Strut/Spring Combo

[oneslowwdsm]

Hey guys, I'm planning on "upgrading" my suspension setup over the winter and I'm currently at a standstill of what I should do. My current setup is (KYB GR-2 w/ Megan 2" drop springs).

My wheel setup is a set of 18" XXR 006 wheels (18x8.5 +35 offset). 235/40/18 tires. Bottom line is, I'm rubbing the fenders. Mind you not TERRIBLY however on bigger dips in the road, I rub the fronts and on huge dips, my tires will hit the fender well in the rear. Megan springs stiffness is 280 front and 250 rear.

My goal come spring time is to be completely rub free WITHOUT having to roll my fenders. (if this is possible)

So I came up with the possible solution of fitting Tokico Illumina adjustable shocks and set it to a stiffer setting with the same springs to get less suspension travel. Would this be a plausible solution or no?

Mind you, I do NOT want to sacrifice ride height, I'm not too worried about performance, I like the 2" drop, any higher and this particular wheel looks hideous. I'm also trying to steer clear of any coilover setup due to price and comfort. Any input would be great, thank you.

How she currently sits:

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[92AWDHX40]

I would hold out for coil overs, then you wont look back im gonna wait and get coil overs probably after some other workm that's one area I don't want to skip out on. Depending on what you get you may be close to coil overs after you purchase everything, try the megan coil overs under a grand at least for the 1g.

 

[psycho]

If you don't want to do anything to the suspension, you'll have to add negative camber to clear the fender.

Edit: not that you're not going to "upgrade" but the easiest and cheapest would be to add the camber. Especially since you stated you're not too worried about performance and don't want to roll your fenders.

I must say, the rear quarter of the 2g sucks to roll.

 

[oneslowwdsm]

Well I don't really have a way of adding camber to the front as I dont have a camber kit however wouldnt adding shims and longer bolts to the rear increase positive camber or make the wheel sit more outwards? The front isnt so bad because the front fenders are smooth so it doesnt really dig into the tire as the rear does..

 

[psycho]

Well I don't really have a way of adding camber to the front as I dont have a camber kit however wouldnt adding shims and longer bolts to the rear increase positive camber or make the wheel sit more outwards? The front isnt so bad because the front fenders are smooth so it doesnt really dig into the tire as the rear does..

That's crazy. I had to add 10 shims to get what looks like the same rear camber as you. Sorry for assuming.

I run a 255/35/18 on the same size wheel you do (+38) and I went with a heavier spring (800f/350r) on Koni yellows to keep my ride height, which is pretty low. But I also rolled my fenders. And the ride quality is great (subjective) for how low it is.

 

[camfast]

I had the same issue and switched to coilovers...problem solved

You may have to switch to different springs to something like eibach profit

 

[oneslowwdsm]

What brand coilovers are you running?

 

[camfast]

Basic Tein coilovers

 

[psycho]

Is there a reason why you don't want to roll your fenders? The rear "lip" is pretty easy to bend upwards with a rolling tool and some heat.

You'll gain roughly a half inch by just doing that.

 

[camfast]

Is there a reason why you don't want to roll your fenders? The rear "lip" is pretty easy to bend upwards with a rolling tool and some heat.

You'll gain roughly a half inch by just doing that.

Even if he was to roll the inner fender the tires will still rub. It's the +35 offset along with rim width and tire size that causes the issue. Perhaps the only way would be to run a lot of negative camber but the that's not good either.

 

[knochgoon24]

If you want to stay that low and don't want to roll and pull the fenders, you're going to need stiffer springs. You don't want to make the shocks do all the work.

You can see the clearance I have here. 255/40/17 tires on a 8"(yikes)x17" +35 wheel. 600lb/in springs in the front. 350lb/in springs in the rear.

With a hard roll and a bit of tug, the tires usually hit the inner fender before the lip of the fender. If I hit a large hard bump with the wheel turned sharply, it still hit the fender, but that just meant driving a little more carefully.

Your other option is to add a (large) progressive bump stop on top of your existing one. It would effectively add spring rate as you neared the end of travel.

 

[RamenPride]

My wheel setup is a set of 18" XXR 006 wheels (18x8.5 +35 offset). 235/40/18 tires. Bottom line is, I'm rubbing the fenders. Mind you not TERRIBLY however on bigger dips in the road, I rub the fronts and on huge dips, my tires will hit the fender well in the rear. Megan springs stiffness is 280 front and 250 rear.

My goal come spring time is to be completely rub free WITHOUT having to roll my fenders. (if this is possible)

So I came up with the possible solution of fitting Tokico Illumina adjustable shocks and set it to a stiffer setting with the same springs to get less suspension travel. Would this be a plausible solution or no?

The Illumina's are adjustable for compression, but not sure if that level of adjustment is sufficient to keep your tires from rubbing (ant that's not really the right way to do it anyway). If you want to change nothing else, then you'll need super stiff springs (and matching shocks that are able to handle them). Stock front springs are around 250lbs/inch, so the Megan's are only slightly stiffer. Rears are around 150lbs/inch stock, so the Megan's are stiffer, but obviously not enough. The stiffest lowering springs I've heard of are the H&R race springs: 430f/260R, close to a 2inch drop. To get anything stiffer you'll need to go with coilovers.

 

[camfast]

I couldn't find an aftermarket lowering spring like eibach,H&R etc...that would give me a stiff rating. I talked to a few people and none could tell me if it would run or not so I finally decided to get coilovers and that solved the issue. None of that rolling the fender either.

I do agree with Wes though when it comes to driving carefully over large bumps. Other than that its perfect.

 

[92AWDHX40]

I was going with agx and ebiach but im seriously considering some coil overs just not sure what brand yet, i want to upgrade my suspension and lower it a bit.

 

[oneslowwdsm]

So I'm pretty convinced to go the coilover route and be done with it..

I was looking at these:

EXTREME PSI : Your #1 Source for In Stock Performance Parts

Can these really control camber?

Or these:

EXTREME PSI : Your #1 Source for In Stock Performance Parts

 

[92AWDHX40]

I saw those too I was thinking about them for my 1g but im still looking

 

[oneslowwdsm]

I like the Megans more even though they are more expensive they come with strut mounts which Teins don't look like they do. I think I'm gonna go with the Megans soon, I've read up on them and they seem suitable for daily driving/regular drag racing. I'm not all to concerned about real handling characteristics as some suspension gurus said they are junk for auto crossing.

 

[92AWDHX40]

yes I agree I don't autocross but will drag, and street this thing im thinking megans, that will be last thing I do before the shootout for sure.

 

[1990dsmkid]

I have the meagn coilovers on my awd 1g and they arent that bad until I hit a pretty big dip or bump then they suck.I dont know if the rear spring rate is too high or what because Ive played with the adjustments for springs. Overall though they arent that bad

 

[oneslowwdsm]

Well there are the megan ez street coilovers that look like ebay garbage or there are the ones that I posted that look a little more promising. Which ones do you have?