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Sigh... I'm not sure exactly what to ask... I'm very ignorant when it comes to car mechanics but I want & am trying to learn. I recently bought a 1988 Camaro RS that has had its' engine swapped from the stock 305 to a 383. The trans has also been swapped to a TH400 3 speed auto. The exhaust is a Magnaflow with an x pipe.
I'm not sure if any of that info is required but I figured it would be better to have than not.
My car seems really soft at higher speeds... soft as in bouncing up and down and will sometimes bottom out when going over uneven parts of the road (humps, dips, bridge transitions, etc...). Additionally, it will drag when diving very slowly (crawling) and carefully over larger/rougher railroad crossings.
Also, the front of the car raise up whenever I drop the hammer... the car has 425hp and 373 Richmond Gears... so I don't know if the front raising up is just normal for that much HP & gearing.
I'm not sure if any of the (2) previous owners lowered that car and I don't have the knowledge to just be able to look at the car and tell.
The exhaust seems to sit very low as well... I'm plan on taking the car to a shop and see if they can rework the exhaust to fit a little higher.
Because of the bouncing/soft feel of the car at higher speeds... it does seem like the car is in need of new shocks &or struts. I don't even know what parts to buy! Does my car use shock or struts... does it use both (one type in front & other in rear)???
Our cars use a shock in the back, a strut in the front. There are plenty of options out there. KONI's are some of the best, KYB is great for the money. Can't go wrong with Bilstien either. I'd probably stay away from the big box brands like Gabriel etc. etc. I've shopped at ShockWarehouse for many years and there prices are always competitive and often the best.
...also not a bad idea to do springs while you're in there. Again, many options, though if you don't want it lowered, Moog probably isn't a bad stock replacement at an affordable price. You may get different opinions on that as I haven't bought NON lowering springs before.
...as for the exhaust, you mentioned an X pipe. I assume that means you have dual exhaust? These cars don't really have room for true duals, and though a lot of guys will install 'em, not many really take the time to tuck 'em up and route 'em right. I wouldn't be surprised if yours was hanging a little low.
Our cars use a shock in the back, a strut in the front. There are plenty of options out there. KONI's are some of the best, KYB is great for the money. Can't go wrong with Bilstien either. I'd probably stay away from the big box brands like Gabriel etc. etc. I've shopped at ShockWarehouse for many years and there prices are always competitive and often the best.
...also not a bad idea to do springs while you're in there. Again, many options, though if you don't want it lowered, Moog probably isn't a bad stock replacement at an affordable price. You may get different opinions on that as I haven't bought NON lowering springs before.
...as for the exhaust, you mentioned an X pipe. I assume that means you have dual exhaust? These cars don't really have room for true duals, and though a lot of guys will install 'em, not many really take the time to tuck 'em up and route 'em right. I wouldn't be surprised if yours was hanging a little low.
Once again... thank you for your help... again!
I was contemplating changing the springs out at the same time I did the struts/shocks... now I definitely am going to after your recommendation. I'm a bit confused on the correct springs to purchase though. I've been reading some old threads on here and also looking at the offerings from shockwarehouse.com .
"For a V8, you can't go wrong with the Moog 5662 or 5664 up front. The stock rate on an 84 front spring is probably around 400 lbs/inch. The 5662 is 700 lbs/inch while the 5664 is 750 lbs/inch. Generally people can't notice a difference in feel unless there is about at least a 10% change in spring rate. I'd recommend the 5662.
For the back, the difference between the CC635 and 5665 springs is that the CC635 is variable rate while the 5665 is slightly more performance oriented with it's linear rate. The springs will fall out when you change the rear shocks, so there is essentially no labor charge for installing them. The variable rate rear springs tend to sit a tiny bit higher than the linear springs. My car's rear height is 28.5" in height with the 5665 and new shocks."
The OP of the post is asking about putting IROC suspension parts on an '84 Z28. From what I read it seems that all the parts are interchangeable and that the MOOG springs mentioned above will fit on both the IROC and the Z28. However, when looking up the MOOG 5662 springs on Shockwarehouse.com it states the following:
16" Wheels Constant Rate Spring Heavy Duty Fits models with up to V8 engine.
