Couldn't find anything along these lines in search so here goes...

I'm looking to build the ultimate suspension setup for a road race only non-spec g2 crx, examples of tracks i'll be running is Thunderhill, Buttonwillow, Willowsprings (all 3 tracks within). After suspension there'll be an engine swap (b18), roll cage and major weight stripping. The budget for suspension is $5-6k not including rims and tires. Sadly I don't have the funding for constant shock rebuilding or multiple shock sets so i'll need a shock with adjustable stiffness and a spring rate suitable for all. I'd like to swap out as much of the suspension as possible with lighter/stronger peices preferably using pillow ball rather than bushings. I need a good adjustable rear sway bar and front sway bar (adj. optional but pref.). Some good brands for strut tower braces would be good to. Phew! that's alot for one thread sorry guys lol.

So far...
- Sent an e-mail to Buddy Club to see if they have a set of P-1 Racing Coilovers for the g2 crx.

Any brands, links, advice all highly appreciated!
Good to be with you guys.

- Marc

 

have you even been on any of those tracks before?

 

In my 88' teg yes. I go for private events as they're cheaper ($120ish instead of $250+) and you get alot more track time.

Thunderhill being my favourite lots of run off room and a variety of fast, slow, on and off camber turns. Turn 5 is a 30mph 90 deg left hander at the top of a crest, awesome. Turn 2 is my favourite, usually doing about 90mph around that nice soft sweeper, i'd usually pull on traffic there with some gentle throttle control. Only have ever run it counter-clock.

Buttonwillow, i've run it in both directions but only been there once. Some turns are alot of fun, turn 15 through 16 are alittle tricky to find a good line when going counter-clock. During the long sweeper after the shicane I found I could pass just about anyone. It was raining on and off that day, felt great to have an FF.

Willow Springs, i've run the 2.5 mile road course (not sure if it has a name), Streets of Willow and Horsetheif mile. The last two were alot of fun, alot of challenging tight corners, the 2.5 mi course however OMG it's like a landing strip. I had the throttle pinned 95% of the time even around most of the corners, you can even take turn 1 at 100mph! (clock-wise). It was nice finding good lines out there but i'd like alittle more requirement for throttle control! Guess I just need more power .

Why am I asking all these questions about the CRX suspension? Well first I know very little about the higher end suspensions. I've only ever modded one car and that was my g1teg, aftermarket is EXTREMELY limited for that car. It's layout is also nothing like the g2 crx. It has tortion bars front w/ mcpherson strut for the shocks, springs rear w/ a solid rear axle. So you see the problem .

 

Oh yeah, and the pic in my sig is of me in the pits with my buddy at ThunderHill. Why am I being questioned?

 

Because there are alot of jackasses here! I'm watching your thread, because I too am looking for this info. Good luck bro!

 

Ground Controls with SPSS Koni's

 

Most of the jackasses are the ones who are first with the rude responses... He didn't ask any bad questions. If this is only a road race car, you can make a lot of choices that people don't want to make with their street cars. Things like spherical bushings and big mean swaybars.. Sucks to be doing this to a 2 rex though, they are still very popular scca cars, but the aftermarket mostly dumped them. You're down in SR, I'm from marin too. Now I'm up in redding. Be glad to help if you ever come up here though. We do a ton of autox setups, and a couple for thunder hill.

 

CRX Toad - I've already had a look at the Koni SPSS's, they're only rebound adjustable and only when the shocks aren't mounted . Cruising by their site I did see their Koni 3011 Monotube Race Shock's though, they look niiiiice. Anyone have experience with these? I'm worried about losing shock travel since it's not part of a double height adjustable coilover system. I also would rather not cut up $2000 worth of shocks if I don't have to .

bigcalidave - I love dedicating a car to something, it means no compromises . So what would you consider the best brands for that mean rear sway (needs to be adjustable) and spherical bushings? So cool you live close, maybe see you at a local meet sometime? No matter how bad the aftermarket is for this car it's 100x better that what the g1teg has lol. My reasons for chosing the g2rex is a deep belief in it's capability to be the ultimate FF if not held back by scca/nasa spec. I've done alot of research into various FF's avail. in the US and it's down to the EG hatch and the CRX. I'm going with the CRX for it's shorter wheelbase (only after much research and debating into the implications of a shorter wheelbase ). The proven low hp cars such as the Mazda Miata, Arial Atom and Lotus Elise all have similiar wheelbases and the last 2 are built for speeds of 150+mph so i'm thinking the CRX has the winning combination. I'd consider chassis rigidity as it's worst flaw but that can be addressed with spot welding and chassis braces. If I ever got into some very serious HP numbers i'm sure FWD would start holding me back but then I didn't buy this car for point and shoot.

