Lowering GTO And CV8Z!

[Milzy]

Hey, just a quick question, i have two cousins who are brothers and ones own a VZ GTO and the other owns a CV8Z Monaro and they wanna know if its worth lowering both cars on the stockers for looks. They have had responses like "It will be a bumpier ride" and "They will loose handling". Also what if they bought new shocks and spring which cost in total at about 2400, would that make a difference. Thanxs in adavance.

[GMH-JC]

the car wont handle worse, it will handle better. nd it would look quite nice also

[JamesL]

Important to do a both springs shocks package.
don't just get lowered springs because as you go lower you need to go also need a shock that can handle the shorter ride.

[Tron2004]

Hey, just a quick question, i have two cousins who are brothers and ones own a VZ GTO and the other owns a CV8Z Monaro and they wanna know if its worth lowering both cars on the stockers for looks. They have had responses like "It will be a bumpier ride" and "They will loose handling". Also what if they bought new shocks and spring which cost in total at about 2400, would that make a difference. Thanxs in adavance.
Whoever said they'd "lose handling" needs to be lobotomised!!
Wot a load of rubbish!!!!!
THE best 600 bucks I've spent on my car!!!!
Sure, it rides harsher but it corners like it's on rails!!
Bodyroll is at a minimum, and it's so horn just to look at. :D

[tlr1000]

When doing utes i just leave std shockers and all is fine, springs are $100 a pair. All comes down to how much coin you wanna spend and your handling requirements/expectations.

[Milzy]

thanxs for the replys but maybe i should of rephrased my question and asked - are there any negatives in lowering thw two cars on stockers and are there any positives other then aesthetics of the extorior look of the car

[Tron2004]

thanxs for the replys but maybe i should of rephrased my question and asked - are there any negatives in lowering thw two cars on stockers and are there any positives other then aesthetics of the extorior look of the car
Just remember if you lower then some speed humps may be a problem.
Driveways that were once easily negotiated, may become front / rear bar scrapers.
You get to know by the look of a speed hump if it's going to cause a prob and I just drive over em at an angle.

[Wonky]

They have had responses like "It will be a bumpier ride" and "They will loose handling". Also what if they bought new shocks and spring which cost in total at about 2400, would that make a difference. Thanxs in adavance.
Am I reading that right? Did you mean $2,400? :eek: If so, that's way out!! King Superlows for example are about $160 list per pair and can be found for a lot less than that and decent short body shocks such as KYB are about $175 each list for front struts and much less for rears. A couple of hours labour and a four wheel alignment and away you go. Maybe $200 or so extra to do a rear camber kit but apparently most recent Commodores/Monaros should be able to get away without it.

With such decent shocks the ride should be less harsh than standard FE2 (although I assume the GTO will have better than FE2) and the handling much better according to some on here who have done it. Hopefully I will know better in a few days as mine has just been lowered but still running FE2 struts on front as I was sent the wrong good ones. Waiting for the right ones to come in and a wheel alignment. Certainly looks a lot better!! :)

Sounds like they've been talking to morons who lower cars by cutting springs....... That's a recipe for $hit ride and poor handling, but if the lowering is done properly with appropriate shockers the ride and handling should improve. Plus looks much better and no more nose bleeds! :D

[banyo]

I have owned a number of LS1's including a WH statesman, VX SS, VX II SS (ex cop), VY SS, and V2 GTO.

The GTO suspension setup is very low in standard form and in my opinion has just the right amount of give to make it comfortable. HSV put a lot of effort into getting the GTO cornering right, including modifying the steering. I wouldn't change it. It also scraped on nearly every driveway.

I think putting the GTO setup in a CV8 would be the answer for that car.

The softer springs which came standard in the ex cop VX II SS were great. It sat low and handled reasonably well. I believe this setup became standard on later Calais and Caprice.

The non ex cop VY SS sat too high especially at the front but it handled really well. I didn't want to muck it up so I didn't change anything except put maximum negative camber on the front. I think the VY cop suspension would have been better though.

