4DALOOKS92

so... Everytime I want to know something, or have doubts about anything I want to get for my car, I turn to H-T for help, so these time theres a guy selling some used ground control coilovers and Tokico Illuminas. he had them on his car for almost 5 years, I dont really think theres a problem with the coilovers but I dont know about the shocks, being used for almost 5 years is there a posibility that they'll get ruined soon? hes asking for $300(everything)

forcefedferio

well this is most dependent on the type of driving and how he had them set, as opposed to a time frame. For instance, daily driving on lovely roads such as here in pennsylvania with the car crushed i would give less than 12 minutes. But if it was lowered maybe 1 1/2" to 2" i'm sure they've still got some life, but i'm not so sure they've got $300 worth of life.

hushypushy

If they are 5 years old, $300 for everything is a little too much IMO. Although, like forcefedferio said, it depends on how much the car was lowered and how it was driven in that time frame, so take that into consideration.

For some perspective, I paid $325 for my GC/Illumina setup and it was about a year old. Usually I see the same setup go from $300 to $350. Considering the age, I would try to lowball that guy somewhere in the mid $200 range.

BUT the Illuminas have a lifetime warranty. So if you blow them, you can get them replaced. The only thing is the hassle of taking your suspension out, disassembling it, sending it out, and putting it back together.

4DALOOKS92

have you blown yours and use the warranty to replace them? cuz if youre sure that they'll replace them, I dont think it would be a bad idea to get everything (sure Ill low ball for lower price ) and then just wait for them to get blown.

Does the illuminas have to be bought from the original manufacturer for the warranty to be valid you have any Idea???

fastrxu

I know ground control is good

but I got my full illumina shocks/ springs for like $550 brand new and they're niiice

hushypushy

good question. I decided to hit up Google...

I wonder if my car is excessively lowered. Seriously! The reason I bought the Illuminas is because they have excellent dampening...I'm at a reasonably low height, but I still have a lot of travel and the shocks do their thing just fine. I wonder how they are going to know anyway...



and here's the kicker, at least for me, since I don't have any receipts, I bought them from the guy who bought them new.

So I dunno. Maybe you can take it to some dealer with no receipt, saying it's been used for years on small drop and you lost the receipt somewhere along the way...but I would guess that Tokico themselves are pretty strict about it.

But if you can get the original receipt, then you're in luck

4DALOOKS92

man thanks for the info makes me happy to know some people go out if their way to help somebody. nice car btw, i dont think its that lowered looks perfect to me. I think we are in the same position regarding the shocks because he told me his girl had them for almost a year and then he had them for four years, so, I thinks thats already braking the rules of the warranty and i dont think he have the receipt, and of course somebody thats trying to sell something wont let you know if he abuse the product when they had it unless there really honest. shold I just get it because of the coilovers and then buy shocks in the future, would that still be a good deal?

hushypushy

Are they just sitting around, or are they still on a car? It would be helpful if you could drive them and see if they're still working properly. Also, how low do YOU plan to go? If slammed, then you might want to hold out for a newer setup. If you want to go as low as me or higher, then I think you'll be fine, since I'm running shelf rate GC's (fairly soft) and I've never bottomed out and the ride is not bouncy in the slightest.

It depends on how patient you are and what kind of deal you can get out of this guy. If you can spend maybe $250 and you don't plan on going slammed, then the shocks will probably last you a while and you're getting a good deal. If they don't, you can pick up some Koni Yellows or another set of Illuminas for the Ground Controls, which are long lasting springs.

The reason I mention patience is that Ground Controls + Konis or Tokico's is THE most popular setup for Civic track use. Not the best, but you can pick up a setup relatively cheap and it does a great job, so a lot of people want to use them. What this means is that the secondhand market is actually relatively fertile, because when people part out their car or move up to a higher quality coilover, they need to dump the Ground Controls. So I'm sure if you wait it out, you could probably pick up a relatively new set for around $350 or less.

4DALOOKS92

I wouldnt go lower than you and the guy remove everything from his car these saturday so I cant test them. I think I might just hold up, and save some money for new G/C and tokicos or konis but theyre so expensive new. it kinda hurts to take a bite out of your wallet like that, konis and GC I dont see them no less than $700 for the setup illuminas and GC might be a little less, but either one would take more than a weeks pay from my pocket if you have any advise about where can I get them for less i would apreciate it.

fastrxu

I don't think the receipt thing will work

tokico has you register your name to the item when you purchase it

I didn't think it was necessary/ I was really lazy and now I'm screwed out of a lifetime warranty

chinese acrobat

I have the coilover versions and they've held well for 3 years.

They do have trouble adjusting to cold temperatures.

Got them for 500.

hushypushy

I actually bought mine on HT, in the EF sale thread. Right after I bought mine, I saw GC's/Koni Yellows for $350...and the guy couldn't sell them! He had to part them out. I suggest checking Craigslist or Hondamarketplace.

4DALOOKS92

thanks everybody for your help. ill start searching for good deals on the net n H-T I hope I get lucky

19Accord97

Hey guys,
Do you mind telling me how low you guys are dropped with the Tokico Illuminas? I have Ground Controls and they make 3 diff. versions depending on the struts. The version I have cannot use Koni Yellows b/c I would need a diff. GC sleeve.

Anyways, I can get KYB AGX or Tokico Illuminas. I use it for a DD and dont drive the car hard. I am dropped 2.5ish in the front and 2ish in the rear.

What do you think? And where is the best price? I see tokico illimunas on ebay for $440.

hushypushy

^ The AGX's aren't bad at all but IMO the Illuminas are better.

19Accord97

Okay, thanks I just wanted to make sure the Illuminas were meant for/could handle such a drop.

Thanks Del Sol guys!

hushypushy

Using the Illuminas, you'll be able to put the GC's all the way down and the dampening should be fine. Check the pic of my car above...that's very close to all the way down (less than an inch left all the way around). I'm running pretty soft springs too (shelf rates), so the shock is doing a lot of work. It dampens it no problem. What are the rates on your Ground Controls?