Other than improving driver skill (which I will be working on), what would you guys recommend as a good first mod to improve handling feel? I have very specifc constraints so please keep these in mind:

1) I'm not going to track the car - the mod will be for "feel" and regular driving enjoyment since this is my DD

2) I'm don't plan on changing my rims or tires in the near future (even though I'm sure tires are probably the easiest, most significant mod)

3) Suspension and ride height must remain stock

That said, I'm thinking of these things but I'm sure some may not be necessary or even currently available for the X:

1) Engine torque damper

2) Urathane bushings

3) Chassis braces

4) Steel braided brake lines

5) Sway bars

Granted the car is a ton of fun stock and probably doesn't need any mods for what I plan on using it for (daily driving) but I've got an itch to scratch.

I'm seriously wanting the Cusco brace kit (all the braces):

https://www.evolutionm.net/forums/sh...d.php?t=348726

Does such extensive bracing completely ruin the ride? They are appealing to me because they appear to be relatively easy to bolt on and should make the turn in sharper and enhance over all "tightness" of the handling and communication of what the car is doing.

Thoughts?

 

I did a 4 way rear sway bar and I have it on the 3rd highest setting and I didnt notice THAT much.

I'd probably say going by what you said, go with the bushings.


Out of curiosity, why not lower with a set of RobiSpec Kw's or something similar? The car rides AMAZING with them, I know first hand .

O and I dont think tightening up the chassis is gonna affect ride that much as the chassis on the evo is very strong to begin with

 

Thanks for the feedback. I like the plushness of the stock ride though aesthetically it would look much better if it was lowered. Also, with the stock aero kit, I don't want to worry too much about scraping the front lip. That and I really don't want to void my warranty since I know that members of dealership I bought my car from lurk on this forum. I figure less "intrusive" upgrades like the ones I listed will be more likely accepted when I get the car serviced.

I'll look into bushings - they made a world of difference on my MR2. But then again so did the TRD braces...

 

If you don't want to change the ride height or sacrifice too much comfort of the stock ride you should look into a sway bar, bushings, and alignment. I plan on getting RobiSpec KWs eventually, i'm just on stock suspension + eibach springs atm. The ride height is a bit lower and the car is a bit more firm on the road, the ride is still comfortable for DDing and the handling feels overall more responsive with the springs. I do plan on tracking my X though, the robispec KWs are simply amazing.

 

so get the coils and leave the car at stock height.

ANDDDDDDDDDDDDDD who would know on here if ur car was lowered unless you posted it was?


but i see what u mean about the stock lip, i dont even have the aero kit and i scraped my lip up pretty bad

 

I too am also interested in a suspension setup. Going to go with Robi for sure, but installation/fine tuning is the only problem, as theres no where local (or even in travel range) that will do a fine job. All robispec kw's are the same right? There isn't different setups like streets and sports and what not?

 

Bars then bushings...if you are sticking to your list...in that order. If you just want to do 1 bar...go with an adj rear and that will help.
Engine bushing...go poly...not the torque dampener.

 

yea he has 1 set for the X AFAIK

 

What about the Cusco package?

 

Tires!

 

OT: why did steve at NRGtech account get disabled?

 

sway bushings are normally a cheap and easy way to add a little firmness to the car, but I'm not aware of anyone selling them for the X at the moment.

I had motor mounts on my last car and while they did dramatically reduce wheel hop, they added too much vibrations at idle and I won't be putting them on my Evo. I probably would have removed them but they were a pain to install...

 

Thanks for the feedback guys. I spoke with a couple of guys who are very knowledgeable on chassis and suspension set up and basically what I found out was that the X chassis is stiff enough and doesn't need the Cusco braces as much as it needs a diet. That said, the added weight of the braces outweighs their benefit of improving handling.

Seems like my car is going to remain stock for some time so I'll work on improving the unit between the steering wheel and the seat.

Cheers.

 

Good call on remaining stock. If you aren't a hard-core track *****, there really isn't a need to modify the stock suspension since the handling is so dialed-in from the factory.

 

I'd contradict your list and throw a good set of coil overs on the car and if you want stock ride height just set them to stock level height. They will improve the handling of the car dramatically and will probably ride better/smoother than stock under normal driving conditions but will perform like they should if you have the desire to drive it hard. The new HKS coil overs are supposed to ride alot better than stock softness wise.