Guldstrand 5 Link, Anyone Anywhere Installed?

Vettezuki

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Mar 26, 2008
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I was talking to big2bird not long ago about this. I sitll have it in mind to get a Guldstrand 5-link for the rear suspension of my 82 as it still seems the most polished off the shelf package as far as I can tell. Bonus, it can be installed at Dick's shop for a little extra cache perhaps. But I have two major questions.

1. Does anyone know of anyone . . anywhere .. who has actually installed and run this package? A brief search here didn't turn up much, but I may have glossed over it easily. Jeff can't think of anyone either.

2. Is there a superior package now? Requirements: Off the shelf to install. Not to fab from drawings. That's awesome, but thems days is over for me on the Vette, at least for now. It needs to be a solid all-arounder IRS, IOW, I'm not interested a drag package for straightline madness. There are really two things I can think of that I'm primarily after. Wider rims and tires AND none of the crazy camber/toe changes that happen under heavy breaking as the weight shifts forward.
 
There is no guldstrand 5 link for the 80-82 rear, last I heard there were geometry issues with it on the one car they installed it on, it's suited for a pre 80 diff only so you'd have to change that. Might want to ask them, maybe they did finalize it but I don't think they did.

Groovyjay has the GS 5 link installed on his C2, don't know if it's driving yet.
 
There is no guldstrand 5 link for the 80-82 rear, last I heard there were geometry issues with it on the one car they installed it on, it's suited for a pre 80 diff only so you'd have to change that. Might want to ask them, maybe they did finalize it but I don't think they did.

Ben. Find out. Maybe a better price on two kits? Guldstrand isn't going to be around forever.
 
5 link

the Guldstrand 5-bar suspension appears to be a takeoff of the original designed by tom ryding
i talked with burt greenwood about it and he is checking to see if tom still offers it ill let you know what i find out
 
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TT,
Guldstrand's lists it up to 82??
http://guldstrand.com/scripts/prodView.asp?idproduct=138

Jeff,
It's also $3,300 now!! Was $2,500 when I first started looking five years ago or so. Boooh.

greenwood,
Story I got is that GM took Guldstrand's design proto as the foundation for the C4?? But I don't know much about it. Something one of the old timers in the shop mentioned.
 
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They list them up to 82 but give them a call and they will tell you it's not available for 80-82 or make up some bs story about availability

I still have a new gs 5 link on the shelf, anyone in europe interested??
 
There is no guldstrand 5 link for the 80-82 rear, last I heard there were geometry issues with it on the one car they installed it on, it's suited for a pre 80 diff only so you'd have to change that.

What would be the difference Marck? T/A's are the same. Mounting points?
 
Diff is different, camber bracket moved off axle centerline, 8-82 has angled camber rods too! The ends are at an angle
 
TT,
Guldstrand's lists it up to 82??
http://guldstrand.com/scripts/prodView.asp?idproduct=138

Jeff,
It's also $3,300 now!! Was $2,500 when I first started looking five years ago or so. Boooh.

greenwood,
Story I got is that GM took Guldstrand's design proto as the foundation for the C4?? But I don't know much about it. Something one of the old timers in the shop mentioned.

tom design it for greenwood long before guldstrand knoted it off he might have change a bolt or two but not much lol here check this out http://www.greenwoodcorvettes.com/StreetDaytona.html
 
The design is significantly different, and it's my honest opinion that the Greenwood design is better for toe control since hte toe control rods are in complete compliance with the rest of the system. The guldstrans setup uses double lower camber rods and toe is controlled with the setting of these rods in relation to each other, and as such the relation ship changes as suspension moves because the hub yawas, it does not go up and down in a straight line because of a moving virtual IC/trailing arm from the 2 forward rods

This and because 80-82 stuff wasnt available from GS was the reason I built my own design, it's closely related to the greenwood (I never took a pic of it with the toe rods on it, it's all scrapped now...I never installed it)

24a719bacf1dff.jpg

24a719b94c6405.jpg

Toe control was just like the greenwood pic, the center mount was mounted off the diff. The 4 "bosses' cast into it were drilled and tapped for M12 allen heads
 
Guldstrand didn`t design what everyone calls the Guldstrand 5-link, Bob Riley designed it and it originally sold under the name "RPF" for Bob Riley, Protofab and George Foltz, it was designed as an SCCA legal alternative rear suspension, the original kit price was $1380 and I know all this because I cut one out of an old GT-1 car I disassembled and I am reading the RPF paperwork while I type. I also had a new in the box Greenwood 5-bar, the major differences were that the RPF unit had two bars per side underneath from the fabricated strut rod bracket to the bottom of the trailing arm where the Greenwood unit had one top and one bottom, they both had two (per side) forward bars...

IMG_3615.jpg
 
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TT,
Didn't you also tell me once, Guldstrand did not recommend using the coilovers with their design?

Ralphy
 
Yes, but he lists coil overs as a possibility for the system on his site. Weird huh!

Howard, can you scan that rpf document? I would like to have it.
 
You can use coil overs with the 5-link, but it'll be really close fit. I relocated the upper mounts to the side of the frame rails to get the extra clearance needed.

Ym6z.gif

Ym6o.gif
 
TT I thought it was you who mentioned not to go to coil over conversion because of weakness in mounting brackets? Maybe that was Guldstrand.

Sorry if I missed it, but is the Greenwood unit available anymore and if so how much? I'm getting older and I'd like to brake in a straight line. lol
 
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I posted that here, it was not recommended by Gs. Maybe they changed their mind??

The Greenwood one is not available.
 
I posted that here, it was not recommended by Gs. Maybe they changed their mind??

The Greenwood one is not available.

So when's the TT IRS gonna hit the market? ;)

Are there any other available multi link rear suspensions?
 
Not now or ever LOL

Nope, GS or a C4 swap, the only viable options for a multie link rear
 
Not now or ever LOL

Nope, GS or a C4 swap, the only viable options for a multie link rear

How about one million dollars?

one_million_dollars.jpg




But what huh? I didn't know you could take the whole IRS from a C4? I thought you could only take (with some fabbing) the Dana 44. . .

Sounds like an aweful lot of work though. Any substantive differences in the C4 years?

And anyhow, how much of an improvement over the C3 is the C4 IRS? Seems like it might be quite a lot, but I've never driven a C4.

My biggest beef with the C3 RS that I can easily feel is the weirdness that happens under harder breaking. It'd be ok if if that stopped. Lol
 
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