[DarkHorse]

Edited so it's not a repost

Hey all,

Having missed out on RIKSTRs Calmini gear, I've rekindled my interest in actually putting a complete, "all inclusive" kit under the Vitara. I am currently running Tough Dog GV shocks and springs in the rear, and OME struts and springs up front with 1" spacers to match the height with the rear. All this gear is obvious quality, and plenty tough enough, but I'm just not getting the flex I want. The constant comment from people driving behind me is that it doesn't take much for me to lift a wheel.

The only really integrated kits that I know of are the tried and tested Calmini 3" Super Articulation kit, and Atari's hindsight favourite the Altered Ego 4.5" kit. These both include shocks/struts/springs, front and rear arms, diff drops, driveshaft spacer, strut spacers, new bushes, hardware blah blah blah.

The Cal kit retails for close to $2500 locally, but only US$950 from over there, and with the exchange rate what it is
Altered Ego is listed as US$2000, but you can order it without struts (since I already have OMEs) for $1700.

So... thoughts? Would I be able to run the OME struts without spacers for the 4.5" lift as well, or am I asking too much of them? The AltEgo kit is tempting for novelty value, but nerve-wracking for that exact reason. Is 4.5" just too high to be practical? It advertises clearance for 32s with no BL or panel work The Calmini kit has some well-publicised flaws, but the bulk of it seems to be well used and abused and recommended?

[atari4x4]

http://www.auszookers.com/index.php?nam ... ht=calmini discussed....

[DarkHorse]

Fixed

[atari4x4]

i'd be looking at the altered ego kit... if i was doing it again.

[DarkHorse]

Have sent them an e-mail, along with Low Range and Cal direct.

With the AUD at better than parity $950 for the Cal kit is very tempting... ($2400 from certain local distributors is NOT!)

$1700 for the Altered Ego (sans struts) is a bit harder to stomach, even if it does come with an extra 1.5"

[shep]

whats the altered ego kit?

[atari4x4]

shep wrote:

whats the altered ego kit?

it's an IFS kit, looks better than the Calamari Kit....

http://www.alteredegomotorsports.com/tr ... nsion.html

[atari4x4]

[DarkHorse]

Want. May have to be the guineapig - do we know of anyone else in the country who's done this?

EDIT: Calmini kit from Low Range = $950 + $370 shipping
Calmini are happy to ship direct, just waiting on quote
Altered Ego are chasing a quote, but warn it'll likely be "incredibly expensive"

[Joe]

Go the Altered Ego kit after all its only money and look at the flex

[atari4x4]

look at the wheelbase

[303zuke]

DarkHorse wrote:

Want. May have to be the guineapig - do we know of anyone else in the country who's done this?

EDIT: Calmini kit from Low Range = $950 + $370 shipping
Calmini are happy to ship direct, just waiting on quote
Altered Ego are chasing a quote, but warn it'll likely be "incredibly expensive"

If you're speaking to Altered Ego, it may be worth asking what the postage might be if the kit was broken down into components (which they do list on their site), as any single order over AU$1000 will attract the attention of Customs and you WILL be liable for Duty, GST and brokerage fees on top of your purchase price AND the shipping costs.

[got_bar_work]

Altered Ego kit looks the goods. It looks alot more complex and more thought out then the calmin kit .Dont know how it would go with weight. the coils are ment to be soft.
The adjusable wb is a great idead would help with the tire clearences.
i think u should get it

[shandy92]

if i had the money i would go for the alter-ego kit...still thinking about it
as with anything, the more that its bought the more that these kit will come out and the quality will increase.

as said, its looks like a better kit in general (compared to cal), and you can buy parts separately.

Mitch

[christover1]

I like the look of both kits, but will never happen, so not given a great deal of thought to it

[Fatzook]

altered ego kit I recon. Calmari has been done to death

[christover1]

Fatzook wrote:

altered ego kit I recon. Calmari has been done to death

good point, I agree

now get on with it

[Bucket]

Calmini parts can be ordered seperatly.

