Hey guys, I posted beginning of this month and decided on Koni/GC set up for my 00 GSR but my funds dipped due to Christmas shopping but I came up quick and finally plan on ordering my new suspension . Only one last thing before I do so though... Spring rates.. I live in SF so I have to deal with shitty residential streets sometimes, hills on hills on hills, and the occasional mysterious pothole that you don't notice until you've hit it.. I've heard people ride on 450 fronts, 350 rear and they said the ride was pretty damn good. Any suggestions guys? Thank you very much, hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and a Happy New Year right around the corner!

 

I would try searching before asking questions like this.
https://honda-tech.com/forums/suspension-brakes-54/click-here-all-you-curious-about-suspension-setups-their-costs-reliability-2967499/
There is a full thread 11 pages about nothing but suspension, what companies work better, and what rates to get. Everyone has their own comfort level.

 

I just installed my Koni/GC setup last weekend and am very satisfied. I went with the 450/350 rates just like you are looking at getting and they feel perfect. I was expecting the ride to be rougher than my factory suspension but it was the complete opposite. Going over potholes and bumps in the road are fairly gentle and feel smoother than the stock setup did. I did however go with extended top hats from ebay which may have made a small difference. I havent messed with the dampening yet either. I say go with the 450/350 and you will be very satisfied

 

what do you want the car to do? a 100lb split really is going to add to your understeer. 50lbs or even the same rates front/rear is going to get the car a lot more neutral.

when i was into these cars i used a 500lb front and 450lb rear with a big rear sway. that still had a hint of understeer.

if you want to go lighter 400/350 could be liveable for DD use.

make sure when you set the ride height you measure off body points. typically you set the drivers side about 1/8th of an inch higher then have the alignment done with you in the car

-.03 out each side front and .05 in each side rear works really well for a quick turning but stable street alignment

lot of times places recommend 100lb front bias splits to save noob drivers. if you want to dial some of that out shrink the gap. most autocross cars actually run a rear bias however that's both bumpy and somewhat dangerous for the inexperienced especially in the rain

 

Thanks drmix and racebum. I won't be doing auto x, maybe 95% of the time I'll do daily driving. I'll just go with 450/350 since I've heard a lot of people enjoying those rates. I'll order them either today or tomorrow and update everyone soon

 

Your gonna love the setup. THMotorsports has the best price.
https://honda-tech.com/forums/wheels-tires-brakes-suspension-48/koni-shock-ground-control-coilover-combo-2028746/

 

When I had GC's on my Koni shocks I had 380/450 F/R rates, and it was way too damn stiff for daily driving (100 mile daily commute at the time). But the car would rotate easily during autoX. If I had to do it again on my DD I would probably actually go 350/250. I never had any problems with my OEM upper arms hitting the shock towers with 380 lb/in 8" long springs, and the car was pretty darn low back then. But 450 in the back was just too much, way too much.

 

You should also look into getting a set of extended top hats. http://www.team-integra.net/forum/18...s-dummies.html

I paid $115 for all 4 on ebay. Plus they make it easier to install since you dont have to mess with removing the springs on the old setup to get to the top hats.

 

car is going to feel better at 400/350 or 350/300

as patrick points out the rear spring is really the one that effects ride quality and you will still have understeer with the rates i mention. a 100lb split is just excessive. the car will just plow when cornering at the limit.

the type r uses a fairly close balance front to rear for just this very reason

the only guys who run large splits are the slammed crew that use a large front spring to prevent bottoming out and a lighter rear for some kind of ride quality. those guys are a different breed though that do not care about function, just impressing other idiots with a ridiculous looking car

 

Thanks for the additional input racebum! Sadly it's currently 1:30 in Chicago and Luke of THM posted saying he'll be there from 9-2 today for special pricing but my call didn't go through. I guess I can consider that lucky and preventing me from buying 450/350 haha. I'll go with a 50 split since I do want to ride comfortably and since I do want function over form. Thank you all for your inputs, much appreciated!

@drmix, as far as extended top hats, I'll pass on them for now. I have almost all the time in the world to work on my car since I'm on winter break for another 2 weeks. Also have an auto shop to use for free at my disposal but I'll definitely look into them in the future.

 

top hats aren't needed unless you are going to join the drooling retard crew and dump your car. they add about 1 to 1.5" of travel. always fun to see videos of these guys getting stuck in their driveways

 

Yep, and that additional travel is usually stopped by the UCA slamming into the shock tower.

 

I have been daily driving 450/400 for over a year, I don't mind it at all. I in fact, would like to go stiffer. I would not consider my car slammed, but I like to beat the **** out of it and I bang the uca's into the shock tower on occasion. 15x7 with 195-50-15 and I bottom out the front tires in the wheel wells. If I were to do it all over again I would probably go with 550/500 or 500/450. Bad *** suspension though!

 

if you're physically hitting the body of the car that's about as slammed as one can physically get

 

Haha I don't think I'll be planning on slamming it as low as you. I'm riding on 16x7 with 205/50 right now. I just need a stiffer set up, my poor lip has suffered enough from speed bumps at school and driveway at home...

 

Well that's part of your problem. 205/50-16 tires are BIG tires for an Integra, unless that was a typo. Almost an inch larger in diameter than stock.

 

Yeah they are most definitely big for an Integra, but I picked up the car that way for a pretty damn good price. I'm finally on winter break and have time so I'm slowly but surely swapping out the old and giving my baby something new. I'm actually looking into a new set of shoes after I've ordered my suspension.
Settled with 450f 400r, going to be a stiff ride but it'll be what I prefer and most likely need in the future if I hit the tracks. Thanks Patrick, racebum, cheapstake, drmix for all of your input and help for finalizing my decision on suspension! Last but not least, I hope you all enjoy this new year ahead of us!

 

*ON BUMPS*
I hit the uca's into the shock tower and bottom out the tires in the wheel well on bumps when I am ripping it. I can't say **** on here?

 

what suspension is on the car currently?

 

there are a few tires in 205 45 16 which is the correct 16" size. the yoke s drive being the most popular for daily driving. the high performance one is the bridgestone re11 but they are expensive

 

I'm currently on Dunlop Direzza DZ101 205/45-16 tires on 16x7 wheels. Really nice tires IMHO. Big, thick rim protector bead almost gives it a bit of a "stretched" look if you're into that sort of thing.