Hi all,

So I recently did some suspension & handling upgrades to my magna, and to be honest, I'm not massively impressed at the difference. Not sure if my expectations are wrong, or is there just a limit of what is reasonably achievable with the magna's?

Handling upgrades I've done:
- Koni Yellow adjustable front shocks
- KYB Excel-G rears shocks
- King Springs Lows all round
- VR-X 18mm Rear Swaybar
- Good tyres (Falken 452's) and wider wheels (8")

Now I understand, these are relatively normal changes one makes to a car in an effort to improve its handling, but I was expecting a bigger change in handling than I ended up with.

Car still has a good amount of body roll and overbearing understeer. It feels firm over bumps, but not in corners. And I feel like it has too much suspension travel and the car's weight shifts too much. Recently took the car to a track and you can see in this pic (https://fbcdn-sphotos-e-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash3/554370_10151278142517946_1341483630_n.jpg) that I'm still getting quite alot of suspension travel and the alot of the weight is still shifting to the opposite side of the car.

I know that there are still more upgrades that can be done - e.g. bushes/mounts made of poly instead of rubber, thicker swaybars, front strut brace etc but how much of a difference can one expect?
Is there just a limit, where you cannot overcome the fact that the magna is still one big 1500kg fwd sedan and will never be anywhere near a nimble smaller car?

Appreciate any input on this.

Cheers!

If you want handling you buy coilovers, thats the only mod i have done that has transformed the car, no off the shelf springs even come close.

You should have a drive of my car, almost every handling upgrade done, next biggest behind the suspension is an lsd. all the other stuff makes only small differences.

i just have to laugh at people that complain about
overbearing understeerlmao

learn to drive properly and you shouldn't experience understeer.

i just have to laugh at people that complain about lmao

learn to drive properly and you shouldn't experience understeer.

Well understeer is a characteristic of the car. I'd only not get understeer if I hit the corners at slow speeds. If you push a car, it's flaws will show, in the case of the magna it's understeer. Point is that, I'd like to reduce it without having to take corners on the track like a granny. Plenty of other cars who took corners as fast, or faster than me, with the same racing line, didn't experience nearly as much understeer.

I'd start with better rear shocks, like konis if you can afford them.

Then fit a bigger rear swaybar & front strut brace. I'm not sure how much difference a front swaybar will make to the fwd magna, but I'll let you know after the weekend if that's worthwhile. :)

Hayden is pretty spot on though; there's no off the shelf spring/ shock combo that will do what you're wanting it to do other than coilovers.

what tyre pressure you running......drop the rears by about 4-6psi and that makes a difference...i run 38/32 and hardly ever experience understeer,and many a SA member will testify,i drive my Magna pretty quick.

what tyre pressure you running......drop the rears by about 4-6psi and that makes a difference...i run 38/32 and hardly ever experience understeer,and many a SA member will testify,i drive my Magna pretty quick.

+ 1 on this.

Despite maggies being manual and mine being auto they are setup very similar. Im running 40 up front and 36 in the rear. Probably a little too hard, but still handles very nicely.

Adjustable rear sway bar helped my body roll. Car doesnt flex at all through corner. Will be interesting to see how it compares through the twisties now ive done this work

Hayden is pretty spot on though; there's no off the shelf spring/ shock combo that will do what you're wanting it to do other than coilovers.

Just on that, I was talking to my boss at work tonight who the past couple of weeks taken his skyline out around a track, he actually got quicker times when he swapped his coils to springs, it is all about how u set them up for the track and keep in mind to get the most out of them, different tracks will need different setups.

Just on that, I was talking to my boss at work tonight who the past couple of weeks taken his skyline out around a track, he actually got quicker times when he swapped his coils to springs, it is all about how u set them up for the track and keep in mind to get the most out of them, different tracks will need different setups.

That's probably quite true for his car & a lot of others out there. Unfortunately there are no real 'performance' springs out there for the magna with most of them only about 10% firmer than stock.

