[cameronpate13]

An increase of autoX activity has lead to an increased curiosity in ways to make our hefty swedish tanks corner better, and i have narrowed down three key areas that i can address.
HOWEVER. Like many in the car community, I have a narrow budget and am needing to pick which upgrade is more important and is worth the money to be installed first.
1. Vectra B coilovers- ~380 shipped
2. Wheel spacers (20mm), stud conver., bolts- ~250 shipped
3. Aero (or higher spec) sways- 200-500
Also if anyone has lowered or got their saab track ready i am wanting your advice and experience on how to lower my lap times (and center of gravity);ol;

 

[BikePilot]

If you are concerned about being competitive I think you'd be better off with stock Aero springs (the saggier the better) and bilstein or koni struts/shocks. I think that in most AX orgs changing to non-oem springs bumps you into a different class (so you'd have stiffer competition if you fitted the coilovers). Typically you can run replacement dampers and OEM (even if from a different model like an Aero) sways/springs. My Aero wagon is on stock springs and sways, and the springs have sagged about 40mm from stock aero height. It corners really flat, flatter than my stock porsche 968. I'm actually replacing the suspension with a Bilstein B12 pro kit (on back order unfortunately) which I think will raise the suspension about 10mm from where it is now.

Wider wheels with the stickiest tires available that don't bump you up a class can make a huge difference also.

Maybe Aero brakes or a brembo brake conversion would be worthwhile too.

I would guess that wheel spacers without suspension work would make things worse. I'd also be a bit nervous about such cheap coilovers.

Don't forget good bushings and performance alignment.

 

[cameronpate13]

the brand for the coilovers is FK, i heard about them from the forums and they prove to hold up well. i dont care about class as much as i care about how much the car makes me smile and laugh when i hit some corners;ol; but would i be able to replace bushings myself? im doing coilovers myself so i figure when im down there with the wheel off i can knock it all out

 

[TonyMastodon]

the brand for the coilovers is FK, i heard about them from the forums and they prove to hold up well. i dont care about class as much as i care about how much the car makes me smile and laugh when i hit some corners;ol; but would i be able to replace bushings myself? im doing coilovers myself so i figure when im down there with the wheel off i can knock it all out

the coilovers are designed for a car that is 1200lbs lighter than the 9-5.
Dont think those will hold up for too long.

 

[cameronpate13]

the coilovers are designed for a car that is 1200lbs lighter than the 9-5.
Dont think those will hold up for too long.

the 2.5L 1999 vectra B is 2900 pounds, and my 9-5 is stripped down roughly to 3100, from the production weight of ~3300. a 200 pound differential is not enough to effect much of anything regarding spring rate and damping

 

[TonyMastodon]

the 2.5L 1999 vectra B is 2900 pounds, and my 9-5 is stripped down roughly to 3100, from the production weight of ~3300. a 200 pound differential is not enough to effect much of anything regarding spring rate and damping

good to know! i might have to do this then.

 

[Mopper]

They do not work well, i have done the research over a year ago. They bounce and grind all over the place save your money buy suspention designed for the car you drive, they will chatter your teeth apart and make you hate the ride, plus the front dont just bolt up they are forced to fit without a thrust bearing. They will squeek and squeel every time you turn the wheel in the wet. Not to mention they bottom out on small bumps in the road and pot holes. The guy who made the thread sold his car and he said that he hated them after a year, the other fella posted on tsl that he took his out to try and modify because they where awful, I know him in real life. A loaded 95 with a 200 lb driver tips the scale at 3800lbs. You buy cheap you buy twice never forget that. Enjoy

 

[TonyMastodon]

thanks for the info!!

 

[BikePilot]

I just got power flex bushings for the control arms. Doesn't look like too bad of a job. I'll probably attempt the install of those with the B12 kit when it arrives. After that you can take a spin if you'd like. My stock aero stuff might also be available.

Another thing to think about would be a 924 or 944 or a miata. All are pretty inexpensive and are an absolute hoot in the corners.

