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Best Shocks for Less Than $2500 (set of 4)

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I'm looking for as many opinions (or votes) on the best shocks under or around $2500. There are so many options out there that I keep going around in circles. The goal is to find a track oreinted shock that will be driven on the street about 30% of the time but won't brake the bank. . Please include you're reasoning and / or experience with the shock you suggest. Also, suggested spring rates would be very helpful.

Thanks,
Sean
 

ArizonaBOSS

Because racecar.
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Arizona, USA
http://www.summitracing.com/parts/rsp-403151?seid=srese1&gclid=CLTi6P7h-r0CFZWSfgodHJsAfw

That's what I run, although I contacted KW (Roush's manufacturer) and got a softer rear spring set.
Supposedly the fronts are 515lbs/in (not verified) and the rears are 400lbs/in (verified by KW). I put in a 230#/in rear spring set for better corner exit traction.

It's comfortable enough to drive on the street even with the 400# rear springs; I drove it on the street like that for a couple months.

You might want to call Summit and make sure you can actually get that set, I've seen a lot of people say they are just SKUs and not available.


Next best option, IMO would be an AST 4100 set. I don't have any experience with them, however.
 
Shocks/dampers or a coil over setup? Koni yellows with P springs are very popular and a nice step up over stock. For coil overs check out the CorteX setup.

These are Koni racing dampers and not the same at Koni yellows.

http://www.cortexracing.com/shop/xtreme-grip-coil-over-system-street/

http://www.cortexracing.com/shop/xtreme-grip-coil-over-system-track/
 

Grant 302

basic and well known psychic
ArizonaBOSS said:
Next best option, IMO would be an AST 4100 set. I don't have any experience with them, however.

Not sure where you'd get the AST now. Vorshlag is carrying 'MCS' branded components now. Might just be a brand name change?
 
Stay tuned for my review of the Konis on track this weekend. I can say that they are every bit as comfortable as stock on the street with Steeda Sports.
 

ArizonaBOSS

Because racecar.
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I had Koni Yellows w/ K-Springs on my 2006 GT; definitely a better ride than the stock Ford stuff but I'm not sure if any real handling improvement over the stock BOSS suspension.
 

ArizonaBOSS

Because racecar.
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Arizona, USA
Grant 302 said:
Not sure where you'd get the AST now. Vorshlag is carrying 'MCS' branded components now. Might just be a brand name change?

Good point, forgot about that. The Cortex stuff does seem to be the hot stuff now.
 
Thanks for the suggestions everyone.

Rick: I'm open to either standard shocks or coil-overs and have given the yellows serious thought. I would have bought them already since they are on sale and very cheap, if not for inability to change ride height and corner balance. (I have a very steep driveway and if I could not taise the ride height when street driven I would destroy the splitter leaving and coming back up my house. That said, of I can't decide on coil-overs I will buy a set and give them a try since they are so cheap.

I do like the Cortex coil-overs but they are at the top of my price range. I'm sure they are a great piece but in the end you're paying a lot for custom valved koni's.

The Roush/KW's are interesting. The price is reasonable and they come with everything you need, including camber plates. Arizona: do you happen to know the equivalent KW coil-over if there is one?

My last thought was to really go out on a limb and try the T&A's I posted about the other day. I like the fact that the shaft diameter is huge...they look similar to Dynamic's. They are the only two companies I've seen that make them such a large diameter. They look like they will be durable. the owners have an extensive history with Ford Racing and



they've recently won SCAA run offs on a mustang equipped with their shocks. At about $400 each for the front it might be worth the risk. My thought is to natch them with Sach's rear canister style coil overs (from an FR500s), which would put me at under $1800 with springs.

I see that cortex mixes different shock mfg from front to rear so I imagine as long as you can get dialed in that its acceptable to do.

Other than the unproven T&A's am I crazy for thinking about taking this approach?
 
