Identifying the Right Combo of Shock/Springs for me

[RedTetsu13]

Hey everyone,

I need some help trying to identify the right Shock/Spring Combo for my planned use case.

The plan is to turn my car into a backroad carving daily driver (that can also handle an occasional track day or two since I'm not made of money). I'm trying to narrow down the right combinations to go with so that way the shop I'm doing everything through will have an easier time (basically have a plan a, b, & c based on product availability) (Current Plan is at least two years out for this, as I plan to priortize the MGW Shifter Install next fall post paying off the car).

For the shocks, I'm staying away from anything adjustable namely due to me just wanting to drive the car and not having to fiddle with the setup at all. The other "requirement" I'll give is I don't want a super large drop (most of what I've pre-selected shouldn't yield more than a 1 inch drop in all four corners and due to the quality of midwest roads here I don't want to go more than 1.25 inch drop if I can help it). Additionally my car is a GT Fastback without the Performance Pack (as I didn't see a need to go performance pack, which is also why I didn't get the magneride as it requires that as well).

Any direction would be greatly appreciated, as well as suggestions or other recommendations based on my use case; I had initially been looking at Ground Control Coils but ended up killing that idea seeing the price and the amount of effort I had to put in to nail down the suspension.

The list will be in order of most preferable to least based on my current research:

Shocks Identified:

Ford Performance Track Shock & Strut Kit
Bilstein B6 Series Shocks
Steeda Pro-Action Non Adjustable Shock & Strut Kit


Springs Identified:

Swift Spec-R (Not sure if these are even available as I didn't see them on Swifts site anymore)
BMR SP083 Front (Handling Kit Front)/ Performance (or Minimal Drop) Springs Rear (This combo seems the closest to Swift Spec-R kit)
BMR SP083 Handling Kit Front & Rear
GT350/R Front Springs/BMR Minimal Performance or GT PP Rear Springs/Ford Performance Street Rears
Steeda Sport Linear/Ultralite Linear Kits


Again, any other suggestions are welcome as long as they meet the requirements above. Many thanks for any responses, and to the person that created the google spreadsheet for the springs (pinned in the suspension topic page) as that helped greatly in the research I had done thus far.

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[Bluemustang]

In terms of springs, that's going to come down to personal preference. For shocks, it's an easy decision. Do the Bilstein B6 or the Ford Performance. Can't go wrong with either.

In terms of handling improvement, BMR SP083 is going to be your best bet and will work well with either the Bilstein or FP. Tons of good feedback on this forum from this combination. BMR SP083 is about as stiff as you can go with stock style struts without other modifications. The springs are a controlled drop and not extreme at all which is what you want. It will ride quite a bit firmer but also more controlled.

I would also HIGHLY recommend the BMR CB005 while you do these mods, or a similar upgrade to address the IRS subframe. It matters that much. And, I would also with a stiffer front roll bar. Take your pick. You can probably leave the rear bar stock. That's what I would do. The front is what needs it.

And don't forget a solid performance alignment and TIRES. There's a lot more I can recommend but this will give you a solid foundation to build on and increase handling significantly.

 

[RedTetsu13]

In terms of springs, that's going to come down to personal preference. For shocks, it's an easy decision. Do the Bilstein B6 or the Ford Performance. Can't go wrong with either.

In terms of handling improvement, BMR SP083 is going to be your best bet and will work well with either the Bilstein or FP. Tons of good feedback on this forum from this combination. BMR SP083 is about as stiff as you can go with stock style struts without other modifications. The springs are a controlled drop and not extreme at all which is what you want. It will ride quite a bit firmer but also more controlled.

I would also HIGHLY recommend the BMR CB005 while you do these mods, or a similar upgrade to address the IRS subframe. It matters that much. And, I would also with a stiffer front roll bar. Take your pick. You can probably leave the rear bar stock. That's what I would do. The front is what needs it.