MagnaP.I : what are your wheel alignment figures?

I felt the same with my TJ - stock VR-X swaybars plus Whiteline strut brace, KYB shocks, King Lows. You could push the car hard without understeering, but it had an unbearable amount of body roll, and just didn't feel planted to the ground.

Solution: I bought a 380. Seriously - It was one of the main reasons why I decided to sell the Magna. I figured short of Dobinsons and Konis and new sway bars all round, I was never going to be satisfied with how the Magna felt to drive. I'm not sure if my 380 would out-perform a Magna if you pushed both to 10/10ths, but it feels far better planted to the road than the Magna ever did.

I test drove a TJ Sportswagon last weekend which confirmed same. It only had stock sports suspension, but even on mildly undulating corners, the amount of body roll was incredible. Wasn't a fan.

Other solution is coilovers. I've driven Sufz's car and couldn't get over how little body roll it had.

I've been told that rear hard and front pritty soft is best for traction with fwd. but with coilovers your front and rear would be evenly hard. Hayden vrx did u adjust the fronts to be softer or for more travel? Can u do that with coilovers?

I was wondering what tyre pressure you have too.

Is 18mm for a rear sway bar small? I was thinking 20 or 22mm for my AWD if I ever get around to it.
Our little 980kg Toyota Sera has a 16mm rear bar now - didn't make a lot of difference in medium driving either.

+1 on Koni shocks - much more comfortable & effective than factory IMO.


Lastly, aren't King Lows only 10mm lower which is the same as Sports / VRX springs ? If so, I know how much body roll you're talking about :)
I think you have to lower it further to get the centre of gravity down to reduce some body roll, but then it becomes a tradeoff for street use.

I've been told that rear hard and front pritty soft is best for traction with fwd. but with coilovers your front and rear would be evenly hard. Hayden vrx did u adjust the fronts to be softer or for more travel? Can u do that with coilovers?

I get best handling with Front shocks on about 40% stiffness and rear about 60% i find, but it's very similar.
coming from King lows with Koni shocks (decent setup supposibly) I wouldn't be caught dead with them again after trying coils. Far superior for mountain runs (which is all i really do)

Cheers for the input guys. Much appreciated.


I'd start with better rear shocks, like konis if you can afford them.

Then fit a bigger rear swaybar & front strut brace. I'm not sure how much difference a front swaybar will make to the fwd magna, but I'll let you know after the weekend if that's worthwhile. :)

Hayden is pretty spot on though; there's no off the shelf spring/ shock combo that will do what you're wanting it to do other than coilovers.

Please do update us Ascall on how you go with the strut brace. I was told that the difference is there, but not massive. Would be good to hear some feedback though.

I didn't choose to get Koni shocks on the back because of price and it seemed unnecessary. Much of the weight of the car is on the front, especially during braking and cornering, so I figured it just needs to be upgraded to stiffer it a bit at the back and because the standard shocks do not behave well with the lowered springs. KYB shocks aren't that bad? Wouldn't more travel in the back rather induce oversteer though?

Ideally, yes, I'd like coilovers, but at the price tag, I just can't justify it.


what tyre pressure you running......drop the rears by about 4-6psi and that makes a difference...i run 38/32 and hardly ever experience understeer,and many a SA member will testify,i drive my Magna pretty quick.

I'm currently running 42psi all round. My tyres have stiff sidewalls. I haven't considered having different pressures for the front and back. Next time I'm near a servo I'll drop 4psi off the back tyres. See if it makes a big difference.


That's probably quite true for his car & a lot of others out there. Unfortunately there are no real 'performance' springs out there for the magna with most of them only about 10% firmer than stock.

MagnaP.I : what are your wheel alignment figures?

This is exactly my point; can much more be done or does the law of diminishing returns really set in here? The magna was never meant for performance, and low amount of parts were released for it as a result.

