i just don't know what the difference is between lowering springs and coilovers. i have an 01' civic LX, 2dr, 5-speed. i want to lower it about 1-1/2". i'm not sure what i should use to do this. i want it to look nice and i don't want the ride to be that rough.
i also heard that if i'm going to change the springs it is best to change the shocks as well. i guess it helps out the feel of the ride.
any advide about these topics would be helpful.

 

well springs are just replacement springs probably what you want. then there are slip on coilovers are adjustable usual shitty but there are decent brands (ground control, skunk2 maybe). then there are coilovers like that include the entire shock (teins are most popular, dc2, omni).

Springs are the cheapest (100-200) If you get a progressive spring it will feel much like stock. most people will switch out the shocks on bigger drops.

Coilovers can have a bigger drop then springs and you should switch out the shocks for these. you might blow them out. **** pairs can be about 100 bucks good pairs are about 3-400.

Coilover kits are the most expensive. teins rang from 1000- 2000 I believe. they have the most adjustability with the ride height and fully adjustable shock.

might not be the best info but that sure is a good start.

 

Suspension is something you don't want to be cheap in. Safety and ride quality is at stake.

Save up some money and go for a full/true coilover.

 

I wish there were more $600 tops coilover kits out there ;( or any lol

 

thanks alot for your help. so i guess what i want is a coilover kit. which includes springs and shocks...is that correct? i definately don't want to mess up my civic. i want it to be done right. any other advice from anyone would be most helpful.

 

There IS no difference between a coilover setup and a spring/shock setup in terms of ride if you get a smilar spring rate and quality shock. Handling ability does not change if you get a coilover system or springs/shocks. Anyone who says otherwise doesn't have a clue what makes a good suspension. The only difference between the two is that with a coilover system you have the ability to change the ride height. If you're not looking to corner weight, or adjust your ride height, don't bother with coilovers as it's not useful to you and another thing to sieze up and go wrong.

If you're looking to keep a good ride quality and only lower it a certain amount find the appropriate spring (progressive if you want to keep a softer ride, linear if you don't mind a harsher one) that lowers you the correct amount and a good shock. With most springs any good shock company will have a shock that will work for you. Be it bilsten, koni, tokico, KYB, or the like. If you're worried about "messing up" you can go the safe way which would be to use an Eibach Pro-Kit with Tokico Illuminas or KYB AGX shocks. I'm assuming that you're not going to be installing the pieces yourself, so I'd actually talk to a local shop to see if they can help recommend some pieces to you that they'll install for you.

 

exactly what ^^ said.......

coilovers= adjustable ride height
springs/shocks= non adjustable

might i ask why you posted in the prelude forum even though you have a civic??

 

i posted in the prelude section because i don't know what the hell i'm doing in this site yet. i'm not quit sure how things work. this is only my second day. anyway...i think i should go for the coilovers, if there is no difference, this way i have the option to lower and raise my car. if i get the springs, then i'm stuck with what ever the ride height is, like it or not. what's the best coilover kit i can get without killing my wallet, or potentially hurting my ride...what brands are good to look at?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by flamega &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">i posted in the prelude section because i don't know what the hell i'm doing in this site yet. i'm not quit sure how things work. this is only my second day. anyway...i think i should go for the coilovers, if there is no difference, this way i have the option to lower and raise my car. if i get the springs, then i'm stuck with what ever the ride height is, like it or not. what's the best coilover kit i can get without killing my wallet, or potentially hurting my ride...what brands are good to look at?</TD></TR></TABLE>

You need to read the forum titles and understand what they mean.

How much money do you have to spend on suspension mods?