 

[Mopper]

Its hard i had to get new control arms the old one where sized then you have to press out the old bushing :/

 

[TankTak]

Its hard i had to get new control arms the old one where sized then you have to press out the old bushing :/

im replacing my bushings when I do my differential seal and axel as well as lower ball joints. figured I do it all in one shot. If mine give me a hassle I'll just drill or cut out the old one to put the new poly's in. if all else fails I guess I will be without my car for a few days and get new ones like you did.

 

[Mopper]

Yeah you should be able to press them out but like mine where absolute stuck took over 2 hours even after i cut the sleeve in half to get it off, its brutal lol worst case take it to a shop and see if they can press it out.. i ordered new sleeves with bushing already pressed it not just the bushing by the time you get the old sleeve out its mangled since its soft aluminum..

 

[BikePilot]

If I'm looking at them right, my powerflex bushes came with new stainless steel sleeves.

 

[Mopper]

nice just have to get the old ones off now

 

[cameronpate13]

I just got power flex bushings for the control arms. Doesn't look like too bad of a job. I'll probably attempt the install of those with the B12 kit when it arrives. After that you can take a spin if you'd like. My stock aero stuff might also be available.

Another thing to think about would be a 924 or 944 or a miata. All are pretty inexpensive and are an absolute hoot in the corners.

i was considering doing bushings when i install coils, how much did you pick up the hardware for?

 

[BikePilot]

I don't remember for sure. I ordered powerflex purple stuff direct from powerflex usa for all suspension pivot points except sway bar bushes that they make (I think that was all four front control arm bushes plus rear trailing arm bushes). I ordered oem saab stuff for the bushings they don't make (just the rear control arm bushes IIRC). They were a bit pricy, maybe $300ish for all. I can check the receipts. I'm sticking with stock rubber sway bar bushes b/c it's mostly a kid hauler and I don't want to add any harshness. For autox firming up the sway bar bushes certainly wouldn't hurt.

 

[imola_red]

SAS swaybars make the car corner stup!d flat, great upgrade, only issue is installing the front since you have to fully or at least partially drop the subframe for that. 25mm front, 22mm rear, if I remember correctly.

Jury is out on coilovers. Picked up the MapTuns coilovers recently and been running them on my '99 w/ '04 hubs for a week now. Ride is definitely firm and getting some squeaks, but its not intolerable. Post-winter potholed streets don't play kindly with it, but otherwise I'm mildly surprised at how tolerable the ride is so far. Going to drop the car another inch so we'll see what that does...

 

[cameronpate13]

SAS swaybars make the car corner stup!d flat, great upgrade, only issue is installing the front since you have to fully or at least partially drop the subframe for that. 25mm front, 22mm rear, if I remember correctly.

Jury is out on coilovers. Picked up the MapTuns coilovers recently and been running them on my '99 w/ '04 hubs for a week now. Ride is definitely firm and getting some squeaks, but its not intolerable. Post-winter potholed streets don't play kindly with it, but otherwise I'm mildly surprised at how tolerable the ride is so far. Going to drop the car another inch so we'll see what that does...

glad to hear that other people have good feedback on coils, i feel like i wouldnt care as much about ride because im 17; young and dumb. a lot of the ones that speak of coilovers like theyre satan's vertebrates are old enough to want comfort over looks and performance

 

[nussim]

How much better times gives coilovers or sport suspensions 1/4 mile?

 

[The Ridge]

glad to hear that other people have good feedback on coils, i feel like i wouldnt care as much about ride because im 17; young and dumb. a lot of the ones that speak of coilovers like theyre satan's vertebrates are old enough to want comfort over looks and performance

I wouldn't compare el cheapo coilovers designed for another car with Maptun. They take the time to design them specifically for Saabs. Almost always with coilovers you get exactly what you pay for. Cheap=bad/incorrect valving, cheap shock internals, and ride worse than their spring rates would suggest.