stock suspension upgrade Q

[ciVTEC94]

i own an 1994 EX coupe, and recently acquired a 94 del sol, through my recent highway driving, ive experienced how both cars perform on their relative stock suspensions on the on and off ramps at speed

the del sol had very little body roll, most likely because of the very little weight on top. my civic however, though it isnt that bad, has a considerable amount more body roll, and im afraid around town a significant amount more understeer than most cars, because of it being a front wheel drive car.

my question concerns what i can supplement to the stock suspension to improve both characteristics in my civic, i need advice or a site for installation guides on anti-sway bars to account for the body roll, and some education on strut bars to improve understeer characteristics. any knowledge of any type of supplemental support fr the suspension would be greatly appreciated...thanks

[jameskersten]

i think you got it best by starting with a sway bar. look for any suspension component that will tie you suspension together. strut bars,sway bars,tie bar, h-frame,etc. those will all considerly help out. best part with the sway bar is you can get gsr rear sway bar and bolt it up. makes a nice cheap upgrade.

[BullShifter]

Strut/tie bars do not control body roll or understeer/oversteer. They only provide bracing - stiffer car = better handling. Installing a larger rear sway bar will help a lot with understeer. Sway bars, strut bars, tie bars will have very little effect with stock suspension, the right spring/strut choice is key to a well handling car.

[E Honda]

Consider some energy suspension or prothane bushings as well. I dont know about the 2 door civics but I do know that some of the 4 doors came with stock rear sway bars..My 2 door ex did not nor did it have the provisions to mount....Have to drill and mount the plates.

[ciVTEC94]

thanks for the tips guys, whats this prothane, or h-frame, and how exactly do shock tower struts work differently than regularly mounted struts, or is there a difference? any suggested sizes for any suggested sort of ties would be appreciated as well

[ciVTEC94]

i also recently installed some JDM headers to my 94 EX. i saw a listing for a heat shield, is this neccessary with aftermarket headers ?(stainless stell, not ceramic, the point in question)

[ciVTEC94]

anyone at all?

[BullShifter]

Prothane is a polyurethane bushing company - www.prothane.com Poly bushing are noisy & stiff, turns to cement when it gets cold.

Please don't call it headers. It's a HEADER, only one. There is only one cylinder head on an inline 4 banger - V6, V8, V10, V12, V16, V-twin, W8, W16, etc. have headers.

It's a good idea to keep as much heat as possible from the radiator.

[GScivic7]

I think one of the first steps in a better handling car would be sticky tires

[ciVTEC94]

thanks for the tips, yea sorry my bad about the header''s", it kinda pisses me ofgf when people do that too, i just mistyped casue ive been posting alot about my vette.