I have been researching and reading all I can about the SAI mod and how I want to change my suspension setup to get the best handling manors that I can. I will first state that I am not planning any racing or autocross with my car. Just street driving but I know how a good driving car is more fun to drive and well I like to work through these kind of things to learn what I can. So far I have learned to do my own alignment on the front as well as the IRS. Still learning but I think I have a handle on it to at least get repeatable results. In addition to the handling I want to be able to have the tires inside the fender and have a deep dish for a better look. With all this I am only at mock up in my build so all of this is only theory for quite a while before I get any road time.

I have a MKII with standard width IRS and front pin drive. I did this to allow the front tires to stay in the fender but have a deeper dish look. The rear will already have a deeper dish as I have a TriStates body and the rear fenders are 1.5" wider than a standard MKII. I have manual steering and I will be using 15" wheels with a custom offset.

Today I started the SAI mod install. The standard mod includes the spindle adapter which I used and a frame adapter which I chose not to use. The frame attachment for the UCA was inspired by this thread by skullandbones, thanks WEK!
Changing MKIII Front Steering to Resemble MKIV Level

By mounting the UCA below the frame mount and changing the angle it matches the SAI mod frame bracket location but keeps a longer arm and leaves clearance for the coil spring.

Because I have the wider pole position UCA's I needed to clearance the 3/4" cross member. After I have the body back off and I can get better access I will clean up the cut and weld reinforcement by boxing it back together and adding additional support below.


I used a 4 degree pinion shim which I cut in half and drilled for the UCA bolts. I also had to clearance the bolt holes on the frame to bring the UCA out just a little to clear the 2X3" frame member below the mount. I ended up making a shim for the bottom and the top of the frame to give the bolts and nuts a flat surface to torque too. makes a sandwich around the frame mount and changes the angle. Seams to be a good plan to me but I'm not sure if the fact that the spacers/shims are made of aluminum instead of steel.






I installed the SAI mod spindle bracket per the instructions. The instructions where great but pictures would clarify a lot. One thing I noticed but didn't read on other posts is that with this mod installed in order to remove the caliper bracket or with the PBR brakes to remove the upper caliper bolt you have to remove the spindle bracket first. That means to service the brakes you have to remove the spindle bracket. Not to hard and you can leave the ball joints in place but a pain.

In the kit I had two left spindle brackets so only one side for now. They are sending a right one out to me. So if you just received your SAI mod kit look for two right brackets. Also for the PBR calipers you have to use a button head bolt for the upper caliper attachment. The ones I received where the wrong thread so had to go the the hardware store and get the correct ones. With that there is just enough clearance. Tight but it works well. Pictures are with the brakes removed for alignment but you can see where the caliper bracket bolts on. It is behind the upper ball joint nut so you have to install before the bracket is installed. Also the lower ball joint has to be torqued before the bracket is installed because it is covered also.