The only thing that confuses me is the portion about 16" Wheels... does that mean that I can't use those specific springs with 15" Wheels?
Additionally, for the MOOG 5604 springs it also states:
Constant Rate Spring Except 16" Wheels Fits models with up to V8 engine.
Do you happen to know what the website is meaning in regards to the 16" wheels?
In regards to lowering springs... what do/have you personally used & recommend?
Well, the springs don't get very close to the wheel, regardless of size, so it's not a physical issue. They'll all fit. I'm going to guess that since the larger 16" wheels also had big fat (for the time) 245mm width tires, it has something to do with handling characteristics. I can't be 100% sure about that. What I CAN tell you is that countless people, with countless different wheels have run pretty much any combo of springs under the sun. That's not to say each and every combo is ideal, but if you're not looking to the very pinnacle of handling performance, I wouldn't really worry about it. ...also keep in mind that the stock IROC springs, while a lot stiffer than some of the base models, they're still not overly stiff. I had about 900# front springs in my last Iroc, and when i bought me most recent Iroc, it had stock springs and it felt like I was floatin' down the road in a big ole Caddy! It's all relative..
As for what I've used in the past, ya have to keep in mind that mine have always been lowered, which requires different springs and shocks. I'm a fan of the Eibach Pro-kit springs which I think are about 850 up front and 175 out back, (though I could be wrong) and drop the car about 1". ....lately I've been using Ground Control's weight jack kit, which is basically a spring and adjustable mounting bracket, which allows you to custom dial in the ride height/weight of each corner individually. It's a great kit, but honestly it doesn't sound like it's what you're looking for. If you're not looking to lower, I'd stick with those moog springs.
Are you looking to lower? ....keep in mind we've discussed different wheels/tires lately too. When you go with different wheels/tires, and get into lowering, all "rules" of fitment are up for grabs and you can potentially have issues, depeding on a lot of different factors. MOST guys tend to keep the wheel/tire diameter around a stock 25.5" to 26", so the lowering is often the only variable, and there's typically a fair amount of room left over. Weren't you looking at a 27" tall tire? ...don't get me wrong, this is the "fun" of customizing and hot-rodding, but it's not always a guaranteed fit. If you're going for that tall back tire with a little front lean/rake, kinda old school, I think I'd probably stay away from lowering, at least for now. Just my 2 cents.
Well, the springs don't get very close to the wheel, regardless of size, so it's not a physical issue. They'll all fit. I'm going to guess that since the larger 16" wheels also had big fat (for the time) 245mm width tires, it has something to do with handling characteristics. I can't be 100% sure about that. What I CAN tell you is that countless people, with countless different wheels have run pretty much any combo of springs under the sun. That's not to say each and every combo is ideal, but if you're not looking to the very pinnacle of handling performance, I wouldn't really worry about it. ...also keep in mind that the stock IROC springs, while a lot stiffer than some of the base models, they're still not overly stiff. I had about 900# front springs in my last Iroc, and when i bought me most recent Iroc, it had stock springs and it felt like I was floatin' down the road in a big ole Caddy! It's all relative..
As for what I've used in the past, ya have to keep in mind that mine have always been lowered, which requires different springs and shocks. I'm a fan of the Eibach Pro-kit springs which I think are about 850 up front and 175 out back, (though I could be wrong) and drop the car about 1". ....lately I've been using Ground Control's weight jack kit, which is basically a spring and adjustable mounting bracket, which allows you to custom dial in the ride height/weight of each corner individually. It's a great kit, but honestly it doesn't sound like it's what you're looking for. If you're not looking to lower, I'd stick with those moog springs.
Are you looking to lower? ....keep in mind we've discussed different wheels/tires lately too. When you go with different wheels/tires, and get into lowering, all "rules" of fitment are up for grabs and you can potentially have issues, depeding on a lot of different factors. MOST guys tend to keep the wheel/tire diameter around a stock 25.5" to 26", so the lowering is often the only variable, and there's typically a fair amount of room left over. Weren't you looking at a 27" tall tire? ...don't get me wrong, this is the "fun" of customizing and hot-rodding, but it's not always a guaranteed fit. If you're going for that tall back tire with a little front lean/rake, kinda old school, I think I'd probably stay away from lowering, at least for now. Just my 2 cents.
