Here goes. I did a search and really couldn't get the answer I was looking for.

Here is a list of suspension products I am buying. Fill free to tell me if some of them are useless.
1. L-tuned steering ECU
2. TRD front and rear sway bars
3. HR springs
4. Tom's upper front strut bar
5. Tom's rear upper strut brace
6. Tom's rear lower suspension brace

Now for my question. Are the Tom's front lower chassis brace and rear lower chassis brace really neccessary for the GS? I mean unless your pushing tremendous HP and afraid of the chassis twisting off the line do they really help in everyday (I drive fast) driving? I didn't want to waste the money on them if they really don't show an improvement (noticable improvement)

Thanks for your guys help

 

I would add L-tuned shocks to that list too. Don't just change the springs (I am assuming you are putting in the shorter H&R springs), as that can cause problems with the OEM shocks due to an incompatible spring/shock combination.

As far as the lower suspension braces go, I think the main benefit of those is tightening up the lower part of the car's frame to the suspension - so this benefits cornering as well as off-the line driving. But more so in cornering. They are a must-do mod IMO.

That is a very good set of first mods to do. I did almost the exact same set of first mods to my 99 GS400, and I can tell you that you will be driving a completely different car. Pleasantly different I might add! You will especially notice the difference if you are a fast driver.

 

You might want to look into the Daizen sways. A few members that have those on their GS right now speak highly of them and say they dont degrade the ride quality as bad as the TRD sways. I think lexforlife has them on his and he just did a very good write up about it. So good it made me change my mind and decide to go with the Daizen. Good luck

 

Well you haven't included the Tom's front lower brace in your list so I assume you're not getting that. Since the car already has a front lower brace and it's not as noticeable a piece as the sways for example, I agree with you not having it on your initial list, but the Tom's rear lower brace is a monster piece and there's nothing on the car stock and I think it makes a nice difference especially combined with the upper rear brace.

But as Hameed says, don't put on new springs without changing the stock shocks.

 

Aplus

regarding your choice of susp mods, imo you headed in the right direction. i have just got my daizen adj sways on my car (1 of 10 out right now) and let me tell you , a whole diff car . no degradation in ride at all in fact to me feels smoother because its controlling more of the top of the spring float that occurs.

my suggestion , before getting into lower control bars , do your properly matched shock/spring set up then your at the very least upper strut bar for extreme cornering ridgedness then your sways to bring it all together.( i highly reccomend the daizens) and i think you will find the other braces not cost effective or necc.


on a side note , yesterday on the 826 here in south fla , theres a curve i like to drive fast and i always use that curve to tell me whats going on with my susp . i usually take it between 80-110 , 110 being alittle uncomfotable with the stock sways , well yesterday i hit that curve a 120 mph + and could not believe how in control i felt kinda like 1 finger on the wheel sort of thing as compared to needing 2 hands on the wheel to control car

take that for whats its worth.

 

i have the trd sways now, and i am getting the daizen sways this week. if you can wait, i can give you my two cents on the difference too

 

The Tom's front lower brace made a difference I could feel over the stock brace. I already had the front and rear strut bars, HA coilovers and Volks when I put the brace on and it made a big difference in the sounds and shudders that were getting transmitted to the cabin. I think the swing-arms are what made the difference in my setup.

 

Rominl,
I'm definitely waiting for your comparison of sways. You're one of the few people that will actually have tried both and can analyze the difference. PS - I can offer to drive your car so you can get a second opinion !

I've had almost all the standard suspension mods for a couple of years already. Last week I added all of the TOM's F & R LCB's and 6 link. All I can tell you is my handling feels like it's up another notch. I felt the difference going as slow as 40mph on sharp turns and especially at 100+ mph on sweeping mountain roads.(HWY 152) The car is just more planted, more responsive and more controlled. This set of suspension mods should probably be last on the list, but all I can tell you is that it brings the car up to a whole new level.

NOTE: Most posts I've read from those who have done these TOM's mods have installed them progressively or only did 1 or 2 pieces, and have commented that the improvements are small or hardly noticeable. Since I did the whole "system" at once, this could explain why my thoughts are different than others.

 

update guys, my daizen sways are on already i will be able to do some testing this coming weekend, stay tuned

and now, who wants to buy a 1/2 yr used (6000 miles) trd sways good condition for a GOOD price?

 

Drove down to the Carson meet with L-Tuned S/S + TRD Blue sways. Drove up with Tein Flex (at 0/0) and Daizen sways. Two different experiences. The drive down was harsh. I felt everything. I-5 has some pretty bad spots. The drive up was soft and muted. Muted meaning I did not feel as connected to the road, but that may be that I need to play with the Flex settings to find a good medium. At 0/0, it actually felt softer than the L-Tuned S/S combo.

As for the sways, you can search for my initial feedback about the TRDs. I liked the handling improvement but was bothered by the side-to-side translation of bumps on uneven roads. I eventually got used to it but passengers who aren't in the car everyday always notice it. With the Daizens, this issue is virtually gone. I still get it on a really bad road sections but I think it would have been bad without the sways. On everyday driving, I could not really discern a handling degradation from the TRDs. I took a few turns/onramps/offramps a little hard and was still confident of staying in control. I felt a little lean here and there but I am not sure if it is just my soft Flex setting.

I mentioned the Flex only because I changed out 2 components and did not want to infer that the change in ride quality was affected by the Daizens only. For comparison purposes, I also have the UGO FSTB, TRD FLCB, Tom's RLCB, and Tom's 6-link. The ride feels pretty good now even with all these additional braces. Once I get a good balanced setting for the Flex, I think the ride/handling will be awesome. (I need the EDFC. )

Hope this helps.

Last (but not least), I wanted to thank Todd @TMEngineering for installing everything and working with me on getting the Flex (height) adjusted.

 

neo, try to set the flex to 5 in the front and 4 in the back. that's what i am at and i quite like it