Hey guys whats up , I guess you could say I am still fairly new with my car and as you all know with yours I dont want to hurt the performance of it... so I am coming to you guys for the help and resources I need.

Well as obvious as it is I own an R and I would like to lower it because it is at its stock ride height...

I know the R at its stock ride height handles really well from what I have experienced "autocross"&"parking lot road course's" as well as from what I have been told...

Where I am confused is there are also the groups of guys that tell you that "lowering the R will hurt the handling of the car".

Anyone that knows me will tell you when it comes to choice making on the car I want to know the "pro's and con's"

The springs I am interested in are the H&R sports and the comptech springs.

So all in all I would like to know how any lowering of the car will effect the handling in general and with the springs listed if anyone has experience with those specific kind.

Any and all KNOWLEDGABLE info is welcome ...

Thanks for you help
Mike N.

 

I wouldn't mess with it unless you were going to something that has proven itself time and again to perform.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by mikestypeR &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">
The springs I am interested in are the H&R sports and the comptech springs.

Any and all KNOWLEDGABLE info is welcome ...

Thanks for you help
Mike N.
</TD></TR></TABLE>

Mike - just cut the springs

 

You should be fine with those. Not a big difference.

 

what about a 10 inch lift kit?!!

 

Mike,

get some H/Rs and we will put them in. ITRChris will probably let you drive
his R and get a feel for them. it feels like an improved stock ride.
no need to over analyze, this is an upgrade that works.

 

Mike,

get some H/R Sports. if you still arent sure, drive ITRChris' car I am sure
he will let you sample the goodness of this easy to do mod. We will throw
them in when you get em.

Mike

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by mikestypeR &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">what about a 10 inch lift kit?!! </TD></TR></TABLE>

I'll have to see it to believe it.

 

Why just springs? and How much lower? Might help us get an idea of what you're looking for.

 

If done correctly, lowering the R a small amount only increases its already amazing grip and responsiveness. After autocrossing on stock springs/dampers and then on stock springs/GAB dampers and now on the TODA FIGHTEX coilover I can say that lowering the car made a very noticeable difference when combined with stiffer springs and good dampers.

Don't slam the car and make small and incremental adjustments to find a good height. Remember though that the entire car's suspension works together to create balanceand harmony, so ride height alone is not the way to find the perfect balance.

 

yeah .. I am not going to rice it out and slam it .. I am just looking for a clean but effective drop likt maybe a 1/4 inch gap between tire and fender ... I was told the H&R sports will drop it somewhat close to that while still improving the handling ... so were talking like what 1.5 or 1.75 and the most....

That factory 10 inch lift kit owns the R

 

also could use some good spring rates ... dont want beginner sh*t something aggressive that I could learn and grow into...

 

Lowering a car lowers the center of gravity - which is a good thing. But that doesn't mean you can just lower it as much as possible. There's a good number of variables involved. Also, notice that cars like the Realtime Racing DC2-R's are not really low (lower than the stock ride height, yes), not nearly as low as some DC2's.

If you are going to do just springs on the stock dampers, you can't really go very high at all spring-rate wise. And you should really stop at 400#'s or so with OTS Koni Yellows. Above that, you either revalve Koni's or similar dampers or get coilovers, some of which will have really crappy ride quality while the more expensive sets tend to be able to 'handle' the spring rates much better. Oversprung/underdampened cars are .... well, not fun to ride around town with at all.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by mikestypeR &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">also could use some good spring rates ... dont want beginner sh*t something aggressive that I could learn and grow into... </TD></TR></TABLE>

How are you planning on using the car? Daily driver, autox, track days?

By a large degree that will determine in which direction you want to go with the suspension - spring rates, alignment, etc.

 

I will be autocrossing and doing track events as well...

 

if you have the money, a good set of coilovers is the way to go, because you always have that big range you can raise and lower your ride height to figure out exactly where you want it. alot of times with springs, you're just hoping it's going to settle where you want it.
plus on top of that you have damper controll. can't go wrong, at all. . . just a little bit more expensive then springs though.

 

i watched the bestmotoring vids and one said the the sus on the r is set up perfectly it even comp fo the driver and it said that if you do any thing to the r sus somthing else also needs to be done to comp it

 

most my friends have coilovers and i am the only one with springs. Well we all agree that my setup rides and handles the best. Coilovers ride so ruff. Depending on what you doing depends on what you might though. I have Tokico's the whole way around sitting on Eibach springs and it really is one of the most comfortable rides but handles amazing.

 

yeah I was thinking of doing the setup consisting of the H&R sports and koni yellows all the way around ....

