FB Suspension Upgrades
 

I'm finally ready to upgrade my FB suspension for road racing. I run club events that don't have any rules, so I can run whatever I want:) I've listed what I have, what I'm considering, and a few quesions. Give me your advice on any of this, especially if you have personal experience with any of these components.

What I have:
H1) Shocks -- '88 vintage Bilstein performance shocks, meant for performance street driving
H2) Swaybars -- Racing Beat 1.125" Front bar w/urethane mounts; rear bar is removed
H3) Springs -- Eibach Pro Kit lowering springs front & rear
H4) Front LCA -- OEM with urethane bushings
H5) Rear LCA -- Ground Control Heim Joint
H6) Rear UCA -- OEM
H7) Watts Linkage -- Mazda Comp Heim Joint conversion
H8) Camber Plates -- none
H9) Steering Spacers -- none

What I'm considering:
C1) Shocks -- Have Bilstein revalve my current shocks for $65 each ('88 vintage Bilstein performance shocks, meant for performance street driving)
C2) Swaybars -- Keep what I have (Racing Beat 1.125" Front bar w/urethane mounts; rear bar is removed)
C3) Springs -- ISC coilover conversion & Eibach springs front & rear from Ground Control
C4) Front LCA -- Keep what I have for now; upgrade to heim joint LCAs from ISC later (OEM with urethane bushings)
C5) Rear LCA -- Keep what I have (Ground Control Heim Joint)
C6) Rear UCA -- Remove and use Tri-Link from G-Force
C7) Watts Linkage -- Remove and use Panhard Bar setup from ISC
C8) Camber Plates -- ISC camber plate / strut bar setup
C9) Steering Spacers -- ISC

Questions:
a) How do I keep my springs from coming loose when I jack the car? With what I'm considering, I'll have to re-seat the springs each time I lower the car, and I'm far too lazy for that. Wire ties? Different (shorter) shocks? ISC's Bilstein setup?

b) Will ISC's Panhard Bar setup work with the G-Force Tri-Link?

c) What's the best camber plate setup? The ISC one looks interesting, but I know of the Ground Control and Mazda Comp units, too.

Buy g-force engineering's book. Jim is THE guru on 1st gen suspensions.

You are on the right path. As far as the camber plates, the GC's are nice for the fact that they ride above the strut tower. This allows the shock to ride about an inch higher. This will lower the car without giving up any shock travel. Also, as far as the springs coming unseated, not a big deal. the fronts on our car, GC coilover with shorter Eibach rears, seat themselves when the car is jacked up. The rears take just a careful eye and a slow jack down, just have to make sure that the spring sits back in its perch. Seriously though, if this is too much work, racing might not be the best bet for you.
The G-force tri link setup has worked very well for me, as well as the info you can get from Jim Susko when you buy his stuff. He is a very helpful guy and really knows his stuff. Good

Jim Susko (I have his book) recommends a method for retaining the shocks, partially so he won't have to re-seat the springs each time. Maybe you should call him and tell him that racing isn't the best bet for him, either.

Thanks for your opinions on some of the other stuff, but you should keep the non-constructive ones to yourself.

Elwood, I have the spring unseat issue on my car, I totally agree with T-racer, it's not a big deal. Lower it slowly(so you don't jam an edge) and they'll seat no problem. I've never had to stick a hand in to help them along.

PaulC