ArizonaBOSS said:
I had Koni Yellows w/ K-Springs on my 2006 GT; definitely a better ride than the stock Ford stuff but I'm not sure if any real handling improvement over the stock BOSS suspension.
I think it's easy to improve on the stock dampers but not sure it will equate into faster lap times. I have Ford Racing 18000-C dampers with Multimatic spec'd valving and they are noticeably more controlled in fast sweepers like you'll experience between turns 6-8 at Thunderhill. With the stock dampers the car floated around but with the 18000-C dampers the car is much more buttoned down and stable at speed.
 

ArizonaBOSS

Because racecar.
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8,730
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Arizona, USA
KBBOSS1086 said:
The Roush/KW's are interesting. The price is reasonable and they come with everything you need, including camber plates. Arizona: do you happen to know the equivalent KW coil-over if there is one?

Roush has them custom-valved, but the equivalent would be something like a KW V2...single-adjustable rebound w/ camber plates.
 

Domestic Product

Big fat tires and everything !
KBBOSS1086 said:
I'm looking for as many opinions (or votes) on the best shocks under or around $2500. There are so many options out there that I keep going around in circles. The goal is to find a track oreinted shock that will be driven on the street about 30% of the time but won't brake the bank. . Please include you're reasoning and / or experience with the shock you suggest. Also, suggested spring rates would be very helpful.

Thanks,
Sean

OK, $2,500. Looking at your mod list I will assume the car has stock suspension. We all know you cannot just drop the Boss and expect it to handle well.
So my thoughts are you have to budget for the package of parts you will need to get the car a little lower and a little stiffer. Not just shocks and springs or coil overs.
You will need,
*Adjustable Panhard bar. $180 ish.
*Adjustable lower rear control arms. $270 ish.
*Relocation brackets for same. $110 ish.
*Camber plates. $400. ish
*Shocks/ Springs. $1,000 ish.
*Adjustable sway bars front and rear. $500 ish. (could wait on these but should be on the radar)
*Bump steer. $150 ish.
Total this list $2,710 for the parts.
Install ? do it your self or add for shop labor and alignment.

I pretty much have done this list. I'm waiting on my sway bars and bump steer and the car goes into the shop in a couple weeks for the last parts to go on and a go over for the 2014 season. I went with Vorshlag so my stuff is pretty much Whiteline with the Vorshlag camber plate/Bilstein package with K springs. No its not a race set up, but the car is transformed and drives well on or off the track and did not break the Bank. Lots of other options so shop around. But I would definitely talk to the guys at Vorshlag.
On a side note the MCS stuff you see on the Vorshlag site is a off shoot of guys from Moton and JRZ.
 
From what I have heard and read the Ground Control's are a pretty nice setup for the money.

http://shop.hypermotiveperformance.com/Ground-Control-2011-2013-Mustang-Complete-kit-400787.htm
 
Thanks again guys.

Arizona: The more I hear about the Roush's the more I'm interested. These are the one's you use on your race car, correct? Would you puchase them again if you had a budget of $2500?

Domestic: You are correct, my suspension is stock other than camber bolts. Thanks for the list...I purchased a few of the mods over the winter and am planning to get everything esle when I get the shocks. The costs add up which is why I'm trying to limit what I spend on the shocks to $2500. My goal is to try to get everything on your list and a few more for under $4000. I will be doing all the work myself so I hav extra to spoend :) I've already purchasaed or plan to pruchsae the following:

MM spherical panhard bar
MM camber plates
Panhard bar brace
Spohn Delphi rod end LCA's
Spohn Delphi rod end UCA's
Relocation brackets
Strano adjustable front and rear sway bars
front sway bar end links
bump steer kit
Shocks / Coilovers

I haven't found anyone on the forum using the Spohn LCA's and UCA's but I really like the idea of the performance of a spherical end wihtout the NVH. Everything else I'm planning to get is pretty standard.

I'm wondering what everyone thinks about my idea of possibly trying the T&A coilovers on the front and the Sach's canister style on the rear (new but the ones used on the fr500S)? The info on the T&A's is limited but I like the idea of trying something new. I still need to call T&A to get a better feel, but at $400 each they won't break the bank.
 

