Hoping you guys can offer some advice or direct me to a specialist who maybe wouldn't mind talking with me about my Shelby.
So I've had this car since nearly new (5000 miles) - it came with the Ford Racing handling pack (m-fr3a-msvta) and maximum motorsports Caster/camber plates (MM5CC-1). However I didn't get the alignment specs.
Well fast forward 8 years (back in 2018 or so) and I replace the shocks/struts/springs. Lived in an area that had some poor local roads and felt they might need replacing (in hindsight this was probably a bad idea).
Go for a alignment from a reputable alignment shop (based of asking around, various reviews etc - by no means a performance specific shop) and haven't been happy since. Feel like the steering wheel has a little play (not enough, but enough to bother me), is more influenced by imperfections in the road, and at high speeds the front gets kinda light and it almost feels scary.
It's fine under 60mph, but who wants to keep their Shelby under 60mph? I'll never be able to drag the car at a track as it either. The car used to drive like it was on rails. I could hit crowns/imperfections and it would still drive straight, even with my hand off the wheel. The wheel had no play in it, etc. Was a joy to drive.
Ever since that change, I've been playing with trying to get it back to like it was. I've had alignments done multiple times, I've had the struts out a few times trying to see if maybe fitment was off or something small was missed. Even tried pulling the caster/camber as I feel trying to chase down the proper alignment with them is turning out to be way harder than I would have ever expected. I can't come up with any smoking guns.
Anyway, I'm willing to try a different brand of struts. Even willing to change springs (but hoping to find one that'll work well with the M-5300-L's that are in the car).
Anyone have the M-5300-Ls (or the ford handling pack I have) and changed to a non-ford strut? Any recommendations? Any alignment gurus who maybe have this pack and caster/cambers that could share alignment specs I could maybe try on my car (I realize each car is slighty different).
Anyway, appreciate your guys' time - I know this likely isn't a simple answer, but I'm kind of out of ideas and I don't want to just 'live with it'.
So I've had this car since nearly new (5000 miles) - it came with the Ford Racing handling pack (m-fr3a-msvta) and maximum motorsports Caster/camber plates (MM5CC-1). However I didn't get the alignment specs.
Well fast forward 8 years (back in 2018 or so) and I replace the shocks/struts/springs. Lived in an area that had some poor local roads and felt they might need replacing (in hindsight this was probably a bad idea).
Go for a alignment from a reputable alignment shop (based of asking around, various reviews etc - by no means a performance specific shop) and haven't been happy since. Feel like the steering wheel has a little play (not enough, but enough to bother me), is more influenced by imperfections in the road, and at high speeds the front gets kinda light and it almost feels scary.
It's fine under 60mph, but who wants to keep their Shelby under 60mph? I'll never be able to drag the car at a track as it either. The car used to drive like it was on rails. I could hit crowns/imperfections and it would still drive straight, even with my hand off the wheel. The wheel had no play in it, etc. Was a joy to drive.
Ever since that change, I've been playing with trying to get it back to like it was. I've had alignments done multiple times, I've had the struts out a few times trying to see if maybe fitment was off or something small was missed. Even tried pulling the caster/camber as I feel trying to chase down the proper alignment with them is turning out to be way harder than I would have ever expected. I can't come up with any smoking guns.
Anyway, I'm willing to try a different brand of struts. Even willing to change springs (but hoping to find one that'll work well with the M-5300-L's that are in the car).
Anyone have the M-5300-Ls (or the ford handling pack I have) and changed to a non-ford strut? Any recommendations? Any alignment gurus who maybe have this pack and caster/cambers that could share alignment specs I could maybe try on my car (I realize each car is slighty different).
Anyway, appreciate your guys' time - I know this likely isn't a simple answer, but I'm kind of out of ideas and I don't want to just 'live with it'.