[Al]

Having stage 1'd my 2.3 CSE I intend to replace bushes, discs, pads, springs, dampers etc. on an as required basis. 112000 miles at present.(Or as cash becomes available

)

I "make progress" but like to think that it is sensible and safe, I rarely indulge in traffic light grands prix, and often have passengers who prefer a sedate pace. My drive to work is on real world roads (country lanes, A & B roads and Motorway) not billiard table smooth surfaces.

The point of this rambling post is to ask what are sensible ( and cost effective) mods - preserving comfort, ride quality, quietness etc.

For instance - how far can you go with poly bushes without intrusive NVH?
What pads work at slow to moderate speeds with cold disks?
Should I stay standard and go for braided hoses? Springs and dampers - do I realy need adjustable Koni's?

I have probably opened a can of worms here - but what is the consensus.

cheers

Alyn (Still at work)

 

[jeremyfrost]

The Koni/Abbott ride is pretty good, but I am sure that you will find it much firmer than your current setup. I would suggest limiting the poly bushes and do note that although more costly, Abbott bushes are softer than some others.

To retain a decent ride and end up with significant improvements in handling, I would suggest Koni/Abbott springs, Abbott wishbone bushes, rear poly bushes and leave it at that.

However, if you have a limited budget, start with some rear Superflex bushes from Elk - you may be surprised how much difference they make. Takes about 20 mins to fit.

Don't know about pads. Braded hoses are probably only worth it if you are thinking of doing track days.

ps. I wish I could spell!

 

[Eric van Spelde]

Given your outlines, on the supension front I would start with Koni's, retaining the OE springs. This will improve the handling no end, but the ride will -if anything- be better than standard also! As for poly bushes, I noticed no side effects with the shock bushings, but I would guess that wishbone, trailing arm, torsion bar bushings and engine mounts would impact NVH slightly.
As for pads, I agree with Mark A (on an earlier thread) that with the Ferodo DS compounds (he runs DS2500, I have the more aggressive DS3000)
there is a significant difference between cold and warm braking, but in my experience, the braking from cold is at least as good as it was before (it could be that my previous brake set up was especially cr*ppy, though) - it pales only in comparison to the massive braking ability when pressing on. I don't particularly mind - I drive like a granny on the first miles anyway, and like I said should I have to perform a panic stop within the first yards of driving, I believe my car will still stop as good or better as it did with the standard brakes. The DS3000's do squeal, however, and the brake dust is kind of hard to the wheels (but I have yet to find 'baked in' brake particles on my wheels).
Teflon/stainless braided brake hoses in my experience only have advantages (firmer pedal feel, easier modulation and not prone to deterioration - 'ballooning' under pressure as they age - like the OE rubber hoses) and no drawbacks that I know of (make sure they are road legal in your country tho'). I would replace them when your brake system needs to be flushed anyways - for the 50-60ish quid a set costs plus a limited amount of additional labour at that occasion, you can't go wrong really.

 

[mark e]

I haven't had experience of just changing the shocks for the Konis, so can't comment qualitavely on their effect, although it will certainly make a positive difference especially if (as likely given the mileage) your existing ones are tired.

However, to cope with the extra horses, personally I would go for a set of springs first, as long as your existing shocks are in reasonable condition. I did this on my last CSE, and the transformation was total. They're also cheaper than a set of shocks .

On the brakes, I can thoroughly endorse the DS2500; IMO they're better from cold than standard and don't need that much warm up. I've also used Pagid Fast Road with good results. It's fair to say however that pretty much any performance pad needs a bit of heat in it (or the discs more to the point) to give its best. The only ones I would recommendyou stay away from are EBC Greenstuff. They're good when they go in, but deteriorate markedly after a few thousand miles.

Braided hoses provide a lovely feel to the brakes; the only downside is that you ought to budget to replace them regardless every 2 years as you can't tell the condition of the hose inside the braid. However at around £50 a set, I don't think that's a big deal.

Whilst you're staying on standard profile tyres on 15" or 16" wheels, you won't really notice any deterioration in ride comfort from fitting poly bushes, but the handling will certainly improve. I'd go for front and rear ARB followed by front wishbones.

 

[pyronerd]

I've got the Ebaich/Koni setup -- excellent! Ride quality didn't get too harsh IMO, and handling is sooo much sharper and more confidence-inspiring at speed.

To echo Mark, AVOID EBC Greenstuff! Put a set on my 9-3 once, and about 1 month (~1200 mi) later, I pulled them off and went back to OEM. For my next set of pads, I believe I'll be trying the DS2500 as per fellow Saabsceners' recs.....

If you do the braided lines, let me know......been thinking of it for a while, and haven't yet.

Good luck!