Pedders struts, CS springs?

[redheddude222]

It looks like I'm going with Pedders struts and CorkSport springs on my GTX. My question is, has anyone else ever run this setup? I know 808 has, since he's who I'm getting them from, but was just curious if there was anyone else.

Here are my main questions:
1) How low will it be? I'd like to get the GTX as low as my Protege with Progress springs. It pretty much tucks the top of the tire. For some reason my GTX seems to sit abnormally high, but that may because I'm not used to a real 4wd.

2) Cornering ability? This car will see regular autocross duty, as well as a few track days. I know the springs are a progressive rate, so I'm hoping they'll be ok. I want the suspension as stiff as I can get it without going full coilover. This will NEVER see dirt, though I know that's what the GTX was meant for.

3) Reliability? I don't really know of anyone personally that uses Pedders, so I haven't heard how long they usually last, or if they can be rebuilt.

Hopefully I get a response on this. I hate diving into something without any prior knowledge. Thanks in advance guys!

[808]

it wont tuck at all.. but it will lower it 1.5" roughly... non-rebuildable. I'll leave the opinion alone and for lifespan i'm not certain.

[BFMRGTX]

I never believed it until I tried it, but the roll point on the car will get screwed if you slam the car. Yeah it looks great when lowered, but I kept spinning at the track.

[redheddude222]

I've never had a problem with rear traction in the Protege. I have a stock front swaybar, Addco rear, sport struts, and Progress springs, running 2 degrees negative camber front, 1.5 degrees negative rear. It corners almost perfectly flat and hasn't lost rear traction yet. My front wheels lose traction first.

I have a TON of wheel gap, I mean close to 6 inches in the front. I really want to bring it down to close to no wheel gap if I can. Would Ground Controls be the better way to go for this?

[Scott@USRT]

I have a TON of wheel gap, I mean close to 6 inches in the front. I really want to bring it down to close to no wheel gap if I can. Would Ground Controls be the better way to go for this?

You're asking for technical advice about an aesthetic issue. If looks are your priority, then it doesn't really matter how you go about it.

Btw, under what circumstances does the vehicle understeer? Front wheel drive cars naturally understeer under power. A limited slip differential helps alot here. I'd also run about 10% higher tire pressure up front. Realign the rear back to 0deg camber and you'll improve braking traction as well as achieve more neutral handling (regardless of ride height).

[redheddude222]

You're asking for technical advice about an aesthetic issue. If looks are your priority, then it doesn't really matter how you go about it.

Btw, under what circumstances does the vehicle understeer? Front wheel drive cars naturally understeer under power. A limited slip differential helps alot here. I'd also run about 10% higher tire pressure up front. Realign the rear back to 0deg camber and you'll improve braking traction as well as achieve more neutral handling (regardless of ride height).

I agree, I do seem to be too worried about the looks. My Protege doesn't understeer anymore with its current alignment settings, unless I'm just hammering the gas through a turn, which I normally do not.

The GTX, being all stock, understeers quite a bit with stock alignment settings (I had it aligned less than a month ago). I'm attributing some of that to the worn out Azenis RT215 tires on it, since they really have no tread left.

After a short discussion with Derrick at CorkSport, I think my suspension will be as follows:

Pedders GSR struts, Ground Control or similar coilover sleeve kit, 0 toe-in all the way around, -1.5 degree camber front, -1 degree camber rear, and some sort of aftermarket rear sway bar. I haven't really researched the sway bars yet, so I'll decide on one later.

[Scott@USRT]

The GTX, being all stock, understeers quite a bit with stock alignment settings (I had it aligned less than a month ago). I'm attributing some of that to the worn out Azenis RT215 tires on it, since they really have no tread left.

Tread decreases grip on dry/grippy surfaces. That's why racing slicks have no tread blocks (which only squirm and deform under cornering loads). If you're experiencing understeer on dry pavement, the lack of tread ain't the issue.

0 toe-in all the way around, -1.5 degree camber front, -1 degree camber rear, and some sort of aftermarket rear sway bar. I haven't really researched the sway bars yet, so I'll decide on one later.

Everything makes sense except for the negative rear camber. That'll increase rear grip during cornering. The net result is MORE understeer -not less. Again, you should run zero rear camber if you wish to promote neutral handling at the limit. Zero camber out back will also increase your braking performance.