Autox / occasional hpde car. Which sway bars?

[Daeldalus]

Stock bars with new hardware?

Remove rear bar?

Bigger front + bigger rear

Big front only?

[GThomas]

Stock bars with new hardware?

Remove rear bar?

Bigger front + bigger rear

Big front only?

Depends what suspension set you've got. If you are running stiffer springs, I've had better luck with a stiffer front bar and no bar in the rear.

[Daeldalus]

Running h&r sport springs and kyb dampers
I might switch to bilsteins in the future.

Everything else is stock but fresh

Do I want to go as big as I can find? Like the 25mm bar
Or would the 22/23mm bar be better

[z31maniac]

Why don't you go drive the car and then once you are consistent, you can see what behavior of the car you want to fix to accommodate your driving style?

Or just go ahead and spend money for no reason. It's up to you.

[nick_318is]

I have the IE 22mm/19mm adjustable setup on mine, and I love it, I think I'm medium front and full soft in the rear. I'm on bilstein sports and Dinan springs and it's a nice combination.

[Daeldalus]

Why don't you go drive the car and then once you are consistent, you can see what behavior of the car you want to fix to accommodate your driving style?

Or just go ahead and spend money for no reason. It's up to you.

This is really good advice. I just don't know if I will be tracking the car enough to implement it. Is 2-3 autox and maybe 1 hpde a year enough to figure things like that out?

[BlackbirdM3]

Your spring rates are WAY soft, your dampers are totally lacking. I'd replace both of these before going any further. I'd look for a set of Turner J Stock springs and dampers (They are Bilsteins.) Once you have those, look into a 22mm front bar, leave the stock rear.

I've tried sport springs, H&R Race springs, and the J stocks, with some combo of either Bilstein HD, Sports, or or revalved Koni Sports with external adjusters, and until I had the J stocks on the car, ALL the others were on the bump stops all the time. I could set the car on the bump stops mid corner on an autoX course with street tires. Even with big swaybars, I'd still put the front end of the car on the bumpstops through a smooth corner.

Yes the J stocks are hard to find, but worth the effort. The ride will be firm, but not harsh like it was with the other springs crashing into the bump stops over every single little undulation, ripple, or other surface imperfection on the road. That said, you need dampers that are designed to handle 640/1080 lb spring rates. Anything less than the correct Bilstein dampers will have you bouncing down the road. (I tired my bilstein sports with the J stocks and felt seasick on a smooth road. )

Will

[1990m3]

second for j-stock setup. It's really a phenomenal setup in that the car's handling is highly neutral and there are no settings that you can screw up. My s50 swapped 318is was very quick on that setup mostly because I couldn't mess up the suspension settings.

I also installed an adjustable rear subframe and dialed out some negative camber (I think I settled on -2) and it had a lot more rear grip.

I ran suspension techniques 22 Front and 19 rear swaybars.

[z31maniac]

This is really good advice. I just don't know if I will be tracking the car enough to implement it. Is 2-3 autox and maybe 1 hpde a year enough to figure things like that out?

Yeah, that's not enough track time to get to the point that you are really consistent........to the point of making tire psi adjustments, etc.

I'd just throw the SpecE30 or similar setup and go.

What tires will you be using and what is your budget?

[FredK]

I think that H&R Sports would be fine if you are just starting out, because they will force you to be smooth and learn how weight transfer affects handling. I have definitely seen people auto-x with H&R Sports. The car will pitch a lot and it will probably look like you're about to flip over because they are very soft and the springs do nothing to assist in roll stiffness. That's when you know you're approaching the limits of your suspension.

I think the SpecE30 suspension is good if you are racing in SpecE30, otherwise, you're better off with higher spring and damper rates.

[Daeldalus]

Yeah, that's not enough track time to get to the point that you are really consistent........to the point of making tire psi adjustments, etc.

I'd just throw the SpecE30 or similar setup and go.

What tires will you be using and what is your budget?

I am currently on 215s 300tw toyo tires. I don't remember the model of them right now.

Budget will probably end up in the 150-200 range per bar

[z31maniac]

What handling issue do you wish to fix by changing the sway bars?

[Daeldalus]

right now the only thing that the car is doing that I don't like when turning is excessive front body roll. it oversteers while on the throttle but IIRC I am not supposed to be on the gas very much while turning anyway.

[z31maniac]

Honest opinion?

Slap some sticky tires on that bitch and just enjoy it for now.

All the things you will do to make the car "handle/transition" better, are going to make it suck more on the street.....99% of your use.

Unless you're willing to spend $3500-5000 on a set of MCS or JRZ coilovers.

[lcoleman]

Big front bar, lots of front camber is the best starting point for e30s. Tires, however, are the most dramatic change you can make to a car.

Get better tires and better dampers as soon as possible, and better springs after that. Spece30 just switched to what looks like a nice setup.