Finishing up the Suspension

[GreenGSX]

Last week it was 10 degrees out and today it was 60. Gotta love upstate NY weather. I worked on installing the RRE castor/camber plates. The strut towers on the VR4 had to be cut and drilled so they would fit. The plates allow more camber adjustment and they build in about 5 degrees of positive castor. I think getting more castor is the key to good handling. It changes the camber curve so you don't loose as much camber as the suspension compresses and it really helps turn in. With the plates installed I dial in as much negative camber as I could get, set the ride height, and tweaked the toe as best I could. It looks about right but its just sitting in the garage. Once its aligned I'll find out what I've got.

While I worked on the suspension Steve pulled out the old BR57 turbo and tubonetics manifold/delta gate combo. We also pulled the intake manifold so we can install the updated JNZ alt relocation bracket which was on my car. We also have to re-install the cruise control and once the turbo is back in we can start fabbing up an exhaust.

At the end of the day myh little helper came out to help me put the wheels on.

We've been fooling around streaming live from the garage. We have plans to stream live throughout the event so this is good practice for us.

 

[VETTE_50_TH]

Your little girl probably was like, "Daddy, thats not were the turbo goes."

James

 

[GreenGSX]

After the wheel went back on I took the socket off the impact and just let her spin it up a couple of times. I wish I had a photo of her face. She had a grin on her face like she had just experienced the coolest thing in the world. A very good day to be a Dad.

 

[AiR]

Haaha thats awesome ^^^^

 

[costas14]

wouldnt the 1g gsx weight less then a 4 door saloon? i still woulda used the gsx for racing then the galant

 

[GreenGSX]

Yes the Eclipse weighs less then the Galant and I bet its going to turn a corner better and have a higher top speed. But it also doesn't have a back seat and Steve's head hits the roof when he has his helmet on driving the Eclipse. So the Eclipse was not an option for us. I promise that I am doing my best to get that VR4 to go around a track as fast as I can.

It should be noted that the Galant VR4 has some advantages over the Eclipse. First is the chassis. Its much stiffer then the Eclipse and that lets the suspension do its job easier. The second area is cooling. The front of the Eclipse is a sucky design to get cold air into the radiator. As much as I tried running a frontmount wouldn't work for me. The VR4 has a both a fascia and a grill to bring cold air in. That means I can run a big frontmount and keep the car cool. I can't wait to see how much more power I can make through a big spearco on the Galant as compared to the Supra sidemount that's on the Eclipse. Maybe a little extra HP will offset the weight difference?

 

[costas14]

not a big fan of galants, an early evo woulda done the trick

 

[MaxGdsm]

Sweet! goodluck you guys, I agree the sedan makes sense for a cross country trek, it has to be practical and still quick around a track. Have fun!

 

[champ_168]

If you dont mind me asking..
What offset are you running on your 17x9 rims?

Did you have any clearence issues?
Did you have to roll the fenders alot?

Thanks

 

[GreenGSX]

The wheels are Mustang Cobra 17x9's. The back spacing on them is 5.94" and they clear my 13" Baer Track kit. If you plan on dropping the ride height a lot they won't work. But I think dropping the ride height of a 1G is a mistake anyway. Both my Eclipse and this VR4 are going to be just a little lower then stock. Also, you are going to have to have coil-overs as well. To get everything to work you'll want as much negative camber as you can get. I run -2.5 on all four corners.

When I get the build up of the VR4 finished I'll know better if they rub. If need be I can roll the fenders with a fender roller loaned to me by Emery at Street Tuned Motorsports.

 

[timmmyg]

Love the Galant. Love the Cobra wheels. Cool that you got the little gal helping out. Seems to be a daddy's girl

 

[MidShipCivic]

What has a bigger wheel well galants or DSM?

 

[GreenGSX]

What has a bigger wheel well galants or DSM?

I am not sure but the wheels/tires worked on both my Eclipse and the VR4. If you are talking about rubbing then I would have to say that what is really important is how much negative camber you run and how low the ride height is. With that in mind I think there is a little bit more room in the rear of a Eclipse then the VR4 but its not a lot.