Trebor69

Hello All

Have recently had new engine , gems ECU and other mods done in the engine bay. So now I think its time to look at my suspension

Currrently have origional subaru shocks with apprently progressive lowered springs fitted..

It is a MY93 JDM WRX so they are 11 years old now..

Looking to take the lean out of car and make it a bit more playable, I.E more oversteer etc...... Will I get this with new shocks??? I know Powerstation do AST adjustable coil overs, anyone had them fiited??? I dont want to end up with a car that just feels horrible on our Uk roads.......

Allready have following mods underneath

Bumpsteer mod, Uprated front and rear drop links, Whiteline stiffer adjustable rear anti rool bar and front (top and bottom) and rear strut braces fitted.

Running on 17" alloys with 4pots and grooved/vented discs...

Any advice will be greatly appreciated

Cheers

Rob

911

If you want to get the 'ultimate' chassis you need to go quite a bit further (=$$$$)
My car (Sti v3) has the following and I feel is right on the good-side of a great road car chassis used for serious hill climb competition without setting changes:

Whiteline:
Front/rear roll bars and rear drop links
Welded/re enforced rear roll bar mounts
Rear lower control arms (from hubs to subframe, 4 off)
ALK
Powerflex bushes everywhere including the rear sub frame.
Poly bushes in steering rack
Lower front subframe brace
Camber bolts at all wheels

MRT:
Race type top strut mounts (huge caster/camber adjustment)
Subframe lock bolts

AVO: (don't buy these, pay more and get a lot more)
Coil-overs with quite soft springs, rear spring rate 80% of the front

Wheels:
Road: P1 17's with Kumho V70's medium compound (cut slicks, road legal)
Race: Impreza Sti 16's with soft compound Kumo's.

There, that lot will do you proud!

911

Settings:
Use Whiteline settings, radical but really work, all on their web site.

L1J

I've had the following done by Powerstation:

Anti lift kit
Bumpsteer mod
AST Coilovers
Drop Links
Camber bolts F+R
Full geometry setup

Goodyear F1 Tyres

Car feels so much better than standard on every type of road. Understeer has gone and the back end can be made to move about by lifting off. The setup isn't harsh on roads around here. Dampers are adjustable, so you can vary the handling to suit your requirements.

It feels 'planted' on the road compared to the standard setup. I think the above spec is a good solution if you don't want to spend £££££ and retain some degree of comfort.

Trebor69

L1J, Well I'm running F1's too and I love em, Since having all the engine/tuning work done I seem to get through my last set rather quickly

So what exactly does the following do? :-

Anti Lift Kit
Camber bolts

Where abouts are you based?? Ever go to meets etc? Wouldn't mind having a demo in car with new coil overs etc..

Cheers

Rob

911

ALK give a little more caster in to the front suspension which can reduce the understeer in the car. I'm not too convinced myself.
The camber bolts allow a greater amount of Camber to be set into the car, each wheel if you fit a bolt to each strut.

Adding both means a re-alignment is needed.

Both will make the Impreza a better car.

911

DaveW

You may want to look at a set of P1/STI5 or 6 struts and springs instead of coilovers. I know of a few people who have gone down this route and are very happy with the results.

I'm running the AST's and I'm very happy with the results. They give a nice compliant ride.

Dave.

L1J

Trebor,

As 911 said!

Cant comment on the affect of fitting an ALK on its own as I had all the above fitted at once! I was told by powerstation it would improve steering feel.


Im in North Wales near Caernarfon, drop me a PM if near enough!

sparkywrx94

I have just fitted ast coilovers to my 1994 JDM WRX, very impressed, feels stuck to the road. You might want to take a ride in a car fitted with them because they can be anoying on uneven roads even on the softest settings. By the way I also have gems ECU, do you know if there is an offset for the ignition advance because I am only reading low figures of 4 degrees max at high boost/revs

cheers

Mark

L1J

Mark,

What's the air inlet temp? The GEMS retards the timing if the AIT is higher than 45 degrees on mine. I take it you're using the software to look at the values? My values vary from about 29 midrange down to 13 at the top end. Who mapped it for you?

What spring rates did you go for on the ASTs? I think you can specify two versions road or track.

Trebor69

Hello Sparkywrx94

Not sure on the retard thingy on Gems, i got mine mapped by Steve Simpson, Did you?? Must admit that the is a rocket since having the gems fitted and mapped :O)

So what exactly does the ALK do in technical terms??

May take someone up on an offer to have a test drive in a classic with AST fitted...

Rob