Suspension questions, opinions...

[Chris Benvie]

Alright, well since my struts are most definately gone, might as well upgrade, the macphersons just don't do it for me any more

So i guess the options are
Eibach/tokico,
Intrax/koni
Or the IPT setup

I don't like the eibach because it really just not low enough for me

The IPT setup is way out of my price range and i don't like the ride of coilovers

So i'm leaning towards the Intrax/konis

But is there a better solution, or another alternative. I really want my car to be lower than most and even lower than what the intrax will do. THere are no more SS springs i presume, considering i like the way RI-SHO's car sits on the 18's. So what are the other solutions and where can i find them?

Also, how much is the range to have these installed? I could probably do it, i just dont have all he necc. tools, lifts, etc. needed for the job.

Fred, Kirk?
Any input would be appreciated

 

[MeShoHorny]

Only special tool you will/might need is a spring compressor. Don't think the Eibachs are low enough? Well, with mine I can't fit a 2 ton floor jack under the subframe to jack up the car...becomes a PITA when u need to get her in the air. On certain inclines I have to watch my speed or the subrame will spark nicley.

BTW, moved to SHO Generation I & II Performance Upgrades - Suspension forum.

 

[Chris Benvie]

Do you have a pic of the car so i can see how low it actually is??

 

[RI-SHO]

You've probaly seen the pictures of my car already, but the 2.5"/1.75" is just about the limit on the street, maybe a 1/2" more if your lucky.

I'm always painting a certain spot on the drivers side lower lip on the bumper because it always chips a chunk of 1" paint showing off ugly grey primer. But I see it as you always have to give something up for a low stance and good handling.

About labor cost, its usually about $90-$150 around here in Pawtucket to install springs/shocks. BTW would you consider at least cutting the dead coils off the Intrax springs to get a bit extra more? It wont be an extra inch but it'll be something without the spring becoming to "bouncy".

 

[Chris Benvie]

RI-SHO, yea i thought about the whole cut thing, and eric, SHOTIME and I were talking about it the other night, but i'm not quite sure exactly if i like the idea of it, we'll see how it goes, i wouldn't mind it being a "project/prototype" of if it will or won't work. I'm going to have to look into it a lil more and it looks like the konis and intrax are the way to go.

BTW, what about the nylon caps and are suspension components that are needed? Did you do them/ are they worth it and how much is it gonna cost, thanks edien

 

[RI-SHO]

If you havent changed it all yet, you should do the strut bearings, bump stops, bearing cup, shock boots(if the Koni's already dont come with them), lower control arm bushings, mount assembly in the rear, and basically all bushings upfront if money allows.

I learned this the hard way now, because now my strut bearings are grinding/crackling even when I push it manually with the car off.

 

[MeShoHorny]

RI-SHO pretty much covered it as parts go. Two front mounts and bearings, insulators for the spring perch, bumper bellows, new hardware. For the rear- get the police rear mounts and misc washers for the strut assembly.

You can click the for sale link in my sig. for pix of how it looks. If you need a full parts list drop me an email.

 

[cRaZySHO.]

I have the Intrax with a cut coil. And I have only seen one other un-photochopped SHO that had a nicer stance than mine- RISHO. The ride height is extremely acceptable, I barely ever scrape on anything. But then again, if you're not careful, you could rip off the lower half of your bumper. So that means no more 5-10 mph driveway entries. They now become .25-.5mph entries.

 

[SHOTIME]

I know ive ****** this picture before but -

 

[texas hot rodder]

How do you like the ride of those coilovers? Is it bouncy? I assume you can push it as hard as you want in a turn now, right?What are teh downsides, other than bottoming on a lot of things? Thank you, I can get coilovers for quite cheap, so I have been watching for someone with some to give info, thanx again

 

[1fastsho]

the ride isn't too bouncy but becasue the spring rates have to be so high(since the spring diameter is much smaller than the OEM spring[that is why you need a high rate]) you really need to turn the koni's all the way up to get the smoothest ride becasue it needs more rebound.

at that ride height above.....I like the way it looks..it handles great(the lower you go the more "turn in" is immediate) BUT I left some of the subframe in New York around 177th street on the way home lol

 

[SHOTIME]

Shawn is the owner of the car on the left.

Do you still have coilovers left shawn?

 

[1fastsho]

we are gonna be making another batch as we have had quite a few number of requests for them we should have them ready by the end of Janurary if things go well

 

[onelowzuki]

When they are ready, let me know i definatly want a set.

 

[RStalveyARFF]

I always recommend Konis for the struts, but you need to know what you want for picking the springs. If you want handling performance, I say go with the eibachs, since you'll have less alignment problems and my experience has been that they are more stable when working them hard. The intrax is an extremely stiff spring, and when coupled with the koni, you'll feel every single bump in the road. On a car with no prior alignment troubles, the car was so out of alignment, the front eccentric mounts were required to compensate for the drop. So if you want performance, go Koni/Eibach. Looks, go with the Koni/intrax, with 1 coil chopped as Edien suggested. Purchase the moog adjustable strut mounts for the front as well, it'll save you headahes in the end.

 

[Mike Kopstain]

Jay, I just looked at your sig and logged off. wink

<small>[ January 08, 2003, 03:23 AM: Message edited by: Mikeys_Taurus ]</small>

 

[TimZ]

1fastsho:
the ride isn't too bouncy but becasue the spring rates have to be so high(since the spring diameter is much smaller than the OEM spring[that is why you need a high rate]) you really need to turn the koni's all the way up to get the smoothest ride becasue it needs more rebound.

I hate to disagree with Shawn, but the ID of the spring has nothing to do with the spring rate required. The spring rate is the spring rate, regardless of ID. That's why it's specified that way.

Usually excessively high spring rates are selected to limit suspension travel on lowered vehicles to keep them from bottoming out, or to keep the springs from binding if a poor job was done of selecting the spring for the application. Another reason would be to limit suspension travel so that bump steer is minimized, assuming the suspension has bump steer problems (which is likely if you've never checked it).

You guys do realize that you are losing 2" of suspension travel when you lower the car 2", right? Does anybody know what the total travel is on the SHO? I'm guessing it's on the order of 7", in which case a lowering of 2" would leave you with 1.5" of travel, much of which is taken up by the bump stop.

Also, the only reason that a coilover setup would be 'bouncy' is poor spring selection. The setup might be harsher or noisier, due to the use of solid spring mounts, but there is nothing inherent in a coilover design that says that it has to be bouncy.

Again, this is due to improper spring rate selection (either the rate is wrong or the the spring binds before the suspension bottoms out), possibly combined with a poorly matched shock for the spring rate, as Shawn mentioned above.

<small>[ January 21, 2003, 10:22 PM: Message edited by: TimZ ]</small>

 

[thebigjimsho]

Mikeys_Taurus:
Jay, I just looked at your sig and logged off. wink

Yeah, what's up with that? What are Bang Bus videos??