Suspension setups in VK

[Scag]

Hi all

looking at upgrading the suspension in my vk, what i want is adjustable coilovers in the front with sl lowered springs and shocks for rear. At the same time im going to replace all bushes and do the front and rear sway bars. The reason i wanna go abit over the top suspension wise is i want the car to handle half descent instead of feeling like a boat. What suspension setups have yous gone for? Brand wise and was it worth it?
Just wanna replace the suspension once and do it right and want to no peoples personal experiences!
cheers everyone

 

[vkberlina]

If its a street car you don't need coil overs, track use only.
My VK as a street car runs
Koni adjustable dampener shocks
King springs
Whiteline blade sway bars, I bought adjustable so I can stiffen it up for a track day on semi slicks and loosen it off for the street.
whiteline adjustable caster bars
whiteline strut brace
When I give my front end a refit soon I plan to fit a set of K-mac adjustable strut tops

 

[Darren_L]

I've got a VH, which is the same as VK as far as suspension/chassis. I went for coil overs and adjustable rear spring bases on the rear mainly so I could have access to a far greater variety of spring rates as I like to take it out on the occasional track day

My setup:

Coil over front fitted with 65mm 350lb competition king springs
Rear adjustable base 65mm 275lb king spring
Koni yellow adjustable shocks F&R
K-mac adjustable strut tops
Whiteline sway bars F&R
Urethane bushes throughout
strut brace
adjustable panhard rod

I'm probably going to get myself a set of adjustable castor rods (depends how much castor I can get out of the K-mac strut tops)
Considering going to 450lb front springs
Also looking at some adjustable upper control arms for the rear, so I can get the diff pinion angle right

Another worthy point regarding the rear sway bar. A large rear bar on the street isn't really a big deal, gives you the impression the car is handling better as there is a little less body roll, but push the car hard on a track and these things get extremely taily. Leaving the standard/factory rear bar is one easy way of taming the rear, or even some guys on some tracks disconnect the rear bar all together...

 

[VBRED]

My suspension set up for the street:-

King superlows in front
King Lows in back.
30mm Whiteline front swaybar
22mm Whiteline rear swaybar
Munro gas shocks allround
Nolathane strut tops
Nolathane bushes and swaybay links.
Nolathane adjustable panhard rod
235 45/r17 tyres
17x8.5 rims.

Very good set up that gives a bit of comfort and good handling.
Not going to attract the wrong attention and good value.

 

[VK SL 3800]

Mines pretty well as above,

Kings Lows all round
Whiteline non adjustable sway bars front and rear
Whiteline adjustable strut tops and Panhard rod
Strut Brace
Bilstein Shocks
17x8 wheels

Ride quality is pretty good, firm but not harsh and handles the undulating country roads nicely. Similar to factory Fe2.

 

[Project_87]

Hi there,

Coilovers are a nice option. As long as you don't slam them, I've found you can retain normal height (or any height for that matter) and enjoy virtually unaffected travel. You can adjust the dampness any time you want to have a stiff or soft ride as well, depending on your mood. As far as coilovers for VC-VK I've never looked into it so I can't help sorry. However on my VL I enjoyed KMAC adjustable camber struts at the front, pedders all around and a pedders rear sway bar. It was tight but occasionally bumpy.

In the VK I currently have King's Ultralows all around with Monroe GT shortened shocks at the back. I can't fault the ride, it's quite smooth and the car isn't too low. If you opt for SLs it will be more comfortable and serviceable yet.

Hope this helps
Dean

 

[Scag]

Some very interesting setups here! thinking about ditching the coilovers now and going ssl all round with new shocks. 30mm adjustable front sway bar with standard rear. Also going to add a adjustable panhard bar and putting all new bushes through it. Adjustable strut tops, new sway bar links and a strut brace. Anything else i could replace to help with handling and adjustments. the car is going to be street driven but i will be taking it to powercruise and summernats for skids. Thanks for sharing your setups!!!

 

[Darren_L]

Some very interesting setups here! thinking about ditching the coilovers now and going ssl all round with new shocks. 30mm adjustable front sway bar with standard rear. Also going to add a adjustable panhard bar and putting all new bushes through it. Adjustable strut tops, new sway bar links and a strut brace. Anything else i could replace to help with handling and adjustments. the car is going to be street driven but i will be taking it to powercruise and summernats for skids. Thanks for sharing your setups!!!

that should set you up well for the street, skids don't need anything special, although make sure your driveline angles are adjusted properly after you lower it otherwise you'll get driveline vibrations. Also with your k-macs you should be able to dial in a lot more caster. Get as much caster as you can

there is a lot more you can do to improve the handling on these things, but it's more circuit orientated and starts getting complicated

 

[Scag]

that should set you up well for the street, skids don't need anything special, although make sure your driveline angles are adjusted properly after you lower it otherwise you'll get driveline vibrations. Also with your k-macs you should be able to dial in a lot more caster. Get as much caster as you can

there is a lot more you can do to improve the handling on these things, but it's more circuit orientated and starts getting complicated

Thanks for your info mate, yeah not going for a circuit car just something thats going to handle half descent on the street and be pretty tame in powerskids!

 

[Smitty]

I've got a VH, which is the same as VK as far as suspension/chassis. I went for coil overs and adjustable rear spring bases on the rear mainly so I could have access to a far greater variety of spring rates as I like to take it out on the occasional track day

My setup:

Coil over front fitted with 65mm 350lb competition king springs
Rear adjustable base 65mm 275lb king spring
Koni yellow adjustable shocks F&R
K-mac adjustable strut tops
Whiteline sway bars F&R
Urethane bushes throughout
strut brace
adjustable panhard rod

I'm probably going to get myself a set of adjustable castor rods (depends how much castor I can get out of the K-mac strut tops)
Considering going to 450lb front springs
Also looking at some adjustable upper control arms for the rear, so I can get the diff pinion angle right

Another worthy point regarding the rear sway bar. A large rear bar on the street isn't really a big deal, gives you the impression the car is handling better as there is a little less body roll, but push the car hard on a track and these things get extremely taily. Leaving the standard/factory rear bar is one easy way of taming the rear, or even some guys on some tracks disconnect the rear bar all together...

Daz... you need 400lbers on the front (even for a street car 350 is too soft)
and maybe 300 on the back (depends on the bar... you using the std one?)