I was initially looking at that 27" tire so that I could get some more ground clearance but after chatting with you and looking up the specs for the gen 3 stock wheel/tire diameter I decided to go with a different size.
The skinny front runners that came with the car have a diameter of 24.8" and I was trying to get the max increase without running into rubbing/fitment issues. I decided to go with 235/60/R15 which has a total diameter of 26.1"... which gives me an increase and is still at stock level height.
As you've probably noticed... all of this is a work in progress... both with the car itself as well as my knowledge/learning. Additionally, I didn't even know that the shocks/struts/springs were in need of replacement/upgrade when I was looking at increasing the front tires width & height. I would venture to imagine that replacing the front struts, along with the new size tires, will give me some of that ground clearance that I need. Plus taking the car to an exhaust shop and having them reroute & tuck up the exhaust pipes better will also give me the ground clearance I'm looking for. Heck, the exhaust sitting as low as it is now is probably the main issue when it comes to bottoming out... but those struts/shocks are in dire need of replacement and of course is greatly adding to the issue.
My end goal for the car, which will take a while, is to turn it into a great handling machine... not a drag car. I'm keeping my goals realistic... I don't have the budget to turn it into a competitive track car... I can't give it the full 100% Detroit Speed DSE-Z treatment. However, I plan to upgrade the handling characteristics so that it is better than stock... stock IROC that is. Heck, from what I've read about how well stock IROC's handled, I wouldn't mind it to handle like a stock IROC... but end goal is to have it handling even better than that.
I think I got a pretty good handle on what size tires & wheels you can use on the stock Gen 3 springs/shocks/struts... but from what you're telling me, it seems like if you want to lower the car any I'd have to learn what size tires/wheels, springs, struts, shocks, to use for any given drop from stock height... is that correct?
Again... thanks for teaching and helping me with all this... it's greatly appreciated more than I can express in text.
Soooo before I say what I'm gonna say, just keep this in mind. When someone posts that they wanna build the car to do "X"...in this case "handle better", it's often hard to know if the person is looking to spend $500 on off the shelf parts, or spend $10,000 and have custom parts fabbed and built to make an amazing handling racecar. -typically it's somewhere in the middle!!!!-and I'm not asking YOU specifically either....just keep in mind that some ideas may be above or below what you're really looking to do. Best thing you can do is read read read. SOOOO much info on this forum.
My first IROC suspension/wheels/brakes had all the off the shelf parts. Like...ALL of them. But I can't say I really tested them, and properly sorted out how the suspension worked. Sure I bought my way into a good handling car, FAR better than stock, but it was never really set up right. Through the years I've learned where I coulda spent the money better. Maybe NOT buy this part, but spend extra money on THAT part. I'm currently building my 88, and I have a whole different approach. I won't boar ya with all the specifics right now, but I'm learing that it can REALLY get complicated with regard to weight, and angles, geometry etc. etc., if you're willing to go down that rabbit hole!
But....to get started, I think you need to sort out that exhaust. See if it can be tucked up in there any better. Depending on what parts the owner before you put on will determine what can be done. Of course if it cannot be routed any better, you'll have to decide if ya wanna redo some parts of the exhaust or just not lower the car. -or deal with the occasional scrape! You can definitely have a car that handles well without lowering, but....man do they look good riding low!!!
I think I got a pretty good handle on what size tires & wheels you can use on the stock Gen 3 springs/shocks/struts... but from what you're telling me, it seems like if you want to lower the car any I'd have to learn what size tires/wheels, springs, struts, shocks, to use for any given drop from stock height... is that correct?
If you DO decide to go a little lower, it's not really that complicated. It's just that without simply giving you a grocery list of parts, I can't know what will fit, even though I can certainly make an educated guess. Spring Kit (A) might've worked for me, but you might choose tire (B) based on recommendation from another member. Well those springs on MY car never had to work with the other guys' tires. Kinda over simplified, but you get the idea. I can tell you this with a fair amount of confidence. If you keep your wheel diameter around stock-ish height, keep your wheels at factory offset of 0mm on all four corners, go no wider than 275mm on your tire width, and choose a reputable brand of aftermarket springs/struts/shocks designed for our cars, you should have no trouble. -and guys go outside this box ALL the time....but they also do their research (hopefully) and understand that it's not always a guarantee. That being said, without TOO much reading, it's unlikely you can't make most things work, even if they're not perfect.
