Bounce Relief From Coilovers (FD3S)
 

All,
I had Tein coiloverws on for a while an dthe ride was pretty good with little bounce up until I put some new wheels and tires on and wanted to drop the car for a more lowered look. What happened was the ride got really bouncy. I have Tein Basic coilovers.

Any tips to reduce the bounce but still keep the car low?

You could try springs that are less stiff. Also, soften up the shocks.

Dale

One more thing and I don't know if this has any effect. But when I lowered my spring adjustment on rear to lower the car, the spring was really loose and not stiff to the upper piller bar mount. Basically there was a bit of a gap or relief from the top of the spring to pillow bar mount.

I also read somewhere that the Tein basic coilovers have no dampening adjustment, so I would most likely need to upgrade. Is this true or can I just get a larger spring.....

I wouldn't think just a small change in ride height would be dramatic.
How much lower did you go? Did you get it re-aligned?
Is it so low you may be riding on bump stops?
What is your height, as measured to the fender lips?
What changes did you make to wheels and tires? Anything notable?

Are you sure you didn't adjust the spring pre-load by accident instead of the height? The top collar adjusts preload and the bottom collar you loosen to adjust ride height.... The whole damper assembly should thread down into the lower mount.

-Dan

How do you adjust the spring pre-load on TEIN basic coilovers? I don't think the Basic coilovers have a dampening system and no top collor adjustment. I do have upper pillow bar mounts.

This is the most basic video I could find and it's not specific to the FD, but the adjustment process is basically the same. I'm not familiar with the Tein basics, but most newer coilovers function similar to the video below.


-Dan

The Tein Basic's do not have bottom mount adjustability, only spring perch adjustability.

By lowering the car from the spring perch you have negatively affected spring preload, however the more significant impact is that you have reduced suspension travel of the piston and likely taken the piston out of its normal range. This will have poor affects on the shock and likely cause the bounciness you are feeling.

You should try to raise the car back up some. IMO with those types of coilovers with no lower adjustability the spring perch is mainly for small corner balance adjustments and not major height adjustments.

Additionally, be sure to check your tire pressures. Tire installers tend to inflate the pressures very high. Your tire is essentially a second spring, and a higher tire pressure equates to a higher spring rate. Reducing pressure will help significantly if the pressure is too high.

How true. These coilovers do not have those adjustments to set preload. I guess it is time to replace these and get some that have preload adjustments and can go low with minimum bounce.....Any suggestions on coilovers that are on a budget?

How about Koni's with the Ground Control sleeves?
How low do you want to go?

To give you a reference. Around 24 to 25 inches to center top fender well from ground for bot front and back.