noob1971

Replacing the dampers & springs on my 92 cx (daily driver) and am seeing HUGE price variability so it looks like trial & error could be expensive. I am planning on upgrading the engine within the next year to B series so there will be more power & more weight.

What is a decent damper/spring assembly for my purposes?

ekb16

iTrader: (1)

koni and GC setup

B serious

iTrader: (1)

Koni yellow and Ground control is a very tried and true setup. You can interchange spring rates and have the dampers revalved if you want. The shocks (dampers) are of European descent and manufacturing. Springs are designed and coiled in the US. All of the stuff has a lifetime warranty. There are HT vendors like THMotorsports that sell Koni/GC setups with your choice of spring rates for an awesome price ($700-800 range). Ride quality is great....but does depend on spring rates. Shocks have infinite adjustment points within a wide min/max range...and the damping adjustment actually works.

Cons: you won't want to slam the car. Its not meant for that.

Lower it sensibly and make good spring rate choices.

noob1971

whew, first ones i saw were $1049 for whole kit. i'll check out that web site, thanks.

B serious

iTrader: (1)

Look for THMotorsports in the sponsor marketplace. Hit them up thru HT to get special pricing. They usually have koni/GC sales this time of the year.

Ask back if you feel you need advice on spring rates. I've used and tried quite a few different ones on my cars.

noob1971

looks like thm wants $983 - that's a little better - i will try HT route, THANKS!

B serious

iTrader: (1)

NP. I'm assuming that 973 includes the extended top hats? They're nice to have.

TomCat39

This seems like a fairly generalized tech thread so I will hit you up on this.

For a 92-95 Hatchback, what spring rates would you recommend on the Koni/GC setup to give a near stock feel with a touch better handling?

Looking to upgrade with loosing as little comfort as possible. We have some rough roads around me and wrecked train tracks etc.

B serious

iTrader: (1)

Are you using any sway bars?

Generally...better ride comes from using softer rear springs vs. Front springs. But often time, better handling comes from stiffer rears compared to fronts. If you use a rear bar, you can kinda get a good middle ground.

In simple terms, something like 350F/250R will give you decent handling...but a really nice ride.

360F/380R was what I used on my ITR and it was a really good compromise of neutral handling and ride. I drove the car daily and it was about 1.5 or 2" lower than stock. But...it was with either the stock 22mm and JDM 23mm rear bars. It was quick at the race track as well. Quicker, infact, than other totally overdone civic/integras.

Try something like 350/300. The hatchback is a shorter chassis. Those rates should get you what you're looking for.

B serious

iTrader: (1)

IIRC, stock off the shelf GC rates for 96-00 coupes is 360/250. Integra 2drs are like 350/250.

For ref:
Stock USDM ITR : 250/250
EK9 CTR: 240/240.

350/300 would work well for your hatch, IMO. If you're just intending on street driving it.

If you're willing to give up some comfort for the sake of track use, 350/400 or 360/380 range would be good.

I think all their springs are in N/m so you can get more resolution in Lb/in ratings.

FeelTheBass

iTrader: (1)

Just curious, how much would a stock integra rear sway bar effect the stiffness? If I got 300/250 spring rates, with a stock integra sway bar, would that have a similar effect of a stiffer rear spring rate?

B serious

iTrader: (1)

Meh...maybe. The stock (non - ITR) bar is 13mm. You could mistake it for a brake line lol. I don't think it'd make a notable difference at all.

300F may be a bit too soft if you're lowering more than 1 - 2" (depending which chassis we're talking about) You might get coil bind or over use the bump stop.

400F isn't uncomfortable. But at that point, you're forced to run a front biased rate since 400R is going to be kind of a handful on a hatchback.

That's why I suggested the 350 to 380 front rates. That way you can use a slightly more rear biased setup without ending up with back problems lol.

But again...spring rates are going to depend on the chassis also. I wouldn't recommend the same rates for a long car like a sedan or EM1 as I would a short car like a 88-95 hatch. DC chassis are "medium" length for that group.

TomCat39

I put on the Integra LCA's to add the rear sway bar at some point. I think it's a stock 13mm sway bar? And just the stock front civic sway bar. The other upgrade I plan on doing is just the rear brake discs so I can keep to the stock 13" wheels on the civic.

FeelTheBass

iTrader: (1)

I have a '96 hatchback so it's all relevant. So 350F/380R with a 22mm ITR sway bar would give me a biased rear, but why does everyone want more oversteer than understeer? Turn corners faster?

NotARaCist

iTrader: (1)

Yes. Oversteer lets your front end pull you through a turn, understeer makes your front end pull you off the track.

B serious

iTrader: (1)

Yeah, that combo should work as a street biased track setup. You'll need a subframe brace.

I feel like with that setup on that chassis, the car may oversteer on the street, but would be SLIGHT understeer/mostly neutral at a track.

I used 360F/380R, a 23mm rear bar, 225/45/15F and 205/50/15R with a ton of front camber on my 01 ITR. It was extremely neutral. No over or understeer. It was like some sort of unrealistic video game. ITR's have a LSD too, though, which helps cut out understeer so much.