stupid me, just anwer it plz :P

[jolly_97]

hey guys, just wonderin how to tell if ure car is IRS or non IRS. I got a November 1992 VP Vacationer. i have no idea when it comes to anyhting mechanical lol, i just wanna learn an i thort here was the best place to do it . im slowly savin up for alot of thigs that im gonna do to my car coz atm its stock as a rock apart form the stezza. I got about $1000 atm but i wanna leave myself with atleast $400 at the end of the day for running costs or nething i bump into that needs fixing. things im lookin at gettin done soonish depending on how much i cbf saving...

2 1/2 cat-back exhaust

CAI/Pod Filter (still deciding)

mags (dunno bout prices, anyone wanna help me out?)

get a couple of scratches fixed up and the stupid VACATIONER stickers off

extractors

that just about does me for now, let me kno if u have ne suggestions!

btw, heres some pics

http://forums.justcommodores.com.au/...0&d=1143368025

http://forums.justcommodores.com.au/...7&d=1146288407

http://forums.justcommodores.com.au/...5&d=1146288407

http://forums.justcommodores.com.au/...8&d=1146288407

http://forums.justcommodores.com.au/...9&d=1146288619

http://forums.justcommodores.com.au/...2&d=1143368025

[V-ahhh]

nice vp u have there, i no its somthing small but reckon the clear indicators from the vt's would look good.

[yosy]

id say cause youve got that radial tuned suspesion sticker under your stereo that youve got non irs otherwise that radial tuned sispension sticker would say irs/// i think
mine does

[pandaman]

Well if ya take a look under the arse end it's easy enough to tell if it's IRS. Just take a look at the diff, if the axles and the diff are one solid assembly then it's live axle, if the axles can move around independently of the diff then it's IRS. If ya can't figure it out then just chuck a pic on here of the rear end from underneath and someone can tell you.

[Spike79]

Jolly, if you look at the picture of your stereo head unit, just below the head unit theres a badge that says "RTS Radial Tuned Suspension" This means that the answer to your question on IRS is No. RTS is based on a Live rear axle. If it were IRS that badge would say IRS instead.

Hope this helps.

[nathans1987]

some vps have irs thought it was only calas that did

[foammedia]

My executive VP V8 and ttvn's (from SC) executive VP V8 both have IRS, so there's at least two non calais

[bush_basha]

but spike what if the car has had a broken stereo surround and he bought one from the wreckers it could have irs and still say rts (if you get my drift) the easy way to tell is to look underneath as pandaman said.

[pandaman]

Jolly, if you look at the picture of your stereo head unit, just below the head unit theres a badge that says "RTS Radial Tuned Suspension" This means that the answer to your question on IRS is No. RTS is based on a Live rear axle. If it were IRS that badge would say IRS instead.

Hope this helps.

Heh, well spotted! That's what I love about this place, something new to be learned every day!

[Spike79]

but spike what if the car has had a broken stereo surround and he bought one from the wreckers it could have irs and still say rts (if you get my drift) the easy way to tell is to look underneath as pandaman said.

Agreed. The car looks to be all original and well looked after, i assumed that not a lot of modification have been made Eg.Diff or had parts replaced Eg.Surround panel. But it is possible.

Thats just a basic observation, but getting under the car and having a look would be the most accurate way of finding out. Do you know what your looking for Jolly?

IRS is standard on Calais and SS, optional on all other models. My BerlinaLX came with IRS.

[jolly_97]

cheers for all the quick replys guys, i thort id get flames lol.

Everything is original from what i know, im only the 2nd owner and the old guy that had it before me hadnt had anything in the interior replaced. All that i know of thats been replaced is the radiator about 20,000kms ago and i got a new stock exhaust put in under warranty from the dealer i got the car from.

From what's been said, its pretty safe to say its non-IRS so cheers for that guys.

Im goin down the the wreckers on monday to look at some bits and pieces as my mates dad owns the joint. im lookin at gettin a low profile spoiler just to finish off the arse end, a CAI or Pod, get some decent mags (theres some up at the wreckers with brand new tyres that im lookin at 16" CSA 5spoke), might get some VT brakes or slotted/drilled rotors depending on how much money i can save. Eventually im gonna be gettin hi-flow cat, 2 1/2 inch cat-back system, extractors and hopefully a chip but ahhh it all takes time and money i dont have!:b:

oh, and get the damn stickers taken off and the scratches touched up...

also, i got another small question to ask. How easy is it to **** up your rear axle?

coz a while back, i went backwards/sideways over a gutter, down a 6ft embankment and backwards thru a fence in the wet. the gutter i hit was one of those angled gutters and i only hit it at about 35-40 k's but now when i drive really slow (30-35k's) the car kinda feels different from the back, like its not as smooth or something. i just thort id ask anyone if they had any ideas before i go in to get it re-aligned and balanced.

