Will
Enthusiast
How will a lowered Viper handle on the track or with "aggressive" cornering? I know many people have cut about 1" off their springs to achieve this affect.
Thanks in advance,
Will
Thanks in advance,
Will
Lowered Vipers - How do they handle?
- Thread starter Will
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RedEnuf93
Enthusiast
Dont cut your springs unless its a Hodna (honda) or a Rustang...
Get Eibach springs for about 250 bucks and you car handles much better. I did that on my -93, its a bit bouncier, since the Gen 1 has already a hard/stiff suspension. It should stiffen gen 2 nicely.
I like it, as agressive as it can be! Looks 10 times better too!
You need to get the car aligned immediately.
Lauri
Get Eibach springs for about 250 bucks and you car handles much better. I did that on my -93, its a bit bouncier, since the Gen 1 has already a hard/stiff suspension. It should stiffen gen 2 nicely.
I like it, as agressive as it can be! Looks 10 times better too!
You need to get the car aligned immediately.
Lauri
Snakester
Enthusiast
I agree. Cut or heated springs are often unsafe.
Eibachs are pretty affordable, but with the Viper already only 5" off of the ground, lowering it another 1-1/2 to 2" can make for real bad driveway/speed bump problems.
I chose to get the Northwind lowered coil caps instead. They retain the stock springs (and ride quality), but lower the car around 5/8" which is enough to reduce the wheel well gap and provide a slightly tauter handling feel.
You still need to re-align the car afterwards, but it's a less drastic, middle-ground mod if you are already scraping your car now.
-Dean.
Eibachs are pretty affordable, but with the Viper already only 5" off of the ground, lowering it another 1-1/2 to 2" can make for real bad driveway/speed bump problems.
I chose to get the Northwind lowered coil caps instead. They retain the stock springs (and ride quality), but lower the car around 5/8" which is enough to reduce the wheel well gap and provide a slightly tauter handling feel.
You still need to re-align the car afterwards, but it's a less drastic, middle-ground mod if you are already scraping your car now.
-Dean.
RedSnakeGTS
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dont do the eibachs, get new shocks, or try what Snakester said. i hated my eibachs, it was too bouncy to enjoy....
2001 GTS
Enthusiast
If you go with JUST the springs...will the shocks be adversely affected?...as in not work as well...or become bad
RedSnakeGTS
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i dont know about them becoming bad, but i know the ride became bouncy. i think my eibachs were my worst investment so far (not that it was that expensive).........
Paolo Castellano
Enthusiast
Will, anytime you lower the center of gravity on the vehicle within the allowable parameters of the suspension geometry, it will be a plus. Get the Hypercoil springs( I have 850# in the rear and 600# in the front). DO NOT cut the springs as they are most likely progressive in their compression and rebounding phases ie the spring does not have completely even compression and rebounding from end to end. If you cut one end, it will lead to a disproportionate amount of compression or rebound. Springs are cheap, get some new ones.
JimT 99RT
Viper Owner
I talked to Archer Racing and instead of just going with the springs I went with a set of Eibach springs combined with Archer’s re-valved Koni's. This combo worked great on the track at Thunderhill and I like them on the street, I do not have any problems with bounce.
Fred(DrivingSchool)Kinder
Enthusiast
For improved cornering get more ROI from a Driving school.
A good driver will get more out of a lowered car with correct spring rates and shocks, etc. But the weekend track Snake will get more out of driving schools and more track time,
Will there is no one in our region that I know who has cut springs on their Viper. Come to the next meeting and ask some of the track guys like Rich Bontempi, Rocky Angen, Ted May etc. We miss you!
A good driver will get more out of a lowered car with correct spring rates and shocks, etc. But the weekend track Snake will get more out of driving schools and more track time,
Will there is no one in our region that I know who has cut springs on their Viper. Come to the next meeting and ask some of the track guys like Rich Bontempi, Rocky Angen, Ted May etc. We miss you!
BlownViper
Enthusiast
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I had the eibachs with 1 coil cut off....handled badass
V10 MOJO
Enthusiast
i did the energy suspension upgrades, eibochs, shock adjustments, set alignment more agressively and bottom line...this thing now handles like it is on rails! (looks better lowered too)
150shot
Enthusiast
Hey Blown- that car looks GREAT!
Does a lowered Viper have any problem with inside camber wear problems on the tires?
Does a lowered Viper have any problem with inside camber wear problems on the tires?
Stephen Yap
Enthusiast
Lowering the car and keeping all other suspension settings the same will make it look nicer but I doubt that you will see or feel any significant changes in handling or improved laptimes. Having said that,lowering will lower the CG which affects things like weight transfer during transitions. A significant lowering will improve aero especially if it creates a vaccuum underneath the car. The problem is if you lower it by getting shorter springs or cutting it (not recommended) you will impact the other suspension settings. You will affect things like camber and toe and unless you realign, you may have changed a lot more things than you intended and it may not result in better handling. Lowering springs may also change the spring rate and you want to make sure that the new spring rate matches your existing shocks or the type of handling that you are tuning for. If the objective is to change the handling then you have to do more than just lower the car. You will be looking into shocks ,spring rates, alignment progressing to triple adjustable bump/rebound shocks, corner weighting, swaybars, alignment, tires, etc....
