Improve Ride Quality?

chris86uk

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Hi everyone,

I've got a '96 GT, lowered on C Springs.

I lowered for the same reason as everyone, the 4x4 stance. I didn't want to slam it, and I'm pretty happy with the stance as it is now. What I'm less happy with is how the car rides. The front isn't too bad (not massively different to stock) but the rear feels HARD now, almost as if the rear end jumps on bumps. Bad times.

So, I've been wondering about a couple of things. Firstly, should I try to get hold of a pair of rear B springs as I believe these are softer? Secondly, can I improve the ride by replacing the struts / shocks? It's sitting on the originals so these are likely shot by now. The car is only used on the street, so I'm not looking for anything to improve performance, just an improvement in comfort, if that's possible with the lowered suspension.

I've searched through the forum quite a bit, and people seem to rave about Bilstien's, but they're very expensive, and adding the customs charges I'd have to pay to import them to the UK, they're out of the question unfortunately.

Rock Auto stock Gabriel, Monroe, Sachs or original Motorcraft. Would I see a noticable improvement with any of these? Also, there seems to be conflicting advice on whether or not to go with the shorter Fox length struts / shocks as they're better for lowered SN95's as they're closer to correct working range?

Any thoughts / opinions greatly received.

Chris
 

SnakeBit!

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my friend has the fox shocks in his with coil overs and it helped his. I have the koni srt t's which are more budget friendly than the bilsteins and I am happy with them. had the bilsteins on my bullitt, and loved them but could not afford them this time. good luck with whatever you decide!!
 

evilcw311

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Have you looked to see if they left the spring isolators in? That and look to see if they also cut coils to assist in additional drop.




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OLD H2S

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How bad are the old rubber bushings? No fun to replace but cheap and if you stay with rubber the ride will improve and not be harsh and they last 10 years with no lubrication.
 

bmcgc

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I used Fox struts up front and Chev/Geo Tracker shocks in the rear. The Fox struts are the same length as the SN95, except the mounting locations are 1in closer. Tracker shocks mount the same as Mustang shocks except 2in shorter. The Monroe p/n is 32316.

I put C springs on my 94 convertible GT and didnt like the ride at all, I did use stock Monroe shocks and struts.

A better option might be the G springs, they are for a convertible but have a softer ride than the B or C springs.

On my 97 Cobra I cut the stock springs for a 1.5-ish drop. Im going to ride around on that for a couple months. If Im satisfied, I will keep them, if not I will go with the G Springs.

B springs: F - 200-300 R - 425-530
C springs: F - 200-300 R - 650
G springs: F - 170-310 R - 500-570
 
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chris86uk

chris86uk

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Thanks for the replies :smiley:

Bushes seem fine to me, I've replaced quite a few bits over the last few years so I'm fairly sure these aren't the problem. Also, all the spring isolators are in and were brand new when the springs went in.

Bmcgc, I hadn't thought about G springs, definitely worth considering. Thanks for the info on the Fox struts etc too.
 

Mustanger

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Try a new shorter rear bump stop snubber...it may not have been changed when it was lowered?
 

g36 monkey

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People often overlook subframe connectors, but they offer an immense ride quality improvement, and will prevent future chassis issues. I would do that and just get a set of replacement shocks/struts.
 

painterdan

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People often overlook subframe connectors, but they offer an immense ride quality improvement, and will prevent future chassis issues. I would do that and just get a set of replacement shocks/struts.
what do you recommend for an untouched 96 GT, for a smooth ride ? on the cheap side
 

AStangThang

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what do you recommend for an untouched 96 GT, for a smooth ride ? on the cheap side
Replace all the suspension bushings, spring isolators, springs, and struts. Pretty much a complete overhaul. My stang is a '97, I did a complete overhaul with basically stock components, it dramatically improved the performance, and handling.
 

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