I actually don't know my figures, but the mechanic said the fronts were perfectly level and the backs had a 0.5 degree of negtive camber. The toe-in was really badly on the back and he pulled it in as much as possible. Should've asked for a print-out though. :/

I get best handling with Front shocks on about 40% stiffness and rear about 60% i find, but it's very similar.
coming from King lows with Koni shocks (decent setup supposibly) I wouldn't be caught dead with them again after trying coils. Far superior for mountain runs (which is all i really do)

That's crazy how much difference it makes. Can u adjust height and spring pressure? Do
U find that setup is also best for traction?

I felt the same with my TJ - stock VR-X swaybars plus Whiteline strut brace, KYB shocks, King Lows. You could push the car hard without understeering, but it had an unbearable amount of body roll, and just didn't feel planted to the ground.

Solution: I bought a 380...... I'm not sure if my 380 would out-perform a Magna if you pushed both to 10/10ths, but it feels far better planted to the road than the Magna ever did.

Other solution is coilovers. I've driven Sufz's car and couldn't get over how little body roll it had.

That is interesting. Glad to hear I'm not the only one that feels this way. For me, I'm having to fight quite a bit of understeer (certainly much less than with stock exec struts). I heard rave reviews of how much if a difference upgraded suspension & shocks make, but in my experience it wasn't no where near as dramatic.

Interesting solution! lol lol - I definitely have no need for a 380. Uses too much fuel, too big for my needs and lack of aftermarket support would drive me mad. It has a lot better road holding and the stiff steering means it feels more in contact with the road, but its 1750kg weight and large body in reality would likely not make it anymore quicker than a magna.

I'm at the point, that if I need to spend anouther $1000 to get coilovers, then I will start making plans to sell it off and maybe get a little 2dr eurocart of somesort, or least a performance designed 4door car.




Is 18mm for a rear sway bar small? I was thinking 20 or 22mm for my AWD if I ever get around to it.
Our little 980kg Toyota Sera has a 16mm rear bar now - didn't make a lot of difference in medium driving either.

+1 on Koni shocks - much more comfortable & effective than factory IMO.

Lastly, aren't King Lows only 10mm lower which is the same as Sports / VRX springs ? If so, I know how much body roll you're talking about :)
I think you have to lower it further to get the centre of gravity down to reduce some body roll, but then it becomes a tradeoff for street use.

18mm is usually on the more conservative side. I thought of getting wider 22mm one, but i'm told it causes a knock and can smash against things on the undercarriage. And I wasn't really sold on how much of a difference 4mm's would really make. I found the difference between having a swaybar vs. not was quite noticeable, esp on the turn-in into corners.

King lows are a 45mm drop over standard non-sports/vrx ride height The VR-X/Sports ride height was 10mm lower than the exec ones.

Test drive a fellow member's FWD magna on coilovers, that will make your decision of whether you want to upgrade suspension or buy a new car. Or keep a boat. :P

I'm at the point, that if I need to spend anouther $1000 to get coilovers, then I will start making plans to sell it off and maybe get a little 2dr eurocart of somesort, or least a performance designed 4door car.
That's exactly it - my attitude was the same. I could put more money into the Magna and still not be satisfied with it, or I could buy something newer which I was happy with out of the box.

Maybe it'd be worth test driving a Eurocart just to see how you feel ;-) I definitely agree with Hayden though - you really should test a car with coilovers. I was very surprised at how they handle (in a good way!).


I actually don't know my figures, but the mechanic said the fronts were perfectly level and the backs had a 0.5 degree of negtive camber. The toe-in was really badly on the back and he pulled it in as much as possible. Should've asked for a print-out though. :/
Adding a little bit of camber on the front is a good thing - improves handling, and imo improves tyre wear slightly as you're not rubbing the outside tread as quickly.

1. Get a set of camber pins for the front and increase camber by about 1 degree (to about 1.5 or so for daily driving).
2. Ge an aftermarket adjustable rear swaybar (Whiteline).

