Potential New Suspension Setup...

[andyinvain]

Hey Guys,

I havent been on the forum alot lately and have been MIA but If my wagon doesn't sell soon so i can get a Forester then I will just keep my wagon because I love it.

I Plan on doing a new suspension setup on it in the next coming months or so and wanted to get your opinions of it and see if anybody is running anything similar

Car: 97 OBS

currently stock suspension.

Plan is to keep OBS springs, add GD model KYB GR2's ( so i can get an extra inch or so) paranoid fabrication 1 inch spacers for some extra ground clearance. with that clearance I plan on putting on some 215 65 16 geolander ATS on my wrx wheels...

This will be mainly used as my DD and some desert fun.

any opinions or suggestions?

Thanks!

[pope_face]

How much higher are the spring perches on the GD struts? That's the reason people use Forester or Outback suspension on the Impreza, because the spring perches are higher. If the spring perches are in the same position, then you won't get any height benefit over your stock setup. You also have to check the overall diameter of the spring... I think the GD springs are larger than the GC/GF, so you may run into issues installing your springs on the GD struts.

I've also got a '97 OBS, but my plan is to use Forester/Outback parts for the lift... Just remember that the rear GD tophats won't bolt directly to your strut towers, so you'll either need to modify the strut towers or swap your tophats. You'll also need to deal with the trailing arms, and possibly the swaybars (if you want any decent on-road handling).

Take a look at the Unofficial Lifting Guide... It'll answer a lot of questions you have and give you a good baseline to start your lift.

One more thing you want to consider: Your OBS should already have an extra inch of ground clearance over the other GC/GF models, so if you get 1" of lift from the struts, plus 1" of lift from the spacers, you'll end up 3" over a "stock" GC. I don't think the suspension/drivetrain setup of the OBS is any different than the other Imprezas (with the exception of the springs), so you have to consider suspension geometry and CV angles... I'm not sure how much lift is too much for the stock axles/CV joints, but you may have to swap them sooner than you expect if you don't plan your lift properly.

[andyinvain]

Thanks pope,

The reason I didnt want to use forester parts is the lack of on road handling it give our cars. I recently rode in one and it felt very "boaty" ....

I plan on using my springs with just gd struts, I've been under the impression that gd struts bolt lower and can give an extra inch or so. Will this setup clear the tires?

And also i agree that this would be around 3inches over stock but that with proper alignment I shouldn't hav any driveline issues. Has. Anybody had this and care share some words of wisdom?

[andyinvain]

By driveline I mean issues with axle and cv probs...

And also I am aware of Having to switch top hats in rear for gd struts to work,

Thanks

[pope_face]

Andy,

It's good that you've put some thought into this... I agree, Forester suspension is a little "boaty", but it depends on which year/trim class. I've heard the XT suspension is actually quite nice and firm. I suspect springs and swaybars will also play a role... Stiffer swaybars should give you less side-to-side roll, and stiffer springs will prevent the car from tipping forward/back. I'm going with '98 Forester L suspension simply because it was free... My entire setup is costing me under $100, including all the struts/springs, all the extra components (trailing arm brackets, etc), and another pair of GC tophats.

If you're buying new suspension components, you might consider the XT springs and struts... Take a ride in one, if possible. Also remember that your car is lighter and has a lower center of gravity than a Forester, so springs that are soft on the Fozzie might be just right on yours, and springs that are just right on the Foz might be too hard on the OBS.

[andyinvain]

Hmmm xt might be nice, your right... Might be a little more pricy though..

Will I be able to fit 215 65 16 in a obs with gd struts and my stock obs springs with a one inch lift? Or is that spring perch gonna be in the way?

[wagonryan]

I am also wondering what it'll take to fit that size tire on my car. Was thinking about a 1-2" HDPE spacer.

I've got GD struts with STi springs and it might be 1/2 inch higher than a stock obs

I heard the spring perch might get in the way since the tires are 215's so I was considering
wheel spacers to bring the tire out a little bit to avoid the spring perch. thoughts? 215/65r/16 grabbers are what I want

[andyinvain]

How do you like your setup? Do you have any spacers right now or just the gd setup... Any pictures?