 

Before you change the suspension...give it a LOT of thought.

I have posted this before and I am sounding like a broken record, but the stock ITR suspension is superb.

Obviously, a good set of coilovers is better than the stock suspension.

If I were you, I would really explore the limits of my stock suspension (in the correct places like autox and hpde). Once, your skill level gets beyond the stock suspension then change it. Usually, the change will involve giving the car a higher tendency of oversteer (rotation). Since you skill level will be higher, the more rotation will be enjoyable.

I have driven my ITR on the stock suspension for two years. I have competed in multiple autox's and hpde's on the stock suspension. I have recently changed over to a Buddy Club suspension with (10K front and 12k rear springs). The car was a DREAM to drive. I am in love with my new suspension. BUT, if I didn't develop my skill level first, I don't think I would be able to appreciate or push the limits of my new suspension.

Good luck!

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by jh4dc23spoon &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">most my friends have coilovers and i am the only one with springs. Well we all agree that my setup rides and handles the best. Coilovers ride so ruff. Depending on what you doing depends on what you might though. I have Tokico's the whole way around sitting on Eibach springs and it really is one of the most comfortable rides but handles amazing.</TD></TR></TABLE>


what kind of "coilovers" do your friends have? or do you mean they're running on just some skunk2 or dropzone sleeveovers on stock dampers and called it a day? in that case your upgraded spring/damper combo will obviously outhandle them

you can't just say your spring/damper combo handle and rides better than coilovers in general because there are a ton of high end (read: threaded damper) full coilovers you can get that will MURDER your setup - Spoon/Showa, Zeal, Mugen, BC, Ohlins and Moton adj. etc. not only do these come with adjustable dampers, they also feature pillowball mounts with some featuring adjustable damper perches so you won't mess up your suspension travel and spring pre-load while changing your ride height

cars only ride rough if they have mismatched springs and damper - oversprung/underdamped cars ride the worst - which is clearly the case with your friends. i ran FLT-A2s (with only 8K/9K F/R and exceptionally strong dampers) on my RSX on crappy canadian roads and they were tolerable imho


Modified by fuko at 1:45 PM 12/2/2003

 

do it right i have a set of JIC FLT-A2 coilover setup for sale. $1400 OBO

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by davidnyc &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Before you change the suspension...give it a LOT of thought.

I have posted this before and I am sounding like a broken record, but the stock ITR suspension is superb.

Obviously, a good set of coilovers is better than the stock suspension.

If I were you, I would really explore the limits of my stock suspension (in the correct places like autox and hpde). Once, your skill level gets beyond the stock suspension then change it. Usually, the change will involve giving the car a higher tendency of oversteer (rotation). Since you skill level will be higher, the more rotation will be enjoyable.

I have driven my ITR on the stock suspension for two years. I have competed in multiple autox's and hpde's on the stock suspension. I have recently changed over to a Buddy Club suspension with (10K front and 12k rear springs). The car was a DREAM to drive. I am in love with my new suspension. BUT, if I didn't develop my skill level first, I don't think I would be able to appreciate or push the limits of my new suspension.

Good luck!</TD></TR></TABLE>

davidnyc is right. keep it stock and explore the limits of it before you go changing it. honda's suspension engineers really knew what they were doing when they designed this system and without learning more about it, you're not going to be able to use it to the fullest.

just slapping on some suspension kit isn't going to make you faster and in fact might hurt you. think about it, if the kit is going to give you higher limits, you're going to have a more difficult time learning to drive the car to those limits. it's easier to make incremental improvements to your driving skills.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Flux &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">If done correctly, lowering the R a small amount only increases its already amazing grip and responsiveness. After autocrossing on stock springs/dampers and then on stock springs/GAB dampers and now on the TODA FIGHTEX coilover I can say that lowering the car made a very noticeable difference when combined with stiffer springs and good dampers.

Don't slam the car and make small and incremental adjustments to find a good height. Remember though that the entire car's suspension works together to create balanceand harmony, so ride height alone is not the way to find the perfect balance.</TD></TR></TABLE>

yeah, the handling of the ITR is purely due to the height of the vehicle.

it doesnt have anything at all with spring rates, shock rates, etc. thats all myths.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Soup **** &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

yeah, the handling of the ITR is purely due to the height of the vehicle.

it doesnt have anything at all with spring rates, shock rates, etc. thats all myths.</TD></TR></TABLE>

That was my point if you would just read my post and stop being sarcastic for a moment.

"lowering the car made a very noticeable difference when combined with stiffer springs and good dampers.

"ride height alone is not the way to find the perfect balance."