It's spring break so I've finally gotten some spare time to post some updates on the ol site.

Some may think dropping only the front is nuts, but for anyone looking for a mild drop, improved handling, less body roll, even stance, crisper turn-in, and a very near stock ride, this isn't a bad way to go. As many have noticed, the H&Rs drop the back a little lower than the front, so running just the front springs creates a virtually even drop (the back is only 1/8" higher) with very minimal sacrifice.

Here's a couple shots. I posted a few other new shots on my site for those interested. Feel free to chime in if you think I've lost it.

 

Looks good. Very Sharp. Do you ever drive your car? :-)

 

I dropped the front of my car with Maxspeeds for about 5 months also, before I decided to drop the rear too.

 

Mr. Innovation strikes again, it looks really good overall. Nice work man!

 

I think it looks great... I've never been a proponent of just dropping the front, but if ya say it feels good in terms of handling, etc, then I believe ya... I can definitely say that it looks good though...

 

looks good man.

 

looks nice and even,might consider doing this ....

 

that does look super slick...really clean car by the way

 

looks great man... I like the rims.....

 

UGAd13 and I did this to his car last weekend. I'll get him to post his pics so people can see what another 5th gen looks like with this. He said it rides better and now the front and back look about even.

 

Thanks for the feedback guys.

So what struts is he running? Or is he rolling on stockers? The shots above are on Illuminas in the front but I plan to try reinstalling the front H&Rs on the stock struts since it's a mild drop.

 

I'm on stock right now. The ride is a bit more bumpy but overall I like the ride and how it looks. It seems to handle a bit better too, but that could just be in my head.
Before:

After:

Sorry about the quality of the pic, but it is raining outside and I'm at work. I'll try to get a better comparison pic later and measure the ride height.

 

Your cars looks good. I did the same thing this past weekend. I have Maxspeed/Kyb Gr2's in the front and stock on the back. I did this b/c I didn't have enough time to put the back ones on. The ride is great. Body roll has decreased alot. I'll post pics once I take them..

 

I did this a long time ago and was telling people the ride was fine. If you want to make it even more even get yourself a used set of 4th gen stock rear struts and springs. Since the spring weights are different (due to vehicle weight) the rear will sit a little lower and the ride quality is identical.

 

housecor, thanks to your innovation i am inspired and i will be doing the exact same drop, front only on stockers.

 

Hey, that's me with H&Rs on stockers not Housecor. Respeck.

 

I can't even tell you got H&Rs in front, it looks stock to me..

 

super cool !

 

look at housecor's home page...he had some SERIOUS wheel gap before this...it appears, to me at least, that in the pictures his wheel gap was a bit larger than most of the other 5th gens, but it could just be me...

all in all, i think it looks like a pretty good, even drop...but if you were to put all 4 of the H&R's on, would the back be noticibly lower than the front?

 

Here's a pic of mine with H&R all around...but keep in mind I have subs in my trunk which definitely does make a difference because I took them out before and I could notice a little difference but not much...I don't mind I think it still looks good even with the back lower and nothing else rides like these springs on illuminas :-)

 

Yeah, I know what you mean now.. golly.. those are some crazy wheel gaps . By the way housecor, you got the best write ups ever.

 

Thanks man. And yeah, I posted a whole separate wheel gap thread because mine seems more 4x4 stock than others. It appears the H&R's look more uneven on a 5.5gen 6MT since the front end is lighter than the auto. Nonetheless, I've never seen a Max in person with front wheel gap as severe as mine was stock.

UGAd13 - That's a great looking stance. Though your GLE sat much more even than mine stock. If mine looked as good as your did stock I may not have even bothered!

 

Yeah Man, yours did look a lot more uneven. I looked at a 02-03 SE in my parking lot and it didn't look as bad as yours. Did you ever find out the reason, i.e. Nissan using different springs or anything? And thanks for the compliment!

 

I called my local parts guy who confirmed that Nissan switched springs w/ the 5.5gen, but that still doesn't explain my freak show. I'm guessing, like everything in life, there's variance in spring stiffness. I apparently received quite a sturdy set from the factory.

