Floating at high speeds

[lmuscella]

I have a 98 SHO which always seems to float at speeds higher then 80. I put new tires on and had a alignment done but no change. I'm afraid to go much faster for fear that the car will get away from me. Any ideas?

 

[RStalveyARFF]

that would be the sign that your struts are gone my friend. You could always rig up the SARC switch to see if that'll help.

 

[CMurderSHO]

The floating feeling you feel is normal. It is because when the sarc system is in soft mode it is so that you do not feel the bumps in the road. That because they wanted it to be a very smooth feeling ride. When you are at higher speeds it is supposed to make the struts and powersteering stiffer so that you have more feel for the road which is what you want at high speeds. You have much more control with it in stiff mode. The factory computer does not seem to put the system into full firm quick enough and that why making your own sarc switch is nice. You can turn off the sarc sytem and the struts go to full stiff and you get limited powersteering which combined with some roush lowering springs really tightens up the ride. You will not float with the sarc off.

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/1996taurussho/
96 silver frost
18" asa js5 wheels
225/45/18 continentals
bullet turbos 3 1/2" tips
open K&N filter
powerslot slotted rotors
superchips chip
asp underdrives

 

[RStalveyARFF]

<\--- Gen I owner, does not know the intricaciesof the Gen III

 

[stephen newberg]

Showtimes for the '96-'99 has a very good article on putting in a SARC cutout switch. It is drop dead simple. I did it in about 20 minutes, max.

Also, road surface seems to have an effect. If I have the SARC running, I only get this on -very- smooth roads. Since most roads up here are not that smooth, it seldom happens. Most likely to occur when going over a patch of the TransCanada that has recently been repaved. So you just flip the switch, drop out the SARC, and problem solved.

pax, smn

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'98, Black
Mod.Porter intake, K&N panel, SARC cutout, instrumentation cluster, 23mm rear swaybar, 245x50x16 Bridgestone Potenzas

 

[lmuscella]

Originally posted by CMurderSHO:
The floating feeling you feel is normal. It is because when the sarc system is in soft mode it is so that you do not feel the bumps in the road. That because they wanted it to be a very smooth feeling ride. When you are at higher speeds it is supposed to make the struts and powersteering stiffer so that you have more feel for the road which is what you want at high speeds. You have much more control with it in stiff mode. The factory computer does not seem to put the system into full firm quick enough and that why making your own sarc switch is nice. You can turn off the sarc sytem and the struts go to full stiff and you get limited powersteering which combined with some roush lowering springs really tightens up the ride. You will not float with the sarc off.

This might sound stupid but what is a sarc switch? I am not familar with this.

 

[OzzmanNT]

SARC = Semi-Active Ride Control

It is an electronicly controlled system for your struts. This system was also used in the thunderbird supercoupes and turbocoupes. Supposidly when you nail the gas hard or the brakes hard the system is suppost to change to "hard mode" to prevent your car from lifting or dripping in the front and back. Also this system makes for a very controlled ride (and very comfortable ride). The SARC switch allows you to control it somewhat. Using the SARC switch you can cut out (set to "hard mode") your suspension and power steering (makes it a little harder to steer but it feels much better) then flip it back to luxory mode later for a good ride. You cannot however set your system in full soft mode.

More information at http://www.v8sho.comV8 SHO</a>

------------------
1998 Burgandy SHO (Tan/Mocha leather)
K&N panel filter
Mobil 1 5W-30 Synthetic Oil
Cool Blue headlights (much brighter than stock and look much better)
OBD-II diagnostic Module (this thing is schweet)
Installing ride control switch soon
Upcoming Mods:
-Borla Exhaust (working with a local muffler shop on this)
-Paint brake capilers (or polish them)
-Colgan Bra
-SHO lettering on the doors
-Upgrade intake system
-and probally a few more as I think of them.
OzzmanNT( mailto[email protected][email protected]</A> AIM: OzzmanSHO)

 

[OzzmanNT]

Oh and speaking of speeding wait till you hit 120

It's now fun to watch the speedo at those speeds on a 98 (i think 99s have the problem too)