 

it doesn't matter really how much i have to spend on suspension, cause if i'm going to do it right i'll just have to save up. but the thing is...i have no ideas about price and/or brand names. i go onto sites and the kits look real good. but like we all know looks can be deceiving. example-i got my intake off of e-bay. thing is great. but thats only an intake...it doesn't support the weight of my car. i found coilover kits on e-bay for like $150 for all four. they look great. but don't let the price fool you, my intake is a ram air and it was only $40(including tax). so i don't know if i can trust them or not. but from what i hear, you have to be real careful when it comes to suspention. where can i go and fing out the ratings/history of each brand?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by flamega &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">it doesn't matter really how much i have to spend on suspension, cause if i'm going to do it right i'll just have to save up. but the thing is...i have no ideas about price and/or brand names. i go onto sites and the kits look real good. but like we all know looks can be deceiving. example-i got my intake off of e-bay. thing is great. but thats only an intake...it doesn't support the weight of my car. i found coilover kits on e-bay for like $150 for all four. they look great. but don't let the price fool you, my intake is a ram air and it was only $40(including tax). so i don't know if i can trust them or not. but from what i hear, you have to be real careful when it comes to suspention. where can i go and fing out the ratings/history of each brand?</TD></TR></TABLE>

You are in luck my friend. I saved this link for people like you.

http://www.tunermarket.com/

 

thanks for the site.
-what exactly is "damper"?
-i got "basic" and "super street" damper.
-is TEIN the best? have you heard?
-

i'm real nervous about my cars suspension. i usually do all the work to my car myself. this way i know its done right. i mean i'll probably still do it with a friend or something but...i've never worked on suspension anything. i hear its pretty difficult.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by flamega &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">thanks for the site.
-what exactly is "damper"?
-i got "basic" and "super street" damper.
-is TEIN the best? have you heard?
-

i'm real nervous about my cars suspension. i usually do all the work to my car myself. this way i know its done right. i mean i'll probably still do it with a friend or something but...i've never worked on suspension anything. i hear its pretty difficult.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Damper is the same thing as a shock/strut.

Tein is one of the best. I had Tein SS (Super Street) on my Prelude. If you're not mechanically inclined, I suggest letting a shop do the installation.

Stay away from the POS Tein Basic.

BTW, I'm in MA also.

 

Tein SS uses the same junk design shock as the basic. The Flex is the only half decent shock that Tein produces and brings over, well short of the RA lines.

Buy a Helm's manual, read it, buy the tools and get to work. If you're still ansy about it, have a shop install it for you. Just FYI cheap springs + cheap shocks = bouncy uncontrolled ride.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by flamega &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">thanks for the site.
-what exactly is "damper"?
-i got "basic" and "super street" damper.
-is TEIN the best? have you heard?
-

i'm real nervous about my cars suspension. i usually do all the work to my car myself. this way i know its done right. i mean i'll probably still do it with a friend or something but...i've never worked on suspension anything. i hear its pretty difficult.</TD></TR></TABLE>

best shocks: koni yellow
best springs: ground control
best all-in-one coilover kit: you have way more options since you've got a civic. people like the omni's cuz they're cheap but "work well", some people are trying the new D2's which are in the same market segment. there's also a couple of mugen suspensions, the buddy club suspension, and the better Tein setups (FLEX/RA/RE), but all of these are pretty pricey at 1300+, as well as very stiff/harsh for street use. imho, for a street car Koni + GC is as good as it gets.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by bad-monkey &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">best shocks: koni yellow
best springs: ground control
best all-in-one coilover kit: you have way more options since you've got a civic. people like the omni's cuz they're cheap but "work well", some people are trying the new D2's which are in the same market segment. there's also a couple of mugen suspensions, the buddy club suspension, and the better Tein setups (FLEX/RA/RE), but all of these are pretty pricey at 1300+, as well as very stiff/harsh for street use. imho, for a street car Koni + GC is as good as it gets. </TD></TR></TABLE>

actually, you are right about best shocks, but i have to say that if you want to go HIGH spring rates and have them last, then you need to revalve the koni yellows.


you need to ask what you want to do with the car. if you want ride quality, get some coilovers that is OTB(off the bench). these are stock spring rates that will give you something close to an OEM ride. plus, your from maryland. it snows there. you can raise the car so you can atleast drive in the snow. it will cost you like 350 or so for the Ground Control coilovers. you can get them on ebay, but there have been fake ones out there. i believe eibach makes their coilovers and springs.

otb spring rates will give you the same handling theoretically speaking, but it will get better. you will still be faced with understeer. If you go for something that is softer in the front and harder in the back, you will have oversteer, but if your not going to track the car at all or you take your foot when you corner, then stick to OTB rates.

we have a suspension forum here. read up on there.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by TimeRacer &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Tein SS uses the same junk design shock as the basic. The Flex is the only half decent shock that Tein produces and brings over, well short of the RA lines.

