DIY: ARK Performance GT-F Lowering Springs Installation Guide

[socalvn]

Are the torque specs the same for RWD? Having some noises up front after a spring install and I want to make sure everything is tightened to specs.

Check your swaybar end links and make sure there tight that's a easy way for noise to travel

 

[Knuxr]

Check your swaybar end links and make sure there tight that's a easy way for noise to travel

Fore sure I'm triple checking everything at this point, they seemed good to me. I get the noise more so at slow speeds and bumps.

 

[I'm Tony Danza]

Fore sure I'm triple checking everything at this point, they seemed good to me. I get the noise more so at slow speeds and bumps.

Did you torque everything with the suspension loaded? I.e. jack up the suspension (replicating the car being on the ground) with the wheels removed and then torque. You need to have both sides equal for the sway bar links to be correct, btw. You can’t have one side loaded and the other unloaded.

I have a link to the factory service manual in one of these threads. There will be a separate RWD section, so go off those listed specs.

 

[socalvn]

yeah if the end links are adjustable you need to be sure they have zero preload set the car on the ground roll it forward and backwards then turn it till you're in a neutral position no play you can do one side and then tighten it down but first just make sure the actual bolts that hold it on are secure.

 

[Knuxr]

Did you torque everything with the suspension loaded? I.e. jack up the suspension (replicating the car being on the ground) with the wheels removed and then torque. You need to have both sides equal for the sway bar links to be correct, btw. You can’t have one side loaded and the other unloaded.

I have a link to the factory service manual in one of these threads. There will be a separate RWD section, so go off those listed specs.

This was done at a shop and they said they didn’t remove the sway bar links to install the front springs. I think I’m gonna bring it to another shop for a second opinion on it. I don’t have to jacks at home to do this.

 

[I'm Tony Danza]

This was done at a shop and they said they didn’t remove the sway bar links to install the front springs. I think I’m gonna bring it to another shop for a second opinion on it. I don’t have to jacks at home to do this.

That's curious that they didn't remove the link from the strut, as that is by far the easiest/basic step in the process. Makes me wonder if they skip that step of how well they followed other steps, especially proper torque specs/techniques.

Can you describe the sound for us? Clunk, thud, higher pitched, etc...? Without knowing, my initial guess would be the top strut nut to the top hat, as that is a popular one to not tighten down correctly.

 

[Knuxr]

That's curious that they didn't remove the link from the strut, as that is by far the easiest/basic step in the process. Makes me wonder if they skip that step of how well they followed other steps, especially proper torque specs/techniques.

Can you describe the sound for us? Clunk, thud, higher pitched, etc...? Without knowing, my initial guess would be the top strut nut to the top hat, as that is a popular one to not tighten down correctly.

I contacted Ark and they believe it is the lower sway bar bolts, also took it to another shop for a second opinion and they agree after taking it for a test drive and looking at it. I am going to have my mechanic try to tighten these bolts as it seems multiple people think thats whats causing the sound.

As for the sound its like a clunk when going over bumps at slow speeds up to 40ish.

 

[I'm Tony Danza]

I contacted Ark and they believe it is the lower sway bar bolts, also took it to another shop for a second opinion and they agree after taking it for a test drive and looking at it. I am going to have my mechanic try to tighten these bolts as it seems multiple people think thats whats causing the sound.

As for the sound its like a clunk when going over bumps at slow speeds up to 40ish.

The end link is usually the culprit and easy to fix. I thought they didn’t take it off, which confused me. If it were me, I would bring in the factory specs for all the nuts that were loosened/removed and have the shop take 20 minutes to torque them correctly. Everything is quick and accessible.

 

[Knuxr]

The end link is usually the culprit and easy to fix. I thought they didn’t take it off, which confused me. If it were me, I would bring in the factory specs for all the nuts that were loosened/removed and have the shop take 20 minutes to torque them correctly. Everything is quick and accessible.

I indeed plan on doing that, just to make sure. I appreciate the help!

 

[socalvn]

yeah mine did the same thing on the driver side it wasn't super loose just a little bit but made a world of difference tighten it up all the noise went away

 

[Knuxr]

It ended up being the top strut nut on the passenger side, all noise gone! Thanks for all the help!

 

[I'm Tony Danza]

It ended up being the top strut nut on the passenger side, all noise gone! Thanks for all the help!

Nice! Enjoy the newly lowered car as it was intended.

