[blitz23]

I did search the forum and read the stickies, and browse the net. can't find specific answer I'm looking for. most suspension kit available are for 05 or older car. I have 2007 ZX3.

- are the kit interchangeable between 2007 and older cars? what's the difference in suspension design? I'm looking for springs and damper kit. I don't need coil over. I'm not that sophisticated yet to be able to notice the subtle difference in coil over variable changes

- what is the stiffest kit I can get out there for 07 car? H&R race kit is only for 05 or older. the car is used for DD and autox with occasional lapping day. it'll have the supporting mods like sway bars and stress bars, etc.

any other suggestions are welcome. thanks guys!

 

[Krusty Driver]

I beleive Massive Speed Systems sells an adapter kit to convert the 05 - 07 to work with any of the older suspension kits.
https://ssl.perfora.net/www.massive...nid=15495ebc488ac0f/shopdata/index.shopscript
Ford Racing has a couple performance kits available. Been looking at them myself.
http://www.fordracingparts.com/parts/part_details.asp?PartKeyField=9601
http://www.fordracingparts.com/parts/part_details.asp?PartKeyField=9600

 

[Wodan23]

H&R Sport cup kit, probably the stiffest setup, but a radical drop at 2.5-2.75 inches!

 

[FX4BAJA]

Get in contact with Mike at Hilbish Ford he can get you a great price on the FRPP 2006-2009 kit and will even assemble the front struts,springs with all new parts so you will not need to mess with a spring compressor.Here is some of the options he has and i believe there a dealer for some aftermarket companys like Steeda also.
http://www.focusfanatics.com/forum/showthread.php?t=167607

 

[blitz23]

H&R Sport cup kit, probably the stiffest setup, but a radical drop at 2.5-2.75 inches!

woa...the drop is too extreme...

on the eibach kits, which one is the stiffest?

 

[Swiftey]

I got the Ford Racing Suspension set up in my 07 ZX5 love the drop its not to low at all and gets rid of all that wheel gap. But remember if your goin to lower your car you may need either Camber Bolts or a upper control arm from SPC. I needed the Bolts for my 1.5 Inch Drop.

 

[FOCUSSTDRIVER]

um i have heard that the h&r cup kit is not one of the stiffest...but that coming from people who specifically track their cars but im thinking about getting the cup kit or coilovers

 

[blitz23]

I got the Ford Racing Suspension set up in my 07 ZX5 love the drop its not to low at all and gets rid of all that wheel gap. But remember if your goin to lower your car you may need either Camber Bolts or a upper control arm from SPC. I needed the Bolts for my 1.5 Inch Drop.

because it creates excessive neg camber on the front? oh btw what's SPC stand for?

 

[FOCUSSTDRIVER]

u should not need the bolts for the 1.5 drop mine was fine. and in spec

 

[S0C0nFused]

Well, I should throw this in. The Ford Racing springs/struts are not all that stiff (you said you wanted the stiffest). I think there very comparable to stock SES springs. The ride is highly acceptable on the street ( which is why I chose them). Also, pay some heed to what Wodan23 mentioned about ride height. For our year car, if you go lower than 1.5", you start entering into the 'weird geometry' realm. I would def suggest the SPF REAR upper control arms over the 'camber bolts' for a racing application. There well made and do the job nicely. Also, you may want to invest in the Capaldi racing front upper strut adjustable bearings (I don't race but I am really interested in these if they work like I hope they do (caster/camber is independently adjustable. I have sent them an email asking for this info)) Do NOT use the SPF FRONT adjustable upper strut bearings. The design is not all that great (and I will leave it there). I cannot advise on sway bars. I have questions there as well. Asking for the 'best' setup is like asking 'what's the best oil'. Much discussion but little consensus as its a personal preference.
Oh! The diff on our year Focus is that they beefed up the front ball joints and made the springs (I think) a larger diameter. That is why if you want to install the SVT brake kit (as an example), you have to replace the front lower control arm etc.
Also, you prob want to run 16" wheel? Just be aware that 16" wheels are hard to find with the correct offset if your looking to aftermarket. You can get the ROTA's (I am getting the grids) in the correct offset, but there a special order (6-8 weeks). So take that lead time into consideration if applicable.
Let us know how it works out. I will be very interested in your selection of sway bars. [woot]

 

[Swiftey]

Specialty products company, My rear Neg camber was just in spec but it being winter up here. The rear end of my vehicle was goin all over the damn place. So i got the bolts and now im good to go.

