So I recently ordered the tokico illuminas, progress springs, and the kyb bumpstops in order to lower my car in an attempt to improve my handling...

...I called my mechanic and asked told him to expect me soon because I need this stuff installed, and he told me that lowering my car is a bad idea because it causes many problems and the car will never ride the same...he says "once you lower a car, you own the car" - meaning that the car will keep having to be brought to the shop due to complications caused by lowering the car (especially a maxima)!

Is this normal among you guys that have lowered your cars? assuming you didn't drop it more then 2" or didn't get aftermarket shocks..

 

At least 40% of us on this forum are lowered, and not many seem to have problems at all. I'd say that's pretty good. Unless your mechanic is crappy and goofs up the install, but it's pretty hard to mess up a simple spring/shock replacement.

Illuminas and progress springs were a good choice, you won't regret it.

 

Do not ever go back to that mechanic.
You have a great combo of springs and shocks ready to be put in, don't let that herb stop you. There is nothing wrong with lowering your car. Remember to get an alignment after you drop it. You will save wear on the inside of your tires.

 

i even ahve the wrong gerneration springs in at this point and have been driving on them for quite some time and other then that i have no problem. (dont ask long story, but will be fixing soon)

 

Your mechanic is absolutely right. More trouble than it's worth. A car is designed and tested to run with what it comes with. Get a rear sway bar and that's it. I will never lower again unless it's a show car............

 

i would lower, ride quality will depend on what u use but it won't be that bad. i think ur setup will ride perfect and will be no troubles to u at all.

 

Easy for someone from Florida to say. Warm and smooth all year...............

 

Why do people have the dumbass mechanics that try to sound all smart and say "this is a bad idea" blah blah.. Install it biatch! Your getting paid for it! Shut the fawk up! Jeezuus tap dancing christ.

 

Have you even been in a car that has been lowered correctly? Not the "I got a civic with coilovers and stock shocks and it bounces like a m** F*" but real quality springs and real quality shocks. Obviously you took the cheap route and got the crappy, el cheapo setup, and you have nothing but complaints about it.

I have had 0 problems with my Eibach/Koni/Stillen Sway combination since I had it done 3 years ago. The ride is firm and compliant, very much like an M3 and much better than stock. I can finally bring my car into controlled understeer or oversteer on demand, which is a lot more than I can say about the heavily understeering stock suspension. Body roll in corners is near non-existant. Steering response has increased dramatically, and has prevented me from hitting many objects in the road, including dodging a tire and a civic bumper at 65mph.

And speaking of which, Eibach and H&R test each spring combination with professional drivers.

"All Eibach Pro-Kits are designed by experienced engineers specialized in chassis dynamics and are tested by seasoned qualified drivers. They are designed to properly and safely lower your vehicle's center of gravity through the use of proprietary progressive spring rates; reducing squat during acceleration, body roll in the turns, and nose dive under braking. Upon installation, your vehicle becomes exceptionally stable and secure under a much wider range of conditions and will provide years of enhanced driving pleasure, whether you are twisting your way through a mountain pass or cruising down the interstate or tempting the Autobahn." Taken from: http://www.eibach.com/prokit.htm

 

Find another mechanic, perhaps one that uses his skills instead of an opinion.

My setup, H&R springs and Tokico Illuminas & a few other goodies makes my 99SE-L ride and handle better then it did from the factory. Your choice of springs and struts is excellent and should yield you a great ride with increased handling characteristics.

Have a professional install your suspension and get the car aligned. If at any time down the road you want to bring it back to the stock ride height, all you have to do is put the stock springs back in and have the car aligned again. It's pretty simple stuff.

 

i see where your mechanic is coming from... i have one with the same attitude. he is right, in a way. first off, by lowering a car, you're changing the whole suspention "articulation", something, that it often is not designed to do. most mechanics seen their share of improperly/excessively lowered cars (of EVERY make and model), and without going deep into your preferences for the ride, and the parts you want for the car, they're giving you a sound advice. i lowered my car, because i didnt like the way it was sitting, and i am willing to put up with a harsher ride, and lower clearance. a lot of people just do it for whatever their reason is, but do it WRONG. lowered car is harder to align, it may wear out the CV joints faster, you'd bottom out more, etc. your mechanic is right 90% of the time when he says its not worth it. of course, if you insist, he'll gladly take your money, and put the stuff in. on the flip side, 6 months down the line, you can bring it back, and show him that your car is no worse than what you started with.

my loooong .02

 

bump! Couldn't have put it better.

 

How much lower? 1"? 1.5"? 2"? More?

Mine only went down about 1.25" with KYB/Progress, and the installer (not "mechanic") said it rides as good as BMW's he's driven. His main business is setting up new Porches after they are delivered to the dealer and before they go to the customer. He was working on an Audi A6 right before he brought my car in so I think he knows what he's talking about.

If you want to find a good installer in your area, use the locater on tirerack.com.

 

your mechanic is partly right. if you have wrong choice of shocks and springs, lowering it will cause you many problems such as ride quality and handling.

but you're not, cuz u choosed tokico illuminas, progress springs, and the kyb bumpstops. you will sacrifice stock riding comfort (most aftermarket springs are stiffer than stock), but your handling and looks will improve. as long your installation is correct, you shouldn't have too many problems with aftermarket spring/shock combo. just be careful going around bumps.

get your baby dropped now and post some pix

 

honestly i often wish that my ride quality was as good as stock... but then i look at the wheel gap on stock maximas, shudder, and realize that its worth it to have a stiffer ride while having better handling and a lowered stance

 

ok noob u know nothing. u need to read ur "status" before posting. lowering ur car is almost like replacing the old stock parts with new stcok parts. the only difference is that u will use better equipment(depends on what u buy). njmax lowers cars professionaly and i have not heard him say lowering is a bad idea.

 

But yeah, i lowered my previous car the wrong way, i used coilovers and a STOCK suspension. Needless to say the drop was 3+ inches, i had no strut movement, rode like ***...thats definately the kind of person the mechanic was talking about


But ive done it better with the max and i wouldnt trade my stiffer , more intuitive ride for a 2inch higher look 4x4 look...


Eric

 

Lowering is one of the best mods you can do and you're missiing out on improved handling overall.

 

Thanks guys for all the replys, he is a really good mechanic, hes just seen a lot of people come in lowering their car too much or not properly and its lead to many problems such as not being able to align the car after and them comming back with ruined tires from uneven tread wear.

are you guys serious it handles close to a BMW?!..thats pretty sick, do many people have these illuminas with maximas? i know a lot of people who have them with different cars and they ride mint...

 

illuminas, from what i read, are the BEST shocks for hte max. GREAT RIDE and good handling. and with progress springs ur ride should be good and handling even better

 

sounds like your mechanic is old school. they dont know enough about these new cars to trouble shoot or support modifications. do yourself a favor and get a second opinion from another mech.