This will certainly transform your cars handling. Also do some reading on tires. I am not sure but I think the falken 452s aren't exactly praised for their grip

I've had good results from using a combination of Kings and KYB with 22mm rear bars on the FWD Magna's - on my AWD the 22mm rear bar just doesnt quite feel stiff enough. But first priority should always be good tyres, and sorting all of the suspension bushes and linkages. And even then I like the idea of relocating/redistributing the weight of the car after you've shaken as much weight as practical. Moving the battery to the boot, and everything else that's practical so its behind the front axle or in front of the rear axle... but that's an untested theory.

Not a professional, but this is my limited understanding from reading;
To reduce understeer you need to loosen the from and stiffen the rear. Stiffer sway bar in the rear was how I was doing it. But, I've been researching this a LOT lately because to me handling/stopping is a greater priority than power. My next theory to test is either custom spring rates from Kings/Dobinson with the stiff KYB's again, or, to find a good set of coilovers that let me select a custom spring rate. So far the tinkering I've done suggests a stiffer rear spring to that of the front is what the Magna needs. The catch is to not make the rear that stiff it can get enough grip in the right situations - loose gravel or a wet road. I have some chassis simulation software and a few books to help me get my around suspension/handling. None of them really compare to actually doing it though, but I intend to use them as a starting point to my suspension upgrade.

I do believe the Magna can be made to handle... within the limits of the technology/geometry its chassis uses.

Some reading (http://homepage.ntlworld.com/terry.cresswell/handling.html)

Contact Mitsbits in Adelaide and see what they do to their RACE CARS, if anyone knows how to set up a Magna, it will be these guys. Remember that they just did race at Bathurst and came forth or fifth outright and I'm sure that the rules don't allow coilovers

The 22mm rear sway bar cuts understeer dramatically compared to the stock VRX bar. The biggest difference is in a power on situation out of a corner ie. can get on the throttle much earlier with the 22mm bar. There was still a bit of roll as I am still running the stock VRX springs, but definitely less.

The only reason I went back to stock on my VRX is because I was sick of replacing the bushings in the mounts. The stock mounts are too small to fit a decent thickness bushing with the 22mm bar. Never got around to getting larger ones built.

I had it on for 3 years and could see no signs of damage to the subframe.

It only takes 15 mins to change rear sway bars so you could put the 22mm on for track days and then back to stock for daily driving. This would mean that the bushings would last longer.

The 22mm rear sway bar cuts understeer dramatically compared to the stock VRX bar. The biggest difference is in a power on situation out of a corner ie. can get on the throttle much earlier with the 22mm bar. There was still a bit of roll as I am still running the stock VRX springs, but definitely less.

The only reason I went back to stock on my VRX is because I was sick of replacing the bushings in the mounts. The stock mounts are too small to fit a decent thickness bushing with the 22mm bar. Never got around to getting larger ones built.

I had it on for 3 years and could see no signs of damage to the subframe.

It only takes 15 mins to change rear sway bars so you could put the 22mm on for track days and then back to stock for daily driving. This would mean that the bushings would last longer.

One way around this bush issue is to fit KS06 saddles with the universal bushes - both whiteline parts...

"Hi ,

If you are using KSB30 saddles then all universal bushings for that bracket will fit that bracket it just then the id size to be correct.
The problem is the KSB30 was designed for very large cars so the smallest bushing for that bracket 22mm .
You will need to get KS6 saddles with w21047 bushings to suite.

Regards,
Wayne Bolton

Technical Co-ordinator / Customer Service Supervisor"

Extract from email correspondence with Wayne Bolton at Redtranger/Whiteline/Nolathane with regard to bushes. Bear in mind the larger KSB-30 (KS30) saddles do not fit the Magna - I've tried.

