And I thought my car rode excellent with the Blues up front. What a suprise these are.

Here's the setup now:

H&R Springs
Tokico Illuminas up front set on 2 (out of 5)
AGX in the rear (set on 2 out of 8) with Motivational mounts
Front Strut Tower Brace
Addco Rear Stabalizer Bar

The car rides as smooth as glass yet firm like a German girl. Feels just like our 330 does on the highway. The Blues rode very smooth as well, a little softer like a Caddy. Now the Caddy is gone but the ride quality is basically the same if not better.

I'm amazed that a lowered Maxima can ride this good. I think it actually rides better then it did stock on the highway.

It took me 2-1/2 years to figure this out, I knew I was right when I switched from KYB to Tokico up front. These blow the front AGX's out of the water in terms of ride quality and handling. They absorb everything, unlike the AGX's which ride over everything. I am still a fan of using the AGX's in the rear. The beam needs a good firm shock to keep it planted on the road and they do just that. I have no plans to throw Tokico's back there.

BTW: I hit an all time record of 23 minutes from start to finish on a front strut swap. My brother was impressed.

 

23 minutes for a front strut swap out!!

So Tom if I make an appointment you can swap out my front struts?

Thanks for the info this morning,, I am going to put the the kyb gr2's in the back,,,should i go with the same in the front? the car is 96 gxe stock, want it to ride good but not real stiff,,,as I mentioned this morning it has 130k on original struts/shocks.

Thanks again for taking time out this morning!!

 

Wow, that's amazing! 23 minutes must be an all time record.

But I'm not surprised, given your skill Tom.

It's great how you are willing to spend the time and experiment with the Maxima suspension combinations. We're all learning a lot of very useful info from you. I hope the moderators pick up on this and include it in the FAQ section.

I'm actually enjoying my AGX's in the front, but then I've got 15" tires to provide additional cushioning. I'm looking to move into 16" tires and I'll bet that will increase the firmness, hopefully not below my liking. I've got to try experimenting with the settings to see the ride behavior range on these AGX's.

 

sounds good...i'd go for the same setup but the Illuminas are a LOT of $

 

And as always.... you get what you pay for. Is it really worth it to have an extra $100 in your pocket if your car rides like crap?

All you'll end up doing is get sick of it the cheap parts and end up buying the better ones later, all along the way paying $50 an hour for labor to install the first set, then the second.

It's much better to do it correctly the first time.

 

Point taken, but it's not like i'm gonna buy **** parts...i'm probably gonna purchase the AGX's, the front Illuminas are like $300 and I can get the whole AGX set for under that, enough of a difference in price to sway my decision. Oh yeah, and what are motivational strut mounts?

 

good stuff, 23 minutes! woo hoo nice nice i'd eventually like to have something like that

 

your nuts...

Ant

 

Now that your car rides smoothly, how does it take the turns?

 

Motivational rear mounts:
http://drewm.dyndns.org/~drew/maxfaq...imaShockMounts

And the whole parts site:
http://drewm.dyndns.org/~drew/maxfaq...aModifications

 

The worse thing about AGX's for me Tom is speeed bumps. I have to go over 5 sets of speed bumps to get into my school parking lot. With the AGX's I have to slow down to 5-10 MPH, whereas with the stock SE suspension I could go over them at 30-40 MPH no problem.

How do the Illuminas absorb speed bumps, Tom?

 

Your welcome, it was nice chatting with you this morning. Your on stock springs correct? If so, you can go with GR2's all around for a nice firm sporty ride or do the combination of GR2 and Tokico for a smoother ride. I now have a set of front Blues I'll let go really cheap, you'll get a nice smooth ride with them if your on stock springs, thats for sure. PM me if your interested.
It corners like our stock 330 does. No body roll at all and very planted on the road. The Illuminas hold me a bit steadier then the Blues did on agressive turns while maintaining a very comfy ride. Keep in mind I can dial them up nice and firm for Sunday afternoons up in the mountains. I've yet to play with the adjustments, just give me a week or so to have some fun playing with them.
Speed bumps weren't a problem with the Blues, I'm sure I'm not going to even second guess them now. 30-40 MPH, I wouldn't drive any car over a speed bump at that speed.

 

njmax, you seem to be the susp. guru. what do you think about sprints w/ tokico illuminas all around? im wondering because the cheapest prices i've seen for struts are on ebay, and the illuminas are like... 20-30 more for a whole set.

 

c'mon, Tom. I expect you to get it done in 20 minutes flat!

Did you have the same problem with the front mount key hole with your Illumina's, as we did on mine? Just wondering whether my '99 was built like cr@p...

 

Cone on now, speed bumps were made for a reason. You should be driving 5 mph where there are speedbumps anyway.



Tom, you're suspension obsessed.