There's a few other things to look at when lowering, like pinion angle etc. etc., but it's not overly complicated and if you only drop and inch or so, likely to not even be an issue. Still.....you can read up on pinion angle a little. As the car lowers...obviosly the rear axle and diff housing do NOT lower. Causes slight changes in the driveline angles. Easy to measure, easy to fix, if it's even needed at all.
....as far as springs and shocks/struts, it's really pretty easy. The springs will determine how high the car sits. Brands like UMI, BMR, Eibach and countless others make springs that will sit the car lower. Because the car sits lower, it stands to reason that the suspension can't travel as far before bottoming out. To compensate, lowering springs are stiffer than stock springs, so....when they compress, they compress and decompress faster than stock, and over a shorter distance. Because of that, you want a shock/strut combo that's designed to handle that faster/shorter movement, otherwise it's just along for the ride and not doing it's job. There's no right brand, and special specs. They're not really designed for lowered cars specifically, just more aggressive suspension articulation, which....typically involves a lowered car. ...and if you're in doubt, call the manufacturer and ask. They're all happy to help and answer questions.
Gotcha... what lowering springs lack in size make up for with the spring rate. I'd like to go ahead and get a set of lowering springs, about an inch, but I need to do some more research on the specific type/size of shocks & struts to get... unless you just use that same size shocks/struts as you would if the springs were stock size.
I'm keeping the 15" wheels for now and the tire size will remain the same until it's time for new tires. My current sizes are 235/60/15 front & 255/60/15 in the rear.
Not sure if I could afford a 1" drop in the rear with that size tire but I think I'd be pretty good with a 1" drop in the front. ah, I'll probably just replace everything with stock size for now & go to dropping whenever I go to buy new wheels & tires.
Do the size of shocks and struts stay the same when you drop the size of the springs? BTW, I've been reading and reading... researching... I've read threads on this forum that were made back in 2003...lol.
The size of struts and shocks doesn't change between base, RS, Z28, IROC... the size is the same correct? So when I go to order shocks and struts it doesn't matter if I'm buying them for a 1988 RS or a 1988 IROC... correct?
Does the size of shocks/struts needed change if you lower the car, if so what size do I need to look for... or do I just look for the same exact size as stock but look for specific ones that state they're compatible with lowered springs?
Basically, when I'm looking at shocks/struts I just type in the make, model, & year of my car and look to see what each company offers... if lowering causes me to look for different shocks/struts then I don't know where to look... other than reading threads here on TGO & seeing what others have used.
I "think" that the physical size/dimensions of the struts/shocks stay the same whenever lowering,,, HOWEVER... it's the internals of the strut/shock that need to be different in order to handle that faster/shorter movement you spoke of; correct? Is that why you stay away from lower priced shocks like Gabriel, Monroe, etc...?
Last edited by Outkast Actual; 10-30-2020 at 03:39 AM.
I don't know if anyone has mentioned it yet, but please purchase the factory service manual for the 1988 Camaro. This is not the small manual you can pick up at the parts stores, but rather the 1800+ page factory manual that dealerships/ GM used back in the day to work on these cars. Bishko Automotive literature has CD ROM versions for sale. Even though your car is nowhere near stock, The book will give you the torque specs and order to remove the parts. They also list the stock ride heights and where on the car to measure from, as the tops of the finder height can fluctuate from car to car, due to panel shims.
With that out of the way, let's discuss suspension coil springs. There are three things that need to be considered for coil springs. I believe these three are most important, but this is not the "Be all, End all" of suspension springs.
1: Front axle weight. Does your car still have the A/C system? Does your front car have aluminum cylinder heads? The axle weight will determine how "stiff" the front end of your car is. As a though exercise, take the coil spring off of your car and place it on a large, diesel, dually, pickup truck. With the heavy weight of the truck, you might perceive the suspension as "Squishy" or "Soft". Now take the same spring and place it on the front end of a small go-kart. You will think that the suspension is quite "Stiff" or "Hard". The front axle weight of your car will determine the other factors below.
