Building the ultimate Festiva street suspension...

[Zman86]

Alright, so before I pull the trigger on my Southwest speed order, I just want to verify I've got everything correct. Car is a stock Festiva with the stock B3, full interior.

2x 2.5" id 12" long 120lb springs

2x 1 7/8" id 10" long 120lb springs

2x 36mm bilstein threaded sleeves

2x 36mm adjustment nuts

Anything I'm missing/forgot? A


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[mikemounlio]

Thats what im thinking! I was just posting the best prices i could in case others wanted to know like the OP.

[bhazard]

$205 for the fronts? You might as well just spend the $43 for the rear and resell them.

[mikemounlio]

Hottuning just told me 205$ for just the front.

Thanks for the help advanced!

[Advancedynamix]

Am i missing something or is there a better place to buy the items? I am looking to just buy the suspension parts right now.

front struts from this kit http://www.ebay.com/itm/VOLKSWAGEN-V...9U~wDm&vxp=mtr

Springs for the front coilovers (2x) https://www.southwestspeed.com/?sec=view_part&id=66

02 kia strut mounts (2x) http://www.ebay.com/itm/Anchor-70498...1glpMg&vxp=mtr

rear struts (2x) http://www.shockwarehouse.com/site/p...FQyoaQodU4gINQ

coilover sleeve (2x) https://www.southwestspeed.com/?sec=view_part&id=1049

rear springs (2x) https://www.southwestspeed.com/?sec=view_part&id=23

bumpstops (2x or 1x) http://www.ebay.com/itm/151709646616

total of 596.98$ as of right now not including shipping. Might be able to get that even lower if ebay hottuning will sell just the front and not the entire kit.

This all looks right, but the southwest speed links aren't working.
Send Hottuning a messege on eBay. Nancy will respond. They have split the sets for several people now.

[Advancedynamix]

Same bump stops on the front? I have an amp/sub and a couple speakers in the back, still has the rear seat. Spare tire and jack are removed though. i can only carry one passenger as is, with two the bumper mount flange in the fenderwell starts eating the tire.

The bump stops on the front aren't as important, but I just use the ones that come on the coilovers. The back uses the bump stops to add progressive rate rise. With speaker equipment and such back there the 120lb springs may suit you better if you've got passengers in mind. I think of these cars as an exotic superwagon, so the back seat
Gets tossed first thing. Lol

[mikemounlio]

The rockauto price of 18.95 is for one last strut. Normal price there is 31$ will have to check back later to see if it changes. Thanks for the advice.

[theastronaut]

Rockauto has the rear struts for 18.95 each, and the front strut mounts for about the same price as the ones you posted. Could combine shipping that way.

[mikemounlio]

Am i missing something or is there a better place to buy the items? I am looking to just buy the suspension parts right now.

front struts from this kit http://www.ebay.com/itm/VOLKSWAGEN-V...9U~wDm&vxp=mtr

Springs for the front coilovers (2x) https://www.southwestspeed.com/?sec=view_part&id=66

02 kia strut mounts (2x) http://www.ebay.com/itm/Anchor-70498...1glpMg&vxp=mtr

rear struts (2x) http://www.shockwarehouse.com/site/p...FQyoaQodU4gINQ

coilover sleeve (2x) https://www.southwestspeed.com/?sec=view_part&id=1049

rear springs (2x) https://www.southwestspeed.com/?sec=view_part&id=23

bumpstops (2x or 1x) http://www.ebay.com/itm/151709646616

total of 596.98$ as of right now not including shipping. Might be able to get that even lower if ebay hottuning will sell just the front and not the entire kit.

[theastronaut]

Same bump stops on the front? I have an amp/sub and a couple speakers in the back, still has the rear seat. Spare tire and jack are removed though. i can only carry one passenger as is, with two the bumper mount flange in the fenderwell starts eating the tire.

[mikemounlio]

advanceddynamix

Once i get a full list together would you mind looking it over and give me you thoughts?

[Advancedynamix]

Can you please restate which bump stops to use on the setup you listed from above? I plan to purchase my entire suspension mods tomorrow. So a much info on your setup as you care to give out is greatly appreciated.

Guess i will start a list in a few minutes of what exactly i plan to buy.

They are Volkswagen part number 1J0512131B
CLICK HERE FOR EBAY AUCTION

[mikemounlio]

Yeah, bump stops are the key. I should have also mentioned that earlier. The ones I use are VW new beetle rear bump stop with the large section on the bottom cut off and then stacked on top of the black bump stop that comes with the KYB shocks.
The 105lb may be too soft for a fully dressed car though. Mine is stripped, but does have a stereo and custom door cards and false floor, so it's not that much different. I also carry a decent load from time to time in it without problems (100-200lbs.)

