street car suspension problems! - F-Body Road Racing and Autocross Forums

Newbie here, hello. Car is a 1995 Formula. Set up for Ozark road trips loaded full of camping gear, driven legally but aggressively on mostly great pavement. Planning to start doing a few autocross events/yr. Here's a rundown of current setup, which I gather is a mishmash of all the wrong parts. Most of this crap, I understand, is designed for straight-line racing and/or impressing techs at tire and muffler shops. Any advice is welcome.

-Stock 16x8 wheels, 245/50/16 BFG G-force SS, 37psi front/32psi rear cold pressure.
-BMR goodies (yeah, I know) - rear control arms (non-adjustable, poly bushings), welded frame connectors, strut tower brace, adjustable panhard rod (poly both ends), stock torque arm.
-Eibach pro-kit springs
-Bilstein HD shocks
-poly motor + trans mounts
-stock sway bars w/ poly end link and clamp bushings.

The car has gained a "bit" of power recently thanks to cam and head work and some old fashioned displacement, and the weaknesses are beginning to show.

Issue #1: The car now squirms around in the rear on hard acceleration, even with no apparent wheelspin. Quite frightening. Difficult to keep it in it's lane even when accelerating from 40-60mph. The rear axle seems to be steering the car.

Issue #2: A recent alignment indicated something funny. Camber and caster were no problem, but with the tie rods adjusted to the limit, toe setting is 1/8" out. No less can be had. Previous alignments presented no problems with setting toe to zero, which I always preferred. Is it possible that the wrong tie rod ends were installed at some point, or is this a function of the lowering springs? How durable are the spindles, and should I suspect them as well after 135k miles?

Question: Should the rear control arms be relocated for the lowered ride height, or is that another Summit catalog myth? Launch traction is definitely reduced now that it sits lower.

Also, the car is under-represented in the braking department. C-5/C-6 brakes or something aftermarket? Don't really want to go larger than 17" wheels.

Gradinger View Member Profile	Dec 15 2010, 11:57 PM Post #1
newbie Group: Members Posts: 6 Joined: 10-December 10 Member No.: 32,953	Newbie here, hello. Car is a 1995 Formula. Set up for Ozark road trips loaded full of camping gear, driven legally but aggressively on mostly great pavement. Planning to start doing a few autocross events/yr. Here's a rundown of current setup, which I gather is a mishmash of all the wrong parts. Most of this crap, I understand, is designed for straight-line racing and/or impressing techs at tire and muffler shops. Any advice is welcome. -Stock 16x8 wheels, 245/50/16 BFG G-force SS, 37psi front/32psi rear cold pressure. -BMR goodies (yeah, I know) - rear control arms (non-adjustable, poly bushings), welded frame connectors, strut tower brace, adjustable panhard rod (poly both ends), stock torque arm. -Eibach pro-kit springs -Bilstein HD shocks -poly motor + trans mounts -stock sway bars w/ poly end link and clamp bushings. The car has gained a "bit" of power recently thanks to cam and head work and some old fashioned displacement, and the weaknesses are beginning to show. Issue #1: The car now squirms around in the rear on hard acceleration, even with no apparent wheelspin. Quite frightening. Difficult to keep it in it's lane even when accelerating from 40-60mph. The rear axle seems to be steering the car. Issue #2: A recent alignment indicated something funny. Camber and caster were no problem, but with the tie rods adjusted to the limit, toe setting is 1/8" out. No less can be had. Previous alignments presented no problems with setting toe to zero, which I always preferred. Is it possible that the wrong tie rod ends were installed at some point, or is this a function of the lowering springs? How durable are the spindles, and should I suspect them as well after 135k miles? Question: Should the rear control arms be relocated for the lowered ride height, or is that another Summit catalog myth? Launch traction is definitely reduced now that it sits lower. Also, the car is under-represented in the braking department. C-5/C-6 brakes or something aftermarket? Don't really want to go larger than 17" wheels.

Blainefab View Member Profile	Dec 16 2010, 07:40 PM Post #2
I build race cars Group: Advanced Members Posts: 4,748 Joined: 31-August 05 From: Central coast, CA Member No.: 874	In the rear, look closely where the upper panhard brace ties into to the frame - the bolts on each end should be tight, no signs of stress on the spot welded sheet metal tower on the pass side. Check the torque arm for cracks at the diff bolt holes. Check the torque arm to trans mount. What is the rear toe? Has the car been curbed recently? Did the rear steer start all of a sudden or has it gotten worse gradually? In the front, check that the Kmember to subframe bolts are tight - there's 6 of them. Check the rack mount bolts. Check the outer tie rod ends and hubs for wear. The uprights won't wear from miles, but they will bend if the car is hit on a wheel or curbed. The inability to get the front toed in indicates something is seriously wrong: bent or wrong parts. for brakes your best bang for the buck would be a LS1 upgrade, next up the C5/6 setup. No need for anything aftermarket here.