 

LoL..I wouldn't either. I'd call these baby speed bumps. No more than an inch high. I used to be able to go over them like imperfections in the road, but with the AGX's I can't.

Btw: How do the Illuminas handle compared to the AGX's?

 

Switch to 15's and your car will ride like butter with AGX's. Mine does.

 

INHO Sprint springs are all show and no go. They are too low and don't allow for adequate suspension travel.

Poor suspension travel = poor performance no matter what you couple them with.
Nope, all went ok. The top of the strut fit into the keyway nice and snug. I tightened them up on the car just like I did to yours. Strange right?
I average 3 or more Max's every weekend at the shop for various suspension work. My dreams at night are about springs and struts. I need

 

Smooth, firm cornering with a much less jittery ride then the front AGX's have. Seriously feels like a BMW ride, firm, yet so smooth.



Just wait till you throw on a set of 17's.

 

I think i'm the only one here now with Tokico HP up front and KYB AGX in the rear !!!
but i love this set up now !!!! the ultimate test will be winter when temps go down and things get really stiff....

maybe one day i look into some illuminas....
but for now my set up rulez !!!!


23 minutes - hmmmm very good time Tom !!!!


Nick.

 

 

I agree. H&R's or Eibach's would be my top 2 choices.


Goes to show you that my max was built like cr@p!!! Should've bought that Red SE-L dealer had in the lot when I bought mine...

Just open up your suspension shop in the corner of your brother's shop. Proline Body & Suspension.

 

Have the Illuminas been around for Maximas long enough to know how cold weather affects them? They go for $410 on ebay, and I'm very tempted, but I'm unsure since I don't think they've been available for that long.

 

I do have a 99SE too. I don't seem to see
a part number from Tokicos web site.

How do these compare to Konis. I do have
Konis but they are too stiff and jarring.

Thanks,

john

 

Think I would be better off with AGX's in the back, and Blues up front or AGX's in front as well?

 

njmaxseltd what size wheels/tires are you riding on? Also why do you say you would not put a set of illuminas in the rear instead of the agx's? I am planning to do illumina's all around with H&R's, but I have 18 inch rims and 235/40R/18 tires and I do not want to waste te money if its not going to smooth my ride out a lot with the 18's. I realize it will never be like stock suspension and 15's but I want to get it to be as smooth as I can so I can actually handle pot holes.

 

Tonight was the first time I got to hit some open road and cruise at high speed. It's like the faster I go the more buttery like the ride becomes. It's fluid like. I feel as if the front end is always sort-a floating upwards, never down. At 80 it's like your on a cloud....seriously. Oh it was 4:20 when I left my buddies house for this ride home, tomorrow morning it may ride differently.

Tokico Part numbers:
BB3102 & BB3103 - There's a left and a right.
They ride awsome.

 

I'm about to buy some illuminas for the rear and toss the GR2s I have in there in the garbage! Feels like the new badge of GR2s are crap!

Later.

 

So how will this setup do if used in Auto-X?

 

I've never auto-x, but I bet they would be just fine.

 

Glad to hear you like em Tom....that is great. They are trully a well made, well thought out shock/strut

 

NJMax...Illuminas all around or Front Illuminas and Rear AGX's? on stock springs

 

And I thought I researched this to death before I bought my H&R/AGX setup . I would of gladly paid a little more up front for a better riding shock, but now that I have already bought and installed my AGX . The ride on my AGX does seem to be improving with time though, but still not like the stock suspention.

 

Front Illuminas and rear AGX with Motivation Mounts. You can use the Illuminas in the rear and achieve the same ride.
It's not to late to sell your front AGX's and throw on a set of Illuminas. Lots of guys like the firm AGX's still, they'll sell.

 

Yeah...depends if I can still get the Rear AGX's for a good price, but if I can't I might just end up going Illuminas all round. Last question NJMax, sorry for pestering you with all these suspension questions. So when I purchase all the shocks/struts, I also NEED Dust Boots and Bump stops or just Dust boots? What else do I need to purchase?

 

i'm not njmax, but i can tell you that OEM dust boots come with bump stops built in (at least in the front). If you get the OEM ones, you definetely wanna cut off a notch from the bumpstop to give you better wheel travel.

 

Use the KYB dust covers, they have shortened bump stops built into them. The P/N's are SB103 and SB108. You need two of each.

 

do you also need kyb strut and shock mounts when you get springs/struts?

http://www.tirerack.com/suspension/S...ount&brand=all

 

How much lowered are you with the HR? I would like to get a better ride, more control, etc. but using the stock SE tires and spring combination. Does HR make a progressive rate spring that keeps you at stock ride height? I'm trying to do what you describe but with stock SE wheels...smooth ride but very controlled.

Any idea if Illuminas/AGX combo would work well with stock springs?

Also, would you recommend Motivational mounts for the front? I need new mounts and don't want to get anything that will make the ride harsh.

 

dont forget to check the alignment