Hey guys...

I need to get sway bars and I was thinking of ST. Is there a point in getting the front sway bar?? I mean.. the goal here is to reduce understeer. What do you guys have set up and how does it work.

Oh yeah... i'll be doing 75% track and 25% autoX

 

front sways would be a little more useful in auto-x where it would help with quick transitions in slaloms and chicanes. but i could see it also being beneficial on track in flatter cornering, at the cost of rotation. thing is you could dial in more rotation using a variety of methods.

it's a tough call seeing as there are so many ways to go about doing things. so to make it short i'm thinking about getting a front bar to go with my progress rear, and hoping that i can use spring rates and pressures to get the rear end to rotate nicely.

 

WHat does rotation do? I'm trying to learn the lingo.

Also, the ST front sway is a lot larger than the ST rear. Would it be more beneficial if i just kept the stock front and ST rear?

 

rotation is a term that basically means that you're getting the car to oversteer in a controlled manner, or get the "rear end to step out".

if you don't want to spend a lot of time testing and tuning your suspension (just wanna install it and drive it) you're probably better off with just a rear bar and the stock front bar. I'm running that setup right now, and i think it's very driveable in that condition.

 

ST rear bar is all you need... Trust me..

Corey - who runs NO front bar, and 28mm adjustable rear bar.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Honda318dx &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">ST rear bar is all you need... Trust me..

Corey - who runs NO front bar, and 28mm adjustable rear bar.</TD></TR></TABLE>

He's a MAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAADMAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA N!!!

I say the same; i only have the rear....can't wait till I try it out!

 

I have both front and rear ST sway bars and I like the way my lude handles. Then again, I haven't finished modding my car so I have not auto-x w/ the bars on.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Honda318dx &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">ST rear bar is all you need... Trust me..

Corey - who runs NO front bar, and 28mm adjustable rear bar.</TD></TR></TABLE>

yeah but what CARAAAAZAY spring rates are you running corey?

i've heard that no front bar isn't for everyone...

 

Personal experience is that the Neuspeed 25mm rear bar on a 5th gen works very well. The springs and shocks will also be a factor in your decision. Progress and ST have excellent products. We used a pair of ST bars on the Civic HB because the CXZ model came with none to begin with-worked really well. The Prelude corners in a well behaved manner with the stock bar up front on various road courses such as BeaveRun, The Glen and Pocono.
So start in the rear and go from there. Goo d luck

 

I run with a front strut, rear sway combo and I like the handling. But that's just the thing. You're gonna have to toy witha few different setups to find the one that makes the car handle how YOU want it to. It all comes down to your preffered driving style. What I think kicks *** (what I am used to driving on) may not work for eveyone else. Everyone likes their car to have different handling characteristics, and the only way for you to find out what you like, is practicepracticepractice.

 

progress rear bar. I've used the ST rear bar and like the progress bar much better.

 

I say keep the front bar stock, and get a bigger rear bar. I like the neuspeed myself.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by bad-monkey &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

yeah but what CARAAAAZAY spring rates are you running corey?

i've heard that no front bar isn't for everyone...</TD></TR></TABLE>

I think that I didn't clarify, keep the front bar, and just replace the stock rear with ST..

I DO NOT recomend taking the front bar off, unless you have 800lb springs + in the front...

 

I'm actually getting Tein Flex coilovers from a friend. The spring rates are Ft: 559 Rr: 335 (94' Prelude). Those, plus the rear ST sway bar would suffice? I'm doing more track than autoX.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Chompn57 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I'm actually getting Tein Flex coilovers from a friend. The spring rates are Ft: 559 Rr: 335 (94' Prelude). Those, plus the rear ST sway bar would suffice? I'm doing more track than autoX.</TD></TR></TABLE>

by track do you mean open lapping/hpde? or drag racing?

well, i personally would go with some stiffer springs in the back, but for now i think it's a serviceable setup upon which you can build and customize. You'd have to try out different rates to get what you want, but most seriously-tracked preludes are running much higher rates in general, and stiffer rates in the rear vs. front.

the ST rear bar would be ok i think. Alot of people are running the progress (myself included) because it's 27mm and adjustable, but i think there are some who think that the Saner rear sway is better. In conclusion i think your proposed setup will do just fine, so now all you've got left to do after install and alignment is get out and drive.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Chompn57 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I'm actually getting Tein Flex coilovers from a friend. The spring rates are Ft: 559 Rr: 335 (94' Prelude). Those, plus the rear ST sway bar would suffice? I'm doing more track than autoX.</TD></TR></TABLE>

On the track, you may want higher rates in the rear. That Tein Flex set-up seems to be more for the street (encourages safe understeer so ricers don't start spinning out,etc.). I'm running GC's with 400 F, 450 R & it's still too soft for me. Less Understeer than stock, but still could rotate better. I also have the ST rear sway which helps, but I'd like to have an even higher spring rate in the rear. IMO, the 559 rate on the front of the Tein Flex is good, but the 335 rate on the rear would need some work if you want to make this into a HPDE/track day car. Don't get me wrong, the car would still handle much better than stock, but ideally, you'd want a higher rate in the rear for a track set-up.

 

I'm doing open track/ circuit. How would stiffer rear springs help?
I was thinking about the Koni/GC setup. I've read the forums but all they compare it to are the Tein SS coilovers. A guy at a local shop said the true coilovers are just more reliable,sturdier,etc. Any input?

 

do a search on GC and koni, it's a hot topic, alot of the more involved track drivers (NASA/SCCA roadracers) will swear by the setup. It's reliable, it's affordable, and most importantly, it works. Granted, most of them have spent a lot of time sorting out their suspensions and know what they want and how to get it--they've got custom spring rates (that are prob too stiff for the street), revalved shocks, and shortened shocks. all told, a modified GC/Koni suspension costs around 1500 bucks after completing the above modifications.

spring rates are a powerful way to tune your suspension to fit your driving style. They change the dynamics of the car by stiffening up the suspension in all directions. Stiffer rear springs tend to make it easier to rotate the car, allowing a driver to avoid understeer by inducing rotation.

 

What does this have to do with the price of eggs?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Honda318dx &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

I think that I didn't clarify, keep the front bar, and just replace the stock rear with ST..

I DO NOT recomend taking the front bar off, unless you have 800lb springs + in the front...</TD></TR></TABLE>

Ive got TEIN HAs on my base 97 prelude with both ST sways its that ok?? i mean im not sure what the spring rate on it is i just know the cars stiff as hell now but it rides good.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by specalk &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

Ive got TEIN HAs on my base 97 prelude.........................i mean im not sure what the spring rate on it is i just know the cars stiff as hell now but it rides good.

</TD></TR></TABLE>

12kg/mm front, 8kg/mm rear or 671 lbs/in front, 447 lbs/in rear

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by vwong &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

12kg/mm front, 8kg/mm rear or 671 lbs/in front, 447 lbs/in rear
</TD></TR></TABLE>

so i should have had a stiffer spring rate before putting on sway bars ???

it handles increadble the tires are the weak point now when hitting a corner the cars takeing it the tires are letting go a tiny bit in the front but alot in the rear, there toyo FZ4s i guess its time to upgrade

 

I'm somewhat inclined to spend 1200 on the Flex only because I would have no idea how to tune the Koni/GC setup. I got a price quote of 800 for the Koni/GC setup. Is it worth it to spend the extra 400 on the Flex? Keep in mind that I am new to "customized tuning" and have no experience whatsoever. I'm basically trying to get a good setup that will be adequate enough to withstand my improving skills.. up to a point, of course.


Modified by Chompn57 at 10:04 PM 4/14/2004