H&R Race Vs. Steeda Comp. Springs

[Captain_Stangin']

I've been reading up on these two particular springs, but I can't for the life of me decide which set to get.

My car is being driven less as a DD on the street as time goes on, I only have 21,000 KM on my 2007 Mustang GT, with the past few hundred km involving me driving to auto-x, the track, or the drag strip (both the track and drag strip are at the same facility). I'll likely never trailer her, so some streetability is important. Please note that I am going for performance over comfort.

Are the H&R race springs too low? I read that our cars only like lowering of about 1", so if I got those, would I need something like a X5 balljoint and a bumpsteer kit? Also, do they tend to scrape or bottom out? I am more concerned about bottoming out, as bottoming out at high speed could lead to a unfortunate situation. I was set on the Steeda Comps for the longest time, until I saw how our cars looked with the H&R race springs. I know looks shouldn't be important, but damn, they look good .

Which springs do you guys think would be better suited for track days and auto-x? I recently started going to auto-x every weekend, I am having problems with understeer, I know my entry speed is too high, but I think springs and dampers could help me out .

Thanks for your help guys.

 

[Vapour Trails]

Wait, what if anything have you done already? Are totally stock? Plans to add sway bars later?

My preferance would be Steeda, but as you can see I'm kind of a fan.

 

[RedMosesSC]

I ran the Steeda Sport on my GT and i was very happy with them. I live in NYC and the roads are rough so i couldnt go super low but lower is not always better. I ran Tokico D-Specs with them so i was able to dail in the right amount of stiffness at the AutoX and then loosen it up when going back on the street.

I swapped out my Ball joints and tie rods but with the Steeda Springs but i dont think they were a must, my Saleen has a similair lowering amount and im on stock ball joints and tie rods and i cant say the GT was that much improved form the X5 & Bump steer but if you have the budget you may a well do everything while your tearing the suspension apart.

That said, i presume you plan on doing dampers at the same time? Any plans for sway bars? Control Arms? the suspension works best as a system, swapping just springs wil help a bit but the dampers and sway bars really round things off and give you great handling.

 

[Blair]

I ran the Steeda Comp springs for a few weeks. The back end lowered 1.3" as advertised. However, the front did not lower at all, despite Steeda's claimed 1.0" front lowering. I called Steeda aboout this and they were extremely rude and condescending in response to my questions about why the front didn't lower at all. They basically insinuated that it did not lower because I installed them wrong. How they could come to this conclusion without seeing my car and asking me any questions about the install is beyond me. I searched on a few other forums and learned that several of the people who have used these springs experienced no or very little front lowering as well.

The springs performed great and handled well. But frankly, they make the car look completely awful. If all you care about is absolute performance, they are a great choice, but if you want the car to look good as well, look elsewhere.

 

[Captain_Stangin']

Sorry guys, I should clarify. Performance wise, my car only has CAI+Tune. I have CHE adj. rod end UCA, and J&M poly/rod fixed LCAs, I also have CHE poly/rod PHB, and CHE's K-member brace with torque limiters. I plan on going with Strano anti-roll bars.
Damper of choice will be Koni Yellow.

I don't plan on X5 balljoint and bumpsteer kits, unless absolutely necessary. I have done 3 track days, and 6 auto-x events. Maybe about 120 passes down the 1/4 mile on my car, although I don't think that matters in this case.

I am looking to maximize cornering performance, but I want to do it right, and make sure my car's geometry is within spec. I don't feel I will be able to take advantage of coil overs.

 

[Stangmeister9]

i've run the H&R's for over a year know and they are awsome on the track, u do sacrifice a little harsher ride in the DD. i have zero issues with bottoming out. from experience i would run them with adjustable struts and shocks to adjust for DD duties and track.

good luck!

 

[Sam Strano]

I'd maybe encourage you to look at other options. I currently have H&R Race on my car, and it's just too much for a street car unless the roads are really, really good. I also had Comps, which are much nicer driving, but as was noted didn't lower the front hardly at all. I usually reserve those for cars with superchargers or some other added weight in the nose.

I'd recommend Ultralites since you like the look of the H&R Race. The balance is excellent, the drop nice, if just slightly less than the H&R Race.

 

[Captain_Stangin']

Thanks for the advice gents, I appreciate you guys chiming in.

Sam, are the ultralites a good performance spring? Would you recommend it for open tracking, or auto-x? I mean to say that I am more concerned about performance over looks, form following function. I am worried that the spring rate is too low.....that said, a spring rate that is too high isn't good either....

 

[Sam Strano]

Many think that you need ballistic springs. I do not. I too am a function over form guy, so I know where you are coming from. Hence the reason I think the Ultralites would be a good choice.

 

[Marc s]

Sam knows what he's talking about when it comes to setting up the S197's. I also have the H&R race springs and Koni's on my car. They are very stiff to live with every day, fortunately I don't have to. I installed H&R's rear bar to solve my understeer issue. I still have the stock front bar and I am satisfied with it. I have heard good things about the bars that Sam sells.

 

[Captain_Stangin']

Sam, I understand what you mean, but don't you think the ultralites are a little soft for auto-x and track day use? Would the Steeda sports be better performing? I know it is very hard to define best, but what would you install on a car you wanted to win with? (or at least have a chance at winning, given my current lack of driving skills).

Marc, why did you choose the H&R race springs over other springs?

 

[Rubrignitz]

I've also run the H&R race springs and they are seriously stiff. I've also run Steeda Comps, Steeda Ultralites and am now running Roush f/r.

I've swapped them all on/off and even gone back to stock springs with both Tokico D-spec shocks and the stock dampers. IMO, dampers are the single most important part of your suspension. Even with the stock springs I could stiffen up the d-specs to the point of zero dive/roll and have a really tight suspension/ride with the soft stock springs.

The HR race springs won't bottom out because they are too stiff to allow it. And with springs that stiff you're forced to tighten down your dampers to extreme levels to control them. A softer spring like the Steeda ultralite allows you to soften up the dampers for daily driving and stiffen them for track/extreme handling. I prefer the milder Steeda ultralites and my current Roush springs (which btw are as lightweight as the steeda ultralites if thats important to you) over the others with a good set of swaybars to control body roll rather than super stiff springs.

 

[Captain_Stangin']

Rubrignitz, thank you for the techical info, I now understand why Sam recommends the ultralites. I never thought of a suspension setup like that (soft springs and hard dampers)....is that similar to what the european manufacturers are doing?

My father had a 2003 Jaguar XJ, long wheelbase Vanden Plas....I know it's not the best comparision, but it rode very softly, very comfortable, but yet during a spirited drive, I found it rather composed through the corners, easy to handle.

Do you think the "sport" springs are better for performance use than the "ultralites"?
I've confused myself into another spring debate, lol.

 

[Rubrignitz]

BMW's are another example of great handling cars that use softer springs combined with stiffer dampers.

Can't comment on the Steeda 'Sport' springs because I personally haven't used them but according to Sam they have a bit softer rate than the ultralites along with a bit less drop. I would be inclined to suggest the ultralites over the sports for a perf/competition setup. He suggested the ultralites to me and I wasn't disappointed. I like those springs a great deal but picked up a set of Roush for a good price, decided to give them a run and have been using them for about 3 months now in daily driving. I absolutely love them. The Roush's don't drop the car 'quite' as much as the ultralites and are a bit softer rate. It would be hard to tell the difference in ride height unless you had the cars sitting next to each other but I need as much travel as I can get with some of the rougher roads in my area so I've stuck with the Roush's. I won't sell the ultralites because I'm sure I'll get a wild hair and swap them back on one day after a long comparison run with the roush's.