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Springs and sway bars

Posted:
Wed Oct 24, 2012 10:32 am
by J0HNATH0N
Hi guys
Most of the cars I have had before have already been lowered to my liking and handled well, but I need to know a few things about the lib. The rear ride height is fine but I'm not too happy with the front. Can I put lowered king springs just on the front?
And I was thinking white line sway bars also. Would this be a decent idea for now as coilovers will cost more than double the price of the springs and swaybars. Just looking at a quick fix for now.
Cheers guys
Re: Springs and sway bars

Posted:
Wed Oct 24, 2012 12:50 pm
by Stomps
as i said to someone else on here:
MO- best bang for buck for these cars is swaybars...
whiteline swaybars front and rear ~$300 - fit yourself
AVO or Cusco rear swaybar mount- $140- fit yourself
Whiteline links front and rear- $280- fit yourself
Anti lift kit or LCA rear bushes- $117- will need to get pressed in
LCA front bushes- $38- will need to get pressed in (dont fail often but may aswell replace while the arms are out to fit the rears)
make sure if you go swaybars you get the reinforced rear mount.. the factory one is made of cheese and bends easily...
in terms of springs, i wouldnt recommend just lowering the front.. the spring rates wont be the same and will fuck your handling..
what springs were you looking at anyway??
Re: Springs and sway bars

Posted:
Wed Oct 24, 2012 1:54 pm
by J0HNATH0N
King springs lowered springs. I just don't like the stance at the moment.
Re: Springs and sway bars

Posted:
Wed Oct 24, 2012 4:09 pm
by Stomps
How the car looks and it's "stance" (fuck I hate that word) shound only be a secondary concern when chosing suspension..
How it actually rides, handles and steers is what suspension mods are about..
Making your car have great "stance" while sacrificing handling is fucking retarded
Re: Springs and sway bars

Posted:
Wed Oct 24, 2012 4:26 pm
by SH30RB
J0HNATH0N wrote:King springs lowered springs. I just don't like the stance at the moment.
King springs on the billies make for a very harsh ride.
Im speaking from personal experience.
and Stomps, where do you manage to get all this whiteline gear for so cheap?
Re: Springs and sway bars

Posted:
Wed Oct 24, 2012 4:29 pm
by J0HNATH0N
Stomps wrote:How the car looks and it's "stance" (fuck I hate that word) shound only be a secondary concern when chosing suspension..
How it actually rides, handles and steers is what suspension mods are about..
Making your car have great "stance" while sacrificing handling is fucking retarded
No where in the post did I say I want to sacrifice handling, I simply asked what options can be done and people's opinions. I do not consider myself to be 'fucking retarded' hence the questions.
Basically the way the car SITS is slightly lower at the rear, and I would like to change that if possible without sacrificing handling. Stance seemed to be the best single word at the time.
Any valuable ideas would be appreciated, I am thinking coilovers might be the way to go, but I might do swaybars etc. first...
Re: Springs and sway bars

Posted:
Wed Oct 24, 2012 4:33 pm
by stew07gt
SH30RB wrote:J0HNATH0N wrote:King springs lowered springs. I just don't like the stance at the moment.
King springs on the billies make for a very harsh ride.
Im speaking from personal experience.
and Stomps, where do you manage to get all this whiteline gear for so cheap?
this is a matter of perspective. drive around in a car setup with terrible coilovers on a country road for an hour. then get in a lib with kings and itll feel like a dream. i think kings are plenty comfy.
Also: getting kings all round leaves you with the car sitting higher at the front anyway. because thats how the car is meant to sit.
Re: Springs and sway bars

Posted:
Wed Oct 24, 2012 4:35 pm
by SH30RB
J0HNATH0N wrote:Any valuable ideas would be appreciated, I am thinking coilovers might be the way to go, but I might do swaybars etc. first...
I'll continue on from my earlier post

Best thing I did was swap from my kings/billies set up and get some KiDo coilovers. Now I know they are very basic, entry level coilovers but they are 100 times better than what was on there before. Obviously if I spent the $4k on some Ohlins or KW Variant 2's or something I would tell you these shit all over the KiDo's but...
The adjustable height and camber is great too and will help you achieve the look your after
Oh, and that was a mixture of town/highway driving with mostly pretty good roads.
A stiffer shock mixed with a stiffer spring... you brake your back everytime you hit a pothole
Re: Springs and sway bars

Posted:
Wed Oct 24, 2012 4:39 pm
by J0HNATH0N
Thanks SH30RB ill look into those, possibly might just wast $200 on kings first as a learning curve and then move to coilies after.
Re: Springs and sway bars

Posted:
Wed Oct 24, 2012 5:31 pm
by Stomps
Hey mate...
Wasnt having a go or calling YOU a retarded.. just saying that dropping cars purely for looks is retarded especially if you disregard handling quality..
Didn't mean offence mate.. wasn't saying you were gonna do that..
I agree with coilovers being ideal.. just make sure they are quality ones and base height adjustable.. otherwise you may start changing the static spring tension.. more importantly, ensure the struts themselves are properly valved and match your spring rates...
Re- whiteline gear.. I got a mate at a WA suspension shop that gives me cost or trade..
I think the front sway cost me $130odd... the rear I bought 2nd hand but a new one would have been around $170..
The whiteline website is a fkn rip..
Re: Springs and sway bars

Posted:
Wed Oct 24, 2012 5:42 pm
by J0HNATH0N
No probs mate, after re-reading I see you meant the idea of doing just for looks. I work at an auto store so I can get fairly cheap (little more expensive than your quotes but i'd rather keep the sales through my store)
I didn't really want to go coilovers due to the price (long term plan is KiDo or Bc's) and me not supposed to be spending money on the car right now, so the little things and possibly the kings for now will do.
I can't see any pics specifically with king springs on a gen 4. Anyone able to help with this?
Re: Springs and sway bars

Posted:
Wed Oct 24, 2012 6:28 pm
by SH30RB
Like i said before, I had them on my 3RB wagon

Mine were made for a GT sedan

Re: Springs and sway bars

Posted:
Wed Oct 24, 2012 6:58 pm
by J0HNATH0N
As far as I know the gt and 3.0r use the same king springs. Love the pic. Noticeably better than the standard height
Thanks heaps mate. This will be the go for now
Re: Springs and sway bars

Posted:
Mon Dec 03, 2012 11:50 am
by Fergitron
Hi SH30RB,
how did your wagon ride with these? - in the photo just the standard KYB struts?
the wheels in the photo are the std 17's?
I want my wagon to be just a little bit lower - stance looks good
Re: Springs and sway bars

Posted:
Mon Dec 03, 2012 12:04 pm
by shav
What Was the cost for KiDo Coilovers if you don't mind me asking?