 

[blitz23]

thanks for the inputs. I will probably go to 17s but will stay with stock 15s this year. sway bars will be probably steeda products.

I'll be looking into the camber bolts and camber plate

 

[S0C0nFused]

Just FYI: I mentioned Capaldi Racing camber plates, but I think maybe there rebadged K-Mac Camber Plates.
Sooo. As long as we are discussing this, can I pitch a question? The 07 stock sway bars are 21mm according to the sticky. So What are the NEGATIVE aspects of going with larger sway bars? I know everyone loves them, but there has to be some sort of tradeoff.

 

[Geezer]

I always recommend that springs and shocks be selected and used before playing with sway bars. In many cases the stock bars end up being just fine once the other components have been firmed up. You have to know what handling traits you specifically want in order to make good sway bar decisions. Normally, most people are looking for a neutral handling car. Most cars come from the factory biased toward understeer (especially front wheel drive cars). To make them more neutral by using using a sway bar (sometimes stiffer springs and shocks will do it by themselves, that's why I advocate you try those components first) you increase the size of the rear bar. You do not need to increase diameter by much. A one millimeter increase in diameter, can increase stiffness by as much as 40 to 50%! As you can see, even modest increases can begin to tax the structural strength of other suspension components (primarily the bars attachment points...control arms, end links, tabs on struts, etc.).

 

[S0C0nFused]

I have the Ford Racing springs/struts Geezer. Also have the factory F/R swaybars. The cornering is 'better' but not remarkably so. Did not know that 1mm size would make that much of an impact. So the downsides are enhanced wear on endlinks. I am not 'seeing' how the control arm or struts would be negatively impacted (explain plz?).
Maybe We should move this to a new thread?

 

[jetrinka]

The rear control arms have been known to snap at the endlink point with the use of huge rear bars such as the Steeda unit.

 

[S0C0nFused]

The rear control arms have been known to snap at the endlink point with the use of huge rear bars such as the Steeda unit.

LOL. Ok! That's not "wear", that's total structural failure. Yes I can 'see' that. But if I keep it *reasonable* with the H&R or Eibach setup (24/24mm vs. 22/25mm (F/R)). Would I run into issues? What about overall driving experience for my wife doing the weekly shopping? I have read about 'clunking' sounds and other 'odd' noises from other posts. Am I going to have to live with these? Any other sort of minor glitches? And if you don't mind, what about the sub-frame mounts? Will they need to be beefed up to handle the extra stress?

 

[jetrinka]

lol. For your "shopping" requirements I would probably keep the bars diameters in close proximity to each other. I didn't like the 22/25 setup. The back end was too twitchy for my liking. Switched to a 24/25 setup and I love it. I have been running this setup for 6 months or so with no failure or wear problems. I check the rear control arms periodically. They tend to spider crack around the bushings before breaking. None of that so far. And as far as beefing up the front subframe bushings I dont think you would need to. The endlinks you might want to replace with some Moogs but thats about it.

 

[S0C0nFused]

I was leaning more towards the HR frankly to keep a balance. But will keep your 24/25 recommendation in mind. And I thought Ford had beefed up the rear control arms from prior years to preclude the issue with the arms breaking. Something I read somewhere. So what is ride like? Does it get 'jouncier' or exhibit any other sort of quirks that I am going to hear about? What about noise? Squeaks or rattles?

 

[Geezer]

I have the Ford Racing springs/struts Geezer. Also have the factory F/R swaybars. The cornering is 'better' but not remarkably so. Did not know that 1mm size would make that much of an impact. So the downsides are enhanced wear on endlinks. I am not 'seeing' how the control arm or struts would be negatively impacted (explain plz?).
Maybe We should move this to a new thread?

The rear link mounts in a hole in the rear control arm. Big bars have been known to exert enough force to snap the control arm in two at the mounting hole. This can be mitigated by strengthening the control arm (welding involved). The front control arm is mounted via the end links to tabs on the struts. Big bars have been known to twist or shear these tabs off if the end link doesn't break first. Aftermarket end links like the Moog ones are more robust and can be greased to prolong their lives. The stock links are designed for a stock bar and using them with the really big bars will do them in sooner than later (especially the ball/heim joint on the end. I'm not sure what is available bar wise for the 07 to 09 foci. For the pre 06 cars, an SVT front bar combined with a 22 mm Progress bar results in a great performance upgrade that doesn't punish you or the car.