Suspension Questions

[rich a]

Can any one tell me or advise my gsi sits about 50 mil low all round at the mo on what im not sure but the ride is hard as hell is there any way of keeping the low look but make the ride a bit less harsh or am I dreaming cheers

[Stuart]

Soften the dampers up.

[mowgli]

lower your tyre pressures???

driver slower?? lol

[rich a]

cheers for the advice stuart any recomendations on dampers? was thinking of taking a drive over to Courtney see what they recommend

[mowgli]

ok, now we are actually being serious....
the gte came with a 30mm drop & ran on 175/65r14 tyres.
it was quite a nice handling package.

if you want a nice softish ride, put some std gte springs & dampers on.

what size tyres are you running?
what is your budget?

[Stuart]

What is currently fitted?

I'd really not goto courtenays unless you want to send waaaaaay more than you could ever consider lol

[mk1nova_rich]

Bilstein black dampers with Eibach springs

[rich a]

ok not sure whats on the car at the mo. only brought the car 6 weeks ago and its my first one so learning curve for me The wheels r speedline allesso so think they r 16s and budget is what ever to get nice ride ( its gonna cost me more in dental work if I don't sort it )

[rich a]

Ok any other suggestions or is the bistein eibach combo the best and where is the best place to go

[phunkynova]

You need to give more precises info like the size of the tyers fitted now, not just r 16s, the offset of your rims, as this will all have a effect on the ride and any rubbing issues you may encounter by making the ride softer as the wheel movement (travel) could be more.

[BRoadGhost]

Make the shell stiffer

[craig green]

Ditch the 16's (low pro's)

Avoid euro spec suspension ie anything like Pi, Apex, Gmax etc. It all crashes awfully on pot-holed UK roads. Decent progressive springs such as Eibach's & decent dampers from Eibach/KYB/GAZ etc. Buy proper, buy once. I had GAZ coilovers on my last build, it had the best ride I've encountered in all my Novas over the years & got it the lowest, though it wasnt 'slammed' as people like these days.

[rich a]

cheers for the info the tyres r 195 45 r16 I don't know the offset or anything else like I said first nova so massive learning curve but hoping u guys will point me in the right direction. If it helps I brought the car from paul Hetherington think he was a member on here an he brought it from another guy I think is on her who gave it a rebuild 5 year ago thanks for the input craig where is a good place to go for bits

[BRoadGhost]

Change every bush to a polyurethane item & I bet you'll loose that crashiness

[Stuart]

New rubber would be Infinately more pleasant.

[rich a]

Does Polly bush not make the ride even harder thus making it worse ?

[mk1nova_rich]

Polybushes will not make an ounce of difference to 'crashiness' caused by having unsuitable springs and damping

[BRoadGhost]

Shot bushes are a very good reason why a ride would feel crashy; as much as "unsuitable springs and damping".

[rich a]

On the bushes front they r all sound some of the front of the car has already been Polly bushed anti roll bar ect but i c your point about worn out. Think my issue is more damper related from what i have read an from u guys thinking some decent bilstein's would do the job

[meritlover]

Any decent dampers would be an improvement.

15 year old G-Max lowering kit or 25 year old dampers with -50mm springs are going to be truely awful.

[rich a]

Ok guys an girls have finally had the wheels off to find what I have an drew a blank other than they r black a sticker on the front shock that says SB 22169724 90538711 4343264 098 an google comes up with nothing if u type that in . the wheeles r speedlines allessso 2 195 45 16r on the rim it says 6 1/2 j 16h2 et 49

[blue_peg_16v]

Dampers sound like patern standard parts get some decent quality adjustable dampers, I like my konis, or go for big piston billies

[rich a]

Cheers chap so u think standard patern ? im still in the dark but if they r original that might explain some things. What r konis like im looking for good handling but not so harsh it shakes ya fillings out

[peester]

Its likely to be a cheap or ageing suspension kit. As mentioned, replace with new quality item. If you wonder why some kits are £200 and some £500 or more. Its quality in build and test.