Confirm your part numbers are correct with the whiteline bars/bushes also as they can be listed incorrectly. I've used Whiteline Galant bushes without a problem.... but, confirm always. I've even used this Galant bushes with stock saddles on my AWD and its 22mm bar - currently though I'm using the KS6/universal whiteline gear. The Mako Swaybar is a shade to short or has a slightly larger radius on the arms - can push the bush out the side of the stock saddles.

I'm using some (cheap) chassis simulation software to test different combinations of springs/bars/shocks etc. I'm still trying to determine a budget for the upgrade Struts/springs or coilovers? Custom rate springs are $300 a pair from King's so say $600 for springs + $400 for shocks and $80 for bump stops etc.... coilovers are $1200-ish.

"if you want handling you buy coilovers" rather broad statement dont you think, not even going into a brand thing here but this statement could not be further from fact if it tried. What does a coil over do that a good quality strut and spring can not do aside from allow people to go "fully sik bro" low ?

Remember that in MANY classes of track that coil overs are not allowed so the standard set up is modified as much as can be done, these cars do handle very well and do not need to be so stiff to ride in that they are not comfortable. I have driven enough Magna's with coilovers to know I would rather walk than put them in a street car.

So in this case, Koni fronts with KYB rears, to be honest may as well just ride on the bump stops and remove the suspension. You have different set up at each end, two sets of suspension which for starters work totally differently to each other. Koni use proper valving where as KYB are just over gassed units which give the appearance of being ok but you do not realise the rebound until you see how they work, this will throw a car off balance and in a FWD will have worse consequence.

You dont want to spend $$ but you want to get your car to handle. This again is a contradictory statement

One way around this bush issue is to fit KS06 saddles with the universal bushes - both whiteline parts...

"Hi ,

If you are using KSB30 saddles then all universal bushings for that bracket will fit that bracket it just then the id size to be correct.
The problem is the KSB30 was designed for very large cars so the smallest bushing for that bracket 22mm .
You will need to get KS6 saddles with w21047 bushings to suite.

Regards,
Wayne Bolton

Technical Co-ordinator / Customer Service Supervisor"

Extract from email correspondence with Wayne Bolton at Redtranger/Whiteline/Nolathane with regard to bushes. Bear in mind the larger KSB-30 (KS30) saddles do not fit the Magna - I've tried.

Confirm your part numbers are correct with the whiteline bars/bushes also as they can be listed incorrectly. I've used Whiteline Galant bushes without a problem.... but, confirm always. I've even used this Galant bushes with stock saddles on my AWD and its 22mm bar - currently though I'm using the KS6/universal whiteline gear. The Mako Swaybar is a shade to short or has a slightly larger radius on the arms - can push the bush out the side of the stock saddles.

I'm using some (cheap) chassis simulation software to test different combinations of springs/bars/shocks etc. I'm still trying to determine a budget for the upgrade Struts/springs or coilovers? Custom rate springs are $300 a pair from King's so say $600 for springs + $400 for shocks and $80 for bump stops etc.... coilovers are $1200-ish.

I was not keen to try the universal mounts as I remember seeing pictures on here of them bending. There's no bracing on them. The VRX handles fine with the stock setup, just have to control the throttle and steering more. I'm actually finding it more enjoyable to drive for that reason.

I was not keen to try the universal mounts as I remember seeing pictures on here of them bending. There's no bracing on them. The VRX handles fine with the stock setup, just have to control the throttle and steering more. I'm actually finding it more enjoyable to drive for that reason.

No problems with bendy saddles as yet on my setup.

The only real reason I've consider coilovers is for the adjustable rebound/compression damping. That's about it. And we'd have to be talking about a good quality coilover to. Would I know a good brand from a bad one? Pfft heck no. Hence why I lean toward struts.

Back to OP's question though, I'd suggest deciding on exactly what you want and realizing it will be a trade off; comfort vs handling. As you stiffen things up the comfort starts to diminish.