2: Ride Height: Naturally, a spring with a higher PPI (Pound Per Inch or AKA Spring Rate) will be less likely to compress under the same front axle weight as lower PPI spring. Assuming the springs have the same free length (how "tall" or "long" the spring is when setting on the ground by itself), the "Softer" spring, or the spring with the lower PPI, will compress more under the SAME weight than the Higher PPI spring. In return, the lower PPI Spring will set lower on the car, with all else being equal. I'm keeping this simple and only talking about linear springs at the moment.
3: Perceived Harshness. This is a very subjective part of suspension "Tuning". What you might perceive as a harsh ride, I might perceive as a soft ride. First, determine what you want out of the car. Are you trying to chase the last tenth of a second on a road coarse, or is the car a weekend cruiser? Will the car be bracket raced at the local drag strip, or is the car a fun street car? these factors will determine your personal goals and tolerance for ride quality.
So what does this all mean? It means that you might not get the spring free length and weight correct on the first try. Why? You're front axle weight is different than a stock F-body, due to aluminum cylinder heads, possible lack of Air Conditioner, different intake manifold, Ect. Also, springs can "lose" spring rate over time. That makes it all but impossible to determine the correct spring rate and ride height for your application. Bummer, but not all hope is lost. Keep reading.
You may have come across the fact that "Coilovers" or Coil Springs-Over-Shocks are ride height adjustable. Then you search and find that they don't work the best on our cars, due to design characteristics of our front suspension. They are also VERY expensive to do correctly. However, we can make our suspension ride height adjustable by installing an adjustable spacer between the spring and the spring mounting point on the from axle cross member (AKA Spring Pocket). These are known as Weight Jacks. It is essentially a steel cup to hold the spring, a flat plate, a large bolt, and a piece of all-thread in between. These are common on Dirt circle track cars with stock style front suspensions (Dirt Modifieds, and Dirt Street Stocks) and in all levels of NASCAR. If you hear a NASCAR reporter say, "They put a wrench in the back window" or " they made changes to the rear of the car", adjusting the ride height is one of the changes the crew can make.
Now, you don't have to worry about the relationship between the free height of the spring, the PPI or Rate, and the car's final ride height. You just pick the spring that gives you the ride you want, and set the ride height with the weight jack. If you drag the exhaust across the railroad tracks, you can simply raise the front end of your car by jacking the car up, and turning one bolt on each side of the suspension. If you get the spring rate wrong, then the springs are much easier/ quicker to change, as they are shorter and can have the spring pressure removed by adjusting the weight jack.
If you need anymore help, please feel free to reach out. A few companies make weight jacks for Thirdgens. Ground Control, UMI, Detroit Speed, Ect. and for good reason.
Does the size of shocks/struts needed change if you lower the car, if so what size do I need to look for... or do I just look for the same exact size as stock but look for specific ones that state they're compatible with lowered springs?
. ....if you order a performance shock/strut from Koni, KYB, Bilstien, Tokico, etc. etc., they'll be able to handle the new performance spring rates. This isn't to say that there's NO difference, but this is where you have decide how much effort, reading, research, time and money is worth getting your upgrading suspension from pretty good to great. Here's another analogy. I've been doing a lot of hiking and backpacking, so I've been looking into this stuff. Imagine you're cold and you want a jacket. Is a walmart hoodie good enough, or do you need a $350 zero degree, ultra-light mountain climbing jacket? There's not a right answer, without more info. For hundreds of thirdgen owners, a quality set of springs like the Eibach Pro-Kit, with a 1" drop, and an affordable set of non adjustable KYB shocks and struts for an 82-92 Camaro will be a rock solid upgrade, providing much better than stock handling and a decent ride quality. But.....there's a lot more options out there if you really wanna push the envelope.