------------------
1998 Burgandy SHO (Tan/Mocha leather)
K&N panel filter
Mobil 1 5W-30 Synthetic Oil
Cool Blue headlights (much brighter than stock and look much better)
OBD-II diagnostic Module (this thing is schweet)
Installing ride control switch soon
Upcoming Mods:
-Borla Exhaust (working with a local muffler shop on this)
-Paint brake capilers (or polish them)
-Colgan Bra
-SHO lettering on the doors
-Upgrade intake system
-and probally a few more as I think of them.
OzzmanNT( mailto[email protected][email protected]</A> AIM: OzzmanSHO)

 

[LASTSHO]

My speedo's ok all the way up....early 99's had that problem I believe. But definitely the 98's.



------------------
Mark
'99 Black 30K
Lots-O-Mods...
The LASTSHO's Pics

 

[lmuscella]

Originally posted by LASTSHO:
My speedo's ok all the way up....early 99's had that problem I believe. But definitely the 98's.

Are you saying that the 98 were prone to float but the problem was fixed in 99. I would hate to throw a switch everytime I go over 80 mph.

 

[stephen newberg]

No, he is saying on the '98s and early '99s the speedo stops registaring and drops back to zero when you hit about 110-115 mph. The car keeps right on going up to the 140+ max, but the speedo is out of it. This is apparently a flaw in the computer that sends data to the speedo and no one has come up with a fix.

"Floating" is not a major problem for most people, so long as you are not running on very smooth roads most of the time. The computer stores data on how you drive. Mine tends to stay at hard almost all the time just on past data, and if it gets too soft, you can just flip the switch for the SARC.

pax, smn

------------------
'98, Black
Mod.Porter intake, K&N panel, SARC cutout, instrumentation cluster, 23mm rear swaybar, 245x50x16 Bridgestone Potenzas

 

[LASTSHO]

Originally posted by stephen newberg:
No, he is saying on the '98s and early '99s the speedo stops registaring and drops back to zero when you hit about 110-115 mph. The car keeps right on going up to the 140+ max, but the speedo is out of it. This is apparently a flaw in the computer that sends data to the speedo and no one has come up with a fix.

"Floating" is not a major problem for most people, so long as you are not running on very smooth roads most of the time. The computer stores data on how you drive. Mine tends to stay at hard almost all the time just on past data, and if it gets too soft, you can just flip the switch for the SARC.

pax, smn

Yeah...what he said

The speedometer problems are with 98's and early 99's.

As for the floating problem at high speeds..the only one I ever had was with my 93MTX. Anything above 110 and she felt like she was going to take off. My 99 is rock solid all the way up to 140+. And she's seen it several times

Not sure why..just holds the road better at those speeds.

Just my personal observations.



------------------
Mark
'99 Black 30K
Lots-O-Mods...
The LASTSHO's Pics

 

[TheBigEgg]

If you get pulled over doing 140 can you tell the cop your speedo said you weren't going anywhere?

------------------
97 White SHO
UDP, Bullets, K&N, Gutted MAF, No Res, FPS tranny

94 Tbird V8
Stock, on blocks, all calipers shot.

 

[stephen newberg]

No such luck for Mark. His '99 has a speedo that works at those speeds, I seem to recall from previous discussion. And anyway, if you get pulled over from doing 140, that is one **** of a cop car.

pax, smn

------------------
'98, Black
Mod.Porter intake, K&N panel, SARC cutout, instrumentation cluster, 23mm rear swaybar, 245x50x16 Bridgestone Potenzas

 

[OzzmanNT]

If you can get pulled at 140+ it is probally that cop car from the movie Black Sheep....you know the one with the hood scoop and the NOS

------------------
1998 Burgandy SHO (Tan/Mocha leather)
K&N panel filter
Mobil 1 5W-30 Synthetic Oil
Cool Blue headlights (much brighter than stock and look much better)
OBD-II diagnostic Module (this thing is schweet)
Installing ride control switch soon
Upcoming Mods:
-Borla Exhaust (working with a local muffler shop on this)
-Paint brake capilers (or polish them)
-Colgan Bra
-SHO lettering on the doors
-Upgrade intake system
-and probally a few more as I think of them.
OzzmanNT( mailto[email protected][email protected]</A> AIM: OzzmanSHO)