I'd just start with a good set of tyres and take it from there. At least that way there's an upfront element of safety on your journey toward getting the car to handle the way you like it.

Contact Mitsbits in Adelaide and see what they do to their RACE CARS, if anyone knows how to set up a Magna, it will be these guys. Remember that they just did race at Bathurst and came forth or fifth outright and I'm sure that the rules don't allow coilovers


Am pretty sure they've got a custom koni setup similar to a coilovers but may not be height adjustable. It's not available off the shelf, AFAIK.




"if you want handling you buy coilovers" rather broad statement dont you think, not even going into a brand thing here but this statement could not be further from fact if it tried. What does a coil over do that a good quality strut and spring can not do aside from allow people to go "fully sik bro" low ?

Remember that in MANY classes of track that coil overs are not allowed so the standard set up is modified as much as can be done, these cars do handle very well and do not need to be so stiff to ride in that they are not comfortable. I have driven enough Magna's with coilovers to know I would rather walk than put them in a street car.

So in this case, Koni fronts with KYB rears, to be honest may as well just ride on the bump stops and remove the suspension. You have different set up at each end, two sets of suspension which for starters work totally differently to each other. Koni use proper valving where as KYB are just over gassed units which give the appearance of being ok but you do not realise the rebound until you see how they work, this will throw a car off balance and in a FWD will have worse consequence.

You dont want to spend $$ but you want to get your car to handle. This again is a contradictory statement

Coilovers may not make the car handle any better but they will reduce the body roll that the OP is complaining about. Custom rate springs/ revalved shocks could do the same too but King Springs seemed very reluctant to make a set for me when I enquired & I wasn't after anything extreme. The cost of coilovers versus custom shocks/ springs makes them a far more attractive option for someone like the OP who doesn't want to spend a fortune setting his car up for the track. He also appears to have the mechanical skills required to swap them in/ out for his track days.

You're correct in saying that a good shock/ spring combination is far better suited to a road car & whilst I have coilovers in my AWD, I wouldn't put them in my daily. :)

Only way to know with coilovers is to drive a car with them on. It's all personal. I have no issues driving with my 10/8kg combo which is meant to be harsh. Some people say the softer ones then mine are unbearable. which i don't understand so it all comes down to the individual.

The 22mm rear sway bar cuts understeer dramatically compared to the stock VRX bar. The biggest difference is in a power on situation out of a corner ie. can get on the throttle much earlier with the 22mm bar. There was still a bit of roll as I am still running the stock VRX springs, but definitely less.

The only reason I went back to stock on my VRX is because I was sick of replacing the bushings in the mounts. The stock mounts are too small to fit a decent thickness bushing with the 22mm bar. Never got around to getting larger ones built.

I had it on for 3 years and could see no signs of damage to the subframe.

It only takes 15 mins to change rear sway bars so you could put the 22mm on for track days and then back to stock for daily driving. This would mean that the bushings would last longer.

Can you comment on how the ride quality changed when you installed the 22mm swaybar?
And did it ever feel like the rear would spin out?

Can you comment on how the ride quality changed when you installed the 22mm swaybar?
And did it ever feel like the rear would spin out?

In my experience, with the Whiteline adjustable bar on a lowered GTVi; dirt road - softest setting, rain - middle setting, good conditions - hardest setting. You become aware of the cars ability to oversteer but its never really pronounced. Unless its on a downhill sharp left on a gravel road.... in which case it will oversteer :/

On the AWD, with a 22mm rear bar, no oversteer. I need better rubber on the AWD so I can't really comment yet.

And how did ride quality change with the swaybar, and between the 3 settings?

And how did ride quality change with the swaybar, and between the 3 settings?

You mean as far as comfort goes?

On kings low with stiff KYB's there was no change that I was aware of regardless which setting the bar was on.

I remember taking Rob fulton (has the white rx7 on this forum) around bathurst and putting the power down to him saying "ive never felt a magna oversteer like that before" It's amazing how much front end grip you can get in these cars.