Mk2 rear struts are too long.

Valving requirements are drastically different from front to rear on these cars.
Ive actually found the rear VW mk1 shocks to be too stiff when new. They loosen up a bit after a few thousand miles. Be cautious on washboard dirt roads when these are new, I've spun quite drastically a couple of times (55+ mph.)
The 105lb 10" springs require a lot of preload, unless you want to slam the car, but the spring rate isn't what I'm after here. The rate of a spring is only one guideline in the performance of that spring. I've always wanted springs to come with a dynamic graph of their cherictaristics, so that a proper spring could be chosen the first or second try. However, the industry has dumbed it down to one number, which explains very little. With the proper preload, these 105lb springs are essentially 150lb springs, except with a slower rate rise than the 150lb springs. The rate rise of the 105lb 1 7/8" black magic springs is very close to optimal. When set up correctly (with the correct bump stops) this spring matches the valving of the kyb perfectly for the weight and dynamics of the fesiva chassis on street tires. I actually just tested this last saturday on a set of 165 55 14 Achilles Economist tires. I used to spin wildly off the track when pushing 9/10 on street rubber, but with this setup I drift very neutrally even with the tires shedding their treads like a wet dog shakes off water.
Shock length is just as important as valving and spring rate on the rear of a light FWD car. The shock length is what ultimately controls chassis attitude under hard cornering. These KYB mk1 shocks are the prefect length for a street setup in my opinion. They still offer enough travel and ground clearance to drive quickly down a dirt path, but hold the car well enough on the track to out corner race tire shod sports cars with ease.

Can you please restate which bump stops to use on the setup you listed from above? I plan to purchase my entire suspension mods tomorrow. So a much info on your setup as you care to give out is greatly appreciated.

Guess i will start a list in a few minutes of what exactly i plan to buy.

[Advancedynamix]

Sorry if all this info is poorly organised or explained. There is a really long explanation for all of this that I'm trying to shorten as much as possible. We could go on for years about this stuff. Lol.

[Advancedynamix]

Are the MK2 rear struts (GR-2 pn 343191) valved different than the MK1 Rabbit struts? I used MK1 KYB GR-2 rears (341007) and they seem a bit soft compared to the front MK2 Racelands. I know they don't need to be as stiff as the front since there's less weight in the rear but they still seem to be a little soft. Running 125/105 springs on a full weight b3 car. I might try 120 pound rear springs next. I also need to get taller bump stops all around.

Yeah, bump stops are the key. I should have also mentioned that earlier. The ones I use are VW new beetle rear bump stop with the large section on the bottom cut off and then stacked on top of the black bump stop that comes with the KYB shocks.
The 105lb may be too soft for a fully dressed car though. Mine is stripped, but does have a stereo and custom door cards and false floor, so it's not that much different. I also carry a decent load from time to time in it without problems (100-200lbs.)

Mk2 rear struts are too long.

Valving requirements are drastically different from front to rear on these cars.
Ive actually found the rear VW mk1 shocks to be too stiff when new. They loosen up a bit after a few thousand miles. Be cautious on washboard dirt roads when these are new, I've spun quite drastically a couple of times (55+ mph.)
The 105lb 10" springs require a lot of preload, unless you want to slam the car, but the spring rate isn't what I'm after here. The rate of a spring is only one guideline in the performance of that spring. I've always wanted springs to come with a dynamic graph of their cherictaristics, so that a proper spring could be chosen the first or second try. However, the industry has dumbed it down to one number, which explains very little. With the proper preload, these 105lb springs are essentially 150lb springs, except with a slower rate rise than the 150lb springs. The rate rise of the 105lb 1 7/8" black magic springs is very close to optimal. When set up correctly (with the correct bump stops) this spring matches the valving of the kyb perfectly for the weight and dynamics of the fesiva chassis on street tires. I actually just tested this last saturday on a set of 165 55 14 Achilles Economist tires. I used to spin wildly off the track when pushing 9/10 on street rubber, but with this setup I drift very neutrally even with the tires shedding their treads like a wet dog shakes off water.
Shock length is just as important as valving and spring rate on the rear of a light FWD car. The shock length is what ultimately controls chassis attitude under hard cornering. These KYB mk1 shocks are the prefect length for a street setup in my opinion. They still offer enough travel and ground clearance to drive quickly down a dirt path, but hold the car well enough on the track to out corner race tire shod sports cars with ease.