Well, I've decided to do some suspension work on my car since it's going to need new struts here soon, and decided it would be a good time to look into suspension mods. I know of camber kits, strut tower bars, bushings, sway bars, struts, coil-overs, and springs. I don't believe they make aftermarket control arms since there's nothing to really upgrade on a control arm. Obviously you can also buy the stock ball joints, tie-rod ends, strut and shock mounts, etc. I'm pretty sure that I want to go with a coil-over suspension setup because I would like to be able to raise the car back up for winter and if going on a trip, but be able to drop it in the summer and for shows. I obviously don't want to have to change the springs out every time just to do this. I know for sure the car right now has Drop-Zone coil overs and a front and rear camber kit on it along with a front strut tower bar, but not really sure what else it has. What can you guys recommend to me for aftermarket parts?

 

If you're looking to be able to make height adjustments from winter to spring/summer, then you would be looking at a set of adjustable coilovers. They will cost you more than lowering/OEM springs, but would cater to what you need more.

 

Yea, I think I'm going to stick with adjustable coil overs. Now, if I'm understand right, coil overs are basically a special strut that has an adjustable spring mount so that you can raise or lower where the spring sits to raise or lower the ride height. I just wanted to make sure this was correct. That means I would be looking at getting a new set of coil-overs instead of just replacing the struts. This is not just a show car, it is also my daily driver. I would just like to make it a sort-of show car so that people could see not all Hondas are rice vehicles. I'm not looking for any drastic changes that are going to make the ride un-bearable, but I do want a nice lowered sporty ride without all the bouncing around. The Drop-Zone coil overs I have now aren't too bad, but I also know they're towards the low end of quality and price. I would like to invest into something a little better.

 

take a look at the accord FAQ stickied at the top. it covers a bit of what coilovers are out there right now for the accord. sounds to me though that something like the tein basic or superstreet would best suit your needs. adjustable, quality and reputable, affordable, and its on the soft side for daily driving comfort.

 

Well, I figured out that my car has the Drop-Zone coil overs with stock struts, which might explain why the ride is a little bouncy. What would be a good coilover and strut combination then? I know the Teins are good for a strut/coilover combo, but they are a little pricey (700 dollars).

 

grount control and koni yellows is the popular choice. neuspeed racing + koni yellows is also a option. theres also H&R sports or race/eibach sportline + KYB AGX.

 

fef

 

Well, I did some looking at the traction bars, and although they do appear that they would work well, I can't imagine they're going to be good for a daily driver. The main reason being is that they're going to transmit a lot more vibration to the chassis than the stock setup will. I've drove a couple cars that had stiffer mounts than stock, and the vibration is quite annoying, especially while you are sitting in traffic at a stop light. Also, if you've got any loose change or anything in and of the holders, it just plain rattles the **** out of it. This is going to be a pure daily driver, with MAYBE some track time after I mod it, so I'm looking for comfortability.

Alright, so for bushings Energy Suspension has been recommended. This is probably who I'll go with since I've heard TONS of good things about them. Do any other companies make bushings for our cars? By rear tie bar do you mean a rear sway bar? What company should I go with for the rear tie bar and rear strut tower bar?

For coil overs, Ground Control, Function Over Form, Tein Basic, Tein Super Street, Neuspeed Racing, H&R Sports, H&R Racing, Eibach Sportline, and Omnipower have been recommended. Koni Yellows and KYB AGX's have been recommended for struts. As for combinations, Ground Control coil-overs/Koni Yellow struts, Neuspeed Racing/Koni Yellow struts, H&R Sports/Race/KYB AGX struts, and Eibach Sportline/KYB AGX. Apparently the Ground Control coil-overs and Koni Yellow struts is the popular option. It almost look like some of the coil-overs include the shock in them, like the Teins and the Eibachs. Is it true that some are a complete system and then some are just an adjustable spring?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by A_Rotary_Guy &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote"> It almost look like some of the coil-overs include the shock in them, like the Teins and the Eibachs. Is it true that some are a complete system and then some are just an adjustable spring?</TD></TR></TABLE>

by definition a coilover is a coil over a strut. so a true coilover system has adjustable spring perch and sometimes also adjustable body length. due to the demand of adjustable suspension and low prices cheap sleeve overs has flooded the market, a sleeve over is simply a spring with its on adjustable perch that sits on a non heigth adjustable struts perch. most, if not all, are crap, poor quality, and universal spring rates to cut cost, for the exception of groundcontrol. out of the springs you listed only the groundcontrols are sleeve-overs. anything from tein other than the s.tech and h.techs are true coilovers. so are the omnis, though they get widely mixed reviews from what i have seen, more bad than good.

