Is the suspension supposed to be this 'uneasy'?

[kmagnuss]

Do you feel the suspension on these cars is planted and smooth? I've only had mine (2003 SRT10) for a few months now but I'm really not a fan of how it rides. When driving straight if I hit a bump that goes across the road and both rear tires hit it at the same time, the rear end kicks out. If I'm going on a sweeper and hit some bumps... same thing. I'm thinking the shocks are blown or close to being blown. This car was NOT in the best of shape when I bought it, but surprisingly all the bushings look good. The rear struts are stock. The fronts are cheap Aldan coilovers. I messed with the settings some and made it a little better, but it's still just off. It's almost like the springs are just too strong for the struts and the rebound is too strong/bouncy.
I've owned some decent sports cars (996, 996 turbo w/700hp, R8, E55 w/600 hp, Panamera Turbo w/600 hp, S2000, couple FC RX7's and some others) and this is just NOTHING like they are as far as suspension is concerned.

Thinking of dumping the struts/coilovers and putting on some BC Coilovers due to the good reviews here.

Thanks.
-Mag

 

[GTS Dean]

It is possibe to have worn shocks, but you would typically see obvious leakage. I'm thinking you have either, maybe both of the following symptoms: 1) worn inner tie rods, 2) improper/unbalanced caster side-side in the rear.

 

[kmagnuss]

Thanks. I’ll go get a alignment pretty soon and see if it helps at all.

 

[GTS Dean]

Get the back wheels up, grasp them at 3 & 9 and rock to check for free play

 

[MoparMap]

Maybe it's just me, but it also kind of feels like a bad idea to have mismatched front and rear struts. Seems like you could have some imbalance issues there. I know the stock suspension has been accused of being "undersprung and overdamped". My stock setup felt a little loose as well before I replaced them. Not awful, but certainly a bit uneasy over bumps at speed. My rears had some noticeable leakage on them though, and I just kind of wanted the excuse to get some adjustables on the car (I ended up with an MCS single system).

I agree with GTS Dean as well though. Alignment can make a pretty big difference in how any suspension feels, and having solid parts to start with is definitely key to that.

 

[viperkim]

Do you feel the suspension on these cars is planted and smooth? I've only had mine (2003 SRT10) for a few months now but I'm really not a fan of how it rides. When driving straight if I hit a bump that goes across the road and both rear tires hit it at the same time, the rear end kicks out. If I'm going on a sweeper and hit some bumps... same thing. I'm thinking the shocks are blown or close to being blown. This car was NOT in the best of shape when I bought it, but surprisingly all the bushings look good. The rear struts are stock. The fronts are cheap Aldan coilovers. I messed with the settings some and made it a little better, but it's still just off. It's almost like the springs are just too strong for the struts and the rebound is too strong/bouncy.
I've owned some decent sports cars (996, 996 turbo w/700hp, R8, E55 w/600 hp, Panamera Turbo w/600 hp, S2000, couple FC RX7's and some others) and this is just NOTHING like they are as far as suspension is concerned.

Thinking of dumping the struts/coilovers and putting on some BC Coilovers due to the good reviews here.

Thanks.
-Mag

Take it to a good Viper tech , great cars if it hasn't been butchered up.

 

[Viper Specialty]

Lets all not forget to not underestimate how horrible Aldan shocks can be. Put on BC or similar, and then see how it feels. I am pretty sure over the years that I have seen more Aldan shock oil outside the shocks... than inside.

 

[Goggles Pizano]

Thanks. I’ll go get a alignment pretty soon and see if it helps at all.

First eliminate all the mechanical things first in the suspension and wheels/tires before wasting time and money on alignment.

I would type something about stds comparison but it probably would get censored.

 

[smooth viper]

I agree with everything that has been mentioned here (a good alignment will do wonders) and will add that I have had the same experience with my Viper when I first got it last year. The first few months the car felt so unplanted over bumpy roads that I thought maybe this just wasn't the car for me. The original, stock suspension didn't show any obvious leaks when I inspected the car but I decided to replace it with BC Coilovers all around anyway. Night and day difference!

I think the old suspension had leaked out a long time ago and maybe been wiped clean or something because the shocks were for sure blown now that I have a frame of comparison. The BCs ride much better and do ok for autocross for me, but if you are serious about track days there are probably better options. You may have to dial in the stiffness to your liking but I can't recommend this enough as it made the car much easier to control on rough roads.

 

[kmagnuss]

There's a guy pretty local to me that has an oem take off set from 2008 with 20k miles or something. I'm not sure if it's worth the risk to buy used struts. Do the stock coilovers/struts hold up well or are these most likely toast?

 

[Goggles Pizano]

Depends price. And you can try to compress them manually.

