giddyup21

Rear shocks have been squeaking on my 99 ex for about a week. I've been planning on getting KYB AGX Shocks w/ Ground Effect Adjustable Coilovers for a little while, and just started working my first real job, in the past six months... Looking at my budget I planned on doing it next spring but now I'm thinking with OEM strut replacements running $120 just for rear, $600 doesn't seem like that much more to do it right now. Anyways I had a few questions...

a) Does anyone have a suggestion for a better suspension in the same price range?
b) I'm planning on doing an h2b swap in the spring as I'll have the spare money. Will this affect my selection of suspension, and should I go for something else that will be good now and better with the extra weight/height/engine placement of the h2b swap.

Thanks for any help

giddyup21

Anyone have any input? Or a link for a better place to look for this info? Any help is appreciated.

Libertariat

What's your current budget for the suspension?

I've got about $600 set aside for shocks/springs. I'll be ordering some new koni yellows and some H&R races from a friend.

giddyup21

I was aiming for $600, that's what the setup I mentioned would run me on eBay. I definitely want adjustable coilovers, and the adjustable damping on the AGX shocks is nice too. You think your setup will be better for the h2b? Where can I find more info on your setup?

giddyup21

I definitely like that the GC coilovers are adjustable, and everyone seems to say good stuff about them. Now looking at Koni Yellows versus Tokico Illuminas versus KYB AGX. Anyone have any experience with these shocks that can give me any suggestions?

Libertariat

h2b doesn't make suspension setup different, just get the suspension setup that suits you. The weight difference wont make an ioda's difference in driving characteristics.

If you're really settled on GC then I would at least get some illuminas.

koni > illumina > kyb agx

giddyup21

I'm gonna go with Koni Yellows / Ground Controls. I don't really want to spend that much right now but my rear shocks are bad. Anyone know somewhere to get stock shocks cheaper than $60 bucks + tax a piece, so I can wait until spring for the upgrade?

Thanks!

Libertariat

IMO if you're on a budget, get the illuminas. Few drivers can out drive Illuminas for all their intents and purposes.

Getting koni's for a daily driver is just bling factor.

Unless you have serious track goals, just get the illuminas.

giddyup21

I'm trying to understand spring rate versus damping rate. I'm reading that damping rate needs to be equal to or greater than spring rate in order to prevent blowing through shocks.... Is that accurate? Or will you only reach maximum spring rates while autocrossing, dropping too far, etc.? As this is a DD, and I plan on both modifying this car, performing the swap, and driving it as at least my summer vehicle for years to come, I want to buy something that will outlast the durability of the stock springs, while providing better performance. If I need to buy Koni Yellows to match the Ground Control coilovers I'll do that. But I am only planning to drop 2" max. You think Illuminas are strong enough for GCs?

Correct me if my logic above is wrong, please. Also, do you happen to have the damping rate for the Illuminas? I was reading that KYB AGX stiffest rate is ~225lb/in. Isn't the spring rate of the GCs higher than this by a margin?

I appreciate all your help ek forever guy You're the man.

Libertariat

Tokicos and koni's both have a lifetime warranty.

And as long as you're not dropping the illuminas lower than 3" you're not likely to blow the shock.

Koni's can handle whatever you throw at them, but it takes some extreme dumpage and harsh driving to blow some illuminas.

How low are you going?

giddyup21

Right now I'm thinking 2" drop from stock for normal driving... Somewhere between 1.5-2" at least. But I'm looking at the price difference from Koni Yellows / Illuminas, and it's really not that big of a jump. I think if I'm gonna do it, I might as well just get the Koni Yellows for an extra $50 bucks or so, and never have to worry about it.

Saving $150 to get the AGX shocks though, that might make it worth while if the AGX could handle the OTS GC rates, on a 1.5-2" drop. You are anti-AGX? This will be almost entirely DD, without much aggressive driving at all. If I was going to spring for Illuminas I'd probably just go all out and get the Konis for a little bit more.

Libertariat

I'm not anti agx at all.

As long as your 2.5" and higher the agx's should be fine.

it's not so much the springrate that matters at what kind of shock travel the shock can handle. Obviously a 3" drop will call for more shock travel. Illuminas and koni's are more suited for "race" type drops (2.5-3.5")

Agx's would be fine for a 2" drop. It's a great product.

giddyup21

Awesome. I just want a fun car to drive. I'll probably get to the strip if I end up doing the swap as planned, but I want something fun, efficient, and obviously eliminating the fender gap is going to make the car look ten times better.

I really appreciate all your help man