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1G Original Owner, '94 GSX - Looking to Overhaul Suspension

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boosted94

Probationary Member
4
0
Jan 10, 2003
Boise, Idaho
Hey team, I've had this thing since '94 as the original owner and it's getting really long in the tooth in the handling department. Everything under there is still stock and it's pretty sloppy just driving it around on a sunny Friday or weekend (non-daily driver). ~127k miles if I recall. Do I need to start with the bushings then move on to springs/shocks? From the outside this thing looks mostly stock, so I'd love to keep it that way (~1" lower max). I also don't need to go full poly bushing/what not, so should I just be looking at stock parts? What is still available? I see Eibach from some vendors, but I doubt they are really in stock anymore.

Thanks in advance.
 
Original owner, that’s a big advantage to know the exact history of the car. You might start by lifting each wheel and check for slop. Suspect outer tie rod ends first. Training arm bushings and the ball joint that goes with it next. At that age you would notice a new set of struts and upper isolators & bearings. Changing those yourself is not too bad, but you will need a few special tools to do it safely. Making the tapered ends of the tie rods and ball joints come out of their conical receivers is best with a small press: looks like a thumb with opposing fingers on each side. The strut requires a coil spring compressor set. Either one can seriously hurt you if they release the stored energy at once, but nothing that can’t be done right with caution. Also a decent shop would have no problem swapping that stuff in an afternoon.

Rear suspension is a little more involved on a gsx, and some parts harder to find, but the rear shocks and mounts are a no-brainer.get an alignment when finished and some high performance rubber, and it should be like a go-cart again. I’m likely going to do most of this stuff soon on mine, as well, as it has just under 100k, but I’m the fourth owner, and maintenance was, well..., iffy.
 
Thanks for the tips. I’m also not afraid to just replace common failure components if I’m already in there. For instance control arm bushings. If one is bad I’m just doing them all, ball joints, etc. while I’m in there.

To that point then, should I just replace all the control arm bushings, ball joints, and tie rod ends for the front?
 
I would say if you're looking ahead and not strictly what is already in need, then yes, outer tie rod ends for sure, and control arms wouldn't hurt. Often they sell the whole arm, and it has new front and rear bushings and the ball joint all together with the arm (even though the actual steel stamping never really goes bad, more of a packaging thing). You should check the tie rods (actually inner joints) for excessive play once you have the outer ends disconnected from the knuckles. Mine were definitely shot, as was my rack (seal failure). Then there is the struts and mounts. That's about it. You could also do the sway bar ends, which are really easy and cheap too. I think subframe bushings may be a bit more involved, but I've not really looked at doing mine yet. They could be a source of some slop or kachunk noise if their really bad. At least try torquing the nuts that mount them, and see if it takes a lot of tightening to bring up to spec.
 
Great! What I've done on my other vehicles are just that - just get the control arm with everything on it already. Sorry, I've been out of the game for so long, is there a good place to get these (OEM or otherwise genuine)?

By "mounts" (when you are talking about "struts and mounts") are you meaning the "upper isolators and bearings" that you mentioned previously? Do you have a link?
 
Stock items are now basically unavailable, unless you pay very high costs and ship from Japan. Rock auto has all these items from a number of brands that seem to be fine stock replacement. And yes, when I wrote strut mount I meant the upper isolator/bearing unit. Rear shocks have rubber bushings to mount, but no bearings (since they don't turn, obviously). The nut that attaches the strut rod to the mount is shown as a "never re-use" item (though I'm sure some folks do), so you might double check that your strut comes with it. KYB seems like a popular and not too expensive way to go. They have a higher performance version for not too much more money, if you're interested. Adjustable and whatnot. Perhaps others have experience with the difference, but essentially any new struts are going to seem like magic for the first 50k on a vehicle with your milage currently.Also, make sure you factor in the special tools, if you're doing the work at home. You might check C.V. joints/boots while you've got it all torn apart to. Not really related to the handling, but again, sort of age/milage related and easier to tackle with everything undone. Do everything needed on the one side of the vehicle first, and then the other, so you have a handy reference. Good luck, and post some photos of the before & after.
 
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