I just installed KYB shocks and Eibach Sportlines and the rear, right is about 1/2 a inch higher than my rear, left. Is this normal? The only explanation i can think of is that my springs didn't get seated properly either on top or bottom. But if i fix that, is it still normal for springs to be off so much?

 

yes, VERY normal. your ride heights were probably off before you put the springs on. you just didnt notice it. when you close the gap at all 4 corners, the differences in ride heights is more noticable.

theres NOTHING wrong.

 

Gotta give the suspension a little time to "settle" anyway. Springs will set on their perches better, bushings will "squish" a bit more, etc.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Tyson &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">yes, VERY normal. your ride heights were probably off before you put the springs on. you just didnt notice it. when you close the gap at all 4 corners, the differences in ride heights is more noticable.

theres NOTHING wrong.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Yeah, but how do you explain that? Exactly what part would play in the difference if everything is where it should be? I got Eibach Sportlines so i don't question their spring rates and consistency. I think i did everything right.

Would a little time on the road even things out by any chance?

 

its simple. cars are unequally weighted. and for the most part, theres more weight on the drivers side. turning left is typically faster than turning right.
bushing centers get shifted after time and use. parts bend.

LOTS of reasons why things would be unequal.


and yeah, rubber bushings and spring gaskets need time to settle. hopefully you reset your bushings after installing the springs. this is critical for the life of your bushings.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Tyson &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">the stock rubber bushings are made of a inner metal sleeve and an outer metal sleeve. there is rubber filled between the two and bonded to the surface of both sleeves. the inner sleeve can only rotate so much relative to the outer sleeve because the rubber only allows so much stretch. it also stretches elastically, like a spring. bushings actually contribute to the spring rate of your suspension. when you tighten the bolt to the bushing, it locks the relative position of the inner sleeve to the outer sleeve, plus the range of motion and spring force the bushing allows.

if you do not reset your bushings, then the bushing is forced to be in a stretched position most of the time at an outer range of the intended motion, instead of resting at the middle, unstretched position. and once you over stretch the bushing, it loses its capacity to stretch and breaks the rubber like a rubber band. which is how you easily kill a bushing. gone is the spring rate of the bushing and will likely deteriorate faster and cause slop in positioning the inner sleeve concentric to the outer sleeve.

aftermarket urethane bushings dont have this problem since the inner sleeve can rotate freely inside (which also causes the squeaks). but they have other issues of their own i dont need to go into now.

to reset your bushings, put the car on 4 jackstands. take the wheels off. loosen the suspension bolts. put a jack under one of the suspension corners and raise it until that corner is off the jack stand. bounce the car a bit. then tighten. dont forget to tighten a bolt youve already loosened.

ignore the trailing arm bushing and upper arm, inner bushing. theyre not resettable because of the "dogbone" design. youd have to press the bushing out and reclock it.

see, its in the helms manual. its not just my instructions, but nobody before me (that i ever heard) ever pointed this out. in the case in the helms, it only assumes youre putting in the same spring, so ride height doesnt change. because ride height changes when you put different springs on, you need to do ALL the affected bushings.
</TD></TR></TABLE>

 

HA HA. I am lost. I have no idea how to settle the bushings.

I re-measured again and my passenger rear is a full finger higher than my passenger rear. My fronts are pretty much even. I don't get how there can so much difference.

 

im going ot say this one more time before unsubscribing.

its normal.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Tyson &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">im going ot say this one more time before unsubscribing.

its normal.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Sucks.

Yeah, i had GC's on my last CRX and had the same issues. One side was off so i had to adjust the perches just to get the same height. I thought it was just the CG's. Now, i get regular springs and still get the same thing. Sucks. I wanted an even all around set up.

 

Back when I had my CRX, I put Neuspeed Sport springs and Bilstein dampers on it. The front was fairly even but the rear was not only really high relative to the front, but not even side to side. I ended up getting Skunk2 coilovers and pairing them with Illuminas to even things out. Rode a hell of a lot better then too.

 

i mess with my gc's weekly trying to get good ride height, its quite frustraing good luck though