
#39 ·
Yikes. Was quoted 10 hours of labor for front? control arms, and putting in my new springs/shocks/struts. 820 dollars. That's way too high. I think I'll do it myself. If I'm going to put in nearly a 1000 dollars into labor I'd rather buy a car lift so I don't have to spend a penny on labor for my 3 other cars.

Tell me, is that reasonable? $820 for labor, when parts are being provided?
 
#40 ·
I got both front control arms, the rear knuckles, Axles, and Front and rear shocks put on for ~$400, by providing complete parts and assemblies.

That included a 4 wheel alignment.

It took them 4 hours, including the alignment. :)

I spent about an hour during the quote; I had him throw it up on the lift, and showed him and his main mechanic all the tricks on these cars.

All those parts have to be unbolted to do the front or rear suspensions; done in the right way, you simply unbolt everything and then reassemble it.

The tip on the 18mm ratcheting wrench saved a bunch over the factory process. :)



Walter is missed dearly everyday. RIP, dude.
 
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