Thanks guys!

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Grr Wolfe &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">CRX Toad - I've already had a look at the Koni SPSS's, they're only rebound adjustable and only when the shocks aren't mounted . Cruising by their site I did see their Koni 3011 Monotube Race Shock's though, they look niiiiice. Anyone have experience with these? I'm worried about losing shock travel since it's not part of a double height adjustable coilover system. I also would rather not cut up $2000 worth of shocks if I don't have to .

bigcalidave - I love dedicating a car to something, it means no compromises . So what would you consider the best brands for that mean rear sway (needs to be adjustable) and spherical bushings? So cool you live close, maybe see you at a local meet sometime? No matter how bad the aftermarket is for this car it's 100x better that what the g1teg has lol. My reasons for chosing the g2rex is a deep belief in it's capability to be the ultimate FF if not held back by scca/nasa spec. I've done alot of research into various FF's avail. in the US and it's down to the EG hatch and the CRX. I'm going with the CRX for it's shorter wheelbase (only after much research and debating into the implications of a shorter wheelbase ). The proven low hp cars such as the Mazda Miata, Arial Atom and Lotus Elise all have similiar wheelbases and the last 2 are built for speeds of 150+mph so i'm thinking the CRX has the winning combination. I'd consider chassis rigidity as it's worst flaw but that can be addressed with spot welding and chassis braces. If I ever got into some very serious HP numbers i'm sure FWD would start holding me back but then I didn't buy this car for point and shoot.

Thanks guys! </TD></TR></TABLE>

cool man you sound really serious glad to have you on this site!!! I am building my daily for track abuse as well so im interested as well!!! Good luck lets keep this thread up!!!

 

bump for some info and opinion

 

i dont want to sound like a cheater but ive found the best way is just look at some crx's that do good at these events and just copy their suspension setup,,then fine tune it to your needs..

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by bag &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">i dont want to sound like a cheater but ive found the best way is just look at some crx's that do good at these events and just copy their suspension setup,,then fine tune it to your needs..</TD></TR></TABLE>

thats a good point!!! I like to look at touring cars and there setups look at pro setups and stuff you know they dont mess around!!!

good point even though your a cheater jk

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by bag &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">i dont want to sound like a cheater but ive found the best way is just look at some crx's that do good at these events and just copy their suspension setup,,then fine tune it to your needs..</TD></TR></TABLE>

Very good point but it doesn't work for me on this one...

Firstly the cars are usually built to spec (a set of rules) and adjusted for a specific track day. This commonly rules out the kind of mods I can get away with and tends to give an unbalanced view of what you should be running for a well rounded setup. For instance I read and article about Realtime Racing's Integra Type-R which was running a 1,200lb spring rate in the rear . NOT gonna work for most tracks lol.

Secondly they tend to leave out the details (they'd hardly want their competition taking notes ). You'll find out what shocks they're running, spring rates, maybe swaybars but you won't know which mod they're using for camber adjustment or which aftermarket tie rods they chose and so on.


Thanks for being patient btw guys, real big post with mucho info coming soon! w00t 6 posts! lol

 

Alright guys, done many hrs of research into the perfect CRX road racing suspension and chassis braces so here it is. This is by no means the final draft, alot more work needs to be done. I need to know...
A. What i'm missing.
B. How you feel about the parts, their effectivness and if there's better (need a link if so).

COILOVERS / SHOCK+SPRINGS -
- Ksport Version RR Coilovers
- or Buddy Club Racing Spec Coilovers
- or Buddy Club P1 Racing Coilovers (still checking on fitment)
- or Jay Morris Race Coil-over
- or Koni 3011 Monotube Race Shock (w/ Ground Control coilover sleeve)

FRONT -
- Full Race Traction Bars
- or Z10 Traction Bars
- or Jimfab Traction Bars (site is down)
Cusco Camber Kit
Progress Sway Bar 22mm
Tanabe Sustec Front Under Brace (alum.)
Competition Engineering Tie Rods (chrome moly)
Cusco Lower Tie Bar (aluminum??)
RCAutoWorks.com Fender Braces
Pic of RCAutoWorks.com Fender Braces on a CRX
Saw a great front upper tie bar that bolted to the firewall but lost the link and can't find it again!

