I need some advice: I've got a 1990 civic base model hatchback that I'm about to drop a b16 swap into. I'm not turning this car into any type of street racing machine, or anything along those lines. The b16 is just for fun, because I enjoy driving.

That said, I deliver pizza for a living and the suspension I've got on my civic right now just isn't cutting it. I'd like to get a setup that would ride really smooth over bumps and yet corner nicely. It doesn't have to be racing quality either, the smoothness is the key issue. Anyone got any ideas on how to achieve this?


Modified by Jesterian at 7:15 PM 8/14/2005

 

damn...i am doing almost the exact same thing as you with my 91 si/b16. interesting. my car has neuspeed race springs and theyre just too damn rough to deliver pizza. i'll probably end up getting tein s-tech springs...or H&R sport springs. i used to have the h&r's on my crx and it rode fine on stock shocks.

 

put OTS ground controls on there and put it back up close to stock height. You will be a happy driver, but you may not be a stunna.

 

quite frankly, i recommend you rebuild your steering rack first. sounds like you just want a comfortable ride, since you really want a smooth ride. you dont need stiffer springs. i run on stock springs, i think its quite fine.

but replacing the worn out steering rack end bushing and adjusting the pinion gear box alone made a huge difference in ride quality. your car is 15 years old. it needs some freshing up...

here for more info.
https://honda-tech.com/zerothread?id=1117870

then you might want to think about new shocks. just the shocks. something like tokico blues or illuminas. theyre pretty cheap nowadays.

then i think youll get the ride youre looking for.

stiffening your springs will not be the correct thing to help make your ride "smoother".

btw, i also have upgraded front and rear swaybars. you should consider adding a rear swaybar and possibly adding a front 19mm swaybar which is OEM from a 1988-91 civic sedan and can be found for cheap used, or even just $80 straight from the dealer.

 

Thanks for the comprehensive info, Tyson.

I get steering wheel vibration when I brake (but none on the brake pedal) which seems to corroborate your evaluation.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Tyson &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">quite frankly, i recommend you rebuild your steering rack first. sounds like you just want a comfortable ride, since you really want a smooth ride. you dont need stiffer springs. i run on stock springs, i think its quite fine.

but replacing the worn out steering rack end bushing and adjusting the pinion gear box alone made a huge difference in ride quality. your car is 15 years old. it needs some freshing up...

here for more info.
https://honda-tech.com/zerothread?id=1117870

then you might want to think about new shocks. just the shocks. something like tokico blues or illuminas. theyre pretty cheap nowadays.

then i think youll get the ride youre looking for.

stiffening your springs will not be the correct thing to help make your ride "smoother".

btw, i also have upgraded front and rear swaybars. you should consider adding a rear swaybar and possibly adding a front 19mm swaybar which is OEM from a 1988-91 civic sedan and can be found for cheap used, or even just $80 straight from the dealer.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Great Advice! I just rebuilt my 260,000 mile rack and it was well worth the effort. Much more enjoyable to drive now.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Mleach &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">put OTS ground controls on there and put it back up close to stock height. You will be a happy driver, but you may not be a stunna. </TD></TR></TABLE>

That's about the worse thing he could do for comfort. Ground Controls are everything but comfortable. If he's looking for comfort he needs something progressive.

I'd have to go with what Tyson said, stock springs, performance shocks and sway bars and I'll add good tires in there as well.

 

I've heard the non-racing konis are a good investment?

 

Go stock every thing and see if u can over drive the car first.
Just my opinion

 

Over drive the car? I spend a ton of time in my car, just looking for a way to make that time more comfortable.