'04-'06 GTO Suspension - Tweaking And Tuning For Twisties

Next we applied the supplied grease on the internal sleeve and then slid it in by hand.

We then test-fitted it and slid the bolt in to hold it up.

The factory radius rod bushings were shot, so we will install these urethane Lovells adjustable radius-rod bushings. With the provided shims (right), we can set the factory caster to be positive, negative, or neutral. Instructions are included.

They slide into the factory location with ease.

We torqued the 13mm retaining nuts to spec (see chart). Next we added the proper amount of shims to set 0.75-degree of positive caster. Finally we tighten the large 24mm nut once the GTO is on the ground.

With the front radius-rod bushings in place, we installed the rear radius-rod bushings. They are a two-piece design, unlike the factory one-piece, and they have a slip-fit.

We simply greased the metal inserts, slid the bushing onto the radius rod and into the lower control arm; then we slid the other half of the bushing into the opposite side of the control arm and reinstalled the fastener.

Here are the original strut top rubber mounts and bearings. The bearing seemed to work pretty well, but it's clear to see that the rubber mount is cracked.

Here is a side-by-side comparison of the original strut top mounts and the new Lovells urethane strut tops and bearings. You can see that the factory rubber mount is collapsed, since both should be the same height.

They mount to these stainless KW Variant 3 coilovers, which offer approximately 14 settings for compression and rebound.

Here is what the mounts look like once they are installed properly. To make installing the strut top easier, we wound the spring perch down all the way so that the springs didn't have any tension.

When we mounted the control arm, we also reattached the ball joint and outer tie rod. We didn't tighten to final torque until the suspension was settled on the ground (or a four-post lift).