REAR-
Progress Sway Bar 24mm adjustable
SPC Lower Control Arms (alum.)
SPC Pro Toe Adjusters
Skunk2 Lower Tie Bar (least bling and alum.)
Next Miracle X Bar (upper tie bar)

ALL-
Full Race 6-pt cage (chrome moly) I'd prefer avoiding the hell of making my own .

Fire away!


Modified by Grr Wolfe at 7:49 AM 6/26/2006

 

i'm an autox'er, not a rr guy, but i'll shoot anyway.

get the cage built to nasa/ scca (BOTH!) specs by a professional builder. that way it'll be good, and you will be able to unload the car in the future should you be given any reason to. i plan to keep my crx forever too, but none of us know what is going to happen down the road.

if you want a very high performance shock that you won't have to kill yourself rebuilding and that will have valving that will be adjustable to support a lot of tracks/conditions, the 3011 is a good bet. 3012 is the same insides in a shiny aluminum outside- choose with your wallet. they don't belong anywhere near the same conversation as k-sports. pm crx lee on here for more info. i'll let others give opinions on spring rates or you can search the rr/ax forum. i'm at 500f/800r.

you don't want a bigger swaybar up front. get an hf bar. or take it off completely, depending on preference.

big rear bar. s-t 22mm, progress 24mm, asr when it comes out, or try the tanabe 19mm chromoly.

progress makes sphereical bearings for the lca bushings. i got mine from livermooreperformance- good folks. jhpusa makes a rear t.a. bearing. you aren't going to be able to run the spc toe links with the fixed version though, since you take them off. kingmotorsports will be making uca bearings soon (search user ausmith here)- orijin makes something pretty nice already. search bushings in rr/ax and there are a lot of discussions on what people like and why.

i'd skip the aluminum rear lca's on a track car- too much liability hopping curbs/ going off/ whatever at those speeds for my taste- other people might disagree here, so that is your call. i'd like to hear some opinions on the traction bars here too- but i don't think you'll find many road racers with experience with them. liability is huge with that part. i am building a car with full-race bars, but i don't want to be the first guy on the track with them.

cusco makes a front camber kit for non-strut cars? i was unaware of anything worth running other than vision's wallet-bending offering. or make your own. or don't worry about it because you'l be pretty close as it is at the right ride height.


skip the under brace. you'll just rip it off anyway. i'm open to other opinions on this one if someone thinks i'm off base.

i'd run honda ball joints/ bearings/ tie rods. again, open to suggestions. there are a couple people making hardened hubs (omp, smbc)

tie bars are whatever you pick, or not. i like the passwordjdm versions, but ymmv. lots of fast guys don't run them at all, which makes sense considering the vast difference in the way that foces in our car cars are transmitted when compared to macStrut cars. bump up your shock budget and it will give you something to hang the remote resevoirs off of.

wheels and brakes haven't been discussed. your experience level/ what you are going to do with the car is going to dictate this. i'm willing to ignore all that like we have been for the rest of the conversation (along with any class rules or possibility of building something you could maybe sell afterwords or race in a class when you realize that you want to, except for the cage), but we'd at least know what type of tirews you want to run ( r comps, roadrace slicks, 185 blizzaks, etc).

-greg, who wishes he had the budget that we are discussing here to finish his saga of a project.



Modified by rsca_crx at 8:49 AM 6/26/2006

 

Because there are alot of jackasses here!........This jackass recommends the Koni double adjustables

 

don't waste your money on the rear strut bar Next Miracle X Bar

put that $475 into a properly built Roll Cage.

 

rsca_crx - Thanks for the input . Good point about making the car sellable it's hard to think of it when you plan to keep it forever. Somehow I doubt they'll be producing a better FF shell anytime soon. I want it to be around for my kids like the muscle car passed down to Vin Diesel in Fast and the Furious which he was too scared to drive. Say something cool like during it's first 1/4mi the chassis twisted off the line because it had so little torque. lol no.

JOE BD-0 - And i'm thinking your right

hybridmoments - The Next Miracle X Bar is pretty expensive I agree. I'd like an upper tie bar back there though so it's a "while i'm at it" type thing. It's down to weight vs effectiveness and I think it'll outmatch a normal one

 

Alright so here's the new list we're looking at.

