New Suspension Reassurance. Ksport, GT3, 030

[Christeon]

I have a 97 Boxster I bought it new. I ordered it with the 030 suspension and loved the way it handled. I just rolled over 115k miles and it is obviously worn out. Couple years ago I did a 3.4L swap and that I've never regretted. After researching here on the boards and deciding I'm looking for a little more performance than the original 030 (felt it was kinda soft for a true sports car) I'd like to get some feedback on my choices to make sure I'm not making a mistake. My wishes are something in between 030 and a track only setup.


possible relevant Car specs: 97 Boxster, 3.4L, option 030 original, 993 turbo Hollow spokes.


My coilover choice at the moment is Ksport's Kontrol 5.3kg/mm front 7.9kg/mm rear springs, these seem worth a try at their low price point.

Front: GT3 sway bar + drop links

Rear: new 030 sway bar (these do wear out right?)

The consensus so far it seems I cannot go wrong with the GT3 front and in the rear going stiffer than the 030 with 3.4L will cause traction issues. I'm confident about getting the GT3 but in the rear I'm real hazy. When I do the swap I plan on re doing the wheel bearings because of the mileage and adding any aftermarket bars to get the suspension back into specs.

Please advise me if I'm off, I do plan to start tracking the car for fun and DE.

[Lucky]

Originally Posted by Christeon

I have a 97 Boxster I bought it new. I ordered it with the 030 suspension and loved the way it handled. I just rolled over 115k miles and it is obviously worn out. Couple years ago I did a 3.4L swap and that I've never regretted. After researching here on the boards and deciding I'm looking for a little more performance than the original 030 (felt it was kinda soft for a true sports car) I'd like to get some feedback on my choices to make sure I'm not making a mistake. My wishes are something in between 030 and a track only setup.


possible relevant Car specs: 97 Boxster, 3.4L, option 030 original, 993 turbo Hollow spokes.


My coilover choice at the moment is Ksport's Kontrol 5.3kg/mm front 7.9kg/mm rear springs, these seem worth a try at their low price point.

Front: GT3 sway bar + drop links

Rear: new 030 sway bar (these do wear out right?)

The consensus so far it seems I cannot go wrong with the GT3 front and in the rear going stiffer than the 030 with 3.4L will cause traction issues. I'm confident about getting the GT3 but in the rear I'm real hazy. When I do the swap I plan on re doing the wheel bearings because of the mileage and adding any aftermarket bars to get the suspension back into specs.

Please advise me if I'm off, I do plan to start tracking the car for fun and DE.

Definitely do the wheel bearings (rears at a minimum) as part of your refresh. Your original bearings will deteriorate quickly once you start track driving.

I only have direct experience with US M030, ROW M030, and PSS9 suspensions, but the chatter on Ksport has been generally positive. PSS9 is ultimately not quite stiff enough to be a top-flight track suspension.

The lowering from ROW, PSS9, and other after-market suspension kits significantly enhances handling... but keep in mind that with a significantly lowered suspension you will need adjustable toe links in the rear and/or adjustable front lower control arms (GT3 style) to achieve an ideal alignment. Factor these additional parts into your parts & labor budget.

[Stroked & Blown]

The Tarrett (sp?) rear bar and end links seems to be the rear sway of choice, though I don't have any experience with it.

[renzop]

I recommend Tarret end links for the front bar.

[Christeon]

I do like the Tarret products. Bushings, bearings and the like I view as consumables and with 115k miles and 12 years of driving I'm sure most will need replaced.

I'm mostly concerned about the proper rear sway bar for the car as I have it now. From what I can find a lot of attention is placed on the front with the rear just tagging along for the ride. I'm also ignorant as far as the life of them, common sense to me says that it would fatigue.

[Kirk]

My feel on the general concensus is that sway bars do not fatigue and wear out. I think you'll be fine in the rear with the bar that you have now. The sway bar bushings may be another matter though. You certainly may want to refresh those, but not the bar.

I agree that the front bar seems to be more critical than the rear. Go check out the Boxster Spec board at www.boxsterspec.com. They've often discussed the best bar setup for racing and autocross. It seems that just recently I read about some folks doing SCCA autocross very successfully with just the stock or M030 bars in the rear. However, almost everyone switches the front to the GT3 bar.

I've personally got the GT3 in the front and stock S bar in the rear and the car feels very neutral. I want some adjustability to play with, so I'm planning to go to Tarett in the rear, but given how well balanced it is right now I'm in no hurry.

Kirk