Complete Handling Overhaul!

[jdizzle37]

FINALLY got all my new handling parts installed and tuned!

My setup is:
- HFP Suspension kit
- Progress rear sway bar
- SPC front and rear camber kits (Camber: -1.5 degrees front/-1.25 rear)
- Ingalls Engine Torque dampener
- Bridgestone Potenza RE050's (215/45/17)

Nick from American Automotive helped me out with the HFP install and it went smoothly and quickly. AJ Racing did the alignment and did a fantastic job.

While everything is still new and needs to be broken in, the car rides SOOO much better in every aspect. The car grips significantly better now in all conditions. It rode pretty rough when I was using the stock Michelin Pilots, but the new Potenza's make the drive smoother and quieter.

The car accelerates noticeably faster now, although it tends to pull to the side a tad. However, its turn-in capabilities are much better than before. The steering is way more responsive and I can go back and forth between twisties with much more ease. It's beautiful speeding through sharp turns with practically no body roll.

I hope to take this in the mountains and test the car up there when things have settled in a bit more so I can give a much more in-depth review. I'll post pics in a few days. Jdizzle37, over and out!

[SIg]

dang the way u described your car is the way i want mine to feel! hope u enjoy!

[skandal57]

nice.. get some action shots!

[jdizzle37]

Thanks! I hope to film my trip up in the mountains in a couple weeks and give everyone an idea of how the setup handles. I've been messing around with a couple different things and seeing how things change with the ETD on various settings. I actually drove around a bit without the ETD and the pull to the side is blatantly obvious. This is mostly likely because of the new camber settings and ride height conflicting with torque steer. However, the ETD seems to correct this problem for the most part. I'm still trying to find the exact soft point you could use and get rid of the pulling. I'll try some new adjustments later tonight after work.

[xheartcore_boyx]

Exciting ,

a little bet off topic: was it just a "regular" alignment or does it have anything to do with the springs/camber ?

<<such a newbie..

[jdizzle37]

Originally Posted by xheartcore_boyx

Exciting ,

a little bet off topic: was it just a "regular" alignment or does it have anything to do with the springs/camber ?

<<such a newbie..

No it was a custom one done with an adjustable kit. The camber bolts in the front and the arms in the rear are non-adjustable from the factory, so when you take your car in for an alignment, they pretty much set it all at the factory degrees if they're slightly off. In my case, the SPC kit are adjustable up to almost 3 degrees positive or negative, so I have a greater range of camber degrees without bending or putting stress on anything. Lol, kind of a lengthy answer. Does that answer your question?

[xheartcore_boyx]

Originally Posted by jdizzle37

No it was a custom one done with an adjustable kit. The camber bolts in the front and the arms in the rear are non-adjustable from the factory, so when you take your car in for an alignment, they pretty much set it all at the factory degrees if they're slightly off. In my case, the SPC kit are adjustable up to almost 3 degrees positive or negative, so I have a greater range of camber degrees without bending or putting stress on anything. Lol, kind of a lengthy answer. Does that answer your question?

Yup,thank you !

*cant wait for the trip filming*

+rep

[bossman]

make sure you watch you rear toe settings....with more rear camber than stock you might find that your tires wear alot quicker,especially the rear tires on the inner tread blocks.btw...is the spc front camber kit just concentric bolts or is it a camber adjustable upper mount like on coilover setups?

[jdizzle37]

Originally Posted by bossman

make sure you watch you rear toe settings....with more rear camber than stock you might find that your tires wear alot quicker,especially the rear tires on the inner tread blocks.btw...is the spc front camber kit just concentric bolts or is it a camber adjustable upper mount like on coilover setups?

I have 0 Toe all around. Probably should've mentioned that, and yes the SPC front kit are bolts.

[Si 07]

pics please

curious how the negative camber looks with the hfp suspension

[High Revs Si]

Take it for a track day to really push that suspensions capability, nice work.

I've only had my Si for bout 2 weeks and I'm itching to take it to Pocono PA with just a set of race slicks mounted on 17's for a bit of fun, then I'll be heading to Thunderbolt in south Jersey for another tire scrub session if everything works out in PA.

[Highrev1]

^^ Thats an imposter Unless that's my car posting....


But I like him he goes to the track

[jdizzle37]

1.) I'll post pics on Tuesday. I'll have time to upload them then.

2.) I hope to enter track racing this year and push the car to the limits when I have a better feel on it.

3.) Highrev1, rep to you on all your threads on suspension. A lot of your wisdom influenced the decisions I made for this setup.

4.) Thanks for compliments everyone!

[fiji-blew]

i have almost this exact setup in my house waiting install only i got the hfp brakes and redshift reinforcements as well. i dont have the rear camber arms though just the front bolts. what will happen if i install without the rear arms. in other words what will my camber be in the rear and can i change it? i have asked this in one of the stickies before with no luck so plzz help me
thanks in advance

[jdizzle37]

Originally Posted by fiji-blew

i have almost this exact setup in my house waiting install only i got the hfp brakes and redshift reinforcements as well. i dont have the rear camber arms though just the front bolts. what will happen if i install without the rear arms. in other words what will my camber be in the rear and can i change it? i have asked this in one of the stickies before with no luck so plzz help me
thanks in advance

The stock rear arms are NON-adjustable, but they already come with slightly negative camber on the 06-07 models (right about -1 degree). However, I think the rear camber may be zeroed out on the 08's. I remember reading somewhere that the rear suspension is different on the 08 models. Anyway, if you're an 06-07 you should be fine as far as having negative camber. My suggestion is to take it somewhere where they can check the exact degrees of camber all around and ask for their suggestion on how negative the front should be. You don't want to go too negative in the front if your rear wheels can't turn with them. Hope that helps, can't wait to see your setup with the HFP brakes!

[fiji-blew]

^^ya when i read your list i was like i gotta check my stuff i think ive been robbed i have everything right down to the etd waiting on me. i even just got new tires like 3 days ago, but they were eagle f1 a/s
if the stock is right about -1, then when i install the hfp suspension would the camber change? i think i read somewhere on the forums that someone had -2 on the rear with the installation, but i cant remember where.

[jdizzle37]

^
It's hard to say, because I did the adjustable arms while putting in the rear springs and shocks. I CAN tell you when I dropped it, the camber was WAY negative. My rear driver wheel was at -2.5 degrees and my rear passenger wheel was at -4.7! But again, this was with an adjustable kit. I would assume it'll go more negative with the HFP, with -2 being a reasonable assumption.

[cas909]

jd, your car handles very nicely!!!! oh yeah, thanks for letting me beat on your car.

[jdizzle37]

Originally Posted by cas909

jd, your car handles very nicely!!!! oh yeah, thanks for letting me beat on your car.

AH HA! Didn't know you still came on this forum dude. Thanks for helping with the torque dampener. We gotta run it up the mountains soon!

[cas909]

HAHA!!! yeah, it keeps me connected to the si. plus still have the r18.
hell yeah we gotta do a mountain run. now i need to do some suspension mods!!