And don't forget a solid performance alignment and TIRES. There's a lot more I can recommend but this will give you a solid foundation to build on and increase handling significantly.

Yeah pretty much what I felt reading through all the prior posts. Really just fishing to see if there was some sort of general preferred combo with the matching of shocks & Struts to a certain spring combo. I've seen a lot of unique stuff done so I figured it wouldn't hurt to ask or maybe start another disagreement thread lol.

The BMR/Steeda subframe and G-Trac bracing & Jacking rails are on my list already based on a prior post (and depending on deals and pricing I may jump to kits/offerings which have the bushings and the alignment dowels in them too).

As for wheels and tires I'm pretty much set there, unless the Michelin PSS5 come out and fill the niche that I'm looking for in my summer tire (currently on ExtremeContact Sports, in reality I kind of want a tire that sits in between that category and the Supercar 3's but it doesn't quite exist yet). And my ECS's aren't super worn yet either so those aren't changing anytime soon. I have a possible in with Signature Wheels so I might be getting those at a discounted rate eventually but that would probably be the same year or a year after I tackle the shock/spring upgrade.

My main thing is I want to get rid of the excessive body motions but still keep a semi-pleasant ride that a significant other or my mom wouldn't kill me over lol. I haven't seen a lot of reviews on the Bilstein's but I've seen a lot of the FP Track Struts so I was curious as to which ones would work better for my application.

 

[Bluemustang]

Yeah pretty much what I felt reading through all the prior posts. Really just fishing to see if there was some sort of general preferred combo with the matching of shocks & Struts to a certain spring combo. I've seen a lot of unique stuff done so I figured it wouldn't hurt to ask or maybe start another disagreement thread lol.

The BMR/Steeda subframe and G-Trac bracing & Jacking rails are on my list already based on a prior post (and depending on deals and pricing I may jump to kits/offerings which have the bushings and the alignment dowels in them too).

As for wheels and tires I'm pretty much set there, unless the Michelin PSS5 come out and fill the niche that I'm looking for in my summer tire (currently on ExtremeContact Sports, in reality I kind of want a tire that sits in between that category and the Supercar 3's but it doesn't quite exist yet). And my ECS's aren't super worn yet either so those aren't changing anytime soon. I have a possible in with Signature Wheels so I might be getting those at a discounted rate eventually but that would probably be the same year or a year after I tackle the shock/spring upgrade.

My main thing is I want to get rid of the excessive body motions but still keep a semi-pleasant ride that a significant other or my mom wouldn't kill me over lol. I haven't seen a lot of reviews on the Bilstein's but I've seen a lot of the FP Track Struts so I was curious as to which ones would work better for my application.

Both of those shocks ride really well and work with a variety of different springs. You won't have a problem there. Those are the only two that are monotube design which I greatly prefer.

Sounds like you are on the right track. As far as spring rates... it's a matter of personal preference. The SP083 may be too stiff for you. Idk. This is sort of where I bow out because I hesitate to recommend or say "buy this or that" because ride quality and all that is highly subjective. And tuning suspension to your liking is somewhat of a dark art. You'll get a lot of people telling you what to buy that don't know what you like. I'm sure Steeda will contact you soon if they haven't already, and have you throw parts at it.

Increasing handling there is always a compromise. That being said, GT350R spring is perhaps not a bad option. Depends how stiff you want to go.

 

[steathv]

I have this combo and love it - 194# GT350 front springs with Ford Performance track struts, GT 350 front sway bar, Ford Performance front control arms, stock rear springs, Koni action shocks,
Hotchkiss rear sway bar set on soft, BMR cradle lockout kit. PP2 front alignment, does not beat you up, stock ride height. This very similar to a Mach 1 suspension without magnaride dampers, unless you are tracking your car a lot this should give you what you want. Studied everything I could for 6 months before I went this route and am pleased and installed myself. This is on a GT premium non perf pack car, the car does have the strut tower brace and cowl brace from the factory.

