Hey guys, just a quick question:

I've been looking into lowering my '98 Civic. It's a daily driver, I don't plan on doing anything crazy with it. I just want to make it look a little better. So I've chosen to go with some black slips and a fairly nice drop. However, I want to go with some springs that I can slap on it without having to buy new shocks right away... seeing as how I'm a college kid hurting for cash. What are some brands/models of springs you guys have had this type of success with?

Any suggestions are greatly appreciated

 

do you have a little spirit in your driving? because i think any lowering spring on stock struts isn't really good for the life of the strut. maybe if you post this in the suspension area as well you might get some better answers though. just an idea.

 

tein s-tech

1.9" front drop
1.7" rear drop

they ride like stock and are pretty cheap at around $140 or less

 

Thanks for the info guys. I do have quite a bit of spirit in my driving, however I just want something to drop it for now until I can get some cash up to get some new shocks as well. I'll check out those teins.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Jakester9500 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">do you have a little spirit in your driving? because i think any lowering spring on stock struts isn't really good for the life of the strut. maybe if you post this in the suspension area as well you might get some better answers though. just an idea.</TD></TR></TABLE>

True, but at the same time.... not so much. Its not really that good for the strut, but I've seen reasonable drops on stock struts last wayyyy longer then they should have.

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by **DOHC HaTcH** &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">tein s-tech

1.9" front drop
1.7" rear drop

they ride like stock and are pretty cheap at around $140 or less</TD></TR></TABLE>

^^ Smart man. The spring rate on the s-techs are close to the stock, so (like DOCH HaTcH said) it will ride somewhat like stock. Plus the drop isnt crazy, and they're cheap. Cant go wrong with TEIN

 

If you go with a mild drop under 2" something like tein s-techs, or eibach pro kits would be fine without shocks.

I didn't want to spend too much. I went with a eibach sportline and koni (reds) combo. I didn't need adjustability. Drop is nice. Not too low. And koni reds are adjustable to match the spring rates. But are internaly adjustable, but I'm not worried about messing with adjusting them.

I ended up getting my setup at http://www.shox.com for $450

 

you will be okay. when shocks get blown it is a gradually process.

 

I dropped my EK hatch 2.5" on RSR springs with stock struts and that bitch handled quite well. The struts lasted 60,000 miles or more. Only thing is your camber will be off and you'll be buying more tires. Replaced struts with Tokico Illuminas recently and recommend them for performance vs price.

 

I was thinking about doing the same thing with my ej8. I plan on buying RSR springs and using Tokico shocks (light blue ones) and i was wondering how thedriving is. I'm just a daily driver hoping to make my car look nicer.

 

X2.

They ride a bit worse than stock, but body roll is way less and it looks nicer. It's certainly no race spring or anything but I like it for a DD with my stock struts. I too am a broke college student. If my shocks get blown eventually, whatever, I'll get koni yellows.

 

eibach sport line

mild lower (not hard on stock struts as much)
comfy ride
i have a set for sale......... used but still nice

 

its not the camber that is off so much as the toe when lowering. and 9/10 times you can have the aligned out to fix the problem. when going really low a toe kit or other mods may be required for a proper alignment

 

where are you located?

 

Same setup I have, and it's superb for the money. IMO it's the absolute cheapest you can do a drop *right*. Also, Eibach and Koni both have lifetime warranty on their stuff, so if it ever fails, you can get it replaced. Although I've *VERY* rarely heard of an Eibach or Koni anything failing.

OP: here's the problem with using stock shocks on a lowered car. All shocks are valved to match a certain range of spring rates. OEM shocks are valved to the rates of OEM springs.

When you lower a car, you're effectively losing suspension travel, which means the springs have to have higher spring rates. The stock shocks are not equipped for these higher spring rates, and WILL fail in time. It may take more time if you go with S-Techs, or other springs that are closer to OEM, but they will fail.

I was in the same boat as you, and I bit the bullet and got the Koni Red/Sportline combo. For me, it was exactly the right amount of drop, the ride is good, and the handling is as smooth as anything I've ever seen short of *good* full coilovers (ie, not omni, ksport, etc).

$450's not too much for the advantages you get and the peace of mind that you've done it right.

EDIT: On a 2.5" drop, you do NOT need a camber kit as long as you are religious about keeping the toe aligned... which you should be anyway. Yes, you will have negative camber, but no, it will not eat your tires up. I've currently got 15K miles on my tires on this drop with almost no visible camber wear. ALWAYS get an alignment with ANY ride height change.

 

im a broke college student, and i went with the d2 springs (uber cheaped out) and the handling/body roll is about 100000000000% better than stock on stock struts. i have been told that as long as you dont try and slam your car on stock struts, and they are have good rebound now you should be okay.

 

I second all the poeple saying Tein, I have SS on my EK and love them. A friend of mine has Sportlines on his 99 SI with stock struts and it rides great. I would say one of these choices.

 

Save up your money and do it right. Not only will you not have to worry about blowing a strut but the handling will be top notch as well. And I'm not talking about taking a corner hard I'm talking about highway cruising and driving around town. Remember your springs hold you up, it's your struts that are working on keeping you stable. If your springs are stronger than your struts then they'll over power them, leading to the bounce that a lot of cheap setups have. Good shocks will dampen the springs and keep them from compressing and decompressing. A good strut can make a crappy spring act like a quality one.

 

Good thread. I was wanting to drop my Civic on stock struts too. Only doing it until I can afford the good stuff. Now I'm not so sure. I dont really wana blow out on a tight turn.