Hello. My names Vinny I have a 1991 honda accord and am interested in fixing this little car up a bit. I recently purchased pads and rotors for the car not realizing what a large job it was being that brake rotors were pressed into hub..I did front axles and wheel bearing while I had everything apart. The shocks and struts are badly worn they need to be replaced too. I'd like to do an adjustable coil over spring setup, but am having a hard time using the search function to find the best fit. I'd like to be pointed in the right direction with regards to the suspension, thanks!

 

Hi Vinny. I'm guessing the car will be plainly street driven? I'm guessing comfort is a deciding factor? Do you use this car in snow and salt? What is your price range? More details would help.

 

^^^^^^

You need to establish goals for your particular situation. You cannot assume that another user's success will be the same as yours in the end. If you cannot create goals for your car or yourself, put off any upgrades until you can do so. A lot of Honda-Tech users follow the first piece of advice they find because of convenience. Do this at your own peril.

My experience: Adjustable suspensions are stupid. They can slip. They are often of poor build quality. They often offer less than ideal ride control in average road conditions. They can in some cases interfere with the tires and rims you already have installed or plan to use, and so forth.

Anyone can slam a car, or install a suspension kit. Determining whether or not that is the right move depends on your own goals for the car. There is no such thing as "the best". If there was, everyone would follow that line of thought without question because it is after all.... the "best".

Think about it......

 

I don't think he's coming back. Most of these threads go nowhere.

But for the benefit of other people who may see this...

A modern, good quality coilover for will usually improve the ride quality from stock. If it didn't, you likely chose the wrong product.

I've never heard of an adjustable suspension slipping if we're talking about ride adjustable coilovers.

Do you mean camber ball joints slip? If they are installed properly, they won't slip. I have SPC adjustable joints on my S2000 because I needed to get down to -3 degrees of camber. They have never slipped...even when I hit track curbing hard enough to bend the spindle.

"Crash bolts" are liable to slip. But those are for McPherson strut cars.

 

Upper arm, bolt adjustable ball joints are prone to slippage. Even the "king nut" design offered as a consumer level correction are prone to slipping. The most prone in my experience are those M6, 4 bolt designs with a very heavy coat of paint.

The adjustable coilover could be met with many arguments. Most of them are cheap, as do slip because the coil does not remain in contact with the top plate and the lower spring perch. This design is flawed because a stiffer or more responsive spring is compacted into a shorter installed height. So, when you hit a deep pothole, or lift a wheel significantly, the spring is no longer a spring, its just a loose piece of steel.

If that does not make sense, jack up the front or rear wheels on your car. This is maximum rebound. If you can rotate or otherwise agitate the coil spring by hand, it is too loose. This sudden load and release will cause vibration in the threads which will loosen the adjustable perch, and cause ride height problems. In my opinion, the threads on the strut are simply too coarse and promote movement in these situations.

Good quality parts, for example the Eibach Sportline springs provide enough tension during rebound in my experience to prevent "perch creeping". These are just one example of decent parts, there are many other good manufacturers as well.

In the end: Do not buy cheap suspension parts, and research your own goals prior to pulling the trigger. Many enthusiasts want a performance-lowered look, without the price. It's not really possible.

 

^If you have a spring that is not preloaded slightly (in contact with the upper hat and lower perch at full droop), you probably set the suspension too low.

Even if the spring is free and not preloaded...it will VERY rarely come off the perch or hat on large bumps. You'd have to be in the air a while. Dampers have rebound damping. Meaning that they will slow down the spring's expansion. The shock won't have reached full droop when the car hits the ground again. Unless the wheel is in the air a long time.

If your shocks are blown, and you have an extremely large gap between spring and perch, you may have springs that bounce off perches. But...that's not a typical or controllable situation.

The jammed perches will almost never slip, though. Unless they're left loose by the installer fool.

Correct installation and parts selection goes a long way. A good quality street coilover should ride better than stock. If it doesn't....the user or installation may be to blame.

If you set up a street biased coilover correctly and it still rides badly....the parts are likely from an irreputable company or the user made the wrong selection of parts.

I've also never had a 4 bolt camber joint slip. I had a skunk2 pro series kit on my ITR to get me to my desired -3.5 degree angle. Have you experienced slip with a kit? Again, proper installation and parts selection are important.

There's a misconception that you need to give up ride refinement for handling. No. You need to either pay enough money to have both. Or decide which ONE is more important to you.

Again...OP is gone. But I think the discussion is beneficial.