jeryst Posted November 17, 2015 Share Posted November 17, 2015 I have a 1997 Impreza Outback Sport. The shocks and struts are starting to get a little tired, so I was wondering if there are some aftermarket items that are fairly close to the price of stock replacements that would provide better cornering and handling. Is there anything else I could do, like larger wheels and low profile tires? what mods would give me the best bang for the buck? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
987687 Posted November 17, 2015 Share Posted November 17, 2015 (edited) The first thing in getting better performance is replacing all the worn out stuff... Struts are a good start, you can get KYB GR2 struts from rockauto for around $60/corner. That's a good place to start. Other items that wear out and should be replaced are definitely the rear trailing arm bushings, those tend to be the most worn most worth while upgrade on any older subaru. If you have any slop in the driveline or clunking when you get on/off the gas pedal, those bushings are the biggest cause. Beyond that, rear differential bushings and front control arm bushings will make a different. For the rear bushings on the front control arm, you can upgrade to the Turn in Concepts bushings that improve castor. After you replace wear items, get the car aligned and put some better tires on it. Depending on the roads you drive, you might not want low profile tires. If you live somewhere with tons of pot holes and crappy roads I wouldn't go much bigger than 16" or 17". For 16" you can get bugeye wrx rims pretty cheap, they're fairly light and strong. If you search around, you're gonna see a lot of advise to put a massive rear swaybar on the car.... DON'T. A big rear swaybar helps compensate for old worn out bushings, instead just replace the old worn out bushings. You'll have a tighter ride, the swaybar is the final item for tuning a suspension. After you improve the handling, upgrade your brakes, if you're gonna go faster you need to stop faster. Edited November 17, 2015 by 987687 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1 Lucky Texan Posted November 17, 2015 Share Posted November 17, 2015 (edited) well, fresh struts are gonna feel a lot tighter. KYB is the preferred brand for most of us. a heavier rear anti-roll bar, maybe metal endlinks (less 'compliant') front and rear. kartboy or whiteline etc. Edited November 17, 2015 by 1 Lucky Texan 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikaleda Posted November 17, 2015 Share Posted November 17, 2015 Its amazing what a new set of kybs will do for handling. Its a world of difference. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bushwick Posted November 17, 2015 Share Posted November 17, 2015 Swaybars are a good way to get better handling. I'm on the side that likes a bigger bar in the rear. I did the rear bar on my Saab along with welding up a 4 point rear shock tower and the car can corner super hard. Actually did the rear tower brace first and it had a huge impact with how the car turned even at low speed which was surprising. The rear bar upgrade just made it even better, but all bushings elsewhere were upgraded too. If it's only a summer vehicle, can opt for a better handling tire. Can also try and find a lighter rim. A 16-17 pound each rim will help you drop unsprung weight. Lower the car about 1.5" and run some adjustable Koni struts along with what's suggested above and you'll hit corners like you were on rails. Dunno if it helps the Impreza or not, but external frame rails can help increase rigidity on unibody cars. Adding a strut tower brace will help too. Can also try running urethane bushings for the steering components to improve steering feel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
987687 Posted November 18, 2015 Share Posted November 18, 2015 You don't wanna upgrade the sway bar until you replace all the old worn out bushings, sway bars are the final step in tuning the suspension in a car. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bushwick Posted November 18, 2015 Share Posted November 18, 2015 You don't wanna upgrade the sway bar until you replace all the old worn out bushings, sway bars are the final step in tuning the suspension in a car. You are assuming his bushings are so far gone they even need replaced. Also, for what it's worth, you can upgrade just a bar w/o redoing bushings. My Legacy had the tiny rear bar and I swapped that out for an Outback bar and didn't touch anything else. Still got a huge improvement in the rear as it stopped "wagging" back and forth on slow turns. Car had around 175k miles and now has closer to 186k. While the trailing arm bushings have some cracking at the ends, car still handles OK with 250+ pounds of audio gear and tools taking up the hatch and back seat area. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carfreak85 Posted November 19, 2015 Share Posted November 19, 2015 1. Fix what is worn out. 2. Improve your driving skills (Not a jab at you, but most of the improvements will come from behind the wheel) 3. Tires 4. Struts, anti-roll bars, etc. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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