Time for new Suspension

[HokieZHP]

Hey guys so still haven't decided on springs yet. I am wanting to lower the car but also get some better handling! Also I'd like the springs to work with bilstein sport shocks. I like the H&R race springs but have seen so many different pics of them it's hard to tell how much they actually lower the car. I was reading about linear vs. progressive springs on e46f earlier and the name Tein came up. Any thoughts on those? Or any other suggestions?

Coils are a definite no for me. I don't want to have to do an alignment every time I change the ride height, which is about twice year for me.

[derbo]

Chris,

I dont understand what you mean by change your ride height twice a year? Even without coilovers, changing ride height would have an effect on your alignment settings. However, it won't be as significant if you are raising the perches by a few inches since the top hat bolts are not loosen on a coilover setup.

In what order is the following most important? left being most important. Ride height, Ride Comfort, Ride Handling. Then, what is your ideal ride height? What kind of handling are we talking about and how comfortable do you want it?

There is no specific spring set that matches all the needs perfectly and rather a set of compromises for higher priority needs.

For instance, me:

I was concerned with handling, adjustability of height and then comfort came last. I went with ground control coilovers cause it has a good setup for handling as well as good adjustability for camber/ride height. Comfort came in last as its a huge compromise to get the other two for track use.


The H&R Race springs are great for the Bilstiens Sports and would fair great.



Tein is a japanase-based company. They have some relatively soft spring rates for the non-m. They will be comfortable and lower the car enough (at least to my standards). Your handle will probably be a little better but I wouldn't expect great track days with these springs. Paired with the Bilstiens, it would be a great daily driver spring/strut combo.

http://www.tein.com/tech_info/g72.html


I do suggest sway bars too if you are aimed for better handling. I actually has sway bars before lowering my car and loved it. It wasnt until the shocks started to leak in the rear, i decided to upgrade.

[HokieZHP]

I live where it snows so I would raise it for winter and lower it in the spring. If I got just springs and shocks, I would leave it as is all year. Plus I have many other things on my to-do list that I could use the extra money for like steering wheel re-wrap and re-spraying front end, etc.

For me it would be handling, ride height, comfort last. As far as ideal ride height, I'm not sure. I'd like the front wheels to be be either slightly tucked I think and rears to be slightly tucked. I'll try to find a pic for reference.

John sent me a picture of the h&r's on his vert and it looked good but then I've seen other pics of them on sedans and they look high or just like the stock ZHP stance. Here's a pic of John's that he sent me...




EDIT:

Maybe like this? Or close to it? I would like the front rim to look like it's barely touching the fender, or slightly above that if that makes sense. I also want the car to stay level and not be raked.



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[derbo]

The convertible has more weight in the rear so you cannot use them as a reference. That second pic looks about right. Have you looked at Dalton's (Nike001's) H&R cup kit? The front looks a little taller than what you like but it seems to look very close to what you want from springs.

http://www.zhpmafia.com/forums/showt...-amp-R-Content)

[HokieZHP]

Yeah that's what I figured. I do like nike101's setup. I'd love it to be just barely lower but I guess I could remove the lower pads if I wanted.

How is the performance with the h&r's? I've heard the eibachs aren't stiff enough which is why I strayed away from them.


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[johnrando]

Dalton's aren't the race springs though, so yours would be slightly lower. I believe it's 1.1 front, .9 rear lowering with race off a SPORTS suspension are the #'s quoted. And absolutely I mentioned to Chris that Vert rears w/b lower than other cars.

Finally, as I've said before, in my research I always read glowing things about H&R so I rolled the dice and went for it. There are probably a few brands/setups that you can't go wrong with though...it's a tough decision.

[HokieZHP]

Dalton's aren't the race springs though, so yours would be slightly lower. I believe it's 1.1 front, .9 rear lowering with race off a SPORTS suspension are the #'s quoted. And absolutely I mentioned to Chris that Vert rears w/b lower than other cars.

Finally, as I've said before, in my research I always read glowing things about H&R so I rolled the dice and went for it. There are probably a few brands/setups that you can't go wrong with though...it's a tough decision.

I was reading through all the drop estimates but since our cars are already lowered a bit I don't know the actual drop. I am pretty sure I want the H&R race springs, I am just making sure there aren't any other options

[HokieZHP]

Also can you guys think of anything else I'll need? I plan to also buy:

-Front strut re-enforcement places
-RSM's- Are these really necessary?
-Do I need new sway linkages?
-Spacers?

[johnrando]

Also can you guys think of anything else I'll need? I plan to also buy:

-Front strut re-enforcement places
-RSM's- Are these really necessary?
-Do I need new sway linkages?
-Spacers?

I was told adjustable end links and RSMs are recommended. The front strut re-enforcement plates are not necessary for a DD no-tracking (but they are not expensive so you can do them). I'm going to get spacers for looks but those are certainly not necessary either. You have a good list to get though... I think you have everything covered.

[HokieZHP]

Any suggestions for some good adjustable end links that will work with future sway bar upgrades?


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