Ok here's a short rundown of my situation. 89 CRX DX lowered with Neuspeed sport springs 2" in front and 1.8" in rear. Tokico blues in front, camber kit front and rear, and 17" wheels and tires. The car has been aligned, the bumpstops are cut in half, and the inner fenderwell has been trimmed to allow the A-arm to move.

But the front of the car bounces like a ball going down the road. I didn't have the bouncing problem until I installed the camber kit. I was even using Monroe struts with the Neuspeeds, and it didn't bounce a bit.

Now I've heard the following options, but I want to fix the problem once and for all because I've already spent too much money shooting in the dark and not fixing the problem.

Here's what I've been told:
1. Run a little negative camber on the front. A little won't hurt that much. (My front wheels and tires sit straight up and down now)

2. Run smaller wheels and tires. This has something to do with unsprung weight. (I don't really understand this term)

3. Run 89 Accord struts in the front. They're shorter and give about 1" extra travel. (But if they're shorter, then will they lower my car another 1-1.5"??)

4. The dust cover might be hitting the strut seat when it is compressed. (Can you trim these or are there aftermarket ones that would work?)

Sorry to be so long and drawn out, but I thought I'd ask the experts here on H-T. Thanks guys.


[Modified by crex23, 1:43 AM 3/30/2003]

 

I can't see how the adjustable a-arms would make the car bounce like that. I have a similar setup, Neuspeed Sports on Bilstein shocks - and it doesn't bounce at all.

You might wanna start by switching the a-arms out again and seeing if it does it now with the OEM arms. I know for a fact that I do NOT need camber adjustment with my setup currently, so I don't know how bad yours needs it.

Unsprung weight won't affect the bouncing - unsprung weight affects acceleration and braking characteristics, since both have to do with the wheels directly (object in motion tends to stay in motion = affects braking, and an object at rest tends to stay at rest = affects acceleration).

Are the dust covers the OEM's, the hard, metal ones? I'd suggest also taking those off and seeing what happens.

When you say you've spent "too much money shooting in the dark", what did you spend $ on to try to fix this problem so far?

Did you install the Tok's at the same time as you put in the camber kits in the front? Were they new or used?

Gotta get some more info before we get to the bottom of this.

Alex

 

So do you have any negative camber with the Neuspeeds drop? Also, are you using the factory dust covers with your setup? Because I hear a 'clanking' metal sound in the front suspension whenever I hit a bump. I thought the dust covers may be the problem.

I went to have my car aligned after I installed the springs and struts, and the guy told me he couldn't properly align it unless a camber kit was put on. My tires were leaning a little anyways, so I bought the camber kit. Just a little note, there was a 6 month period between when I installed the springs/struts and when I installed the camber kits.

As for your $$ question, I bought the camber kit and paid to have it installed, which created another problem (the bounciness). So I bought Tokico blues because everybody here said it was the struts causing the problem. And the car still bounces.

Also, everything I've bought for the suspension has been brand new.

Thanks for your help.

 

yes, they'll lower the car more. i don't think these will help your problem, only make it worse.

if you haven't trimmed your stock dust covers, THAT is your problem, most likely. you can either trim them, or go to an auto parts store and buy steering rack (?) boots, those flexible ones.

if you don't care (like me) you can just throw the dust covers away. i've had Tokico blues for 4 years now, and i've NEVER used dust covers. and i don't have any problems with my struts.

HTH

 

*EDIT*Forgot my name, can't do that...

Alex


[Modified by Quik89Si, 11:01 PM 3/30/2003]

 

Cool. So I think I'll get rid of the dust covers and see how that works out. Thanks guys.

 

im running neuspeeds but im running a half of a half bumpstop.