 

Well, so far I plan on going with:

Energy Suspension full bushing kit
Rear tie bars
Rear strut tower bar

I'm still not convinced on a coil over/strut setup yet. I do want the looks of a lowered car, but I do not want the really stiff or really bouncy ride. My friend's Del Sol has Neuspeed coil overs and they ride pretty nice. A little stiffer, but definitely fine for a daily driver. What things would be out of the question for my setup? Obviously the traction bar would be since it'd transmit more vibration to the chassis and a non-coil over spring since I couldn't adjust it would be out too. What setups are you guys running? How stiff is the ride? How bouncy is the ride?

 

Alright, a revised list then:

Front strut tower bar
Rear strut tower bar
Front camber kit
Rear camber kit
Front sway bar
Rear sway bar
Energy Suspension bushing kit
Full coil-over suspension
New strut/shock mounts

Also, if I find that I need to replace any of my ball joints or tie-rod ends that I'll be buying the OEM pieces since they don't make "upgraded" ball joints or tie-rod ends. What else am I missing here for aftermarket suspension upgrades? Am I better off going with a seperate sleeve-over and strut system or a full coil-over system?

 

Here's a full list of suspension part upgrades:

Coilovers
Struts
Front sway bar
Rear sway bar
Front strut tower bar
Rear strut tower bar
C-pillar bar
Floor bar
Lower tie bar
Front camber kit
Rear camber kit
Front traction bars
Front underbrace
Bushing kit

I can eliminate the C-pillar bar from my list for sure since it's looks only, not to mention if I have people riding in the back they might hit their head on it or something. Looks like I can eliminate the floor bar too since it would block the floor where passengers would rest their feet when they sit in the back. Also, I'm going to eliminate the front traction bar since it would transmit more vibration to the chassis, which is something I don't want for a daily driver. Comfortability is what I'm keeping in mind. Upgrading the front sway bar may be a bad idea too if it's going to cause the car to understeer. I really don't want that, especially with winter coming up. I am also for sure that I want a coil over setup to lower it during the summer and raise it up for the winter. I've researched strut tower bars and haven't seen anything about them negatively affecting suspension, so I will probably get the front and rear ones. If I don't upgrade the rear sway bar, I probably won't buy the tie bar either since everyone says it doesn't do anything. So now my questions. If I upgrade the rear sway bar, will I have to worry about it negatively affecting my suspension? Does the underbrace just make the chassis more rigid like the strut tower bars? Will it negatively affect handling?

 

Any ideas on my post above?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by A_Rotary_Guy &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Any ideas on my post above? </TD></TR></TABLE>

sounds like you already know what you want, go for it.

 

See, I have an idea of what I want, but I'm just looking for opinions on some of the other stuff. Here's just an update on some of the stuff I've read.

I did some searching around and it looks like everyone says do NOT go with anything besides the EX front sway bar. Apparently everyone that had the ST front bar went back to stock and said it was the best thing they did. Also, I'm tossing out the lower tie bar because it doesn't do **** either.

Now, I remember reading something about the camber kits. Apparently there's different types of kits, one being a sliding ball joint type and one that actually pushes out the control arm. I remember some company did make an aftermarket control arm, but it was **** quality and failed. I know that you do NOT want to go cheap on the camber kit, like eBay, because they do break. I'm sure I'll be going with the Ingalls kits. I also know that I'll probably have to hammer the inner fender well in to make a little more clearance. Which type would be better to go with?

Also, another thing for me to remember. I read that when you order your Ground Control coil overs you have to tell them to get you the proper hardware to make it work with the Koni Yellows.

