1985 GT Convertible Suspension

[Shawnsta]

Hi all,

Finally getting around to a much needed suspension overhaul. It looks like it has original suspension and it rides really rough, with the rear end riding quite low on one side.

I want to replace all the shocks/struts and springs at the same time with my dad. We can do the work ourselves.

I would love to have some links / suggestions of ones to buy. I do not have much money as I'm a college student, I just want something that will ride smoothly and way less rough than it does now. Would like it to have a bit better handling / be good for an all-around car, whether that be a straight line or curves.

It's an 85 convertible, and I'm confused about things working with only 87+ spindles and different real axles and such.

Thanks so much for your help!

Shawn

[TopGear85]

I'm in the same situation as you...a rough riding 85 with really old and worn springs, shocks and struts. My car is a hatch, but otherwise we are in the same boat. I actually just posted about this recently because my 85 is a Saleen and originally came with lowering springs and Bilstein shocks and I wanted to replace my current set up with some new lowing springs and new Bilsteins. Unfortunately I've come to find that Bilstein no longer makes struts that will work with my original spindles, so if I want Bilsteins I will have to either find some vintage Bilstein struts from back in the day and have them rebuilt, or upgrade to 87+ front brakes and spindles so I can run new Bilsteins.

I didn't really want to change my brakes or spindles so I asked about any other high performance strut/shock options, but I was told there really aren't any (unless I want to do the swap). For us the springs, rear shocks and quad shocks are no problem....the 87+ stuff is the same and it's a straight install, but the fronts will need to be changed.

I'm still undecided on what I'm gonna do...either upgrade, try and find some vintage Bilstens or Koni Reds (which Saleen used in 86), mill some material off either the new struts or the strut mounting point so the 87+ struts will fit, or go a totally different route. Factory replacement Motorcraft shocks are still available (I believe) for us 85 guys, and there are other non performance options that we can go with and not have to change anything, but that doesn't sound good to me. I really want to run Bilsteins, or some kind of performance shock to go along with the new lowering springs (which we have several options btw) I plan on buying, so I'm gonna have to either swap or mill.

Here is a link to my thread, which will tell you what needs to be changed if you want to run 87+ struts up front:

http://vb.foureyedpride.com/showthre...ein-s-on-my-85


I hope this helps and let me know what you end up doing.

[Patrick Olsen]

Hi all,

Finally getting around to a much needed suspension overhaul. It looks like it has original suspension and it rides really rough, with the rear end riding quite low on one side.

I want to replace all the shocks/struts and springs at the same time with my dad. We can do the work ourselves.

I would love to have some links / suggestions of ones to buy. I do not have much money as I'm a college student, I just want something that will ride smoothly and way less rough than it does now. Would like it to have a bit better handling / be good for an all-around car, whether that be a straight line or curves.

There's always a desire to upgrade when we swap out parts, but honestly, the stock GT stuff will do what you're asking, and will be a substantial upgrade relative to what it sounds like you've got now. (My Dad had an '85 GT, which was given to me when I was a college kit back in the early '90s. Even with 9 or 10 years on the car, it was still very "sporty" and fun to drive.) It looks to me like the most affordable option would be to keep your '85 spindles and go with some KYB Excel-G or Monroe Sensa-trac struts and shocks. Those are both intended to be stock replacement dampers, and they're both reputable companies. I would think those dampers would work just fine with mild lowering springs like the good ol' FRPP 'B' springs (M5300B).

If you really want to upgrade with better-than-stock dampers, then you'll need to do the '87+ spindle swap, and you're going to spend hundreds more on dampers.

It's an 85 convertible, and I'm confused about things working with only 87+ spindles and different real axles and such.

Lots of good discussion in that link that Mike (TopGear85) posted. Jack Hidley from Max Motorsports posted a link to a nice summary on MM's site that lays out some of the pros of doing the swap, and also lists the parts necessary. (They don't list any cons of doing the swap. The only con I can think of is losing the originality if you're trying to keep the car bone stock.) Most of the required parts are service parts, so you'd replace those for a brake job, anyway. The only added expenses are the spindles, the calipers, and the brake hoses, none of which are terribly expensive (particularly if you've got a pick-n-pull type junkyard nearby).

