tired firehawk suspension

**smartinz26** · 10-16-2009, 10:13 PM

My firehawk is nearing 100k miles and doesnt handle nearly as good as it should... I want to keep it as original as possible... I have a few questions.

Do hawks come factory with eibachs? It also has bilstein shocks, I know those were an option. I like the ride height but it may just be a little too low if the springs are for appearance only and not performance.

The car squats bad when its launched and wheel hops. I guess rca relo brackets and tubular control arms would help. no noises otherwise. it has the adj panhard rod. maybe the torque arm bushings are toast? i dont know what those do really? he tells me to put subframe connectors on it also since it is a ttop car.. any good brands before i just go out and get slp everything?

Any one replace the suspension rubber with poly? swaybar bushings? control arm bushings? transmission mount poly? any thoughts? when my bf drives it he makes the trans hit something. i dont know it makes some kind of mount noise. it doesnt do it when i drive.

I want it tight and crisp like new. trying to gauge what its going to cost me and what order I should do it... since the towing business isnt as good as it once was I cant afford to go all out and just do everything at once.

thanks for the help.

**c5z28** · 10-16-2009, 10:51 PM

Push down on the car if it takes 2-3 bounces for it to stop then yes the shocks are probably shot. Koni's are the best and bilsteins if you can't afford those. The bilsteins that you have on there may have been on there originally if it was an slp option(will say slp on the shock) The eibachs are known to sometimes sag, especially in the rear so it may just be your springs. If the car did come with those bilsteins it came with eibach springs tuned by slp (I think they would be black) if they are red or orange then they are aftermarket

Sway bar bushings help tighten up the car a bit and since you are on a budget it would be good to at least change those out along with the endlinks. If your car squeaks going over bumps then the rear sway bar bushing should be replaced or cleaned and greased(quieted my car up).

If you are going to switch out the tranny mount you should do the motor mounts to stop excessive flex centralizing in one area. Your tranny mount may be broke if it is clunking take off the crossmember and see if it is torn up
http://www.installuniversity.com/ins...y_mount_m6.htm

lower control arms with relocation brackets will help you get off the line and sfc's help keep the body more rigid. Byunspeed has some great deals and I think kyspeed matches there prices. I got the umi 3 point bolt-ins for under $300 shipped to my door

**smartinz26** · 10-17-2009, 09:34 AM

the shock rebound seems ok. I think the springs are toast. there is literally no rebound on the shock side i can barely push it down to make it bounce. its not bottoming out on hard bumps which is really wierd. my rear jounce bumpers still look new. maybe thats how its supposed to be... it just doesnt feel good to me cornering for some reason.

i have noticed when its colder it does squeak. maybe the really cheap stuff like the swaybar bushings and endlinks will fix it for now.

that trans mount bothers me, its probably not torn just had the crap beat out of it.

I looked at UMI's sfc and may buy the 2 point bolt ins soon. i'm not making this an extreme power house of a car at most it will get headers and the ls6 intake.

**marksls1ta** · 10-17-2009, 07:06 PM

We are running a sale on UMI suspension this week. KYSPEED.com

Thanks,

Mark

**99CANADAHAWK** · 10-18-2009, 04:43 PM

If your looking to keep is stock as possible then upgrade to the Bilstine/SLP shocks .

But if you want to upgrade & lower your car then I would suggest Koni shocks, I currently have the Bilstine/SLP shocks & Eibach springs but I`m finding the suspension has become a little harsh over bumps & such , thats why I`m going to upgrade to the Konis next season .

Subframe Connectors will help to stiffin up your car as well , I have UMI 3 Point bolt ons they helped a bunch . I also have re-location brackets & UMI adj rear control arms they helped to gain some traction back after lowering my car .

Hope this helps .