What's the Best Handling Upgrade for a FWD Car (minus tires)?

"Long Live the Longdoor" (victoryred08) 01/13/2014 at 20:52 • Filed to: None

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I'm looking to upgrade the handling on FWD car. What's the best handling upgrade for my hard earned dollar, other than tires (I got some of those already).

Bandit > Long Live the Longdoor 01/13/2014 at 20:54

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A giant splitter, a massive spoiler, and loud graphics.

Vtech-Zach > Long Live the Longdoor 01/13/2014 at 20:54

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Sway bars, better handling without a harsher ride. Otherwise shocks, lowering springs or coilovers.

Forgetful > Long Live the Longdoor 01/13/2014 at 20:54

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Simplify and add lightness

Velocity- Peuguette Connoisseur > Long Live the Longdoor 01/13/2014 at 20:55

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fart can exhaust

/sarcasm

SPNKiX > Long Live the Longdoor 01/13/2014 at 20:55

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I prefer the natural color- more anatomically correct.

TheJWT > Long Live the Longdoor 01/13/2014 at 20:55

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Stickers

Blondude > Long Live the Longdoor 01/13/2014 at 20:56

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RWD swap

Brian Silvestro > Forgetful 01/13/2014 at 20:57

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This. Take shit out. It adds fun.

jsmizira > Long Live the Longdoor 01/13/2014 at 20:57

5

Track days with an instructor. And that handling improvement goes with you from car to car.

LeadfootYT > Long Live the Longdoor 01/13/2014 at 20:57

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Check out the Mighty Car Mods episode on chassis bracing.

Beyond that, stiffer springs. And maybe struts. But that's a good one to save until you need to do a suspension refresh.

N/A POWAAAHH > Long Live the Longdoor 01/13/2014 at 20:57

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Sways

Casper > Long Live the Longdoor 01/13/2014 at 21:01

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Stiffening features like sway bars would be a big one, maybe shocks/springs depending on the factory setup. It all depends by what you mean by "upgrade". A car setup for a smooth a tight autocross track might be board rigid with absurdly fat sway bars, but the same car might be rear loose and lighter on the stiffening on a bumpy road course.

It really would depend more on what the car is for.

SavyJalop > Long Live the Longdoor 01/13/2014 at 21:01

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custom tuned dampers.. this will take any FWD car and make it fun and easy to drive round corners.

shpuker > Long Live the Longdoor 01/13/2014 at 21:09

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Sway bars, better shocks/springs/coilovers if you wanna go a bit further. Tires certainly help a lot though.

Long Live the Longdoor > Bandit 01/13/2014 at 21:10

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That's it. I need more coffee tables on the front AND back of my car!

And let's be real Bandit, I asked about handling upgrades and we all know loud graphics add horsepower, not lateral g's!

NoahthePorscheGuy > Long Live the Longdoor 01/13/2014 at 21:10

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Not a rear spoiler, that is for sure.

Long Live the Longdoor > jsmizira 01/13/2014 at 21:11

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I've actually looked into doing this, good tip!

Grindintosecond > Long Live the Longdoor 01/13/2014 at 21:31

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Stickers!!

Long Live the Longdoor > shpuker 01/13/2014 at 21:35

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Sway bars seems to be the general consensus. Whiteline has a rear swaybar for my car and I've discovered my car actually doesn't have a rear swaybar from the factory :S

TheD0k_2many toys 2little time > Long Live the Longdoor 01/13/2014 at 21:37

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Sell car.

Buy miata.

Smile instantly.

Long Live the Longdoor > Casper 01/13/2014 at 21:39

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A Heavy Chevy - 2011 Cruze. It's my DD, but plan on doing some autocross. It doesn't have any rear swaybars stock...

Long Live the Longdoor > Velocity- Peuguette Connoisseur 01/13/2014 at 21:43

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I'd imagine that if I did a side exit exhaust, I'd get better at turning in at least one direction, right?

RidgeFish > Long Live the Longdoor 01/13/2014 at 21:43

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Looks like everything else is covered, so while it is not a handling specific item per-se, how about a limited slip diff? You may not apex that corner faster, but you sure will exit it faster.

Velocity- Peuguette Connoisseur > Long Live the Longdoor 01/13/2014 at 21:44

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lol

Long Live the Longdoor > TheD0k_2many toys 2little time 01/13/2014 at 21:45

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When I'm up to buy my next car, I'm buying a Miata. Until then, I'm saving my monies with my economy car and my wife is buying an SUV. I'm biding my time, dreaming of Miatas.

thereisnospork > Long Live the Longdoor 01/13/2014 at 21:47

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Front Wing!

shpuker > Long Live the Longdoor 01/13/2014 at 22:14

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Rear should balance it out. Stiffer front sway should get rid of some understeer.

Vernon > Long Live the Longdoor 01/13/2014 at 22:25

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Best upgrade in handling for dollar spent on that car? Move the battery to the trunk. You can do it right for less than $100. A performance spec alignment would come in 2nd for benefits to dollars. Max out the front caster with some decent negative camber in the front. For the rear a hair of toe out will wake the rear of the car up. After that you'll have to spend real money for a big aftermarket rear sway bar unless you can find an OEM bar in a salvage that fits it, like off a performance version of the same GM platform. If there's a rear bar in the yard, you're still under $300 total and your car is transformed.

THOMAS5 > Long Live the Longdoor 01/13/2014 at 22:28

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Stance bro

/sarcasm

Stupidru > shpuker 01/13/2014 at 22:29

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Shouldn't a stiffer front bar actually induce more understeer?

briannutter1 > Long Live the Longdoor 01/13/2014 at 22:36

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Lsd and bars

shpuker > Stupidru 01/13/2014 at 22:49

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Depends. over stiffening could. Could help reduce corner dive in as well though, assuming it's properly tuned.

aquila121 > Forgetful 01/14/2014 at 01:40

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Gut it!

Casper > Long Live the Longdoor 01/14/2014 at 10:05

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Chevy Cruze aren't really built very well, so you will be fighting the cost cutting they did more than anything. For instance, you have a very simplistic rear end in the form of a torsion beam, so you will automatically have issues trying to stiffen the system up without losing performance. You are also fighting the massive weight to power of the car and that it is FWD. Over or under stiffen and you will fight wheel hop and understeer. Pushing over 4,000 lbs into the front tires at speed just isn't a winning formula.

My suggestion would be to do one of the following: buy a cheap second car for autocross or run the Cruze the way it is. It's just not going to be worth doing the amount of work and testing to improve the Cruze when it was essentially designed to be disposable.

Makoyouidiot > Long Live the Longdoor 01/14/2014 at 13:34

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On an unrelated note, that is the only Chevy Cruze I've ever looked at where I've immediately thought, "God damn that's sexy!"

Long Live the Longdoor > Makoyouidiot 01/14/2014 at 14:21

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A set of black bezeled headlights really improve how the car looks. That and a good set of aftermarket rims (not that those are the best).

I_AmDeath > Long Live the Longdoor 01/16/2014 at 23:18

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Better springs,sway bars,bushings,Strut braces.

Pabuuu, JDM car enthusiast & Italian parts hoarder > Long Live the Longdoor 01/17/2014 at 16:42

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I really like the look of your car.