Whitebird, 100% agree on the factory service manual! ...as far as the other spring info you mentioned, I don't disagree with any of it, however, I think my previous analogy about winter jackets really applies. For many many people, you don't have to take into consideration all he specifics of weight. Just pick up a set of springs and you'll be good. ....on some other threads, we've been discussing changing your front and rear roll center in relation to the center of gravity, moment arms, weight transfer, big sway bars vs. little bars, and how they relate to spring rates, pitch vs. roll and roll vs. pitch, blah blah blah, and that doesn't even begin to scratch the surface. LOTS of stuff way over my head, but I'm learning. What Outkast is doing is similar to what I did on my last car, and it performed great! But on this new car.....I'm really trying to get to that next level and fine tune, but I don't think that's necessary for most applications. It's kinda like horsepower. That first 100 extra ponies might only cost $2000. The next 50 horsepower costs $3000. ....and the next 50 is $5000!!!! You really have decide what it's worth and what you want. How far down that rabbit hole ya wanna go!? Because no matter HOW much money you spend and how specific you pick your parts, there's always someone who knows more and spent more, and has a better set up!!!
Abubaca, I agree that your analogy of the winter coat, and think that diving in to deep can lead to unsatisfactory results while spending large amounts of money. However, I think I should further explain my reasoning. In the end, we would like to buy the right products at the right time. I might have went a little deep into the fundamentals of how to choose a spring rate, and I do have a tendency to go over my audience's heads. The point is that there is a relationship between weight, spring rate, and ride height. Once one of the three are changed, and in OutKast's situation the weight has changed, the other two have changed as well. With stock replacement springs, the car will set higher in the front than stock. Also, members have reported their cars actually setting higher with lowering springs due to wore out factory springs settling lower than the 1 inch drop the Eibach kit provides.
We both want Outkast to spend the right money on the right parts. The Eibach Pro-kit is $335 for both front and rear springs. The UMI Weight Jack front kit is $370 plus $50 for a set of CC635 rear springs. I know that it starts with $85 here, and $60 there, and before you know it, the car is WAY over budget. However, $85 for the ability to adjust the front end height of the car might be worth it for Outkast.
Now I do agree that the KYB Excel-G are great non-adjustable shocks, especially for the price. KYB AGX are not a bad choice for a street car if one wants to play with adjustable shocks. Again the price creep comes into play here. IMO Koni Yellows are a little far for a car that doesn't see autocross or light track duty, or bragging rights.
I would also recommend swapping out the Lower Control Arm bushings for new rubber bushings. The car will hold an alignment better and allow the suspension to work properly. Also, swap the Sway Bar links for a set of 1LE end links. The bushings were changed to Nylon, and will work better than the rubber factory ones. Sometimes these are listed as "Performance Suspension".
Thank you both for responding, teaching, & being patient with my very basic questions. I do like the thoughts of the weight jacks. The end goal of the car is make it a handling machine... not to the point of professional race car levels but at least good enough to be able to have fun on these very curvy mountain roads here in southeastern Kentucky. I would also like to at least have the ability to take it to a track sometime in the future just to have a little fun.
The Eibach Pro-Kit system seems to be a sold investment as compared to just putting stock parts on... especially since upgrading handling performance is a major priority of mine.
When it comes right down to it... the money I spend on stock/replacement parts can go toward upgraded parts.
The weight jacks seems to be a pretty good up front investment... having the adjustability will allow me to run a specific set up for the wheels/tires I have now and then will have the freedom to adjust once I get new wheels/tires. I'd prefer not to spend money on springs/shocks/struts now that I will just be switching out in about a year... having the adjustable set up will allow me to keep that same setup now & in the future, with just having change the settings.
Also, if I'm understanding is correct... I can upgrade the front now & the rear at a later time.
I have the Ground Control weight jacks. They come with all four corners. Different spring rates are available. If you go this route, give 'em a call and ask for Donovan. This was my first set GC weight jacks. The black spring was the Eibach prokit front spring. GC spring is shorter, but of course the jack isn't in that photo. It really does help you dial in. Cost as of my last kit, ordered a month ago, was just under $600.
Beautiful car... and it looks mean! Is installing the weight jacks, springs, shocks, & struts something a beginner can do with the aide of researching, reading, & watching YouTube videos (I would have the video on hand "if" it's plausible for a beginner to attempt installation.