[wagonryan]

Right now I just have the GD setup, but am looking for an extra inch or so. I like it a lot for the price. handles much better than the old tired struts. only complaint is that it gave me an awkward wheel gap and it's kinda bouncy..(GD struts don't have the right dampening for our lighter cars), but that would be absorbed some if you put grabbers on there.

only side picture I have. 3/8" saggy butt spacers in the back

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/nn30/ryaneggers/stisus.jpg

This guy ran the JR 1" spacer with 3/4" PF spacers on top.

http://www.dirtyimpreza.com/forums/showthread.php?t=18341

I'm thinking about stacking 2 1" PF spacers all around to get a little higher than him.

I know there is a thread on here debating if stacking is safe, but I think i'll give it a shot as I never saw any complaints from him about it. The only concern for me now is the spring perch clearance. I think wheel spacers would do it. might run down to les schwab and see what they think...

[A1337STI]

You may also look into the outback Subframe spacers as an option. (though i'm not sure if they use longer struts or what exactly) hmmm

[andyinvain]

Very cool, that's about the height I was thinking... Maybe I'll just keep the obs springs on and throw 1inch spacers and some gr2's on for our specific year... Really want to avoid the bouncy or boaty suspension but I do want something that's more aggressive and handles well in dirt and street

[andyinvain]

And Ryan,

What size wheels and tires are you using in that picture, thanks!

[wagonryan]

205/55r/16 studs. I just took a little peak and I don't think that tire will fit unless I use wheel spacers :kyle:. Need the tire to move a few centimeters outward to clear the spring perch... hmmmmm

dumb question: would subframe spacers give me more clearance from the spring perch or is that completely irrelevant?

[andyinvain]

I think irrelevant . I think wheel spacers and a fender roll would be necessary at least from what I've been reading, I have yet to see 215/65/16 on our model cars without fozzy suspension

[andyinvain]

It looks like I may just go with 04 gd Sti springs and struts... Swap out my top hats and add a saggy butt spacer in the rear... Add some camber bolts in the rear and call it a day.

[pope_face]

There's four different suspension components you guys are discussing here, and all four (for the most part) do different things:

1) Strut spacers: These go between the tophat and the strut tower to essentially "lower" your strut in relation to the body. This will give you more ground clearance, but won't affect the tire sizes you can use.

2) Higher spring perch: This will affect your ground clearance because the spring height will remain the same, but the lower part of the strut is longer to increase the distance between the hub and the spring perch. The spring perch sticks out over the tire, so the higher it is, the more clearance you have over the tire, and the larger the tire you can use.

3) Wheel spacers: These won't affect ground clearance, but will affect the type of wheels you can run. I don't know exactly, but I would assume that, in general, wheel spacers won't let your run taller tires. However, they can prevent you from rubbing against the strut body if your tires are very close to the strut (and/or very wide).

4) Subframe spacers: These will affect ground clearance, but negatively. The wheels do not move in relation to the body, but the drivetrain will move. Subframe spacers will drop the engine/transmission/differential in relation to the body and wheels. and are used to correct the geometry on the driveline. If you install subframe spacers without changing #1 or #2 (strut spacers or spring perch height), you will lose ground clearance. However, if you go with a very high lift, subframe spacers will correct your driveline angles and allow you to keep the same approach angles.

Overall, I would suggest the spring perch height is more important than strut spacers, as a taller spring perch will let you run taller tires... So, if you gain 1" of clearance at the spring perch, you can now run tires that have a 1" larger radius, giving you a total of 2" of ground clearance. Strut spacers won't let you run taller tires, so a 1" strut spacer will only give you an extra 1" of ground clearance. If you do all three, you can now have 3" (give or take) of extra ground clearance.

[andyinvain]

Thanks for all the good info pope, I guess with the gd Sti setup will give me an extra inch at the spring perch then maybe 215's would fit like I've seen some awesome gd wagons have?

[wagonryan]

215/65/16?

[andyinvain]

Yes. I think it would fit as gd wagons have done this with 1inch spacers... There's one in the pic forum now.

Kyb gr2 sounds like a better idea to me than my first idea of Sti stuts invade one of them blows...

[wagonryan]

hmmmm I'm def gonna check out les schwab tomorrow to see if I can fit em. Then just do 1-2" spacers instead of the spendy forester lift.