I Have been waiting to do suspension, and being winter is here I figure its the best time to purchase it.
I have decided on Koni yellow sports for dampers, but still have not figured out what spring rates would be ideal for what I use the car for.
I plan on getting some springrates on the stiffer side so that If I want to I can dump it without worries of bottoming out.
I also will be running the extended front tophats to compensate for drop and travel.
I have talked to many people about this subject and receive mixed answers.
chatting with a few Koni techs I was leaning towards a 550front/500rear or a 500front/450 rear setup.
The car is a daily driver, but comfort isnt the main concern so off the shelf isnt what im looking for.
the car will also be used at track events both strip and road course.
it is Dc4 integra It will be riding @ ~full weight (little less up front) most of the time, the motor has been modified and is pushing ample power. (wheel hop is a issue at the moment)
If you guys have any insight please give me your opinions and ideas
Thanks, Jeff

 

Post details about the rest of your suspension mods, if any. What size sway bars?

Stiffer rear springs help the car rotate better, but ride quality suffers more as rear spring rate increases. If you have a big rear sway bar, you probably don't need to run stiffer springs in the rear.

I don't think you would need more than 450 in the rear (even as little as 350 would probably be fine), and 450-500 should be fine to keep from bottoming out when it's slammed.

Keep in mind that 550 lb/in is just about pushing the edge of the envelope for what OTS Koni shocks can handle before they need to be modified and re-valved, which gets pretty expensive and they're not warrantied any longer.

 

I will eventully purchase a Adjustable rear swaybar so i can go from there as far as changing over/understeer.
The Koni techs said a 600 is really pushing the pinacle of requiring race valved konis, but a 550/500 should be reasonable as far as the shock being able to handle it.
I just dont want this car to be bouncing all over the road or understeering hard under its weaker rear springs.
Thanks for the help.

 

hahaha I don't think you'll have a problem with hard understeer with 500 lb rear springs.

I personally had 380/450 rates and I thought it was stiff as crap on my 100+ mile daily commute.

 

Granted, I have a whopping 6.7 mile commute, but the roads have several insanely rough sections.

I daily my GSR with 400/400 rates. I think its a reasonable compromise on rates. With my Comptech rear swaybar set on the stiffest setting, I have adequate rotation for auto-x and HPDE use.

I also run with a "2 finger" front wheel gap (6" from front side jack points to ground), which would be high enough for my rates, if I didn't have a front camber kit. Since I do, I hit my UCAs into the shock towers occasionally.

550/500 would probably be reasonable rates, depending on your tolerance for the stiffness. You will have to keep the Konis turned up to a reasonable setting, to not feel underdamped.

However, since you mentioned both strip and road course, I'd suggest going higher, especially in the rear. You don't want launch squat, which stiffer rears will help, and that will also help rotation on track. 500/550 or even 450/550 maybe? This is where it gets into personal preference.

As the guys in the drag forum about wheel hop. But, stiffer engine mounts are a common and relatively cheap way to cut that down some.

 

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What is causing you to bottom out? with a 2 finger gap I dont see how this would be a problem.
you are running the top hats I suspect.
If you were to run harder front rates would this not cure the control arms hitting the shock tower problem?
Please let me know your reasoning behind the rates you have chosen and what you like about them.
thanks, Jeff