Quick Question for Skunk2 Owners (or anyone that can lend some info)

[Addict]

I put the front Skunk2 coilovers on the other day. The install was a lil rough thanks to a nasty bolt issue, but anyhow.

When I was putting the sleeves on the struts(stock), I noticed that the collars don't go all the way down. Its like this on all 4 sleeves. The sleeve itself seems to taper out towards the bottom. It gets aligtly tougher to screw the collar down.

SO my question is, should the collar be able to screw all the way down to the bottom of the sleeve? Do I need to force it at all? I don't want to damage anything. If I leave it as is, its a near stock height (in the front anyhow).

 

[Addict]

After a quick measure the sleeve doesn't seem to taper. It just get slightly harder to turn. Should I just lube the sleeve up and try to get the collar down?

Height as is

 

[jtmcinder]

How low you can go and still have the car handle well (i.e., stay off the bump-stops) depends on the spring rates. (Plus the shocks, but you already told us what those are.) What are the spring rates for the kit you bought?

If you do decide to go slower than it is now, then, yes, use a spray lubricant on the sleeves to get the collar to spin and go down easily. Or, I've seen people use standard bar soap so that it is easy to move now and less likely to move later.

- Jtoby

 

[Addict]

I've been trying to get the collars to budge using silicone spray, wd40 & pb blaster. They are next to impossible to move once they get halfway. Not to mention I can barely get a grip on the sleeve itself. Its like the threads in the collars weren't cut correctly or all the way.

This is so damn frustrating. I've never had these types of issues on my other suspension installs. Then again, they weren't on a DSM.

I don't want to slam it. I just want to get rid of some of the wheel gap. I 'think' the springs are around a 300-400 rate. I'm not real sure though. Skunk2 doesn't say what they are.

 

[jtmcinder]

I don't know what to tell you. There's a reason why GC's cost a little more. You may have found this out the hard way. I know that this isn't what you want to hear, but it's probably true.

I'm sorry, but my suggestion is that you either live with the current height or take them off. Once off, you can have a machinist fix the threads, return them as defective, or start looking for GC sleeves and collars.

There's that joke (that vendors don't always find so funny) that DSM really means "doesn't spend money." This definitely applies to me. I tried a bunch of budget parts early on and quickly learned to either live without or save for the good stuff. The other option is to patiently wait for what you want to be available used.

I have a whole shelf of crap like $10 MBCs that I have not thrown out simply because I often need a reminder of my previous mistakes, to keep me from getting that $200 intercooler that flows like a stopped-up toilet.

I'm not beating up on you, since I did it, too. I mean this as a general warning. Talk to people with lots of experience. Read every archive you can. Learn which companies to buy from and which to avoid.

- Jtoby

 

[Addict]

No you're absolutely right. I was going to get GC's but I found these for a good deal so I thought I'd try them. Just goes to show you that you get what you pay for.