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Successfully Converted My BF GT To Coilovers and Saved 28lbs - Pics!

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    Successfully Converted My BF GT To Coilovers and Saved 28lbs - Pics!

    Hey Gang - Well had a good weekend and was able to successfully Coilover my GT. This project / upgrade was a result of a recent blown out rear Tokico and one of my Pedders Springs that I bought from Corksport in 2005 broke and collapsed the rear suspension on the car, swiss cheesing my new brand new Yokohamas in the process , see below:








    After looking at the K-Sports online (which are sweet but no confirmation on if they would fit a FWD BF) coupled with the fact I have made custom Coilovers for two other cars I own and chatting with the good folks at Ground Control, I decided to make my own Coilovers.

    The kit for the FWD 323 is part number GC-5035-01, will run you $400 and comes with the following:



    The problem with this "sleeve" type kit, is that by leaving the threaded collar in the stock spring perch, the collar does not sit even or square on the strut (unbalanced loading) and it limits how low you can take your car. After several trial mock-ups and measuring how low I wanted my car, I decided to cut the stock spring perches from all 4 struts, nothing like cutting 4 brand new $425 struts!

    This picture shows how the threaded collar does not sit even or square on the spring perch:


    Cut mark on the perch:


    I used a metal cutting wheel on my 4.5" angle grinder, I was very careful not to cut into the strut itself, this would destroy the strut.

    Everything assembled, Coilovers, top bearings (front) / spring mounts (rear) installed. I painted my rear top spring mounts as they were a bit rusty:


    Rear Fitted:


    Front Fitted:


    I will take some pictures of the car after it is washed and I have some decent lighting. The car with the coilovers sits lower than my previous suspension set-up (which is shown below):


    Some Advantages of this Set-Up:

    1) With set-up is that you can buy a wide range of springs from Eibach in 50# increments for $50 per spring, so the spring choice is excellent. I am running a street rated spring that is not overly stiff, as my car is driven everyday.

    2) With this coilover setup I shaved 28lbs over my previous strut and spring set-up.

    3) By removing the stock spring perches I can lower the car a total of 4" (maybe a bit more) from stock, on other words I can totally tuck all 4 wheels.

    4) By trimming the spring perches you can run a slightly wider tire or a little wider wheel by adding a few mm of positive offset.

    Total cost including 4 new struts: $850

    Hope this helpful to all.
    Cheers,
    Yasin
    Last edited by slownrusty; 01-20-2013, 08:10 PM.

    #2
    Solid writeup, and a sweet GT!

    Comment


      #3
      you will absolutely hate having flopping springs like that everywhere. look for "tender springs" or "helper springs" to take up the dead space.
      ---Has ClubProtege helped you in someway? show your support by Contributing--- Click Here---

      1992- project FE3..... 313 WHP @ 9.3psi




      I pet my dash when I get into the car..."good car"
      he actually has a mazda tree, parts grow on it

      Comment


        #4
        Originally posted by AWDXavier View Post
        Solid writeup, and a sweet GT!
        Thanks!

        Originally posted by FE3-323 View Post
        you will absolutely hate having flopping springs like that everywhere. look for "tender springs" or "helper springs" to take up the dead space.
        Good Point..I might look into helpers, I actually have helpers on one of my cars and they were a good decision.

        BTW as a reference point rating on these Springs:
        Front: 300#
        Rear: 200#

        Yasin

        Comment


          #5
          Very good write up!


          Current project: FE3 323

          Comment


            #6
            how's the ride comfort with those spring ratings??
            ---Has ClubProtege helped you in someway? show your support by Contributing--- Click Here---

            1992- project FE3..... 313 WHP @ 9.3psi




            I pet my dash when I get into the car..."good car"
            he actually has a mazda tree, parts grow on it

            Comment


              #7
              Ride is good, definitely (for me anyway) would be too stiff if the springs were the next increment stiffer (i.e 350# front, 250# Rear). The ride is just a bit stiffer than the Pedders I just removed and certainly stiffer than H&Rs.
              Yasin

              Comment


                #8
                Nice. Man ur car is what keeps me going on mine. Lol

                Comment


                  #9
                  As usual, another solid write up from Yasin. Write up like these are worth saving. Thats how i was able to share slownrusty ultimate bf suspension upgrade with y'all cp bf family. I was hooked on first suspension write up that i had to save for future reference.

                  Only one thing is missing now & thats the now pic of the car with g/c installed.

                  I see that you have the H&R lowering spring up for sale. Are the Pedders up sale? If yes, whats your asking price?
                  Last edited by mazkam; 01-26-2013, 08:29 AM.

                  Comment


                    #10
                    Good write up man
                    1989 BP Motor, 9.8:1 OEM Pistons, BP22 Intake Cam, VJ20, GTX Intake Mani, FMIC, Alloy Radiator, HKS SSQV I, K&N oil and air filters, Innovate LC-1, 10W50 Mobil

                    Comment


                      #11
                      Originally posted by 68stang View Post
                      Nice. Man ur car is what keeps me going on mine. Lol
                      Thanks!!! Keep going on your car.

                      Originally posted by mazkam View Post
                      As usual, another solid write up from Yasin. Write up like these are worth saving. Thats how i was able to share slownrusty ultimate bf suspension upgrade with y'all cp bf family. I was hooked on first suspension write up that i had to save for future reference.

                      Only one thing is missing now & thats the now pic of the car with g/c installed.

                      I see that you have the H&R lowering spring up for sale. Are the Pedders up sale? If yes, whats your asking price?
                      Thanks Bro for all the kind and encouraging words, I appreciate it!

                      One of the rear Pedders springs (right) has a broken lower spring, see the first picture in this thread, all other three springs are fine with a little surface rust on them. If you want them, they are yours $40 for the set of 4.

                      Here are some pictures from this morning with the GC set-up. I have adjusted it to this height for daily driving (some of the roads in Houston are really bad / uneven) and I can certainly go another 2-2.5" lower with these coilovers id so desired, so can essentially lay the car quite low and have the tires tucked into the wheel wells if I wanted that ultra low sled look.

                      Happy Weekend to all!
                      Yasin







                      Comment


                        #12
                        Looks great
                        My Hiroshima Screamer

                        Comment


                          #13
                          With those sweeet pix, it's a happy weekend indeed. Gonna save me some ground control funds.

                          I'm a happy BF owner because of nice & clean BF setups like these.

                          Without a doubt, this car is definitely a strong contender for ride of the month and I don't think I'm the only bf owner who thinks highly of that.


                          I'll get back to you later this weekend regarding the Pedders spring. I'm definitely interested.
                          Last edited by mazkam; 01-26-2013, 11:15 AM.

                          Comment


                            #14
                            great picture updates!!!
                            ---Has ClubProtege helped you in someway? show your support by Contributing--- Click Here---

                            1992- project FE3..... 313 WHP @ 9.3psi




                            I pet my dash when I get into the car..."good car"
                            he actually has a mazda tree, parts grow on it

                            Comment


                              #15
                              Makes me want to slam my Protege come spring lol...car looks great! awesome install! I regret not getting the GC kit for my car, instead I pieced together my own kit for damn near the same cost (but with different spring specs tho)
                              -Jack

                              ONTARIO MAZDA CLUB! Join! https://www.facebook.com/groups/500055016671733/

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                              http://www.clubprotege.com/forum/sho...my-GD-626-LX-)

                              01 E53 3.0i - FOR SALE! pm if interested

                              91 USDM Protege LX - SOLD! turbo/manifold up for sale!
                              http://www.clubprotege.com/forum/showthread.php?t=46606

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