I've never even changed break pads on car... I'm that green when it comes to auto mechanics.
If I can't do it I'll just try to find a good mechanic that won't charge an arm and leg to install everything.
How long, at or about, do these weight jacks & springs hold up... how long before replacing them if someone is mainly doing regular driving and only goes a little hard every blue moon?
Lastly, buying adjustable struts and shocks are a must when using weight jacks... correct?
The weight jacks and springs should hold up as long as any other spring combo I'd imagine. ...and no, they don't have to be adjustable. That just helps fine tune, and tailor to your personal preference.
Is installing the weight jacks, springs, shocks, & struts something a beginner can do with the aide of researching, reading, & watching YouTube videos (I would have the video on hand "if" it's plausible for a beginner to attempt installation.
I've never even changed break pads on car... I'm that green when it comes to auto mechanics.
If I can't do it I'll just try to find a good mechanic that won't charge an arm and leg to install everything.
It's hard to say. I mean...it's all just nuts and bolts really, so in a sense, yeah....it's easy. But I'm not sure it's the first project I'd undertake. If you can find some info on the actual procedure, a video like you said, I'd say that could probably walk you through it ok. You know anyone who'd be willing to help? Sometimes a second set of hands (and eyes and a brain) can really make the difference! Whatever you do, be VERY careful removing front springs. They'll be under some pretty good pressure and can easily kill you if they let loose before you're ready!
It's hard to say. I mean...it's all just nuts and bolts really, so in a sense, yeah....it's easy. But I'm not sure it's the first project I'd undertake. If you can find some info on the actual procedure, a video like you said, I'd say that could probably walk you through it ok. You know anyone who'd be willing to help? Sometimes a second set of hands (and eyes and a brain) can really make the difference! Whatever you do, be VERY careful removing front springs. They'll be under some pretty good pressure and can easily kill you if they let loose before you're ready!
That's exactly what I needed to know! If you'd said it's super easy then I would've decided to do it myself w/o any help. However, because of what you've said above... I'll just get my Bro-N-Law to walk me through the process. Thanks.
Well... looks like I'm going to have to delay the purchase of the weight jacks for now due to having to have some transmission work done.
I've looked for info & searched threads for my following question but can't find a specific answer.
However, I'm still going to be purchasing some shocks/struts & springs... just to verify... even though the MOOG 5662 and 5665 are direct replacements for an IROC... will they work for my 1988 Camaro RS with a 383, aluminum heads, & no AC or should I buy the springs that are advertised for a 1988 Camaro RS that has a 305 & no AC?
The difference in the numbers between the two springs, as listed below, is what has me confused/concerned...
Direct replacement for 1988 Base (RS) w/o AC: MOOG 5602:
Inner Diameter: 4.09" (103.89mm)
Spring Rate: 347 lbs/inch
Free Height: 15.88" (403.35mm)
Bar Diameter: 0.67" (17.02mm)
Installation Height: 11" (279.4mm)
Load: 1680 lbs
Direct replacement for 1988 Base IROC w/ AC: MOOG 5662:
Inner Diameter: 4.08" (103.63mm)
Spring Rate: 748 lbs/inch
Free Height: 13.01" (330.45mm)
Bar Diameter: 0.75" (19.05mm)
Installation Height: 10.75" (273.05mm)
Load: 1690 lbs
***AT THE VERY LEAST I want my car to handle as well as a stock IROC and I'd like to replace all the RS suspension parts with at least stock (OE replacement) IROC parts.
Also, is the big box brand shocks/struts like Monroe, NAPA, etc... a bunch of junk or are they fine for a simple OE replacement? I'm going to buy the KYB Excel-G but I'm just curious on why everyone says to stay away from those types/brands of shocks/struts.
Sorry for asking again about this stuff but I'm nervous that I'll buy something that won't work for my car.
Respectfully;
Donnie
U.S. Marine Corps (ret.)
Last edited by Outkast Actual; 11-16-2020 at 10:35 PM.
Reason: added more detailed info
10-27-2020, 09:55 PM
-and I'm not asking YOU specifically either....just keep in mind that some ideas may be above or below what you're really looking to do. Best thing you can do is read read read. SOOOO much info on this forum.
