I am looking to buy a set of springs but don't know which brands have what characteristics.

Basically I'm looking for lowering springs that:

1. Once lowered will not be bouncy
2. Dropped height by about 1"
3. That won't cause any rubbing


I know ground controls can do all of this and more but I would like to know what other options I have.

Thanks.

-Dan


BTW, how much are GCs?

 

1. This will depend on your shocks. Going to much stiffer springs will require shocks with higher damping rates to keep them under control.

2. The 1" pretty much covers the entire market! You can pick from Eibach, H&R, Racing Beat, etc.

3. Whether you rub or not will depend on quite a few factors -- wheel/tire combination, spring rates, shock settings, anti-roll bar sizing, even your individual car.

SleepR1 runs H&R springs with the stock R1 shocks with 255/40 on 17x9 +45mm offset wheels and he gets no rubbing. YMMV

 

FYI, I also run a 32-mm front sway bar with Tri-Point front sway bar mounts, and a 19-mm rear sway bar set to the stiffest setting, and 1.5 degrees of negative camber fr/rr. The roll control and negative camber help a great deal in minimizing the chances of the front tires rubbing despite the 255/40-17s tire size, 9 x 17, 45-mm wheels, and 1.25-inch drop from the H&R springs. FWIW, the sway bars are from Eibach and they are labeled, "Competition" sway bars.

 

Hmmm good questions.

For now I was thinking of keeping the shocks stock (~92k miles) and just upgrade the springs. But I know it's best to upgrade the shocks at the same time but still deciding on that.

Still sporting stock FD wheels for now.

BTW, where's the best places to get GCs from? Rishie?

Thanks.

-Dan

 

The best IMHO combination w/ stock shocks (or even R1s) will be the racing beat set (unless you can find the old PFS comfortsports). They offer one of the lowest spring rate increases, and will lower approx. 1.25 rear, .75 front. Your car will look great, ride well for street use. They are cheap, too.

It is a good idea to uprgrade the shocks at the same time, especially if you are paying someone else to install.

Unless you REALLY need adjustability (bear in mind that if every time you significantly change the ride height, you'll need a 4-wheel alignment) OR REALLY need higher spring rates than available with standard lowering springs, i.e; for track use, the GC kit is probably more than you need

 

Yeah I know the GCs are really good..... very nice adjustability and you can get them in custom spring rates....... I dunno, TEINS are still just a tad outta my price range, even though a good GC/Yellow is almost there..........

I would like to be able to adjust my suspension so I'll have to think on this one some more.

THanks again.

-Dan

 

Sorry for jumping in on evilpenevil's thread

SleepR1 - I also run with the stock rims and 255/50 tires. I have ordered a set of H&R springs. My question. Did you set your car with neg. camber to only minimize rubbing or would you also recommend 1.5 degrees for track use?
Thanks,
Oliver

 

Damn SleepR1, that's a lot of camber! Pettit's alignment guidelines show a camber of 0.9 for street and long track events for 17" wheels!

BTW, have you (anyone else please chime in) ever ran with Pettit's recommended settings?

 

I run my FD with Pettit's 'long track' camber (-1.5 deg. front, - 1.3 deg. rear) and toe settings, and the car is much more responsive than with stock alignment. I am running 16" rims.

With these settings the car will turn in RIGHT NOW, so it's a change you have to adjust to, but becomes second nature very quickly. You twitch the wheel, the car turns. It will hunt around a little more on the street with these settings.

The main reason for addt'l negative camber is it helps keep more of the tire surface in contact with the track in turns as the suspension compresses and the inside tire unloads. Check out the negative camber on a CART car in road course trim from the front view. 1.5 degrees negative camber isn't all that much in comparison.

 

I run 1.5 degrees negative camber with no problems on the road. Does well on the road race circuit too...

I run that much camber for cornering potential, and for clearance purposes...

 

Thanks for the response everyone