new owner / 2000 ls

[elephantrider]

just bought a new / old ls. gen 1 model with 97k on the clock.
had a misfire on #6, changed the coils / plugs, now all good.
anyway - next is some springs, as the previous owner simply
cut the stock ones to get lower. that will be remedied shortly.

all in all, its a really nice car for the low price i got it at, and
should be a fairly solid daily beater until i get the gto back
on the road.

some good info on here as well. not even close to my first
rodeo on car forums, so plan on doing some good reading
over the next few days.

 

[SoulSoak]

Welcome to LvC. The car looks great !!!

 

[FDR]

Welcome. It looks good! What kind of wheels are those and what size are they? I'm digging the concave spokes. I'm liking the color-matched grille, too. I might actually like that color now (entirely just preference).

I'd love to see a chine spoiler on your car. If you happen to be in Plainfield, NJ, I can show you how to fit it around the OEM piece and keep your stock splash gaurd mounts. Wikipedia brings up 18 Plainfields, though, with one being in Canada

 

[elephantrider]

...........

 

[elephantrider]

Rims are 18x8's - 2crave mach 5's.

 

[G-RELL]

welcome... lots of cool stuff you can do (aesthetically anyways).

GL

 

[elephantrider]

rear view

 

[FDR]

Rims are 18x8's - 2crave mach 5's.

Thanks. Seeing them online by themselves doesn't do them justice. I remember coming across them a while back

 

[1LoudLS]

love that color!

 

[elephantrider]

took the 1st road trip to my farm, about 130 miles north of austin. beautiful day for
a cruise with the fam. filled up this morning with 93 and we hit the road.

cha ching -

loaded the fam up -

farm shot -

some of the lady's lined up for you freakie deakies on here

car is a fantastic cruiser, even with the lowering springs. plenty of power.
not like the gto, but ample. comfy seats, too !

 

[embe]

rear view

I could live with that for a beater.

 

[RigsLS]

Looks good for sure, cut springs I would leave for a while, looks great at that height.

 

[elephantrider]

arent the eibach springs the same lowering amount ? 1.25", right ?
the springs move around in the cups, and makes a bit of noise, as
that is not the proper way to lower, so i want to change it up anyway.

will check front end bushes / tie rods while im doing that, too.

 

[RigsLS]

Mine on Eibach does not sit as low as yours on the stock cut springs.

~ looks to me like your cut stocks rides lower.

 

[elephantrider]

do you have any wider shots of your car ? would like to see the full
body and see what it looks like. i dont want to go any higher, but
cut springs are for beginners.

 

[RigsLS]

That's on 19" wheels and I should point out that the front Eibach springs where installed previous summer and the rears were only installed this past summer, on which I didn't put many miles on at all, perhaps a weeks worth of driving this past fall, so the rear still needs to settle somewhat compared to the front.

I had my LS on stands for 11 months reworking the entire underneath, majority of the suspension components, including OEM Sport shocks.

Lot of cosmetic bodywork was completed as well, basically I didn't get to driving it much this summer, had it out a bit here and there in November of this year (2014)

I've seen pics of other members that had cut springs and I think that might be something I could see myself doing later on, think it lowers it to where it should be. IMO

 

[elephantrider]

okay, yeah that isnt as low, but it sure looks fantastic on those 19's.

so, no other option on springs except the 1" eibachs.. i tried searching,
but has anyone cross referenced another model of spring that would
work on the ls with a 1.5" or 2" drop ?

 

[1LoudLS]

there used to be a couple of other options, all of which have stopped being made.

well there is one other option but its not just a cheap set of springs, as far as performance goes, they are the best. as far as how low they go, again they are the best. and adjustable too!

 

[RigsLS]

http://www.lincolnvscadillac.com/fo...Thread&p=2037213111&viewfull=1#post2037213111

Stance Coilovers ~ they are rather pricey but adjustable, member Bullschmidt has them on his ride.

more ... http://www.lincolnvscadillac.com/fo...Thread&p=2037217053&viewfull=1#post2037217053

 

[elephantrider]

i run coilovers on my gto. while they do fit that application very well, not sure i want
to have them on the sled, so will probably just go with the eibach replacements.

..and they do look absolutely astonishing on his ride, for sure ! wow.

 

[RigsLS]

Up to you of course (as always), just saying that your cut springs look great at that height and if it's not causing a problem, why not ride them out until they are done.
I'd be more worried about actual worn out shocks and end linkages on that 2000 LS ... and really you might need to save some funds for the cooling system & secondary timing chain tentioners.

Up to you ... I like how your LS looks at that ride height.

 

[elephantrider]

i will be rebuilding the suspension this winter for sure. upper arms / end links / ties, etc..
it does have just a bit of clunks in the front end, more than likely worn out front shocks,
but figure some of the noise is due to the coils moving around in the buckets with the cut
ends.

i need to get it up on the lift and check it out.

the cooling system was changed out around ~80k miles. new t stat / hoses / dccv / coolant
flush. should be good on those items.

have thought about the chain tensioners, but figure if that happens, i'll pull this motor out
and send it to mihovetz for some "work"

 

[RigsLS]

There are some JAG sway bar bushing available for the 1st GEN that are a much better fitment then those "too narrow" Universal Energy Suspension bushings and brackets ... when you get to it.

A clunking sound over light bumps in the roads are most likely worn out front sway bar bushings. a light thumping sound.

you can find info on the JAG bushings in the "what did you do to your LS today" thread. Search or ask.

On the rear end links, you can put some cheaper DEEZA links in, they aren't passive steering but it's not enough race car to notice the difference, I put the DEEZA's in and it rides just fine.

MOOG for front and rear sway bar end linkages is always a good bet.



BTW: I have the 1st GEN workshop repair manual on DVD, if you need anything.
Can also find resellers on eBay for those. 2nd GEN repair manual is available here online.

 

[RigsLS]

BTW: check out PaulyG's cut Eibach springs when you get a chance.

http://www.lincolnvscadillac.com/fo...hread!&p=2037337936&viewfull=1#post2037337936

 

[elephantrider]

bigrig thanks for that info. I'll be ordering parts 1st week of the new year so that really helps.

Specifically, what year model third and jag have interchangeable with the gen1 ls?