Daffy Duck Viper
Enthusiast
And here I thought it was going to be easy. I'll have to have a degree in this to do it right when I get my Viper. *chuckle*
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Torquemonster
Enthusiast
When you start lowering a car that is already low - there are always trade offs. That means its not a right and wrong issue, but a "what are you prepared to sacrifice in one area to gain in another" issue.
Lowered looks good, and IF set up right as several have already mentioned - with correct shocks (shocks can be custom built for your application - that's what good shock shops do), correct alignment and spring rates etc - it'll be very fast around a track and on smooth roads.
Downside is handling on secondary paved roads will be worse as you won't have enough suspension travel to absorb big dips and bumps at speed etc - this can lead to some interesting situations ranging from grounding the car into the road (ouch!!) to sliding off it (double ouch). Look at the WRX and STI - how much travel they have - that is why they'll beat a Ferrari 360 on a typical secondary twisty road that has dips and bumps etc - despite higher CG!
lowering CG helps on the track as it is flat - but low CG does not help you on the open road when your suspension bottoms out! At that point you have zero travel - that means the car will bounce off in any direction pure physics takes it. So decide which kind of surface you want to be fast on - track or public twisty highway - there's little similarity in setup.
Another downside is daily driving ability is somewhat reduced - you need to plan everytime you drive it - can you make it up the carpark building ramps, the driveway ramps, over the speed bumps etc -
then there is the ride. If you do a lot of driving in it, and a lot of that is not interstate hwy - the harsh ride of a lowered setup is a comfort matter. It will also shake anything loose that can be shaken loose over time - as in rattles will start to appear from the harsh jarring over bumps.
A compromise is to go modest in lowering height, keep spring rates modest and stiffen the sway bars - that way you can still tune the suspension for flat and responsive track handling, while maintaining acceptable ride quality.... that 5/8" setup sounds good for a good compromise.
It all comes down to what you like - some drivers like it rock hard.... just do not expect a "killer" track go-cart to be any good on a paved highway that runs dips and bumps etc - an STI or EVO will leave you for dead over those as they have suspension to excell in those real world conditions.... so it comes down to what you want to achieve.
Lowered looks good, and IF set up right as several have already mentioned - with correct shocks (shocks can be custom built for your application - that's what good shock shops do), correct alignment and spring rates etc - it'll be very fast around a track and on smooth roads.
Downside is handling on secondary paved roads will be worse as you won't have enough suspension travel to absorb big dips and bumps at speed etc - this can lead to some interesting situations ranging from grounding the car into the road (ouch!!) to sliding off it (double ouch). Look at the WRX and STI - how much travel they have - that is why they'll beat a Ferrari 360 on a typical secondary twisty road that has dips and bumps etc - despite higher CG!
lowering CG helps on the track as it is flat - but low CG does not help you on the open road when your suspension bottoms out! At that point you have zero travel - that means the car will bounce off in any direction pure physics takes it. So decide which kind of surface you want to be fast on - track or public twisty highway - there's little similarity in setup.
Another downside is daily driving ability is somewhat reduced - you need to plan everytime you drive it - can you make it up the carpark building ramps, the driveway ramps, over the speed bumps etc -
then there is the ride. If you do a lot of driving in it, and a lot of that is not interstate hwy - the harsh ride of a lowered setup is a comfort matter. It will also shake anything loose that can be shaken loose over time - as in rattles will start to appear from the harsh jarring over bumps.
A compromise is to go modest in lowering height, keep spring rates modest and stiffen the sway bars - that way you can still tune the suspension for flat and responsive track handling, while maintaining acceptable ride quality.... that 5/8" setup sounds good for a good compromise.
It all comes down to what you like - some drivers like it rock hard.... just do not expect a "killer" track go-cart to be any good on a paved highway that runs dips and bumps etc - an STI or EVO will leave you for dead over those as they have suspension to excell in those real world conditions.... so it comes down to what you want to achieve.
GTS Dean
Enthusiast
If you are lowering a Viper from stock with a stock alignment on the car, negative camber will increase all around. For better cornering ability, this is a good thing. If you stay modest on the drop (up to 3/4") all you need to do is reset toe and you're good to go. Some will say you should/must adjust bump steer, but not necessarily.
Increased negative camber will cause inside shoulder wear, but if you corner aggressively and do track time, it will balance out pretty well.
Increased negative camber will cause inside shoulder wear, but if you corner aggressively and do track time, it will balance out pretty well.
Tom F&L GoR
Enthusiast
Stock springs are 250 front, 450 rear (consensus from the board comments.)
I tried 450 front, 650 rear and the ride was more firm, but surprisingly not rough or bad over bumps.
Now I have 550 front, 800 rear, and it's about where you see it's a trade off over poorer roads.
Did all this with modified spring ends to mount 8" Hypercoils on the stock shocks, fronts set to full firm rebound, rears at half way stiff.
I tried 450 front, 650 rear and the ride was more firm, but surprisingly not rough or bad over bumps.
Now I have 550 front, 800 rear, and it's about where you see it's a trade off over poorer roads.
Did all this with modified spring ends to mount 8" Hypercoils on the stock shocks, fronts set to full firm rebound, rears at half way stiff.
