gstrudler

I know there are a lot of suspension options out there, but I've decided to go with Tein's and am deciding between the Street Advance (~$900) and Street Flex (~$1,300). I've done the Koni/GC setup before on another vehicle and am looking for something a little more tame on the streets. Vehicle in question is a '97 Prelude SH.

Street Advance: spring rate - 448/224
Street Flex: spring rate - 559/336

From what I gather the big difference is the Flex has separate ride height and spring preload adjustment. As a small bonus it also comes with replacement rubber top mounts (car is double wishbone, so no pillowball). What I'm not sure is if the independent ride height adjustment is worth the extra $400 or not; it looks like the shocks themselves are more or less the same. Vehicle is driven 99% on the street and sees the drag strip about once a year. Looking for something with good street manners but still confident handling. Thoughts?

vtecnique69

Hmmm, why not GCs with a lower spring rate?

gstrudler

The shock valving has a bit to do with it as well and the Koni's are fairly aggressive in that respect, whereas the new Tein shocks have a very wide adjustment range. I also don't care to go down the rabbit hole of swamping spring rates and getting the shocks re-valved all the time trying to find something that works, when I can have that out of the box with a full coil-over setup.

I was also looking at the possibility of adding their EDFC down the road as well, which I just discovered would force me into the Flex as the Street Advance for the Preludes doesn't support it.

F22Master

Stock koni valving is good from stock spring rates all the way to ~600lbs, with adjustable rebound.

They will also ride waaayyyy nicer than any Tein setup.

gstrudler

I already said I've been down that road and I'm not interested. I've also seen the shock dyno's (from Koni) which likewise indicate a much stiffer ride than stock, even at the softest setting. GC/Koni has its place, but it is not the end-all-be-all like everyone around here seems to think.

To reiterate, my reason for this thread was to ask how much improvement there is with the independent ride height & spring preload adjustment and if it's worth the cost for a street car/daily driver. Taken from Tein's website:

I'm not expecting many, if anyone, to have experience with both sets of coilovers (although that would be great), which is why I'm asking more from a theoretical perspective.

F22Master

I am currently running Koni sports with stock springs (89 civic hatch), and I guarantee the ride is smoother than stock. It feels like a completely different car, even with stock springs.

You will WANT shocks that provide a more aggressive than stock damping, since you are using springs that are multiple times stiffer than stock. Are you wanting a stock-like ride on 600lb springs?

gstrudler

What I want is something reasonably comfortable yet still has a good feel, but the importance quite honestly is more towards comfort at this point. Whatever I get I know will be an upgrade to my current setup (GC's on 200k+ mile stock shocks). Everybody has their opinions: a lot of people like Koni's, but not everyone (I just found several threads while researching spring rates). Likewise some didn't have a good experience with Tein and others love them. I am not partial to the Koni's (and have first-hand experience) so I'm not going to buy them, end of story.

F22Master

If you want comfort, you need to lower the spring rate. Simple as that. Something 400 or less.

gstrudler

Alright, thanks for the tip. If I go the Flex route, maybe I'll talk to them about a custom setup with lower spring rates then.