 

[RedTetsu13]

I have this combo and love it - 194# GT350 front springs with Ford Performance track struts, GT 350 front sway bar, Ford Performance front control arms, stock rear springs, Koni action shocks,
Hotchkiss rear sway bar set on soft, BMR cradle lockout kit. PP2 front alignment, does not beat you up, stock ride height. This very similar to a Mach 1 suspension without magnaride dampers, unless you are tracking your car a lot this should give you what you want. Studied everything I could for 6 months before I went this route and am pleased and installed myself. This is on a GT premium non perf pack car, the car does have the strut tower brace and cowl brace from the factory.

Those Koni shocks, are those the special active ones? I haven't seen any reviews on them so I forgot they even existed (especially since most of my research I've found so far has pushed for ford perf or bilstein on the non adjustable front).
Have you ever found you wanted more from the rear or found the rear soft?

It seems like our starting points in perf options are pretty similar so curious if you could elaborate more on how the car feels pre and post mods.

That said I probably should've explained my target feeling as either a mach1 less mag ride or gt350 less magride in hindsight.

 

[steathv]

Sorry active shocks not action, they are designed to act like a magna ride shock but are mechanical. I found the Ford Perf track rear shocks too stiff and the stock shocks not stiff enough, the active shocks were just right.

I live in a rural area with some bumpy roads with tight turns and some better roads toward the city. The car corners flat without being too stiff, I have worked on Mustangs for years and one of the biggest mistakes you can make is making the rear too stiff as it will try to dictate how the car handles. A stiff front will have the car track where you put it and with the right rear set up the rear will follow the front around the curve. I am not a fan of lowered cars on bumpy roads, I know this from experience.

This combo is not a track set up but will handle well for occasional track use. Ford touts the Mach 1 as a track capable car and this set up is similar, look at the Mach 1 suspension specs. It is the best of both worlds. Doing 60 mph on a curvy bumpy road and car staying connected to the road with the front end going where you put it and the back end follwoing the front and not trying to skip over bumps works well for me.

This is on the stock Pirelli 19 inch 40 series tire. Would better tires, lighter and wider wheels help, of course but like most people I am on a budget and I wanted the best bang for the buck.

All said this is not to say this setup is better than anyone elses but it works well on country roads and is similar to a base Mach 1. I have not driven a Mach 1 but from what I read it handles well.

 

[RedTetsu13]

Sorry active shocks not action, they are designed to act like a magna ride shock but are mechanical. I found the Ford Perf track rear shocks too stiff and the stock shocks not stiff enough, the active shocks were just right.

I live in a rural area with some bumpy roads with tight turns and some better roads toward the city. The car corners flat without being too stiff, I have worked on Mustangs for years and one of the biggest mistakes you can make is making the rear too stiff as it will try to dictate how the car handles. A stiff front will have the car track where you put it and with the right rear set up the rear will follow the front around the curve. I am not a fan of lowered cars on bumpy roads, I know this from experience.

This combo is not a track set up but will handle well for occasional track use. Ford touts the Mach 1 as a track capable car and this set up is similar, look at the Mach 1 suspension specs. It is the best of both worlds. Doing 60 mph on a curvy bumpy road and car staying connected to the road with the front end going where you put it and the back end follwoing the front and not trying to skip over bumps works well for me.

This is on the stock Pirelli 19 inch 40 series tire. Would better tires, lighter and wider wheels help, of course but like most people I am on a budget and I wanted the best bang for the buck.

All said this is not to say this setup is better than anyone elses but it works well on country roads and is similar to a base Mach 1. I have not driven a Mach 1 but from what I read it handles well.

I always assumed this would probably be a talk about how to get to the same end result with different products. My butt prioritized wheels and tires mostly to counter the bad s550 lack of steering feel/feedback. I'll run back through and do some more research on the dampers on all the products and probably use that info vs mach1 and gt350 to influence my decision.

Spring rate wise this definitely helps tho 🫡

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