DSE Coil Over Kit Questions

[ItDoRun]

Guys,
I'm wanting to run the DSE front coil over kit on my 68 Camaro and have a question concernig the a-arms. I had bought a set of GW UCA's back in February and was wondering if I could use them along with the DSE LCA's and their coil over kit. I've tried talking to Kyle @ DSE, but he's "limited" as to what he can tell me regarding this. Is there major differences regarding the geometry between the GW arms and DSE UCA's?

[Teetoe_Jones]

Limited- I like that, very clever.

Let's put it this way- You can use any aftermarket upper control arm with that conversion. The Global West arm will give you more initial caster than the DSE one will. The GW will also work with the DSE lower.

Hope that helps.


Tyler

[Steve68]

What about the ATS coilover kit??

[ItDoRun]

That's what I needed to hear. Thanks for the input.

[ItDoRun]

One other question. Is the DSE coil over kit worth the $$$ or would a QA1 coil over kit work just as well? What are your thoughts concerning QA1 vs. the Koni set up DSE offers?

Steve,
ATS has their own coil over set up? Or is it the QA1 kit I see on their site?

[Bowtieracing]

Being "limited" on information is something new from Kyle. Sad to hear. He has been very helpfull on my questions.

[camcojb]

Being "limited" on information is something new from Kyle. Sad to hear. He has been very helpfull on my questions.

Without complete testing Kyle will not endorse something. That's a good thing to me. That doesn't mean it won't work, just that he has not tried and tested it. I don't see how using that other upper a-arm is going to cause an issue, but I'm not a suspension engineer like he is.

Jody

[Jr]

Steve,
Good question...

What about the ATS coilover kit??

[Stuart Adams]

Kyle is always great to talk to about products and such. There are libility issues that no one thinks about involved with engineering parts and selling them to the public. He can't just say "oh go ahead and try these pieces they may work together" without proper testing and such.

GM does alot of testing of their products before selling them to us, same kinda thing.

They are using the new corvette spindle on the new sub just because it has went thru rigorous testing and breaking before the final one was engineered and produced.

[Teetoe_Jones]

One other question. Is the DSE coil over kit worth the $$$ or would a QA1 coil over kit work just as well? What are your thoughts concerning QA1 vs. the Koni set up DSE offers?

Steve,
ATS has their own coil over set up? Or is it the QA1 kit I see on their site?

The QA1 coil over setup is a good street performer, but it will require use of a tubular lower control arm, as a factory arm is not designed to bear the load on the 2 shock bolt holes. The main thing with the QA1 setup is it is not a "true" coil over shock assembly like the DSE version. The upper portion of the coil spring is still retained by the frame, where the DSE Koni setup retains the spring on the shock assembly.

The QA1 allows for ride height adjustment with out removing anything from the vehicle, and is a bolt in item.

The DSE coil over kit requires engine removal to weld in, and relocates the upper control arm pivot points for a slight geometry gain over factory. The main down side is that the coil over is NOT adjustable in car. It must be removed to adjust ride height, often taking multiple stabs at nailing a stance, and defeating the purpose of having the adjustment of a coil over kit.

We will offer a weld in coil over kit shortly that does not require engine removal, does not alter upper control arm geometry (Guldstrand or stock frame users can both use this kit) and it will allow for full ride height adjustment in car. We are offering 2 shocks for use with our setup, an aluminum Bilstein, and a double adjustable Penske with remote reservior.

Regarding control arms-
While Kyle has his reasons for not commenting on others control arms, we have done all the testing and engineering on ALL the arms that are worth their own weight for the 1st gen. I can say GW arms will work, as will Speedtech, DSE and SC&C with his coil over kit. We even have all geometry gains for each arm with the guldstrand, stock and DSE mounting locations. I will never hesitate to give good sound advice on any product we recommend, such as Global West, SC&C and DSE.

Tyler

[Stuart Adams]

Tyler, thanks for the info. Much too compicated for me. I just get in and drive, LOL.

[DR69SS]

Thanks for this information. I am getting close to select front suspension for my resto project. Inclined into DSE but not sure. Today I was given some good information by ATS Staff, but still do not know.

Tony

[ItDoRun]

I guess I stated the verbage in my original post deceivingly. By no means am I complaining about Kyle. I understand his position with me asking him if a competitors product will work in conjunction with his. I think Kyle and his group have the best group of people and customer service I have dealt with so far. He can expect a ton of business from me within the next 3-6 months...maybe sooner. Thanks for all the help with the front suspension questions I had.