What will I need to run the koni GC spring combo?
 

I wondering what will I will need to get the GC spring koni combo to work, and not have any problems? What top mounts should i use, ect? And do any of you recomened a diffrent suspension set? Cheaper is better, but i would rather spend the extra money to have a suspension set up that works noticlabley better. I have a 5spd instaled, and dont really car about ride quality unless it hurts to ride in the car, but it is used as my every day driver so a better ride quality would be nice.

GC's are very stiff. It all comes down to if your struts are bad or not. If your struts are good then just get springs from Motorsport Warehouse or mbtoloczko.

If the struts are shot then get Koni's and the above mentioned springs. The GC's are too stiff for a daily driver...at least on Winnipeg streets :D

The Koni/GC mod uses the stock strut body and top mount. You can get a huge improvement in handling without the Koni/GC mod. The springs I use + a set of new stock struts + my rear sway bar make the car handle so much better. This setup doesn't sound as "high performance" as the Koni/GC, but it does make for a great all-around handling car.

Iam pretty sure i have the origanal struts at 130,000 miles so i dought the struts will like some new higher performance springs. Are the GC springs really to stiff for a everday driver, if they are i cant even consider them.

Mbtoloczko how stiff of springs can i get with the car only being lowered between .5 inches to stock?

What about konis, and your springs will it work well?

Also how much do some new oem struts cost?

Thanks

I say for the price, if you want Koni/GC's... Get them!!! They are great!!! Single best thing that I did to my car... They make the SVX handle like a Miata!!! Sure it is alittle more expensive than Mbtoloczko's setup (which I have heard great things about), but I can truly say that for the money, I enjoyed the better handeling more than I enjoyed the 5 speed in my car :D:D

You will need some tools to get the job done and it will take about a day to prep the struts and a day to do the install (if it is just you working on the car). However you can cut this time in half for every competent person that you have working with you... But those people are kinda hard to find :rolleyes:....

If you want to search for my review that I wrote about my suspension (Went WAAAAY into detail about the setup and feel and install) just search for posts started my me on this topic about a year ago... Have fun with whatever you decide to do!!! :D:D

Please understand, if you get the Koni's your ride will be ALOT firmer.... Not harsh or rough... Just firmer. Nomatter what spring you pair them with. The strut is what controls the spring (as you nodoubt know)... Not only on the rebound but on the compression as well... Even with stock springs and Koni's, the ride will be firm... If you really want Koni's over stock struts then you will really want the Ground Control springs at these rates, 380(f)/325(r).... They match the Koni's MUCH better... If you want to go with Mbtoloczko's setup then don't bother with Koni's since the stock struts can handle the lower springrates... Try not to rush into a decision... Take some time, ride in some diffrent cars and see which setup you like best (looks, ride, cornering)... I took over a year to decide, before I finally asked Porter to build me a set... Again, good luck!!!

I know the konis will increse the firmness, but right now my struts are having a hard time with rebound with my stock springs, and iam having a hard time imagining new ones being able to control springs that are 30% stiffer. Trust me ive been thinking about what setup i want to use, it basicley has come down to if the GC are streetable i will go that route but i have never riden in a SVX with them so iam not sure.

They are "Streetable"... believe me... Unless you are an old man (No offense Larry :D:D)... Have you ever ridden in a special edition Miata? If you go get a ride in one of those, that is about as close as what you are gonna get to the way that the SVX feels and handles (Minus the extremly quick steering of the miata)... I think that you would like the setup ALOT. Especially if you do AutoX or track days... The nose of the car simply DOSEN'T dive when you slam on the brakes!!! However, at slow speeds, the car is very nice to drive... Try to get up with Larry up there in Washington... I think his Blue SVX has them on it along with the 5 speed... Maybe he will take you for a ride :)

Just search for my review... It describes everything in it :)

The OEM struts have a fairly strong damping rate. With the stock springs, I would say that the car is slightly overdamped. So far, the OEM struts are going a good job of controlling my springs, .... no bounce, no wheel hop, good feel at speed. Now, if you whip the car around, the car is going to feel more flexy compared to if a set of Konis were installed with my springs.

If you want to get an idea of how my springs work with Konis, SVXer95 has a set of my springs with the Koni inserts.

The less you lower the car, the stiffer I can make the springs. If you lowered the front by 1/2" and left the rear stock height, I could do something like 210f/180r. This would be a linear rate spring, so you would get this rate throughout the entire suspension travel.

I feel the same about you as far as how the Koni/GC combo might ride. No doubt its going to handle great, but different people have different tolerance levels, and different places have different road quality. I really wish I could drive an SVX with the Koni/GC to see what its like. No one in the NW with the combo though.

how far does everyones cars set in the back. mine just looks like its 1/2 inch below the tire in the back. meaning u cant see space at all with every thing stock. my front is high though. but i was considering the repacement with the koni and the drop springs from the warehouse with the most drop. in front im sure my strust are toast i have yet to check the back. to cold but bad struts can make the car ride lower right? and how is the whole set up im speaking of is there a better route? money is no deal. 97 red in the beginings

In stock trim, the rear fender lip on my car set about 1/2" above the tire. However, I've seen quite a few stock SVXes with the rear fender lip sitting below the top of the tire. The OEM rear springs are almost Cadillac soft, so my guess is that those people have a bunch of junk in the back seat or in the trunk. Or else the springs have badly rusted and lost even more spring rate.

My car is low in the back to, but I think its from the stereo.
Time for a set of ground contorl coil overs:D

ride height and feel
 

After around a year of driving with Mychailo's springs and brand new Showa (stock) struts, I can only speak highly of how this combination works on the street. Even after adding the world's largest SVX front bar ;), the ride is still not uncomfortable going back and forth to work (I think the effective spring rate in the front is very similiar to the GC set up). I should be able to report out on how the Koni inserts "play" in a couple of weeks.
-Bill (not ready to mention how the "special" rear bar "plays" yet;) )
p.s. the ride height with Mychailo's springs is just about perfect - it brings the front end down so it matches nicely with the rear wheel well.

just my 2 cents
 

but many people onboard are running our drop springs
and have no complaints with ride quaility with our w/o
Konis.
We just put them on special too :) only for a few weeks
( the springs that is :) )