I remember taking Rob fulton (has the white rx7 on this forum) around bathurst and putting the power down to him saying "ive never felt a magna oversteer like that before" It's amazing how much front end grip you can get in these cars.

Interesting post. Was that a stock Magna, stock rear bar or a bigger one? Tell us more.

If anything I've found understeer the biggest issue with these cars.

The general rule (I'm lead to believe) is that cars are manufactured with a tendency to understeer. Ive forgotten the reason behind this. Let me find the article or something....

Nah my car is highly modified suspension wise but the coilovers being stiff on the rear has made the best improvment.

The general rule (I'm lead to believe) is that cars are manufactured with a tendency to understeer. Ive forgotten the reason behind this. Let me find the article or something....
You mean the Magnas? Wouldn't that be because the driven wheels are also the steering wheels? So under hard acceleration they will lose traction during cornering and the car can understeer. That's why they have the TCL.

[edit] ah, sorry, I think you meant generally across all production cars, my bad. I read that they do that to increase stability to allow for average driving skill, but I dk if that's true because I couldn't find any authoritative source.

Reason for intentional understeer is that when a car starts to slide, your average motorist lifts off the accelerator.
To fix understeer, you lift off the accelerator, so correction is natural.

If a car is oversteering and you suddenly lift off, a FWD will make the slide worse or even spin and a RWD may correct the slide or even over correct, flicking out the other side (tank slapper) - the natural driver tendency does not correct a rear end slide.


For those so inclined to modify FWD Suspension, hopefully they know that if the rear slides, you keep on the accelerator to pull the front forward and let the rear come back into line. This is a better racing or sporty setup, but less safe for the average driver.
This caught me out once when I traded in my FWD of 7+ years for a turbo'd Mitsubishi Ute. My first wet corner sent me sideways and I just kept the throttle down as though I was in the FWD still. Luckily I had a 3 lane road and no other cars around me.

You mean as far as comfort goes?

On kings low with stiff KYB's there was no change that I was aware of regardless which setting the bar was on.

Yes comfort wise.
And how did the introduction of the whiteline bar change the comfort/ride quality of the car?

Yes comfort wise.
And how did the introduction of the whiteline bar change the comfort/ride quality of the car?

Kings + KYB's give a pretty harsh ride by default I think. But, I couldn't feel any different after the 22mm bar went in.

If you want handling you buy coilovers, thats the only mod i have done that has transformed the car, no off the shelf springs even come close.

my "Ellie" (black TH sedan) is running k sport coilovers thanx to the original owner Thor/el3ment & it handles GREAT!

Kings + KYB's give a pretty harsh ride by default I think. But, I couldn't feel any different after the 22mm bar went in.

I thought Kings were meant to be the softest springs around? Or is it the KYB shocks that gave it a harsh ride?
I've been in/driven a couple of Magnas, one with Pedders super lows + their in house shocks and the ride wasn't bad, but could be bad over potholes etc.
Another was with Hotbits coilovers an 19" rims. The ride was surprisingly smooth, though at the time my personal car had stiff coilovers so it may have impaired my judgment

I thought Kings were meant to be the softest springs around? Or is it the KYB shocks that gave it a harsh ride?
I've been in/driven a couple of Magnas, one with Pedders super lows + their in house shocks and the ride wasn't bad, but could be bad over potholes etc.
Another was with Hotbits coilovers an 19" rims. The ride was surprisingly smooth, though at the time my personal car had stiff coilovers so it may have impaired my judgment

I think it may have been the KYB. Or at least that suspension combination on the roads up here. By harsh I mean you REALLY felt the bumps/potholes. On good roads it felt great, handled great.

Can you comment on how the ride quality changed when you installed the 22mm swaybar?
And did it ever feel like the rear would spin out?