</TD></TR></TABLE>

You have a point. But can you adjust the dampers on the Basic like the SS? Nope, you can't.

If someone's going to buy a basic, go for the GC/koni combo instead.

I'm sick of Tein. Played out to me. Been there done that.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by eMpAtHy &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">actually, you are right about best shocks, but i have to say that if you want to go HIGH spring rates and have them last, then you need to revalve the koni yellows.


you need to ask what you want to do with the car. if you want ride quality, get some coilovers that is OTB(off the bench). these are stock spring rates that will give you something close to an OEM ride. plus, your from maryland. it snows there. you can raise the car so you can atleast drive in the snow. it will cost you like 350 or so for the Ground Control coilovers. you can get them on ebay, but there have been fake ones out there. i believe eibach makes their coilovers and springs.

otb spring rates will give you the same handling theoretically speaking, but it will get better. you will still be faced with understeer. If you go for something that is softer in the front and harder in the back, you will have oversteer, but if your not going to track the car at all or you take your foot when you corner, then stick to OTB rates.

we have a suspension forum here. read up on there.</TD></TR></TABLE>

you're right. koni yellows can damp a maximum of a bout 600#/in of spring before needing a revalve. they also need to be shortened if you're gonna dump the car to maintain sufficient travel.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Sticky Tires &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">You have a point. But can you adjust the dampers on the Basic like the SS? Nope, you can't.

If someone's going to buy a basic, go for the GC/koni combo instead.

I'm sick of Tein. Played out to me. Been there done that. </TD></TR></TABLE>

SS = Basic + adjust valve. Same bad design though.

GC/Koni combo is a better combo than the Tein SS, Basic and Flex, hands down. The dampening ability of the Koni is just that much better than most of the market. You really can't even compare what Tein has in the US to the GC/Koni combo short of cost.

But I think the original poster has his options and just needs to decide where he wants to go from here.

 

So from what you guys are saying that Tein is over rated and the GC/ Koni's are better and cheaper over all.....Good info....

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by TimeRacer &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

SS = Basic + adjust valve. Same bad design though.

GC/Koni combo is a better combo than the Tein SS, Basic and Flex, hands down. The dampening ability of the Koni is just that much better than most of the market. You really can't even compare what Tein has in the US to the GC/Koni combo short of cost.

But I think the original poster has his options and just needs to decide where he wants to go from here. </TD></TR></TABLE>

I agree.

We need a sticky about suspension. Or better yet, move these kind of threads to the suspension forum.

These kind of threads come by every week.

Not trying to be an ***.

 

what do you guys think of the jdm tein HA coilovers, are they the same stuff or are they something worth buying.....

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by mgags7 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">what do you guys think of the jdm tein HA coilovers, are they the same stuff or are they something worth buying.....</TD></TR></TABLE>

It's made for hardcore track racing. Expect your ride quality to be crappy on the streets.

 

if youre looking to spend around $600, check out the omni's. i got the sport setup, and im loving it. yea, its a little stiff at time for street use... but theyre still great overall.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Sticky Tires &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">It's made for hardcore track racing. Expect your ride quality to be crappy on the streets. </TD></TR></TABLE>

It's not so bad, I've been riding on them for 3-4 years now. I have no complaints unless I'm on a road that resembles a back country dirt road w/ the # of pot holes in it. HA's I'd say are comprable to the Koni/GC combo. The HA make up for the shock design by the fact that they are already valved for the higher spring rates. The GC/Koni's will be a bit more controlled.