streetspeed

I recently started autocrossing my Lancer Ls and I am addicted to the sport. I'm looking to better my suspension and imrpove my car's handling. I'm not sure which modification would be the best to do first. I have new, performance, brakes and rotors. I'm thinking either coilovers or a set of autocrossing wheels/tires. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

~ Ainsley

bobaab

iTrader: (5)

Tires will be the #1 greatest modification you can do to any car. Start there.

I went the most cost effecient way. I bought an extra set of the stock OZ wheels for 175 shipped and bought the Falken Azenis tires for like 70 each. That totals to $455 for an awesome boost in performance

SLVROZ_03

iTrader: (10)

Tires won't be of any use if the power isn't getting to the ground. Tein makes a great line of coilover products available for the Lancers. Plus, a cheaper alt would be the NEX coilovers. Heard good things about them. Good luck with your new, found love.

comatose721

iTrader: (16)

heres what i think:

tires/rims
coils
front strut bar
rear sway bar
rear strut bar

just my opinion...btw, where are you doing autocross in the tristate area? i live in NJ, maybe ill head out there once you get down a list of events.

bobaab

iTrader: (5)

umm, u realize that autocrossing is a sport where you turn right? since when do you need power to exceed your tires' gripping capabilities?

SLVROZ_03

iTrader: (10)

I'm just saying from my own experience...once a suspension mod is added (ex. CO's) the car handles soooo much better regardless of the Yoko's the car came with or your Falkens. Just change the tires...ah, ok little emprovement but not to my previous example. Get my drift?

Z_Lancer_Man

iTrader: (115)

1. Tires on Lightweigt wheels (stock OZ wheels are great - Toyo Proxes, Falken Azenis...)
2. Full Coilovers (Tein SS or NEX)
3. Rear Anti-Sway Bar (Progress or even stock OZ bar)
4. Front Strut Bar
5. Rear Strut Bar

Those should give you excellent handling. When you start getting more power, consider the front LSD.

bobaab

iTrader: (5)

yea, im just surprised you are claiming to have goten that much out of suspension mods. From my experience, if you ask anyone who's autocrossed for years, they would tell you that tires are the single most effective CAR modification you can do.

but i know hwat you mean too. im running on stock suspension with over 70k on them and ive been realizing how awesome it would be to get some coilovers on the lancer..

streetspeed

Thanks for all of the input. I just have to decide between tires/rims or coilovers for this season. I plan on doing more mods. in preparation for next season, but money's a little tight. I've been autocrossing with the North Eastern PA region of the SCCA. Everyone there has been extremely helpful. (http://www.nepa-scca.com/) I don't know how far away the events are for oyu, but if it's not too long of a drive, you should come try it. It's definitely a lot of fun!

evofan@scorp's

iTrader: (5)

Using a wheel spacer in the front also helps handling a bit, it will cause your wheel bearings to wear a little faster though....but it isn't that hard to replace later on down the line. I'm going to do this to my car soon: The rear control arms are stamped steel....I'm pretty sure it will add alot more streangth by boxing that in with another peice of steel. My roomate is a welder, so the only thing that has stopped me is motivation. I'll let you guys know though what the outcome of this is.

Alchemist

iTrader: (23)

I have it all. If I could do it again I'd go:
Tires- some nice Advan A032R(soft), Hankook Z212 (RS-2 is the other name for the same tire) or maybe step up into the DOT rated "R" compounds if I wanted to change tires at the track. The Hankooks are generally considered better tires and they're about $20 cheaper per tire than the new Azenis.
Of course with rims. 15# for the 15" OZ rims is nice, but I need two sets of rims (summer/racing and the other season we get up here) and my 13.8# 15" rims are that much nicer.

Tein SS kit. I love this kit. I don't adjust the ride height, but changing the damper settings netted me more than 4 seconds at my last event.

Front and rear strut braces
Rear sway bar upgrade. Actually, a couple folks said that they upgraded the perches first and then the bar, and there was a more significant change by just upgrading the perches. Food for thought on that one

Front camber kit. Good luck finding the adjustable plates. I went to optionauto and got the 4 camber bolts for $50 and have the front maxed out to -1.75. The rear is about -1. Toes are about -0.25 fron and -0.3 rear.

and of course through all the suspension mods I'm upgrading the engine, too.

power is useless without control is impossible without grip

SLVROZ_03

iTrader: (10)

^^^ very good points!

oz4g94

iTrader: (3)

go suspension first: coilovers, swaybars, tie bars, strut bars. if you plan on getting larger wheels, the best tires you can get are toyo proxes 4, imo. i dont know if hes still selling them, here is a vendor thread for tie bar, strut bars, trunk bar https://www.evolutionm.net/forums/sh...d.php?t=115477

comatose721

iTrader: (16)

IMO what good would being able to corner your car do without grip? coils, strut bars, rear sway bar are all great mods but i just think a sticky set of tires would be best to do first...thats just my opinion...also i can't remember who it was on the forums but they said the tie bar made the rear a bit squirely.

Alchemist

iTrader: (23)

If he's serious about racing, he needs to get serious about tires. No one. No one. No one runs on Toyos- not even the R compounds. they're too expensive, take forever to break in and have a really short useable life. his best bet is to check with local AX clubs and see what everyone else is racing on (and I'll bet the non-r-compound tires are: Ecsta MX, Hankoon RS-2, or the new Azenis)

and that was both me and urban that found tie bars make the rear squirrely with coilovers