Removed my 10 year old GC coilovers with Tokico shocks and replaced them with Pettit's Stage 3 10/8 Kg coilovers yesterday. Today finished adjusting the ride height back to what it was before, 25.5" front and rear.

New CG coilovers + new Tokico Illumina shocks = about $1300.

Pettiit's = about $1400:
(1) the springs do not drop when you jack up the car.
(2) at the lowest shock setting the car rides noticeable softer but handles just as well.
(3) at shock setting 6/3 the ride is still a little softer then the CGs but handles better.

 

I have had Stage IIs for almost 2 years now and love them. My rear is sitting at 26"s and I want to take it down another .5" to get to 25.5".

I have barely a 1/4" of thread between the shock body and the lock rings. To get the extra .5" I want in ride height do I have to preload the springs a bit?

 

Do you have any pics of how the car sits right now?

You can remove one of the lock rings since it's not needed in the lowest setting. It won't give you much but still.....

 

Oddly enough only pics I have of the rear are old:



Any negative effects with removing the lower locking ring?

 

^^ Is this how your car sits right now?

I don't think there'd be a negative effect removing the lock ring, it's there to hold the spring at a certain height, since you are lowering it to the max it's not needed. Oh and your other option is to get shorter springs.

 

Yep, current ride height. I don't squat as much as I thought I would after dialing in the dampening. I just never got around to dropping it more in the rear and after looking at it I really did't have much more to go on the shock body.

Unless someone chimes in with another idea I'll try removing the lower ring and see if it has any negative effects.

 

^^ If you want to go even lower, then you have to get shorter springs....

 

Lower than another ~0.5" is too much. I don't want to invert the A-Arms or anything silly like that. Just looking to dial out the minimal rake I have towards the front.

 

I have 17" wheels with 255/40-17 Advan AD08s, and have lots of room to lower my car with the 10/8 kg springs.

What are your sizes and spring rates?

 

Stage IIIs with 12k/10k springs with 275/40/17

 

Your tires would only raise the car about .25" to .5" higher than mine.
I imagine the higher spring rates add more height than the tires.

 

So I played with the rears this weekend and with them bottomed out (no thread showing) and no preload on the springs (Stage III - 10k rears) my height only dropped to about 25 3/4". I think I am happy with that now, but for those looking for the magic 25.5" height they will have to either remove the lower locking ring (I wouldn't) or take it to a machine shop and machine a bit off the top of the lock collar.

The lower ring is way thinker than it should be IMO and there is enough meat on it to take it down 1/4" or so for the extra 1/4" of clearance you'll need at the fender.

 

cewrx7r1 has his car at that ride height with plenty of adjustability in either direction (seen the car personally).

How are your rear upper control arms installed? Reference pages R-27 and R-32 of the manual to see the correct orientation of this arm.

 

cewrx7r1 has 8k springs on his rears

 

I'm aware he has 8kg rears. I know him pretty well.

From your response, I'm going to assume you already checked. So I guess we can assume no difference between stage 2 and 3 other than spring rate.

 

Ive had my stage 3's 12k front 10K rear for about year now and I am extremely happy with the ride and most of the performance. I really think its the best bang for the buck as far as suspension goes.

 

Yup, Stage II/IIIs are valved the same, just the spring rates differ:

"Stage III
Designed for the more serious driver, Stage III provides a 20% increase in spring rates over Stages I & II and can be used for both street and track, especially good for track use with racing tires. Like Stage II there are 24 dampening adjustments position that provide ample adjustment range for optimizing grip under most conditions and since the adjustments are accessible from the top changes are quick and easy. Spring Rates: Front 12kg / Rear 10kg"

 

Like this:





These pics are from the right rear of my car.
Ground Control Sleeves and Koni Yellows.

There has been contact on other corners as well, but this is the worst.

I am going to have the Koni's rebuilt for 900/750 lb springs and use Koni Coilover sleeves, as they use a proper upper spring perch to prevent bending the spring.

 

Unfortunately Pettit has stopped selling these coilovers. My recent order was cancelled because they're updating the coilovers. However, they don't have any timeline set up.

 

I had called Pettit yesterday where they had advised that the revised coilovers will be available early next year. Small design change includes a brake line mounting point.

 

These coilovers sytems where built for fuction overall. The rear ride height can't be slammed to tuck the rear tires much, but with a higher profile tire that shouldn't be a problem. my 315/30r18 currently sit at 1/2" clearance between tire and fender at the rear.

 

Why are you guys ordering them from Pettit when you can just order them directly from Taiwan for less?

 

Easier to communicate and have support with Pettit if you have problems, than with Taiwan.

Why buy your televisions and electroinics at FRys, buy direct from China.
Same difference.

 

Are you racist or just xenophobic?

 

How is wanting in-country support racist or xenophobic?