 

[AA95101]

Just finished my install over the last two days and i wanted to give some feedback:

Honestly it wasn't as bad as people made it sound. While it does require what I would consider a moderate amount of skill and the right tools it was pretty straight forward. Overall I love the feeling of these springs and i actually think it improves the ride quality over stock. Its a bit less harsh over larger bumps compared to OEM though I may feel a little more road quality through the suspension now. Overall I think it was a great addition and Im very happy with it

Front Install tips/process:

-Disconnect sway bar links
-Disconnect Steering tie rod
-Unmounted brake line bracket & electrical sensors bracket(wasn't sure if this was necessary but its super easy and worth not damaging anything)
-Loosen top center nut, but don't fully remove
-Attach spring compressors, ^^loosening nut helps^^
-Compress springs as much as possible
-I did NOT touch the top hat, honestly just leave it alone, made everything much easier
-I also NEVER touched where the strut mounts to the knuckle(bolt and nut), you can do everything right there while attached to the car
-with the spring compressed gently pull down on the strut and with only a little force it'll pop its head over the fender
-pull old spring out and put new spring in(I also compressed the new spring but not nearly as much)
-reverse steps

That was my process and it worked perfectly, I even have the AWD model and i didn't have any issues with the axles pulling out

All in all it was probably 5 hrs for the front and 1 hr for the rear

PS The only complication I had was removing the steering tie rod on the passenger side, I needed to use a hammer to "gently" knock it out, I put the nut back on to try and protect the threads and it ended up damaging them worse. The threads are a bit on the finer side. I ordered a tap and die set to clean them up and after some TLC everything worked out perfectly, FYI M12x1.25 for the steering tie rods

 

[Slip_Angle]

Awesome! People can save some time with your process.

Did you trim bump stops? I found the fronts will bottom out the shock travel over rough roads. The result is a good thud sound....

They are fairly easy to trim on the car if you end up needing to do it. I may trim the rears as well.

 

[Rodtheviking]

Awesome! People can save some time with your process.

Did you trim bump stops? I found the fronts will bottom out the shock travel over rough roads. The result is a good thud sound....

They are fairly easy to trim on the car if you end up needing to do it. I may trim the rears as well.

I have the GTF springs and did not cut them.

 

[AA95101]

Shoot I must of missed that step. I live in Cleveland which doesn't have the worse roads, but definitely not the best.

If it starts thudding I'll trim it. thanks for the heads up

 

[Slip_Angle]

Shoot I must of missed that step. I live in Cleveland which doesn't have the worse roads, but definitely not the best.

If it starts thudding I'll trim it. thanks for the heads up

There is no mention of it in the instructions, but when I called them, they said to do it as needed.

 

[AA95101]

There is no mention of it in the instructions, but when I called them, they said to do it as needed.

Kind of a cop out answer, they should know what needs to be done to properly install their product, IMO

 

[SKStinger]

Just finished my install over the last two days and i wanted to give some feedback:

Honestly it wasn't as bad as people made it sound. While it does require what I would consider a moderate amount of skill and the right tools it was pretty straight forward. Overall I love the feeling of these springs and i actually think it improves the ride quality over stock. Its a bit less harsh over larger bumps compared to OEM though I may feel a little more road quality through the suspension now. Overall I think it was a great addition and Im very happy with it

Front Install tips/process:

-Disconnect sway bar links
-Disconnect Steering tie rod
-Unmounted brake line bracket & electrical sensors bracket(wasn't sure if this was necessary but its super easy and worth not damaging anything)
-Loosen top center nut, but don't fully remove
-Attach spring compressors, ^^loosening nut helps^^
-Compress springs as much as possible
-I did NOT touch the top hat, honestly just leave it alone, made everything much easier
-I also NEVER touched where the strut mounts to the knuckle(bolt and nut), you can do everything right there while attached to the car
-with the spring compressed gently pull down on the strut and with only a little force it'll pop its head over the fender
-pull old spring out and put new spring in(I also compressed the new spring but not nearly as much)
-reverse steps

That was my process and it worked perfectly, I even have the AWD model and i didn't have any issues with the axles pulling out

All in all it was probably 5 hrs for the front and 1 hr for the rear

PS The only complication I had was removing the steering tie rod on the passenger side, I needed to use a hammer to "gently" knock it out, I put the nut back on to try and protect the threads and it ended up damaging them worse. The threads are a bit on the finer side. I ordered a tap and die set to clean them up and after some TLC everything worked out perfectly, FYI M12x1.25 for the steering tie rods

Interesting.

-I also NEVER touched where the strut mounts to the knuckle(bolt and nut), you can do everything right there while attached to the car

Are you saying you left the strut connected to the vehicle, tipped it and just swapped the springs?

 

[AA95101]

Interesting.

-I also NEVER touched where the strut mounts to the knuckle(bolt and nut), you can do everything right there while attached to the car

Are you saying you left the strut connected to the vehicle, tipped it and just swapped the springs?

Yup yup