If you have an unlimited budget, do a search as there are other options that have been discussed in these forums.

[Milzy]

both cars are my cousins and they both really want to lower it on the stock rims so it can look good but they wanna know the negatives in doing so and if its really worth it

[johnhalk]

Just use a method from the old Carlton - Bouverie Street days..

Jack up the car with a block of wood in the springs and cut off a few coils with a small angle grinder..

Only takes a few hours and good results.

Cheers.

[Wonky]

Jack up the car with a block of wood in the springs and cut off a few coils with a small angle grinder..

Only takes a few hours and good results.

Cheers.
Hope you were joking as that's insanity - dangerous........ :stupid:

[TRY-300]

Go Koni all the way, there is actually a Koni adjustable suspension comming out for commodre so u can choose for the bumpy or hard riide...height and damper cntrl...

[HRT 8]

I have owned a number of LS1's including a WH statesman, VX SS, VX II SS (ex cop), VY SS, and V2 GTO.

The GTO suspension setup is very low in standard form and in my opinion has just the right amount of give to make it comfortable. HSV put a lot of effort into getting the GTO cornering right, including modifying the steering. I wouldn't change it. It also scraped on nearly every driveway.

I think putting the GTO setup in a CV8 would be the answer for that car.

The softer springs which came standard in the ex cop VX II SS were great. It sat low and handled reasonably well. I believe this setup became standard on later Calais and Caprice.

The non ex cop VY SS sat too high especially at the front but it handled really well. I didn't want to muck it up so I didn't change anything except put maximum negative camber on the front. I think the VY cop suspension would have been better though.

If you have an unlimited budget, do a search as there are other options that have been discussed in these forums.

Banyo, hate to burst your bubble, but cop cars use standard FE2 suspension.
Vt FE2 seemed to be lower than VX though. I know this as Ive checked the spring part numbers on both cop and non cop. Same numbers.

[zacz]

This thread has been an interesting read.....

A GTO has 19" wheels...the CV8 has 18" - does this mean that the GTO suspension set up will make CV8 ride even better?

What sort of cost and part numbers?

[banyo]

My GTO had 18inch wheels. I haven't driven one with 19's. I didn't think the ride could have been improved but I noticed when I put harder tyres on it it cornered better. Softer compound tyres on 19's may produce the same feel as harder 18's so I would be surprised if HSV changed the setup for cars with 19's.

There is a set of GTO front springs and struts on ebay at the moment for $300 'buy it now':

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/HSV-GTO-COMMODORE-VT-VX-VY-VZ-MONARO-LS1-FRONT-STRUTS_W0QQitemZ4633329873QQcategoryZ102361QQrdZ1Q QcmdZViewItem

Off track a bit but the SVZ has LUXURY SPORTS SUSPENSION which is the FE1.5. Probably wouldn't hurt to drive one of these cars to see how they feel compared to a standard or one with FE2.

Its all about correct match of springs, shocks and tyres. The feel on my GTO was similar to the VX2 ex cop car that I talked about earlier in this post. Soft into holes and over bumps, hard when pushed into corners and sat LOW.

[Ferret]

Hi All.

I have been told that if you lower a Monaro you need to put on a camber kit on the rear other wise your rear tyres cut out very quickly. Can someone shed any light on this one.

thanks

[gts071]

I have a VX HSV GTS and it has been lowered with King spings and I have put Koni adjustable shocks in. Plus I have put in Nolatec Bushes and a rear camber kit

The springs were in it when I purchased it and I put the shocks in and it made a huge difference, I have taken it to the drag and track days in Tassie and I love it as the ride height I have it at.

it is lowered about 25mm in the front and 40mm in the rear, it handles like it is on rails if you use the throttle correctly or it can handle like it is on oil if you just dump it :)

A friend has a standard GTS and it is a smother ride but I feel that mine handles just that little bit better and it easier to judge when the back end wants to step out.

Bumpier ride = yes
Losing Handling = lmao... NO

Hope it helps ;)

[blue cv8]

the ride may be a little harsher , but handling & looks will be improved