v8 240 coupe suspension questions

[qwarnon]

alright i have a few questions about suspension for my project. its a s13 coupe from 93. Im swapping in a 355 gen 1 chevy small block.

now i know thats going to add some serious weight upfront... basically my questions are

A) should i go for coilovers? (if so i would go for some cheapish ones.. megan, k-sport something like that)

B) if not would shocks and springs do the job just as well? KYB and eibach or tien or something along those lines

C) what kind of spring rates should i be looking for here. i know the stock rates for a 240.. im just wondering what i should be looking for with the added weight.

i plan to use the car for occasional runs down the drag strip.. and some occasional autox or scca stuff. but it will also be a daily driver.. im more concered with performance than ride quality and definetly more than looks.

thanks for all your help in advance,chris

[OutToWinPAHC]

I was gonna run a small block before the LS. I have spring ans struts now. The weigh of your heavier engine would lower me about a half inch more which is still monster truck on the 240. I use KYB AGX's with Tein S's and I hate the stance of the front. The rear is perfect, but upfront is way too high. Plus with acceleration and torque of the V8 the front jumps more then a 4 cyl on acceleration.

Deff go coilovers.

[Exar-Kun]

A) - don't cheap out....you're already swapping a motor..eat ramen for a bit and get a good suspension coilover.

B)- depends on the shock and spring combo...I'm wagering problbaly not due to the extra weight

C)- Take the old engine weight (or corner weigh it!), and then how much it will change and work from there based on what you're designing the car to do...if you're adding 100lb/corner up front, you'd want a spring rate stiff enough to ahve a ride height where you want it after the swap...most likely a good bit stiffer.

-CHet

[qwarnon]

yeah ill probably corner weight it when its all said and done. but i plan to install the supension before the motor.. ( i would think this should be a lil easier) and i think i will end up going with a coil set up.

i believe the engine weight is going to be around 650-700 lbs total.. im not sure how much of an increse that will be. but hopefully that helps calculate some spring rates. im not sure how to calculate what rate i should have