 

[EastCoastSRT10]

Lets all not forget to not underestimate how horrible Aldan shocks can be. Put on BC or similar, and then see how it feels. I am pretty sure over the years that I have seen more Aldan shock oil outside the shocks... than inside.

I just ordered a set of Redshift Motorsports coilovers. They take BC Racing coils and revalve them with higher quality valves. They are only a few hundred more than a standard BC set but the autocross guys have said great things about them with some running national level events with them.

 

[BoondocSaint]

I'll have to look into those. I rebuilt my Koni 2812's, but it sounds like the Redshift Motorsports option would come in at a similar cost. That would be a major budget win considering other options jump two or three times that price very fast for our cars.

 

[EastCoastSRT10]

I'll have to look into those. I rebuilt my Koni 2812's, but it sounds like the Redshift Motorsports option would come in at a similar cost. That would be a major budget win considering other options jump two or three times that price very fast for our cars.

GrassRootsMotorsports forum has good things to say about them by various users. The owner is a passionate guy from what I’ve heard and from my limited interactions with him. He’ll work with you to dial them in. Even if you add in the cost of a couple revalves to get it exactly how you want it they still come in far less than some of the big names.

There is actually an article on GRM comparing the Konis to them.

 

[Persi]

Do you feel the suspension on these cars is planted and smooth? I've only had mine (2003 SRT10) for a few months now but I'm really not a fan of how it rides. When driving straight if I hit a bump that goes across the road and both rear tires hit it at the same time, the rear end kicks out. If I'm going on a sweeper and hit some bumps... same thing. I'm thinking the shocks are blown or close to being blown. This car was NOT in the best of shape when I bought it, but surprisingly all the bushings look good. The rear struts are stock. The fronts are cheap Aldan coilovers. I messed with the settings some and made it a little better, but it's still just off. It's almost like the springs are just too strong for the struts and the rebound is too strong/bouncy.
I've owned some decent sports cars (996, 996 turbo w/700hp, R8, E55 w/600 hp, Panamera Turbo w/600 hp, S2000, couple FC RX7's and some others) and this is just NOTHING like they are as far as suspension is concerned.

Thinking of dumping the struts/coilovers and putting on some BC Coilovers due to the good reviews here.

Thanks.
-Mag

100%. Just bought a 2004 with only 20,000 miles on it.. darted all over so I put BC Racing shocks on it and wow, I can hit anything and it’s solid. No more darting even in the least. Great to drive Now!

 

[Badsnek]

Had the exact same problem with my stock suspension Gen 3 when I bought it. It was all over the road and totally dangerous. Got a proper alignment and fresh tires and it’s a totally different car now.

 

[kmagnuss]

I'm getting the alignment done tomorrow. For 99.9999% street driving in Florida (straight, smooth roads mostly with only on ramps for any 'twisties') and an occasional trip to the TN/NC mountains for some fun driving. I will never see a track with this car.
I read a bunch of alignment threads and I think I'm leaning towards the following settings:
Camber - 1.7 front / -0.8 rear
Caster - stock (whatever that is)
Toe - I can't decide on the front toe / rear I'm thinking 1/16" in ?

How does that seem?
I'm seeing 1/16 in, 1/16 out or zero toe for the fronts. No idea what to do here.
Stock tire sizes if it matters.

I just want the car to not seem so squirrely. If I can get 10-15k miles out of the tires that would be fantastic.

Thanks.
-Mag

 

[GTS Dean]

In the front I like about -1.2 to -1.4 camber, +6.0 caster and about 1/16" toe in.
Out back, I aim for about -0.9 camber, +1.0 caster and 1/8" toe in.

99.5% of alignment shops cannot measure rear caster and it is every bit as adjustable as the front end. Just have them start with the cams dead-center in the slots and check camber. Should be roughly -0.5. Snug the front cams down and roll each rear bolt outboard just a tad to get your extra camber. That will move the lower ball joint forward and give you that little dab of caster you need. Set toe and check your thrust angle. Don't make big adjustments to the rear because bad things get magnified there.

 

[MoparMap]

Yeah, -1.7 on the front is pretty aggressive in my book. I run around -2 on the track with street tires, so you wouldn't be that far off. Average street driving I'd probably keep it around -1, sporty driving maybe as high as -1.5, but you'll go through tires faster than you need to. My 04 is my daily driver and will get around 15-20k out of a set of rears and double that on fronts (Michelin Pilot Supersports). They have been a really great all around tire for me.

 

[EastCoastSRT10]

With my blown suspension I was still able to put the power down straight and true with .2 degrees toe in for the rears and 1 degree negative camber.

0 toe front and 1.5 degrees negative camber out front with 6 degrees caster.

I’ll probably stick with the same once the Redshift coilovers arrive…which should be next week actually.