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08 wrx suspension

3K views 11 replies 6 participants last post by  joystick 
#1 ·
ok, so im pretty dumb when it comes to suspension and i need help understanding something. i have an 08 wrx, and i know all the criticism surrounding its suspension, i just dont know what im feeling for really compared to say, the 09. im wondering what mods would be necessary to correct the biggest problems: understeer, softness, lack of immediate turn-in. these are the things that are usually strong points of the wrx so i want to feel like im really driving one instead of a "lesser" version. would it be a good option to get 09 sti suspension upgrades or am i better off with something else. yes, i would like to auto-x a little bit, but more than that i just want to know that my car can hold up on quick curves and such during a daily drive. i know this information is out there, but it is sparse and scattered information related specifically to the 08
 
#4 ·
i dont want to spend an outstanding amount of money, but im willing to save up for quality products. i would like to go to the nearby roadcourse, but only a few times a year. ill be doing more auto-x than anything, maybe once every couple of months. i dont care how low the car is really, and i dont know if i need to fit wide tires.

A thicker rear sway will help you with the understeer and steering rack bushings will help you with the turn in. I would recommend just that if you are on a budget, but if money is not entirely a big issue get the front sway bar and an ALK (whiteline), a front strut bar will also help some with the turn in. You could also get springs as well.
this is about what i was thinking, but how will it affect my day to day driveability and comfort? i absolutely love how smooth the car is and i dont want to affect that a whole lot
 
#3 ·
A thicker rear sway will help you with the understeer and steering rack bushings will help you with the turn in. I would recommend just that if you are on a budget, but if money is not entirely a big issue get the front sway bar and an ALK (whiteline), a front strut bar will also help some with the turn in. You could also get springs as well.
 
#9 ·
A thicker rear sway will help you with the understeer and steering rack bushings will help you with the turn in. I would recommend just that if you are on a budget, but if money is not entirely a big issue get the front sway bar and an ALK (whiteline), a front strut bar will also help some with the turn in. You could also get springs as well.
Actually, the front sway bar has a greater affect on understeer. Understeer is caused when the front wheels lose traction.

"Subaru loves the MacPherson strut setup up front. The problem is that as the loaded wheel compresses the camber rolls over toward positive. In the end this reduces your available contact patch on the ground. This reduces front grip. THIS leads to more understeer as your tires skip sideways over the tarmac. NOT a good thing.

Fortunately, you can help control that by upping the wheel rate. Now you could do this with springs. Problem there is that begins to affect the ride quality. The answer is the front anti-roll bar from Whiteline. It ups the wheel rate only in a turn, and helps to control some of that compression in a more civil manner. The end result is better handling."

- Excepted from: Turn In Concepts (TIC)

The rear sway has more to do with oversteer and keeping the rear in place (not getting loose/loosing rear wheel traction). A car is said to oversteer when the rear wheels do not track behind the front wheels but instead slide out toward the outside of the turn.

+1 for the recommendations of the ALK, Steering Rack Bushings, Front/Rear Sway Bars, and Front/Rear Endlinks. All will greatly improve handling and turn in. I would contact TIC, as they are really the suspension gurus in the Subaru world (ask for Clint, he really knows his ****).
 
#5 ·
if you get an adjustable sway bar, you could keep it on the lowest setting and when it's track day you can always switch it to the stiffest setting. It will be a nice upgrade and not entirely harsh.

Keep the stock springs since you dont want it to affect it a whole lot. You could also get the comfort or regular ALK which they both help your turn in and exit speed. Also, the steering rack bushings are cheap and make a nice upgrade for help in turn in. If you have a little extra cash i would recommend a front sway bar as well or a front strut bar. You should be able to run in the "street prepared" class. With several other mods.
 
#6 ·
i saw that perrin makes a suspension kit for the 08 it includes front and rear sway bars aswell as front and rear endlinks and springs, they also offer a soft and a hard kit. Soft kit has less thick sway bars. Im hoping to get this kit before my freind gets his 09 so i can be like HA mine is still better! Anyways its runs about 830 for the whole kit.
 
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