Rick. GREAT idea posting this topic. I agree, with how you drive your car, this is a huge consideration. I checked Pedder's website and they have 'test' vehicles for prospective customers to drive. BTW: They also offer complete suspension kits. I'd be interested in a partial set myself, once/if I get the coilovers/sways.
Chris, Go onto their website and look this up. Pete talked about the LX Bump Steer Correction Kit part# EP2113. He recommended it on all LX's first and foremost. Check the site, Ryan.
Rick, I talked to Pete in PMs a bit. For the kit you and I would need is a touch over 2 grand not including install. This kit would work with our KWs and sways. Im guessing there is another 1500-2 grand in install. 4 grand is a ton for bushings. I think they seem to make a good product but I also think that if one of the other bushing companies steps up that prices will drop. Just my 2 cents John
I fully agree with you John. That's why I had it at the end of my original post. I think only a select few will be willing to drop that kind of coin for bushings.
Making the suspension handle correctly does not mean the ride quality has to be harsh. It has to be engineered correctly. Drive a Track II system on a SRT 8 and you will be blown away on how compliant it is and the ride comfort There are mutliple issues with the LX platform, when it is driven in a "spirited" manner that Pedders has solutions to. Here a a few: 1. lack of adjustability for alignments. 2. Bushings are all the same whether you are driving a SRT8 or a V6 3. There is a concern with excess side to side and twist of the rear cradle assembly when driven hard. The back end comes loose and can feel elliptical because the rear cradle or Xmember bushes cannot support the heavy body, 425hp thru an aggressive corner or down the strip. Threse bushes tear easly at the body contact 4. Front raduis rod bushes crack and can tear when driven spiritedly. The other forum has pictures of the Meisters torn control arm and raduis rod bushes. This can give you some very non-compliant controls on cornering, accel. bumps in the road, and braking, not to mention excess camber/caster changes, that ultimatly do a number to toe, which kills your tires, and causes cupping. Pedders did a test emergency repsonse vehicle for a Sherriffs department in Az. With a complete Pedders system with stock tires, they decreased 60-0 braking bt 8 feet, and increased skid pad forcess by I believe by .28 g's. The driving trainer for the depzrtment told the Sherrif "Pedders will decrease accidents, and save lifes" 5. The upper control arm bushes are very soft and under hard driving, will deflect a lot, which changes all the angles and reduces compliance and predictibility 6. OEM springs are traditionally 25% under rated for the general public. pedders has mutiple srpings to meet the needs of the many. They are absolutely not too oversprung to kill your ride quality. Same thing with the shocks. The Bilsteins on the fronts are pretty good on the SRT8. The Nivomats on the SRT8 are not adequate enough for the spirited driver One of the serious issues that Pedders has seen is the amount of movement that the LX has in their front and rear shock towers. It should be a must to get a front and rear shock tower brace when diven in a spirited manner. We see lots of movement inward, on the right front shock tower specifically. This affects the precise achieveable alignment angles that are available. The rear is the same, but when moved, easier to still get the rear in alignment compliance. Pedders is working on both front and rear tower braces. There are lots of them out there, but only a few that are truely worthy of the support needed To answer the questions on this thread, one of them was systems versus individual componets. Pedders offers both and can fine tune your needs. This is the first post that i have made and was invited to visit from one of the members. pedders is not a sponsor yet on this forum. We just found it, and will check it out thoroughly. Until we do, if we have permission from admin, then would be glad to be more specific. But the above should give al of you lots of things to think about thanks mike dms
Rick, Mike is a good guy. I've talked with him via PMs over at the 300C forum. A lot to talk about and learn with all they offer! :shok:
Rick, you should post what Mike said bout the strut tower brace in it's own thread so everytime someone argue's the point we can show em it!! Actually, you should post the whole thing Mike wrote in it's own thread, kinda like a bible for us "twisty" guys. Make it a sticky.
Mike, Thanks for joining the fastest growing SRT forum on the internet. We ARE the one stop SRT forum you will encounter. Please feel free to answer whatever tech question you need. If you would like more information on our Supporting Vendorship, please email me at [email protected] and I will get you what you need. Thanks again and welcome to the "C". Ron
thanks a ton mike!!! this explains a lot. is it safe to assume that some of the "popping/clunking" sounds i get at slow speeds while turning might be due to poor / torn / damages bushings???? i like the way the car rides and handles, altough i do not drive as hard as rick does his car, but i do not like the tendency to bump steer.
I went to HMS yesterday and spoke with them for about an hours or so.. Mike was very knowledgeable and has quite a bit of experience with GM cars and a road course setup. He kind of hit the nail on the head about trying set up a car for the various situations we encounter such as the tighter and twistee courses (30 - 50 mph) to the long radii type (100 - 120) corners and still make it street able ride. He is real high on Pedders and his experience with the installation he has been involved with.. I saw Fatchances old busing and could see where one can improve upon the stock production pieces. As Mike stated if the body/frame are not in tune with the wheels/suspension than you will always be trying to figure out where the car wants to take you instead where you want to take the car. Getting the car balanced in the various corner conditions while on or off the throttle to me is an art in itself.. I am waiting for my quote to come in for the bushings and 4 wheel alignment first, and want try it out, if more is needed than maybe sways and links and possibly shocks.. Rather than do it all at once I plan on doing it a step at a time to get more feed back on how the mods will work.. My goal is to have decent road car that I can still drive to the event and get out after a day of driving w/o being all beat up.. guess we will see where it goes.. Ken
Cool. I'll be following this one closely. Keep the reports and evals coming as you go along. Heh, and why you're selecting what you're selecting each step too :tomato: Do we need links on the Mags?
Pedders Day to check out your SRT8 in Huntington Beach April 26th Come see me and see what all the buzz is about on Pedders and your suspension. I will personally inspect it for you! I am please to announce we have a new Pedders dealer in Huntington Beach, Ca Introducing: House of Power 17671 Metzler Lane Unit B#3 Huntington Beach, CA 92647 714-842-9515 [email protected] Josh Rikards is the proprietor Josh and I hooked up via multiple referrals from this community. For training, we will be doing 2 complete LX bush kits that already have KW and Hotchkiss. We will be preparing them for the big race event at Infineon Raceway on May 1st Our Pedders Day event is scheduled for Saturday, the 26th. We will be offering: 1. Free lunch 2. Special 1 time discounts on parts and labor 3. Free 28 point Pedders inspections 4. Roadtests on Pedderised LX products. 5. Review of the LX suspension platform, and the pros and cons about it 6. See the MEISTERS OEM bushes for yourself 7. Learn how Pedders can resolve many issues on your suspension from improving your drag time and trap speed, to knocking off valuable seconds off of your auto cross or road race event; or just want a compiant suspension with reduced issues of tire wear, especially front toe concerns on the front. Learn and see how we can make your front and rear suspension totally 4 wheel align capable. 8. Get a chance to see the outstanding creativity of this LX community. There has been a lot of buzz on the forums about Pedders, so come check us out. Now about Josh and the House of Power. He does specialize in the LX products. He will be building a Challenger for Chrysler for this year's SEMA event. His references were impressive, and his drive to perfection is obvious. So looking forward seeing everyone and having a great time. If you want to drop by during the week and see the 3 LX vehicles we will be working on to prep for road racing, come on down! thanks again, mike dms __________________
