G-Machine Anyone?

H

Hot Air

E85 and S.E./Carolinas Moderator
Staff member
Joined
Nov 11, 2002
I would like to hear from anyone that has turned their g-body into a canyon carving g-machine. What did you do and how did it work?

Front suspension mods?
Big, wide wheels and sticky tires?
Braces and/or boxing frame?
10-point cage?
Sway bars and springs and shocks?
Spindles and brakes?

My car is more of a g-machine than a drag car but it has a way to go. My son and I are working on a new front suspension design using C6 Corvette hubs, spindles, brakes and wheels (8.5 x 18 in front and 10 x 19 on rear with 245-40-18's and 295-30-19's. Jack shaved the rear frane rails for me last Novenber so I have plenty of room out back. I have modified front wheel wells for more room...installed the GNX nod to wheel wells to clear the exsting 16" GTA's in front. No more rubbing anywhere after I modified the DS wheel well extension. CF wheel wells with more room would be killer.

See my Signature for all mods.

Conrad
HOt Air
 
Hot Air said:
I would like to hear from anyone that has turned their g-body into a canyon carving g-machine. What did you do and how did it work?

Front suspension mods?
Big, wide wheels and sticky tires?
Braces and/or boxing frame?
10-point cage?
Sway bars and springs and shocks?
Spindles and brakes?

My car is more of a g-machine than a drag car but it has a way to go. My son and I are working on a new front suspension design using C6 Corvette hubs, spindles, brakes and wheels (8.5 x 18 in front and 10 x 19 on rear with 245-40-18's and 295-30-19's. Jack shaved the rear frane rails for me last Novenber so I have plenty of room out back. I have modified front wheel wells for more room...installed the GNX nod to wheel wells to clear the exsting 16" GTA's in front. No more rubbing anywhere after I modified the DS wheel well extension. CF wheel wells with more room would be killer.

See my Signature for all mods.

Conrad
HOt Air
Click to expand...

Check out my sig. JDPOlzin will also chime in here as well.

I am happy with my setup. Corners very flat, and I still have to tackle the back end.

Rob
 
Silver Fox....how does your car handle? What have you done that is NOT in your Signature? What would you do differently given the $'s and time? What more do you plan to do? Ever go to an autocross or to Silver State? I like your front suspension. Sounds quick.
Conrad
 
Hot Air said:
Silver Fox....how does your car handle? What have you done that is NOT in your Signature? What would you do differently given the $'s and time? What more do you plan to do? Ever go to an autocross or to Silver State? I like your front suspension. Sounds quick.
Conrad
Click to expand...

Conrad - I am very happy with the front end and have no plans to do anything to it. If money was not an object (and it isn't for me, but my wife has a different opinion in regards to that), I would probably do an Air Ride setup.

I plan on tackling the rear suspension one of these days, although I need to pick out of set of upper/lower control arms as well as what sway bar I want to use. I will either use Currietrac control arms and a Spohn pro-touring sway bar or just go the full HR Parts rear end Decisions, decisions. Oh yea - and Air Ride just came out with coil overs, so there is something else I will have to think about.

The car handles nice - surprises me in the corners that it stays so flat.

I still need to replace the body bushings - that should even help out more.

Rob
 
I think we need to look at two different classes of suspension set-up. A "Low Buck" set up and a "Spouse Be Damned" setup.

I currently have what I would consider the best "Low Buck" setup with B-body spindle w/12" front rotors, GTA 16" wheels, and junkyard braces galore. Having a t-top car is not the best plan but you have what you have. With the b-car spindles, you can run the front GTA wheels in the rear and the rear GTA wheels in the front. No spacers! You will need to purchase the Hotchkis tubular upper control arm...not cheap and rarely available used (or equal) but you get a much-improved camber curve! Purchase some sticky 16" tires and some used Koni orange shocks and a used Camaro 1LE hollow front sway bar or a used Edelbrock front bar (no tire rub with GTA's) and you have a good start. Of course, a good posi and new frame/sway bar bushings (including the GNX bushing) will help.

The "Spouse be Damned" setup....SPC arms, Baer or Vette brakes, big wide wheels w/STICKY tires, adjustable shocks, etc. We have several (many?) members with great-handling cars. Hopefully they will tell us about them.

Conrad
 
I'll be changing my polly body bushings to the cheaper Prothanes from Summit. I'm not a huge fan of the polly buushings on the body becuase they are simply too stiff. I still like to keep a good ride quality because in reality, we drive our cars more than we race at the raod courses.

