im looking into getting illuminas with springs...are they any good or am i better off with eibachs or something?

 

I bought the Illuminas with Tokico springs last year for my 96 GXE after doing some deep research. For the money/performance/looks, was good for me. Purchased from Custom Maxima. Have to say however that I have had problem with front springs. If I had it to do over again, may have gone with the Tein S or the Eibachs. Have gone back and forth with Tokico rep about the "popping" noise that I get under load. Had discussion with another org member who mentioned that it is because they are probably not seated properly. I have compared installation to my other Max (99SEL) and he is correct. So for whatever its worth, make sure that whoever installs your springs knows what they're doing. As for the adjustables, I love em. I have them set on 3/3. There's another post on this specific topic here in the 4th gen. Keep looking and you'll find it with and assorment of other opinions. You'll just have to find what works best for you. Manufacturer recommends the 3/3. Gives a ride thats not to harsh and not to soft.

 

Junk the springs and struts and spend the extra $200 on the Ksports that are on a good deal right now. If I had it to do all over again I would buy coil overs. But to answer your question, I think you will be happy with the Tokicos. I know I was.

Welcome to the board Ghost. You should post up in the regional forum.

 

i just installed the tokico kit, and i like the ride but the drop wasn't too low. it took care of the 4x4 look, so it looks like a "regular" ride height. so far though, had no problems with any "popping" noise or anything.

 

oh, i forgot to ask, what do you mean by not seated properly? do you mean the springs are just not seated on the strut right? the top "mount" has an indication of where the outside goes, how important is that to get lined up exactly? it might not be called the "mount" but the piece that the top of the spring is actually sitting in. it looks like it sets the angle of the camber (is that right) so it might mess with the alignment, which was thrown off a little on mine.

 

Ive had mine for about 4 months now and im very happy with them. The Tokicos struts are probably one of the most perfered aftermarket strut for our cars. Many different combinations on the spring setup, just depends on your preference.

 

I'm not an expert and I'm sure there are others out there that could give better explanation about "seating" however I'll do my best. Where the spring mates to the strut there is a stop where the but end of the spring should sit. It appears on mine that they do not match up. I believe they should. I believe that because they don't, it is causing the problems I am having with not only the "popping" noise but also an alignment issue. Seems as though when I turn my wheel to left or right and the pop occurs, the car will then drift in that direction. Basically it's all screwed up and I need to get it fixed. Problem is the time and the fact that I use my car every day in the job. Hope that helps.

 

yeah, i know what your talking about. there is a "stop" for the bottom of the spring, but nothing like that for the top. seems like it would be a good idea to do something on the top like that to set it up.
ghost--did you install this setup or someone else?

 

thanks for the replies guys....i think ill dish out the extra money for some eibachs