Grant 302

basic and well known psychic
Why not the Spohn Del-Sphere panhard too?

Only things I think are 'missing' from the list would be tall ball joints and maybe bushings for the front LCAs.
 
Grant 302 said:
Why not the Spohn Del-Sphere panhard too?

Only things I think are 'missing' from the list would be tall ball joints and maybe bushings for the front LCAs.

I picked up a panhard bar from MM over the winter when they had one of their old daily sales. It was too cheap to turn down. Spohn sells replacement Del-Sphere rod ends so i can always replace the MM rod ends if its too loud.

I'd love to be able to do the tall ball joints and bushings but depending on how much I end up spending on the coil-overs they may have to wait till round two. Do the 302S front LCA's offer much of a benefit over just replacing the ball joints in our stock arms?
 

Domestic Product

Big fat tires and everything !
KBBOSS1086 said:
Thanks again guys.

Arizona: The more I hear about the Roush's the more I'm interested. These are the one's you use on your race car, correct? Would you puchase them again if you had a budget of $2500?

Domestic: You are correct, my suspension is stock other than camber bolts. Thanks for the list...I purchased a few of the mods over the winter and am planning to get everything esle when I get the shocks. The costs add up which is why I'm trying to limit what I spend on the shocks to $2500. My goal is to try to get everything on your list and a few more for under $4000. I will be doing all the work myself so I hav extra to spoend :) I've already purchasaed or plan to pruchsae the following:

MM spherical panhard bar
MM camber plates
Panhard bar brace
Spohn Delphi rod end LCA's
Spohn Delphi rod end UCA's
Relocation brackets
Strano adjustable front and rear sway bars
front sway bar end links
bump steer kit
Shocks / Coilovers

I haven't found anyone on the forum using the Spohn LCA's and UCA's but I really like the idea of the performance of a spherical end wihtout the NVH. Everything else I'm planning to get is pretty standard.

I'm wondering what everyone thinks about my idea of possibly trying the T&A coilovers on the front and the Sach's canister style on the rear (new but the ones used on the fr500S)? The info on the T&A's is limited but I like the idea of trying something new. I still need to call T&A to get a better feel, but at $400 each they won't break the bank.

OK, nice list. Getting serious. So coil overs so you can corner balance I think. Trying to keep costs under control and still get good stuff, always tough. KWs are a known quality and would be something I would look at, at this price point. Strano has a option that is interesting http://www.stranoparts.com/partdetails.php?ModelID=5&PartID=833 , great price KW quality.
Or the real thing http://www.americanmuscle.com/kws-v3-coilover-0514gtv6.html
free shipping and just over budget a little.
Good luck with your build and let us know what direction you end up going.
 
Thanks Domestic. I hadn't really thought about KW's (other than in the Roush application that Arizona mentioned).

I installed the Drake panhard bar brace and MM Panhard bar with spherical rod ends earlier today. With no other suspension updates yet, my initial impressions are very positive. I was only able to go for a 15 mile drive but did not notice any real increase in NVH. The rear felt significantly tighter and more planted in entering and mid-corner. For the low cost (under $200 total for both parts) and extremely easy install, this is a modification that every Mustang owner should do even if they don't want to do significant suspension mods. More to follow as I proceed...
 

ArizonaBOSS

Because racecar.
Moderator
8,730
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Arizona, USA
KBBOSS1086 said:
Thanks again guys.

Arizona: The more I hear about the Roush's the more I'm interested. These are the one's you use on your race car, correct? Would you puchase them again if you had a budget of $2500?

I think for the money, you can't beat that kit--as long as they are actually available. Yes, that is what I run on my race car. I haven't had a chance to run any type of double- or triple-adjustable dampers yet, but those are 3-4x more expensive. I think $1500 is a good deal for that kit, and you'll still have money left over for a set of adjustable front and rear swaybars :) The Roush kit also comes with camber plates and the fronts are pre-assembled so they go in very easily; no need to re-use strut mounts etc.
 

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