Thank you Auto-X Fil. Yeah, I used to have the stock 15" wheels, LOTS of sidewall which contributed to body roll like you wouldn't beleive, but now I am running on his OE SVT wheels from his 99... he has Focus SVT 17" wheels now. Honestly, maybe his car doesn't handle any different now, I guess I just always assumed that it did, but it could also be how he drives vs. how I do, wheels (last time I was in his car vs. mine, I did have my 15" on mine). Anyway, the car does understeer like crazy, so I was going to start looking for a stiffer rear swaybar anyway. I am going to go with the BFG KDW II for new tires next summer which will make the car feel a ton better I'm sure as well.
I searched in more detail again after posting the first time (yeah I know, leave me alone
)and found that bassicaly it looks like all 4 springs are identical, front struts may be different, rear sway bar is the same, my front swaybar is stiffer. That is the info I have found so far. That would explain why I feel the car understeering so much through corners... it's even worse than a regular SVT
Anyway, I would love to put a stiffer rate spring in it, but I am not interested in lowering the car at all since it is my daily driver and sees all 4 seasons in MI. I was hoping for more options for swaybars, but it looks like the front swaybar is going to have to remain the same... but the BAT rear is a nice match for the front, so I guess that's what I will have to do.
Sorry for the novel of a response, thank you for your reply, I appreciate the input.
All in all PLEASE Correct me if I am wrong... my Contour... 98.5 SE 2.5 MTX (Non-Sport) has:
Front:
SVT Springs
Standard V6 Struts
20mm SwayBar (1mm Thicker than SVT SwayBar)
Rear:
SVT Springs
SVT Struts
18mm SwayBar (SVT SwayBar)
With my new (used, but very low milage and great condition) springs/struts out of a SVT... if I change the other front strut (to match the one I changed yesterday) and rear struts (only due to milage and wear), I effectively have "SVT Suspension". Combined with the BAT SwayBar and new tires on my 99' SVT wheels, should be a nice setup.
Tire size... what will fit on the 99'SVT wheels? I was thinking of getting a 225/45/16 of the BFG KDW-II's. Could I fit a 235, or would that be too wide? Thanx again!
