My 05

I had Eibach in mind for my spring suspension swap but found the Bilsteen B6 HD struts & shocks on TDOT Performance with a 20% Black Friday sale til Dec 1st. Pricing is $1170.00 CAD taxes inc. shipped. Good company to deal with.... Exhaust swap was ordered through TDOT....a Canadian company.

Confident these will work with the Eibach Pro lowering kit. Think Max has the Pro springs. Love his stance!
 
I have a garage, but I remember my 08 looking a little tough underneath.
I spend one winter cleaning a painting the bottom of car.
joke was why, it was lowered no one could see it.
My answer, I knew it looked like that and had to fix it.
 
I think Bilstein Shocks are one of the best on the market, but not the only good shocks.
Ford performance have good set up.
I used Tokico D spec adjustable that worked great.
Also Kona makes a good shock.
If you doing a lowering kit, finding the deal of the day can matter.
Packages are put together based on all sorts of stuff, including use.

Finding a price and set up that works with intended purposes helps too.
 
This kit is what i ultimately wanted to buy, but i've been steered to a used $60 pro-kit, and them bought my two rear shocks (i still need to do the struts). And now that i've put miles on the car how it sits, i figured i didn't need the camber plate to reach the adjustments i wanted ( I run -1.5 degrees of camber), so that saves me a couple of bucks.

vorshlag-store.com

Vorshlag-Bilstein StreetPro Monotube Suspension Kit (S197 Mustang)

The Bilstein parts occasionally go out of stock, and come back. If you are worried about delivery times, please call us. Introduction We at Vorshlag will be the first ones to tell you that the S197 Mustang's OEM dampers and springs are all sorts of wrong for performance driving. The suspension...
vorshlag-store.com vorshlag-store.com
 
S197CS said:
Here’s a picture of the underneath of mine taken by my mechanic last summer. Actually just sent it to me this weekend, coincidence ? don’t mind the road grimme ?

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Ohtobbad said:
Ford performance have good set up.
If you doing a lowering kit, finding the deal of the day can matter.
Packages are put together based on all sorts of stuff, including use.
Click to expand...

+1 on the Ford Performance gear, I've always been a big fan.

Years ago, I put the (then) Ford Racing FR3 Handling Pack on my '06 GT.....very pleased with the results. I liked it as a complete kit....lowering springs, shocks (front and rear) and new sway bars and bushings. Got rid of the 4x4 stance of the S197, lowered it nicely, and it improved the handling.

Sure, theres probably better, all depends what you're looking for and your budget, but I liked to think that the kit was engineered so that all components worked together and complemented each other.
 
Made some calls, waiting on some prices to help with the decision making. I like the stance I have with the current springs, just 225000+ KM’s kind of beat up the struts and shocks for a second time . Upper rear control arm was already replaced with a Steeda adjustable unit, Saleen Watts link will stay, replacement lower arms are in the garage now waiting for install. GT500 sway bars are already installed front and rear.along with the extended studs and 5/8 “wheel spacers
 
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There is no doubt in my mind the strut/shock change will shock you... :rolleyes:

The change it did to mine with only the rear unit installed is unbelievable. Yeah, UCA is something I haven't installed in mine of yet and probably should think of, LCA, sways, watts, relocation brackets are also all accounted for. humm.... :unsure:
 
SVT4MT said:
+1 on the Ford Performance gear, I've always been a big fan.
Click to expand...

The Ford Racing or Ford Performance dampers are also very good.
I went that route on my 2015 after research, which included e-mail exchange with Kelly Aiken, long time lead engineer at BMR suspension.
The information I got is that the FP track variant dampers are a very good match for all the BMR lowering springs.
The track dampers having roughly the aftermarket damping equivalent of the GT350 dampers.
While the Street version are roughly equal to the PP1 dampers.

I digress since this is a S197 thread.
I forget the part numbers but the point is that with the mods already on your car, if you do opt for FP, I would suggest you go for the track variants over the base or street variants.
I love the result on the '15.
 
SVT4MT said:
Side note, I bought BMR jacking rails for the new car, I've always liked their stuff too.
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I was going to buy jacking rails for my car, but didn't want to add the weight.
Still makes me curious about installing them. Much easier and faster to lift.
Just takes me longer to make sure I am in right spot.
 
I don't think they would make a whole lot of difference weight wise, but then I'm not worried about that aspect.

They're super easy to install and use factory mounting points, I didn't even jack the car up.
 
Finally got the car positioned in the garage so the jacking and blocking can begin. I might finally get the cover off the diff to find what’s worn , maybe before Christmas?
What I find will determine the 2019-2020 winter build wish list . Seems like no lottery wins so “needs before wants” this year!
 
Got started this week,
I got the brakes off the rear and measured up the axle endplay, had 0.025” on both sides, spec allows for 0.030” max. Feels like play between spider and axle gears but I have to dig deeper to confirm. Had to remove the rear body braces ( convertible only issue) oil drained , sway bar and Watts link pivot removed, diff cover removed and now I can see what is going on.
 
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End play measure

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rear brake pads have lots of life left.
(y)

CC8F1993-6C40-4960-961E-7DEED0638BF5.jpeg

Gear pattern looks good for 225000km, no need to replace these, 3:55’s will be staying put until next time.

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I checked closer after getting the differential parts out on the bench. No wear on the spider shaft and gears. The movement was between axle and spider gears as I suspected. I was able to add 2 shims 0.020” to each clutch pack. I had parts from the old diff to reduce the axle to spider gear clearance. I think I’ll replace the carrier bearings since I’m working in here. Axle bearings look good to reuse. Time for a parts run on Friday.
 
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