So, a revised list and the brands I'm planning on going with:

Coilovers - Ground Control
Struts - Koni Yellows
Rear sway bar - Suspension Techniques
Front strut tower bar
Rear strut tower bar
Front camber kit - Ingalls
Rear camber kit - Ingalls
Front underbrace
Full bushing kit - Energy Suspension

What brands can you guys suggest for these parts?

 

&lt;-- Ground Controls/Koni Yellows

(with the ordering, it's on the Koni site, and you say you're going to use them with GC's)

Cusco AS front/rear strut bars

no camber kits

no sway bars as of yet..... (coming soon)

etc

From what it looks like your list is good

 

Yea, I was wondering about the Cusco strut tower bars. I know they were pretty good, but just wasn't sure which was the best brand to go with. Yea, I know I have a good list started, I'm just trying to figure out what brands I'm going to go with for the parts. Thanks for the help so far.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by A_Rotary_Guy &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Yea, I was wondering about the Cusco strut tower bars. I know they were pretty good, but just wasn't sure which was the best brand to go with. Yea, I know I have a good list started, I'm just trying to figure out what brands I'm going to go with for the parts. Thanks for the help so far. </TD></TR></TABLE>

meh, i would look more at design rather than brand.

heres a interesting read for you:
http://e30m3performance.com/my...y.htm

 

I know that it matters more on the design than the brand, but more often than not the brand usually has a lot to do with the design and quality. Such as the Ingalls camber kits, Koni struts, etc. They're well known because they make great products. This is why I figured I would ask everyone here what they were using to get an idea of who I should go with.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by A_Rotary_Guy &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I know that it matters more on the design than the brand, but more often than not the brand usually has a lot to do with the design and quality. Such as the Ingalls camber kits, Koni struts, etc. They're well known because they make great products. This is why I figured I would ask everyone here what they were using to get an idea of who I should go with. </TD></TR></TABLE>

true, bigger names usually has more time and money for R&D and usually put out a better product. but don't fall into brand hype though. i have a Tanabe strut bar on my miata and other than looking real sexy with its anodized red finish i personally think its crap, but its ok because i got it for cheaper than a lunch for two. one of the best strut bar i've seen is a Sparco one my friend has on his BMW e30, thick *** steel and one piece construction.

 

I read that you can just use the washers to adjust rear camber, but I'd rather do it the right way. Would be nice if they made the adjustable upper control arms for the front, but it might be a while before that happens. Also, what pieces do the camber kits replace? Does anyone else have suggestions on brands?

Coilovers - Ground Control
Struts - Koni Yellows
Rear sway bar - Suspension Techniques
Front strut tower bar - Cusco
Rear strut tower bar - Cusco
Front camber kit - Ingall's (push out control arm style)
Rear camber kit - Ingall's
Front underbrace - Tanabe
Full bushing kit - Energy Suspension

For pieces such as wheel bearings, tie rod ends, and ball joints, who is the best company to go with? I know for sure that Honda still makes the OEM pieces for these, but I wasn't sure if there was a company that was just as good that made them too. Where do you guys get your OEM parts from?

 

Alright, I changed my tires and got a chance to look at the camber setups. Basically it looks like the fronts are just eccentric cams for the upper control arm. The rear looks like it just replaces the upper control arm piece completely. I saw T.A.S. Auto has their own brand of parts and they say they meet or exceed OEM quality. Anyone had any experience with them? Anywhere else I can get OEM parts? Has anyone here used the underbrance piece?

 

Any help with my above post?

 

I've ordered from TAS and they are good but I've never ordered any of their TAS branded parts.

For a place to buy OEM parts at a good price, check out Majestic Honda. There are also a couple other discount Honda dealers listed in the Websites section of the FAQ.

 

I found out yesterday that my right front outer tie rod end is absolutely shot and that my right rear upper ball joint boot is ripped. I'm pretty sure the previous owner replaced all the ball joints on the seeing as how none of them have any play whatsoever. Has anyone here used the underbrace piece at all? Where is the cheapest place to order all of this stuff?

Coilovers - Ground Control
Struts - Koni Yellows
Rear sway bar - Suspension Techniques
Front strut tower bar - Cusco
Rear strut tower bar - Cusco
Front camber kit - Ingall's (push out control arm style) - TAS Auto
Rear camber kit - Ingall's - TAS Auto
Full bushing kit - Energy Suspension