Shocks/A-arms or Tires/wheels?

[Arctc Wolf]

I'm coming up on 60000 miles, and I'm wondering if i should replace them along with the front a-arms or just save a bit longer to get the wheel/tire pkg i want. The shocks will be QA1 adjustables. The a-arms will be BMR race adjustable. I'm looking at replacing the a-arms because it will be a bit cheaper in labor while you're already taking out the shocks/springs anyway, while also saving a bit of weight. should I also do springs too and just get it all taken care of at once?

The wheels will be SSR Competition 17x9.5/18x10.5(fitment for corvette ZO6) along with either 255-45-17/275-40-18 or 275-40-17/295-35-18. These are forged ultra-lightweight rims which weigh less than our stock 16x8 rims(only the 17x9.5 does, the 18x10.5 weighs a little more).

I am looking for better handling out of both options i'm picking. the newer adj. shocks will let me tune for what I want from the car(cornering, drag launch, comfortable ride). the a-arms are to reduce flex of suspension while cornering, as well as drop a little weight from the nose. the wheel/tire combo will get me better traction in launches( i have 2555-50-16's now and will go at least 20 mm wider w/ 275-40 or 40 mm wider w/ 295-35). also, cornering will be improved since there will be a bigger contact patch.

What do you guys think?

[Wicked 3800 V6]

Sticky tires are just "bolt on and go"

Nice shocks / A-arms are like "bolt me on using special tools, new parts, and a boatload of time, tune me, find different settings, and shell out for an alignment"

[img]smile.gif[/img]

[93camaro_zzz]

BTW, buy the second tier combo you stated. Seems so much more better. As far as I have experienced, and heard. Noone has ever regreted buying a bigger(wider) tire. ;) Good luck.

[V6Bob]

For what's it's worth:

1. Shocks first, definitely. Decent shocks (and, at 60,000 miles, yours are probably worn out) will improve control. Why would you want to improve traction with sticky tires if you can't control it?

2. Tires. But you only gave a size. A good small tire will beat a bad big one any day. And the sizes you suggest will be something of a pain on the street, nibbling like crazy over road irregularities

3. Competition a-arms will do little for you except maybe make the ride harsher/noisier, and, if they use spherical bearings, give you a maintenance issue. People think competition stuff is good on the street. Generally not so. If you're track racing a completely built up car, and looking for a few tenths of a second a lap, that's what these are good for. Put the money into better shocks and tires.

[FunkZ]

Personally I'd go with shocks/springs and wheels/tires for the street.

255/40R17
275/35R18

If you're looking for a drag setup, spend all your money on suspension and slap a set of drag radials on a cheap pair of salad-shooters. ;)

[Arctc Wolf]

Wicked...
I see where ur coming from. The tires will be a lot easier to put on. But...I always get an alignment when I get new tires, so I'd be paying for one either way. I wouldn't mess w/ a custom alignment, just back to stock specs or have dominic give me the specs he uses on his car. The shocks I'll just drive a tune by the seat of my pants. I'll tune based on my oversteer tendency, so softer out back. so basically, you say get wheels/tires cuz it'll cost less in labor?

93camaro...
I know, that's why I have gone w/ 255-50-16 tires over 245 or 235 tires on my car so far. wider is better for traction, but also, more tire means more weight, and my car, even tho moderately modified, doesn't make enough torque to get me decent gas mileage for huge tires, so I'm wondering if I should get the 275's rear so I keep my gas mileage up. if i do that, i will get 255's in front to keep the look of the wheel/tire pkg. the same.

V6bob...
I agree about the shocks. I don't plan on getting crappy tires. They will be at least W rated, and I'm looking aat several brands. I'm looking at the a-arms for a few reasons. 1, less weight. 2, quicker suspension response(less weight, less inertia, quicker response to road conditions). 3, less suspension deflection. I can get either poly or spherical bearings. Road noise I can handle, my exhaust is loud enough to drown it out, and I plan on possibly getting rid of some of the stock sound deadening and replacing it with Dynamat for a bit better sound deadening.

FunkZ...
I'm starting to lean toward springs added to the mods I wanna do. why go w/ smaller sidewalls on the tires? i was thinkin 255-45 and 275-40, but I see you have 255-40 and 275-35. any reason why less sidewall? My car is gonna be balanced between drag and cornering. my rear suspension is completely done except torque arm, springs, and shocks, so it hooks well except for my torque converter killing my tires off the line. no drag radials, except maybe when I need the extra traction for a race.

[FunkZ]

275/35R18 maintains 25.6" overall diameter, same as a 245/50R16 or 275/40R17 which are both widely used on 4th Gen Fbodies.

275/40R18 would be a bit tall at 26.7"

Even the stock 215/60R16 and 235/55R16 sizes are only 26.1"

255/40R17 is actually a bit short at 25" but won't throw off the speedo like the difference on the rear, and will look more even (compared to the low-profile rears) rather than your 255/45.

Just my opinion of course, if I was putting Z06 wheels on, those are the tire sizes I would go with.

[Tru2Chevy]

Originally posted by Arctc Wolf:
I plan on possibly getting rid of some of the stock sound deadening and replacing it with Dynamat for a bit better sound deadening.

If you are buying the a-arms for a weight reduction, why are you gonna go ahead and add more weight with the Dynomat? That stuff is very heavy....

- Justin

[Arctc Wolf]

That'snot the only weight reduction I'm gonna be doing. There's a lot of stuff that I'm looking at doing. a rough list would be: k-emember, a-arms, chrome moly rear suspension, carbon fiber lift-off hood, lightweight battery, removed front bumper support, removed spare/jack, removed rear seat, fiberglass/lexan rear glass replacement, coil-overs, racing seats, momo, steering wheel, fiberglass dash replacement, aluminum driveshaft, and some other stuff. Some stuff that will add weight will a rear wing, sfc's, stb, roll cage, welding the body together, dynamat, ect. there's also a couple different types of dynamat, weighing differently for each.