Drop Spindles

ThaRobbFather

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Hey everybody!!

After owning my car for six years, I'm FINALLY getting around to the suspension work. Obviously the normal thing to do would be to grab a set of coilovers or lowering springs/shocks/struts. However, I came across the drop spindle idea on one of the other forums and liked the idea of only lowering the front end without screwing up the geometry. I've done a fair amound of reading on it, but I still have a couple other questions:

1) WHERE DO YOU GET THESE THINGS
2) Is this incredibly stupid and should I just act like every other person and lower it the normal way?
3) Has anyone done this on their car? I've found a couple Foxes and SN-95s with this setup and it looks pretty tight, but I haven't come across an S197s.
4) Can I ony lower the front end (even with lowering springs) without completely screwing up the rest of the suspension?

Thanks in advance!!-Rob

By the way, before someone says "check the other forums" just know that I have and they don't seem to have the answers I'm looking for
 

RED09GT

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1. I do not know of anyone that makes drop spindles for S197 cars.
2. The change in suspension geometry isn't near as drastic as it would be on say a late 60's A-body GM vehicle, if it was a better method, the aftermarket selections would reflect this.
3. Not me
4. The rear suspension is a stick axle so there is nothing to worry about as far as camber goes. The instant center will change due to the lower ride height, plenty of suppliers make lower control arm relocation brackets to account for this but they are not completely necessary, but they will allow you to adjust the instant center and for us drag racers, that is a big deal.
 

redfirepearlgt

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The rake on the 05-09 is in more need of rear leveling than front lowering for most but to each his own. As mentioned S197's are simple to lower with springs and possibly camber bolts for alignment correction. Coil Overs are the ultimate means of lowering if you have the coin. 1-1.5" drops or combination drops require little attention to pinion angle in most cases. However on 05+ models an adjustable panhard is almost a given regardless of what some will tell you. Drop the rear 1" and it will push the body to one side. This may not be noticed with factory or near factory tires, but put a 285/40/18 or wider on the car and you will see the need to correct the shift.

ENJOY.
 

ThaRobbFather

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Hey guys!

Thanks for the info Red09 and RedFirePearl. Y'all pretty much answered my questions. Sounds like the spindles would be far more of a pain than just lowering it and overall just an unnecessary headache. Once again thanks for the replies. If anyone else has enlightening info on this your replies will also be much appreciated!

Cheers!
-Rob
 

hamish

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I would have preferred the drop spindles. I did see a company had them way back when I lowered mine. After all the costs of the rod ends,shocks,adjustable mounts and multiple trips to an alignment shop. The drop spindles were probably a better option.
 

redfirepearlgt

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I would have preferred the drop spindles. I did see a company had them way back when I lowered mine. After all the costs of the rod ends,shocks,adjustable mounts and multiple trips to an alignment shop. The drop spindles were probably a better option.

Interesting. With a 1.5" BMR GT500 Drag springs on the front of my car the front dropped only an additional 1"(a great recommendation by Dylan at BMR BTW!!). The TVS unit on the stock springs caused the front to sit .5" lower to begin with. Therefore the total drop was right at 1.5" from stock height before the TVS mod. That said, when I took the car to the alignment shop the guy showed my that camber was -1.7 degrees on the drivers side and -2.0 degrees on the passenger side. This spec was slightly out of the factory specification which I believe he said was -1.0 to -1.5 degrees. The guy told me I could drive it that way (said it would corner slightly better because of the increased neg camber which makes sense), but I prefer to get it a little closer to factory because I don't like the way the tires squat out as it sits. So I picked up 2.0 degree camber bolts for $30 from BMR to correct that. I just need to get it back and have that touched up.
 

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