FRONT -
- Full Race Traction Bars
- or Z10 Traction Bars
- or Jimfab Traction Bars (site down)
Cusco Camber Kit
Competition Engineering Tie Rods (chrome moly)
Cusco Lower Tie Bar (aluminum??)
RCAutoWorks.com Fender Braces Decided on a K motor so a must.
Tanabe Sustec Front Under Brace (alum.) Maybe pile
- Password JDM Upper Tie Bar
- Pic of special neuspeed mounting locations

REAR-
- Progress Sway Bar 24mm adjustable
- or Tanabe Sustec Sway 20mm Chromemoly and adjustable??
SPC Lower Control Arms (alum.)
SPC Pro Toe Adjusters
Skunk2 Lower Tie Bar (least bling and alum.)

ALL-
Koni 3011 Monotube Race Shock
Ground Control Coilovers w/ custom spring rates
Custom Chromemoly cage.

In SCCA I hear if you have a chrome moly cage it has to be twice as thick ruling out the weight savings, i'm not so happy with that.

I'd like to change out as much for the bushings with spherical bearings as possible. Problem is i'm lost for links! Couldn't find livermooreperformance to save my life and usually the descriptions on the ball bearing products are very poor. Any have any links? .

Thanks for the help guys your advice is invaluable .


Modified by Grr Wolfe at 9:25 PM 6/27/2006

 

i will be using this setup for autxing -

http://www.redshiftmotorsports...at=12

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by ocef9xx &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">i will be using this setup for autxing -

http://www.redshiftmotorsports...at=12</TD></TR></TABLE>

Already looked over your setup, very solid .

 

I'd like to change out as much for the bushings with spherical bearings as possible. Problem is i'm lost for links! Couldn't find livermooreperformance to save my life and usually the descriptions on the ball bearing products are very poor. Any have any links? .

http://www.livermoreperformanc....html

scroll down.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Grr Wolfe &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Alright so here's the new list we're looking at.

FRONT -
- Full Race Traction Bars
- or Z10 Traction Bars
- or Jimfab Traction Bars (site down)
Cusco Camber Kit
Competition Engineering Tie Rods (chrome moly)
Cusco Lower Tie Bar (aluminum??)
RCAutoWorks.com Fender Braces Decided on a K motor so a must.
Tanabe Sustec Front Under Brace (alum.) Maybe pile
- Password JDM Upper Tie Bar
- Pic of special neuspeed mounting locations

REAR-
- Progress Sway Bar 24mm adjustable
- or Tanabe Sustec Sway 20mm Chromemoly and adjustable??
SPC Lower Control Arms (alum.)
SPC Pro Toe Adjusters
Skunk2 Lower Tie Bar (least bling and alum.)

ALL-
Koni 3011 Monotube Race Shock
Ground Control Coilovers w/ custom spring rates
Custom Chromemoly cage.

In SCCA I hear if you have a chrome moly cage it has to be twice as thick ruling out the weight savings, i'm not so happy with that.

I'd like to change out as much for the bushings with spherical bearings as possible. Problem is i'm lost for links! Couldn't find livermooreperformance to save my life and usually the descriptions on the ball bearing products are very poor. Any have any links? .

Thanks for the help guys your advice is invaluable .


Modified by Grr Wolfe at 9:25 PM 6/27/2006</TD></TR></TABLE>

Some of these modifications are going to put you in different classes please make sure you know your series rules. Also on the JimFab thing, he sent me an e-mail several months ago and he is not producing them anymore as he is moving on to other ventures.

 

The specs you are using to build your car will put you in SPU in SCCA roadracing. In this class your car will be a moving roadblock. If you forego the engine swap you will be a moving roadblock in GT. Most of the cars you will be running against will be turbocharged monsters or rear will drive tube chassis purpose built race cars.

The SCCA rule book does not penalize you for running Chromoly. You will have to prove that you indeed did use Chromoly tubing and it was welded correctly. Depending on weight you can run a minimum of 1.375 x .095 Chromoly tubing.

AS far as shocks go, Koni or Moton are you best reasonable options otherwise you need to look into Penske or Ohlin. Stick with a company that builds shocks, not a company that builds body kits.

Not to be a bummer but you really need to check the rules in all the classes you are interested in because some of the mods will put you out of the classes where your car will be competetive and into classes where you won't have a chance.

 

I don't know anyone who has used these but they look really nice http://picperformance.com/stor...t=192