Very little change in the ride quality and I never experienced any oversteer with the 22mm whiteline bar on the stock VRX suspension. It still actually had a tendency to understeer when pushed. Even on gravel it still needed a lot of work to get it oversteering. With aftermarket springs of a higher rate in the rear, i think oversteer would be more of an issue.

After going from Auto to Manual, and how much the front end improved with less weight over the front, if I had the opportunity (space) to move my battery to the boot, I would..

I might add my 2 cents here.


My old magna had a number of things done to improve handling. I had KYB shocks fitted with King low springs, front strut brace, and rear adjustable sway bar. All done at different times.

The shocks and springs made it noticably firm, but not intolerable. It took a fair while to settle but once it did i like it. Lower CoG made heaps of difference through all corners. Understeer noticably reduced as was bodyroll

The rear swaybar made the biggest difference IMO. This really tightened the rear end up, reducing understeer further, and also dialling in a bit of lift off oversteer. This was on medium stiffness. On hardest setting it was too sketchy.

The strut brace was good too. That improved turn in and steering feel quite a bit.

Now on to the other issues. Weight, flex, and age.

Weight. Reducing this will improve handling charecteristics no end. In fact, placing weight in the right places will help. Problem with the magna is the big lump sitting right over the front wheels which you cant do much about.

Age. Bushes and other perishable bits can fail. Replace these for new genuine items. Try and steer clear of nolathane bushes etc as these dont go too well on a road driven car and can also fail. Better for trackwork.

Flex. Magnas are old. Design and technology is typical late 90's. improvements in chassis design and high strength metals means newer cars handle markedly better - Stock for stock that is. How can we improve the magna? One idea is to spot-weld the chassis in certain places to increase strength and torsion in certain areas like around the suspension towers and where the chassis is welded to the floorpan . Quite a big job, but i imagine if done right chassis flex should be considerably improved.

Hey guys,

This is from my point of view... well, since driving a few Magnas.
I have my turd 2.4l Magna on hard shocks and superlow springs, 205's, and every time I step into it, still feels like a bog-stock car.
Anyway, having bought Mike's old twin, I noticed that well, coilovers are extremely nice to drive with (would still prefer stiffer than the Hot Bits on now) but what really turns this Magna round the corners seem to be the grip from the LSD.

Also, have swapped from 235's on 18s to 225's on 17s now and have noticed a little difference when turning.

I might add my 2 cents here.

My old magna had a number of things done to improve handling. I had KYB shocks fitted with King low springs, front strut brace, and rear adjustable sway bar. All done at different times.

The shocks and springs made it noticably firm, but not intolerable. It took a fair while to settle but once it did i like it. Lower CoG made heaps of difference through all corners. Understeer noticably reduced as was bodyroll

The rear swaybar made the biggest difference IMO. This really tightened the rear end up, reducing understeer further, and also dialling in a bit of lift off oversteer. This was on medium stiffness. On hardest setting it was too sketchy.

The strut brace was good too. That improved turn in and steering feel quite a bit.

Now on to the other issues. Weight, flex, and age.

Weight. Reducing this will improve handling charecteristics no end. In fact, placing weight in the right places will help. Problem with the magna is the big lump sitting right over the front wheels which you cant do much about.

Age. Bushes and other perishable bits can fail. Replace these for new genuine items. Try and steer clear of nolathane bushes etc as these dont go too well on a road driven car and can also fail. Better for trackwork.

Flex. Magnas are old. Design and technology is typical late 90's. improvements in chassis design and high strength metals means newer cars handle markedly better - Stock for stock that is. How can we improve the magna? One idea is to spot-weld the chassis in certain places to increase strength and torsion in certain areas like around the suspension towers and where the chassis is welded to the floorpan . Quite a big job, but i imagine if done right chassis flex should be considerably improved.

THIS! Well, the last three points specifically. Emphasis on the perishable items like bushes and bearings.

Regardless of what your opinion is of the best mix with suspension/tyres, if you ignore a few sad bushes you're just wasting your money.