Questions about handling

[Nightrage]

Alright, i've got a handling fetish. I bought an 88 Formula and when i felt how that car handled, i was in awe. I want a 4th gen however so the 88 has got to go (not to mention the $1,200 is cost me in mechanical work in less than a week). My question is, how do other F-bodies handle? My stepdad has a 69' Z/28 RS but i have no idea what the handling is like on that. I hear that 2nd gens were just terrible alltogether as they had no power all and got poor gas mileage (this is just from what i've heard from other people). I hear that 3rd gens handle the best, followed by 4th gens. My friend has a 99 RS Camaro though and he says that the handling isn't all that great. Is that because it's just a base V6 model?

[Dave M]

In general, if you're comparing V8 cars, the advantage would go to the 4th gen, followed by the 3rd gen. The 4th gens have a Short/Long Arm front suspension setup that is superior to the 3rd gens macphereson strut design. The rear suspensions on the 3rd and 4th gens are identical. Where you really have to look is at the WS6/SS and firehawk/1LE cars. 3rd gens had a WS6 and 1LE vesion, but of course they were based on the macpherson strut design. The 4th gen WS6,SS,firehawk, and 1LE cars, with their stiffer springs and struts, and larger sway bars handled about as well as any car out there at the time, save for the high-dollar cars like viper, vette, and the exotics. I had an 88 GTA with the WS6 suspension, and I always thought it handled great (and it did!), but then I rode in my friends 96 SS, and bought a 97 WS6. The handling is night and day difference. The 4th gens are far superior, especially when your talking the WS6, SS, etc...

And you're correct, the RS has a base model V6 suspension. Not exactly set up to burn rubber around a track.

[xxRillixx]

What is the difference in suspension between a WS6 / SS vs the z28? What upgrades are recommended for better suspension (drag more then track)?

[N20LT4Bird]

Everyone always says the 4th gens handle better, but I had an 88 WS6 Formula 350 and I think it handled better than my current car. It felt lighter and more nimble. Maybe it was a false sense of handling, but I loved the way that car handled.

[markd79ta]

The 4th gen has the best overall design. Now, about the 2nd gens...a '70 R/A IV 400 puts out well over 300hp stock (330 I think) as well as the '71 & '72 455HOs. ...Solid lifters and a roller cam...see ya. The '73 & '74 SDs were also amazing... The '77-'79 W72s pere pretty good and perform well especially if they have the pellet cats taken off in place of the new technology and the car switched to true duals. The WS-6 cars like my '79 had rear discs and a sway bar in the rear. Early smog controls pretty much killed the cars from '75 through the mid to late 80s...some of that stuff was mid-evil.

Now, for the handling. There is a guy who ran his '71 (or '72...I can't remember which year) T/A 455 HO in the Rocky Mountain Solo 2 series who runs times with the M3s and C5s...different class all together...but that tells you what these cars can do. He annihilates me in my 4th gen. All he did to that car were bushings, ball joints, wheels, and tires; solid lifters and cam...everything else was stock. It was an amazing car...amazing driver too!!!

1st gens. Look up the '69 Z28 road racing legacy.

3rd gens. They were OK for the era, but McPherson struts in a performance car is not good. The steering wasn't all that great. My '90 was clumsy, it lost contact through jounce & rebound through turns as all McPherson strut cars do with their camber curve problem...it was so nice going from that car to my C4 I had at the time...what a huge difference in handling. The 4th gen is far more precise...with the right parts, it can tear up a track. Overall, the 4th gen is a pretty good car; although, some of the parts are kinda cheap especially the trailing arms and panhard rod. However, the '89 Turbo 20th Anniversary is one of the best f-bodies built...what an amazing car! ...still want one (even with the McPherson struts)

[Overworked]

In the 4th gen. cars the Front sway bar is about 3 mm bigger on the 1le cars vs. the norm. z-28 cars. The rear is about 2 mm bigger on the 1le. The V6 cars are about the same difference between the Z-28 and the V-6. I know as I changed my 93 to 1le sways front & rear. I compaired them to the V-6 and the old "standard" bars were as much bigger to the V-6 as the 1-le's are to them.

[Overworked]

Bet you did not know that there are 2 different Steering racks as well. One is a 3 turn and the other is a 2.75 turn.

[Christopherrr]

Everyone always says the 4th gens handle better, but I had an 88 WS6 Formula 350 and I think it handled better than my current car. It felt lighter and more nimble. Maybe it was a false sense of handling, but I loved the way that car handled.

You're not the only one...I still feel that my GTA felt lighter and more nimble than my TA. I know it's a false sense because numbers don't lie...3rd gens are more fun to drive in my opinion...

3rd gens can sear tracks with the right set-up...they did a handling test on a 89 z28 i think in GMHP...the 3rd gen lit up the track.

okay okay...enough about blabbing about 3rd gens...4th are superior, even if it's not that fun to drive. Steering is rack and pinion in 4th gens and recirculating ball in 3rd...r&p are better for feedback and more responsive.