I didn't really want to change my brakes or spindles so I asked about any other high performance strut/shock options, but I was told there really aren't any (unless I want to do the swap).

www.shox.com has some Konis listed for the pre-aero cars. Some of the year break-downs on their list kind of don't make sense, so you'd probably need to call them to figure out what they've got (or if they even can get what they have listed). I've ordered from them before and found the guy very helpful when I called him up; admittedly, that was years ago, so I don't even know if it's the same folks running the site.

[bwguardian]

I just replaced the original struts and shocks on my 85 GT vert last year. It was fine when I went through the car several years back but seemed to get softer/bouncy over time. I chose to go with the Monroe Sensa-trac units given I am wanting to keep the car as stock as possible. I have been very pleased with these shocks/struts and would recommend them to folks on a stock suspension. From what I understand, these shocks/struts are not a good choice if one chooses to lower the car given the units valving positioning.

[84lxvert]

I believe you can get Tokico Blues for Fox spindles with stock suspension or B springs. No complaints here.

[TopGear85]

It's nice to hear we have some options. I personally just want my Saleen to be as close to "Saleen stock" as possible...which is why I want the bilsteins and some racecraft or H&R lowering springs

[Shawnsta]

I believe you can get Tokico Blues for Fox spindles with stock suspension or B springs. No complaints here.

Could you possibly find a link? I can't seem to find one.

Good to see options... Will be looking into these tonight. I don't want to lower my car -- any good springs replacements you all would recommend that are like stock or a bit better performance wise? Thanks!

[84lxvert]

Could you possibly find a link? I can't seem to find one.

Good to see options... Will be looking into these tonight. I don't want to lower my car -- any good springs replacements you all would recommend that are like stock or a bit better performance wise? Thanks!

Sorry I misremembered and my statement was deceiving. Tokico Blues are made for 87-93 or 94-04. Still for a Fox but only 87 and up spindles. Tokico does not accommodate the fatter spindle mount for the strut on the pre 87 Foxes.

[Jack Hidley]

Eibach makes a front strut that will work with the early/4 cyl spindles. They are available as a kit with the matching shocks below. The shocks are designed for an 8.8" axle so you will need to get two shocks mounts from an 8.8" to install them.

http://www.maximummotorsports.com/Ei...axle-P809.aspx

Install new spring isolators with the springs.

Install full length subframe connectors. Those will improve the ride quality of the convertible more than anything else.

http://www.maximummotorsports.com/MM...bare-P580.aspx

[Patrick Olsen]

Eibach makes a front strut that will work with the early/4 cyl spindles. They are available as a kit with the matching shocks below.

http://www.maximummotorsports.com/Ei...axle-P809.aspx

Good to know. I assume those are the only dampers you guys sell that will fit the fatter spindles? It probably would be worth adding a note on the page mentioning that fact - the site only allows one to search for dampers for 87-93 V8s, but if there was a note on that Eibach page you might pull in some additional buyers looking for early/4cyl options.

The shocks are designed for an 8.8" axle so you will need to get two shocks mounts from an 8.8" to install them.

Unless the car is a mid-'84 or later (if I've correctly interpreted the results of the survey in the thread you started about rear shock mount configurations).

[Jack Hidley]

As it turns out, Eibach even makes a damper/spring kit specifically for your car.

http://www.maximummotorsports.com/Ei...ible-P948.aspx

This kit lowers the car 1.2" in front and 1.0" in the rear.

As Pat pointed out, the rear shocks may bolt directly onto your car. If your car has quad shocks (horizontally mounted shocks on the ends of the housing tubes), it appears that it will have the correct lower shock mount, regardless of the axle housing type (7.5" versus 8.8").