As far as the rest of the suspension goes, there are sooo many options out there and I think most of us that get serious about it have one basic set up with the Howes lower BJ's and springs. I use the ATS spinldes and am extremely happy with them but if you dont want to spend the money on them, the BJ are the other best option.

I really dont want to get into my whole set up so doing a search might be the best option for you. This topic has been covered many times on here and there is a whole bunch of good reading.

If you need any questions answered, I'm sure Silver Fox or myself will be more than happy to answer them. There has also been quite a few more people stepping up their suspensions lately so there's lots of info out there!
 
jdpolzin said:
I'll be changing my polly body bushings to the cheaper Prothanes from Summit. I'm not a huge fan of the polly buushings on the body becuase they are simply too stiff. I still like to keep a good ride quality because in reality, we drive our cars more than we race at the raod courses.

As far as the rest of the suspension goes, there are sooo many options out there and I think most of us that get serious about it have one basic set up with the Howes lower BJ's and springs. I use the ATS spinldes and am extremely happy with them but if you dont want to spend the money on them, the BJ are the other best option.

I really dont want to get into my whole set up so doing a search might be the best option for you. This topic has been covered many times on here and there is a whole bunch of good reading.

If you need any questions answered, I'm sure Silver Fox or myself will be more than happy to answer them. There has also been quite a few more people stepping up their suspensions lately so there's lots of info out there!
Click to expand...

Jason,

Why do you like the Prothane bushings? I looked at them on their website and on Summit, and they look like plain ole polyurethane bushings to me.

Rob
 
The Prothanes are a little softer than the red polly Energy bushings based on my in garage compression tester! They are still stiffer than the stock bushings though. Seems like a good balance to me. Once you beef your frame up, the red polly's are just too much.

Hot Air, polly in the body bushings wont squeek on you, thats usually just a problem in the moving suspension components. I still coat them with marine grease just n case.


--Jeremy
 
Here is one!! ;) VIR (Virginia International Raceway) Here we come!!!

V.I.R. Check List:
Got the cooling system in place!
Got the Trans cooler in place!
Got the interior (seats & 4-point harness) done so it holds me in!
Got the rear suspension right where I want it! (Still cuts a 1.83 60' with these tires!)
Coming soon is the BAER T4 13'' rotors/ 4-piston caliper disc brakes Front & Rear!
And I want to lower the front end just about 3/4" more!
Then comes the testing!!! :)

The hard part isn't making it handle on the street, It's making it perform EVERYWHERE Road course, drag strip, auto-X !!

"FUNCTION IS EVERYTHING"!!


misc008.jpg


img_5682.jpg
 
somewhere out there, there is an article from back in the mid 80's where someone was pulling over 1g on a skidpad in a car with a few simple bolt on suspension parts. i think it was a Malibu, but a g body is a g body..
atually, i've got two articles saved, but i don't know where i got them. one of them is the Malibu with Rancho suspension goodies, and another was an 81 Regal with Guldstrand pieces.
 
jd,
When you say stiffen up the frame, are you referring to adding braces or boxing the "C" section of the G-body frame? Prothane's bushings sound like a great compromise. Thanks for info.
Hot Air
 
Detroit Speed & Engineering is coming out with suspension goodies for the G-body platform later this summer so keep an eye out. Based on the stuff they make for the early F-bodies I'm excited to see what they bring to market :)
 
RobG said:
Detroit Speed & Engineering is coming out with suspension goodies for the G-body platform later this summer so keep an eye out. Based on the stuff they make for the early F-bodies I'm excited to see what they bring to market :)
Click to expand...
Yes and we will be testing those products on our GNS test car before they hit the market! ;)
 
Hot Air said:
jd,
When you say stiffen up the frame, are you referring to adding braces or boxing the "C" section of the G-body frame? Prothane's bushings sound like a great compromise. Thanks for info.
Hot Air
Click to expand...

I'm more referring to boxing the frame. Having all the bolt in body braces, a boxed frame, and the red polly bushings will give you a really stiff ride. Now if you give the frame a few "break away" areas while your doing your boxing, use the prothane kit, and use all of the bolt in body braces, I'd say your going to be sitting pretty! I'm starting on another frame in the garage and once I get the bracing in, I'll post up a few pictures. By "break away" areas, I basically just mean that your not going to channel the entire siderail on the frame, just sections of it. The frame is designed to flex some for ride quality. If you are a serious race car, it's definately best to channel the entire frame.
 
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