[pandaman]

cheers for all the quick replys guys, i thort id get flames lol.

Everything is original from what i know, im only the 2nd owner and the old guy that had it before me hadnt had anything in the interior replaced. All that i know of thats been replaced is the radiator about 20,000kms ago and i got a new stock exhaust put in under warranty from the dealer i got the car from.

From what's been said, its pretty safe to say its non-IRS so cheers for that guys.

Im goin down the the wreckers on monday to look at some bits and pieces as my mates dad owns the joint. im lookin at gettin a low profile spoiler just to finish off the arse end, a CAI or Pod, get some decent mags (theres some up at the wreckers with brand new tyres that im lookin at 16" CSA 5spoke), might get some VT brakes or slotted/drilled rotors depending on how much money i can save. Eventually im gonna be gettin hi-flow cat, 2 1/2 inch cat-back system, extractors and hopefully a chip but ahhh it all takes time and money i dont have!:b:

oh, and get the damn stickers taken off and the scratches touched up...

also, i got another small question to ask. How easy is it to **** up your rear axle?

coz a while back, i went backwards/sideways over a gutter, down a 6ft embankment and backwards thru a fence in the wet. the gutter i hit was one of those angled gutters and i only hit it at about 35-40 k's but now when i drive really slow (30-35k's) the car kinda feels different from the back, like its not as smooth or something. i just thort id ask anyone if they had any ideas before i go in to get it re-aligned and balanced.

Lol, actually not a lot of flaming around here unless you do something completely ****ed up, quite pleasant really. Between the CAI and the pod I personally would reccomend the CAI, very easy to do and it just makes sense ya know? Although I've been thinking about mounting a pod inside the airbox to work with the CAI I've already got, I reckon that'd give some good gains.

I can sympathise with the whole dollars thing, A chip and zorst are on the to do list for me as well, but first I've gotta get a better alarm+immobiliser and new tyres (both are easy for me coz I have connections in the industry working with a tyre mob, but still it means parting with some of the folding stuff and I'm a complete scrooge). I just can't wait till I eventually get it all done, ricer mates watch out!

Hmmm the rear can get knocked about quite easily, If you've had a bit of a knock to it you may have bent something slightly out of alignment. Have a look underneath and see if you can spot anything that has obviously been bent. The axle itself shouldn't be a problem, they're pretty solid, the thinner stuff like mounting points and trailing arms etc. are more likely to bend first. A sure sign that you've done some damage to the rear is whether the rear wheels have moved sideways some amount. ie. check and see if one rear wheel is closer to the guard than the one on the other side (Unless it's been lowered or the springs have sagged a bit, which will cause this anyway). If the wheels are obviously moved towards one side of the car, (probably towards the opposite side from the impact) some damage may have been done. If you're still worried you could get it checked out by a professional mechanic, if not one you can trust, at least one you are comfortable turning your back on. Don't tell em you think the suspension is ****ed, just that you want a safety check done on it, you can probably work out why that is.

After reading your post again it sounds like you may have just done something as simple as knocking a wheel slightly out of round. If you're running steelies, just replace em with a coupla spares (should be easy enough to get if ya know a wrecker) and see if that changes it. These commodores are actually pretty damn tough compared to most jap crap, I shudder to think what mine had been through before I got it considering the battle scars, and it's still going strong.

Cheers,
Neil

[Spike79]

It definately looks like a very tidy car. I thought it might have been previously owned some old folks, they always look after they're cars. I've only ever bought car from oldies for that reason. How many K'ms did it have on it when you got it?

[jolly_97]

haha cheers pandaman, ill get my mates dad to check it out for me when i go see him monday. there isint anything obviously wrong with the underside of the car so i might check if the wheels have been moved over in the mornin.

spike, yeah this is my first car so im pretty damn happy wit it. i bought it with just over 127,000km's on it so im VERY happy with that haha, most VT's ive seen around have gone way over that already so i consider myself lucky.

cheers
Josh