porschefig

i guess maybe i just dont have the budget to do this right at this point in time....i hear soooo much about koni's and ive always wanted them but for now i cant afford the $grand+ to start. im coming to the conclusion that in my price range it gonna be best to buy 250lb springs and spacers...(or heavier rated and/or just stock height...if only i could find such a thing)...then for the rear ill either buy the bigger sway bar or the 28mm tbars...this way hopefully everything is as stiff as it ever needs to be. im hearing this is a good ratio: 250lb springs-28mm torsion bars.

Waterguy

A stock 944 should not ride that low. It sounds like your car has been lowered either on purpose or due to sagging springs/torsion bars.

A stock US model 944 has the following ride height:

FRONT: Distance from road to upper edge of bumper 526 mm +/- 20 mm.

REAR: Distance from raod to upper edge of bumper 522 mm +/- 20 mm.

Euro models ride lower at the rear (center of torsion bar 3.5 mm below centre of the wheel.) Measure your car to find out where you are starting from. If your car is riding an inch or more below these values, stiffer springs that are 1" shorter than stock may actually raise your car.

At the rear, there is a camber adjustment that can adjust ride height within a narrow range. Ignoring US bumper law requirements, the ideal height is level with the front after you install your new springs. If you have to make a larger adjustment than the adjusters allow to get you car level, you will have to add coil-over springs, gas-filled shocks or re-index the torsion bars. If you re-index the torsion bars (most people don't due to the work involved), then Skip's recommendation on 27 mm torsion bars would apply.

For reference, your front springs are about 125 lb/in. Your rear torsion bars are 23.5 mm, which works out to a wheel rate of 126 lb/in. The following torsion bars are some of those available: (wheel rates courtesy of Skip, Paragon Products Tech Forum )

24.5 mm = 149 lb/in
25.5 mm = 175 lb/in
26 mm = 189 lb/in
27 mm = 220 lb/in
28 mm = 254 lb/in
29 mm = 292 lb/in
30 mm = 335 lb/in, etc.

Your car would have come with the standard 20 mm front/no rear sway bars, or the optional 21.5 mm solid or 23 mm hollow front bar with optional 14 mm rear sway bar. Again, check what is on the car before thinking about upgrading; many owners have already upgraded their sway bars.

Skip

Now that you are describing the problem you want to fix and the budget you may have, I would definitely recommend the new struts and shocks first.... this sounds like the cure to your actual problems. The sways and springs should absolutely be considered only after the dampers. With a complete car setup in the Koni Sports at just over $500, that should be the priority over $500 of springs and torsion bars and/or sway bars.

BTW, you can retain the stock ride height plus a little with the coil-over kit. With the right springs, you could actually fit some mudders under there and go boggin' - YEEHAWWWW!!!

HY M8NC

For the swaybars, look in the classifieds here, I found both front and rear bars from an 86 944 turbo fo a total of $150. I went to a junkyard and sourced the brackets I needed, and then added all new bushings. $225, and my car handles like Jesus on rollerblades.

kwh29

Trust me, you don't have the money to not do it right. Take the very good advice above and find a way to cover a set of single adjustable Konis. Do the shocks even before you change sway bars, as I'll bet you will find the difference pretty amazing.

If you can't cover the cost of the adjustable Konis try some factory replacement Bilsteins. They rock. The only reason I'd go with the Konis is that Bilsteins tend to be harsh on small bumps and aren't adjustable for your auto-x usage.

Replacing springs with higher rate and not replacing/revalving the shocks accordingly is a recipe for disaster . Stiffer springs need more damping, not less.

Oh, you might want to try some other suppliers as well. Two SCCA-friendly Koni dealers (who don't have a good online presence but who do have good prices) are SF Motorsports out of Kernersville NC and Strano Parts from Pennsylvania.

Have fun!
--Kevin H.

porschefig

apparently koni prices in tweeks and performance products scared me away...$730vs$560...prices for the torsion bars and both front springs was $408vs$370....i had been planning on getting, springs, torsion bars, dash cover, throttle response cam, shift boot, and rear hatch shock...ALL for $566 and it looks like i could save $38dollars on that same combo of parts and im sure some of those others are cheaper at different places

Skip

Yeah, I wish we had a cool glossy magazine, too...