Worth it to get ZHP on lowering springs/sport shocks over?

[dotslashapex]

So after switching tire sizes to a squared out 245/40/18 set up and regulating tire pressure, we ended up getting the car a LOT more dialed in and easier to control. It was easier to pivot, and while it still understeers, there's a NOTICEABLE difference. dare say it's fairly neutral if driven right..

Wife and I were talking and we were contemplating on the progression of the car. We kind of went back and forth with the potentially trading her car (the ZHP as she’s taken over payments) in for an e46 m3. She drove a student’s car at the Novice school we instructed down here in San Diego and she was instantly in love. The biggest difference of course was the ability to lay down the power via the limited slip and it’s aggressive turn in capability. But more noticeably (and near the point of what could be considered blasphemous) Kristen mentioned that the ZHP is impressively similar in behavior. This got us thinking about just paying off the car and building it out rather than get into yet another car payment and reset the clock. Of course since my e36 is becoming more and more closer to a full race car, we may not have a choice but to look into something as a daily eventually, but we’ll figure that out later.

She’s currently running DS (instead of RTR because she likes the crowd in DS better). It’s a personal thing. Those familiar with SCCA classes, they allow R-comps in stock classes. On Federal 595SS’s (240TW), she’s totally outgunned tire wise and trails the pack by about 1.5-2 seconds. This is expected with the tire issue. Since wifey likes driving on street tires, but doesn’t want to run the RTR class, we contemplating jumping the car into STX next year.

The first thing we want to address is the limited slip. Being able to get the power down to both wheels will drastically help the car power out of the corners. For those that have driven in san diego, you know the Qualcomm parking lot is a mess and the surface is horrible.

Next thing we’d like to do is suspension. This brings forth an interesting discussion.
We saw kits from the usual Bilstein/H&R, Koni/Eibach, etc, but I am wondering if these are worth the price in terms of performance and price. The ZHP already handles very impressively from the factory with our newfound tire settings. While sure, STX will be a hard fought battle (especially with lighter cars on coilovers, I can’t help but think that she could do well locally. As is she didn’t get last in RTR at the San Diego national tour driving on those Federals. There’s a lot of driving talent there. The eventual plan would be to get the car on AST4150 and some 650/700lb springs, but that’s just not in the cards budget wise. I guess the question is: Would the drop springs and sport shocks be worth our time? Would it be a noticeable difference in performance or is it only marginally so making the investment to this not a wise one. I can see it making a difference on a stock E46 330, but we do have a better ‘base’ to start off with.

Lastly we’d want to run 17x8.5 or 17x9 and a 245/255 series tire and a set of Hawk pads to give the car more stopping power. We are actually very impressed with the longevity/performance characteristics of the Federal 595SS and will try their Federal 595RSR variant (140TW).

What do you guys think? It’s not a full prep per se, but it does keep the drivability of the car and allows it to be used on road trips. More importantly it allows us to build it on a budget without having to spend thousands and thousands on parts. Thoughts?

[Newjack]

How many miles on your zhp? I recently upgraded to an H&R touring cup kit at 105k. The touring cup kit is a little lower and mostly resembles the stock suspension, but the springs are progressive so it rides smooth like stock until you decide to throw it around, then you notice how much stiffer it is.

The difference between stock and my new set up is absolute night and day. Now my old suspension had 105k on it so it was very tired and my shocks were failing. I also added brand new control arms and bushings, so my experience might differ from yours. I'm just amazed at the confidence I have taking turns now. I can't believe how tight and smooth it is. Its almost surgical. It makes me forget about power.

Now my alignment is still way off and I can't have it aligned until Monday when I finally get my rtabs and limiters in. So I'm curious to see how much better I will feel with a proper alignment. Also I'm running newish Michelin pilot sport a/s plus tires.

If you plan on tracking the car, suspension is one of the biggest upgrades you can do aside from forced induction. Get a race cup kit if you plan to track it a lot. Otherwise I would find something like the touring cup kit that is what I would consider an aggressive daily driver.


TL;DR - dat body roll

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[johnrando]

I don't know, as I don't do that kind of driving. But, as Rob says, the reduced body roll and enhanced stability is nice, so to me, it's (the H&R Touring Cup Kit) worth it... especially for a lower priced kit like that.

[dotslashapex]

How many miles on your zhp?

It's around 84k right now, but it's raced very heavily not on track but local autocross events in San Diego and LA.

The difference between stock and my new set up is absolute night and day. Now my old suspension had 105k on it so it was very tired and my shocks were failing. I also added brand new control arms and bushings, so my experience might differ from yours.

Yeah I've been contemplating popping new bushings in for the car. It's not sloppy yet, but definitely getting there.

I don't know, as I don't do that kind of driving. But, as Rob says, the reduced body roll and enhanced stability is nice, so to me, it's (the H&R Touring Cup Kit) worth it... especially for a lower priced kit like that.

Yeah there's definitely tried and true options out there, so we'll see what's up when the time comes, but doing virtual shopping is always fun!