I imported my calmini kit myself and saved a few hundred compared to the 4wd usa quote I got.


I "might" be parting my vit out soon if your interested in a secondhand kit. Can supply a second set of struts/shocks too.

[DarkHorse]

Fatzook wrote:

altered ego kit I recon. Calmari has been done to death

I'm leaning that way, for that reason among a few others above. If it's a $600+ difference though...

I can get the Calmini kit (the only things I wouldn't want would be the shocks/struts) for less than $1400 landed. AltEgo is listed at $1700 plus shipping.

Surprised no-one has piped up with the flame-thrower about the amount of the AltEgo lift...

[christover1]

DarkHorse wrote:

Surprised no-one has piped up with the flame-thrower about the amount of the AltEgo lift...

I Like spending other peoples money



but it does appear to be worth the money.

[Fatzook]

DarkHorse wrote:

Surprised no-one has piped up with the flame-thrower about the amount of the AltEgo lift...

Well untill I have seen one in the flesh, I'll just assume they are better than the calmini arms in quality of construction, and design.

[DarkHorse]

Fatzook wrote:

DarkHorse wrote:

Surprised no-one has piped up with the flame-thrower about the amount of the AltEgo lift...

Well untill I have seen one in the flesh, I'll just assume they are better than the calmini arms in quality of construction, and design.

...and that's where I come in, huh?

I was more referring to the size of the lift... 110mm up on soft springs, CoG, body roll, blah blah blah.

[Fatzook]

DarkHorse wrote:

Fatzook wrote:

DarkHorse wrote:

Surprised no-one has piped up with the flame-thrower about the amount of the AltEgo lift...

Well untill I have seen one in the flesh, I'll just assume they are better than the calmini arms in quality of construction, and design.

...and that's where I come in, huh?

I was more referring to the size of the lift... 110mm up on soft springs, CoG, body roll, blah blah blah.

Well add some more money to the project and get some aftermarket swaybars too

[DarkHorse]

$$$ $$$

[stocker]

So this has aroused my curiosity because i am also looking at getting the calmini kit. i've been told by calmini that they are currently out of stock <_<" which is frustrating because i have the money for it now...

Whats the go with these "flaws" i keep hearing about???

[RIKSTR]

Just do the Altered Ego kit.

Thats what I would do next, looks cool and you will love the extra 1.5"s of belly clearance

[Chop]

The fronts arent gonna be much better than each other because its an IFS car, the rear on a calmini works very well. And everyone by now knows the struts are shit in that kit.
Going by their site i wouldnt like to trust it to hold up to the extra weight of a LWB with accessories.
I love the testimonal they have on their site too, one guy reckons his tracker was apraised for $30,000

[Fatzook]

I wonder if Altered ego have adressed the castor issues created when moving the lower arm forward, but not the strut top?

[DarkHorse]

Fatzook wrote:

I wonder if Altered ego have adressed the castor issues created when moving the lower arm forward, but not the strut top?

Tis a good question - the strut spacers apparently have some camber adjustment built in, as do the struts themselves, but there is no mention of the castor shift. Is an extra 40mm likely to cause any major dramas?

The struts I'll compare to the OME ones I have when they arrive, and use the yellow stuff if the range of movement will suit (have camber bolts installed already)

Softer springs I'm also willing to take a chance on, as the stuff under there at the moment is too stiff for my liking - nice to be able to punt it up South Pine Rd like I do at the moment, but I'd give that up for a better ride on the rough stuff. Worst case scenario I get some custom ones made up.

Will ask all these questions (and the split shipping) before I order it and post up what I get back.

[Fatzook]

I reckon 40mm forward at the bottom, and standard location at the tom will be atleast a few degrees more castor. And when you fit 2-3" extended shackles to a sierra it dramaticly changes the way it handles.

Although the altered ego arms will shift towards the negative castor, this will see a slowed steering response. Something which IMO vits suffer from alrerady.

Might pay to ask what they have done to address this issue....