Ground control conversion kit vs sport vs sport/school hybrid

[ewrjontan]

So I was hoping to snag some ground control coilovers this Black Friday. Unfortunately, it seems that they are closed on Friday and I was hoping to speak with the representatives there. Anyways, I currently have Broadway static coilovers and while I like them, the tears are just too low. I have them maxed out in height and they are maybe a 1/3 of an inch from tucking the lip of the wheel; not tire the rim itself. The height itself is probably fine for the track but what concerns me is the fact that my struts and strut sleeve are bolted together with a couple mm worth of threads; probably not a great idea to run those at the track.

i haven't taken this far out to the track yet but it will be going out this spring hopefully. The car will be mostly used on the track (I am a novice so nothing crazy; just open track days) however I will be driving to and from and will probably have a few weeks here and there where I will just drive it on the street; most of the bushings have been replaced with oem except for the rear subframe and rtabs which are 95A poly.

I am am interested in either grabbing the coilovers conversion kit; the one that requires the use of oem strut sleeves. I have a few questions though.

Are you able to select custom spring rates with that kit? The site says they come with specific spring rates however, they also leave an option to enter your own rates.

I believe the full kits have shortened strut housings; so does this mean that the conversion kit will sit higher?

along with this kit I was planning on getting the gc camber plates (without caster adjustment) and the gc rsms. Will this kit be any different than their full kits?

Are the shocks included in the kit adjustable from the top? Does this apply to all of their coilovers kits?


If i if I decide to go with one of their full kits (either the sport or the medium school/street) are there any differences besides the camber plates? As far as I know, the $80 difference gets you adjustable caster. As a novice I feel like I do not need the caster adjustment so is there any reason to fork out the money for the medium school/sport hybrid kit? I guess I can pick spring rates too. Any recommendations?



again, would have preferred to speak with someone at ground control but they are closed and the Black Friday discounts end on Sunday so most likely I will not be able to get ahold of anyone until then.


Thansk

[gingerELITE]

I have the Sport Coilovers in my M3. The only difference between the Sport and the Hybrid kit is the camber plates. I actually was planning on ordering the hybrid kit and when I called with questions I ended up switching to the Sport kit, apparently the hybrid camber plates can be noisy on the street and since I wouldn't be utilizing the added adjustment it just wasn't worth it.

I can't comment on different heights between the conversion kit and the sport kit, I've never seen/driven a car on the conversion kit, but the adjustment range is far more than I need on the Sport kit. It can actually go taller than stock, and has probably 3" of adjustment.

All of their full coilover kits do have adjustable damping from the top with zero tools (assuming you don't have a strut tower brace that covers them, that is).

I have 440# front and 550# rear springs and they are absolutely perfect on the street. I have had the car on the track a few times, and they're a little soft for that but not bad at all.

Overall, I have been extremely impressed with the kit and would recommend it to anyone. It rides fantastically, and the build quality is next level. It has surpassed my expectations in every way.

[TostitoBandito]

I own the hybrid track/street kit with 440#/550# springs.

In addition to caster adjustment, the hybrid plates are built differently for more rigidity and durability for track use, at the cost of a bit more NVH (but still fine for street IMO). They aren't as solid/harsh as their race plates though. If you plan on tracking your car I'd suggest the hybrid or race GC plates or the Vorshlag camber plates, and would discourage the cheaper street plates.

If you can't get a hold of anyone at GC, you can probably just make an order for one of the kits and put a note in there that you want someone to call you to discuss what's best for your application. I'm sure they'd let you switch your order around and keep the discount when you get a chance to talk to them.

[bluptgm3]

This isn’t discussed much, if at all, it is a benefit and should be known...and I had forgotten about it myself.
Ground Control builds their own casings and in doing so they build in extra offset from the Strut-to-King Pin attachments. I believe as result one can run 8 1/2” ET 41 wheels up front in a 1996+M3 chassis without spacers and no rubbing.

You can see the extended attachments in these images-
https://groundcontrolstore.com/colle...nt=35655052739

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[ewrjontan]

Thanks for the input. Are the 440/550 springs the standard rates that come with the conversion kit and sport kits? Any suggestions for slightly stiffer/more track oriented spring rates?

[TostitoBandito]

Thanks for the input. Are the 440/550 springs the standard rates that come with the conversion kit and sport kits? Any suggestions for slightly stiffer/more track oriented spring rates?

Yes I'd suggest stiffer springs for a more track-focused setup, though it will be rough on the street. 440/550 is about as stiff as I wanted to go on my daily driver.

I'm not sure what all the options are, I think it says to talk to GC to select your rates when you order on their site.

[DocWyte]

Yes, I run 17x8.5 ET 41 Kosei K1's with 245-40-17 Michelin Pilot Super Sports with no running at all in the front. Full GC Race coilovers on my car...

[ewrjontan]

Cool, so I'll probably just order now and talk with them about spring rates. Any other input on the differences between the conversion kit and their full kits?

I have no problem cutting up my old stock strut sleeves and doing the conversion kit, but if it isn't going to be as good as the full kits or won't have as much height adjustability then that to me isn't worth saving a couple hundred bucks :/

[bluptgm3]

I would go with their struts/casings. No personal experience.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[TostitoBandito]

I'd also go with their struts. That also allows you to go back to stock if you ever want to for any reason, assuming you retain the original parts.

[ewrjontan]

Well, I am currently on Broadway Static coilovers. I've had my old oem struts just sitting in my garage doing nothing :/

[tsmith25]

I can't comment on their strut housings. I do have experience with their bottom level setup. I had the cut a strut kit with their street camber plates on my old 95 with 440/550 rates. That seems to be what they recommend when dd/road is the primary use based everybody's responses. I just finished installing a less than ideal temporary setup using their coilover conversion kit. It just comes with the sleeves and springs for the front, and springs and adjusters in the back, no struts or shocks. I am using struts and shocks that I already had, Bilstein b8's in the front and BC type BR in the back, till I can fund a better set.

After my experience with the 440/550, I choose to get higher rates. I ended up going with 525/600 this time. The off the shelf Bilsteins actually handle the 525lb springs pretty well. Unfortunately, the BC rear shocks(damping is adjusted all the way stiff) are not quite up to the 600lb rear springs. Most of the time its fine, but on sharp rises, primarily badly made bridge transitions, which I am finding our we have a lot of around Tampa, the rear launches me a little. When I get some better quality rear shocks, I don't see any problem using these rates for a dual duty car. Mine is actually my daily at this point.

When I get to that point, I am considering either sticking with ground control and getting some double adjustables from them, or the comparable setup from TC Kline. I will likely split that purchase, and get the rears as soon as I can.

[propcar]

I don't remember exactly how accurate this is, but I seem to remember using their actual struts had a suspension travel advantage over the conversion... maybe someone can comment on this.

If financially possible, I'd go with the full setup. Also read about someone using Z4 struts on an E36... maybe something to look into.