 

well i saw the idea first from housecor so to you and respeck to housecor.
i dont see the need at this point to go with any aftermarket struts/shocks. I've been through many kinds on my 4th gen and all in all I am lookin to keep this one with a fairly stock ride. my 4th gen is now a rattle bucket thanks to the many different harsh suspensions i've been through.

 

just get coilovers and put the ride height whereever u want, ive heard putting diff spring combos can lead to unstableness, but if its working for ya, its working for ya. wish my car was as shiney as urs

 

I think I'll do this too. Looks very nice I think I'll just get the springs to drop the front and get better shocks/struts all the way around when I do it. I'll probably go with the adjustable Koni's unless the Tokiko's are better... I'm still quite a ways off from doing this, but it's good to think ahead.

 

Most people here recommend the Tokico Illuminas over the Koni's... talk to BlackbirdVQ, he used to have Konis... I don't know anyone else though... but all who have Illuminas seem to love em... I have Tokico HPs and they're fine, not adjustable though...

 

Looks great housecor!!! I had that done too! Great minds think alike!

 

i wanted to just drop the front, when i had 400 lbs of stereo in the trunk. everyone i talked to, discouraged me.
housecor, how is the ride? is it WABBLY???

 

Ride was excellent with Illuminas set on 2. However, I'm installing the H&R's on the stockers tonight so I'll know more then.

 

Alright, I threw the H&R's on with the stock struts tonight. New record for me - only 1hr. 45mins! Not bad. Anyway, I'm fired up about the results. The ride is VERY similar to stock, and actually smoother over smaller road irregularities. The only point where the ride is stiffer is over expansion joints, however the car feels so much more settled and attached to the road that even these feel strangely better. It's hard to describe. The ride is even smoother with the factory struts than with the Illuminas on 2. Of course, my biggest concern is how the drop will effect the factory struts. Only time will tell. But for now, I am loving the dramatically decreased body roll, crisper turn-in, and overall more solid and tossible feel. On my initial impression, this is my favorite of the 3 setups I've tried, and certainly the closest to a stock ride. In fact, my g/f commented that my car now feels like her stock '03 Accord coupe which has always handled better and ridden slightly stiffer than my Max. Hey, I'll take big results for little $.

 

With H&R's in the front and stock springs in the back it's been great. I've been riding on stock shocks mainly because I don't have the dough but so many people commented how smooth and fun to drive my car is.

I have always been curious to know how the ride with the illuminas were. But if they're not as good, heck, i'll just buy used stock struts from any org member for $50 and live off that!

 

iunno if anyone noticed this, but when i dropped my car in the front only, i noticed a little more oversteer. When i finished the rears, there was less oversteer. I was on chopped maxspeeds btw so the front looked drasically lower than the back.

 

Yup, more oversteer makes sense. If you push it to the limit the rear tires lose traction first due to the softer springs in back allowing more body roll which compromises rear traction first. But from the little toying around I did tonight on slippery roads, the limit is very predictable and the decreased plowing and body roll makes rolling around corners a blast in my book.

Komax - Thanks for the input. So how long you been rolling on this setup?

 

I think you spend more time under your car than you do IN it

Good work man, I think your car has been impressive with all the changes you've made.

 

This is probably true. But it's been worth it, as it's definitely one of the nicest Maximas on the Org. And probably the CLEANEST, too. Man, that thing is spotless!

 

Sad, but true. My drive to work is only 4 miles and my drive to class only 1. Other than occasional weekend road trip and runs to the grocery store, my Max just sits in the garage. I barely clocked 10k in the first year.

And thanks BigDu! But trust me, if you saw it today "clean" wouldn't be the first word that comes to mind...

 

sweet, all i need is a set of h&R's and I am good to go. I wonder if i can come close to your record time there housecor. did you the replce strut bearings and put in nw isolaters ?

 

Housecor you said a couple of months ago that you had blown the illuminas did you ever send those in? did they replace them?
And although it does look nice, someone without those pictures might think it was stock... so im going to have to agree with sammy on this one. But your car does look good
Thanks
brandon