my bday is coming up and i want to get springs for the 2002 maxima se. I want a minimal drop, but stiffer ride, what is recomended? thanks

 

http://www.innerbean.com/housecor/sp..._decision.html
http://forums.maxima.org/showthread.php?t=281189

 

i say go w/Eibachs thats what im riding on and couldnt be happier

 

Cliff Notes = Eibachs

 

it's not just the springs, it's the struts. For example, with Maxspeeds (the most subtle drop available) and Illuminas turned up to 5, the ride is "firm" to say the least...

 

Good point, I forgot about that. Common opinion is that KYB struts (AGX, GR-2) feel stiffer than the Tokicos (Illumina, HP) for any given spring, reason being that they have equal compression and rebound damping while Tokicos have more compression than rebound damping which allows them to ride "softer" while still giving good performance.

 

Irish (and other people with Maxspeeds), are you happy with your spring purchase, and would you buy them again?

I ask because I'm really interested in the Maxspeeds. The price is right. I've read all of the other spring threads and the spring comparison on Housecor's site. A few people reported problems with the Maxspeeds, specifically with the handling and ride quality when people were in the back seat.

 

i loved mine when i had them but i was runnin on stock struts, they do fit ur minimal lowering quilification tho, but they were just about as stiff as the stock se springs

 

I have gr2's/maxspeeds and the handling is definatley better than stock but when I hit a pothole the ride is harsher, it sounds like I'm damaging something. The bounce I got with oem suspension when I hit a bump has been eliminated with gr2's/maxspeeds.

 

I am also looking for a a new suspension. I was thinking about getting Maxspeeds w/ GR2's but now I am thinking about going with Maxspeeds w/ Illuminas. I also want a mild drop.

HEY Irish...how is Maxspeeds/illuminas in snow?

 

I hear H&R springs are very good. The drop is about 1.6-1.3 I believe. Maybe a little lower than you wanted to go.

 

which spring would most people recommend? cuz i'm looking for springs for my max and all i can say is that there're so many difference choice.. price ranges.. etc..

and honestly.. what's better to eliminate body roll? sway bar or springs + sturts?

 

Maxspeeds and H&Rs drop the car 1.4F and 1.3R.

http://www.innerbean.com/housecor/sp..._decision.html

 

You want Eibachs with AGX's.

 

I've been happy with the maxspeeds + illuminas. Never had any problems with people/weight in the back...and we do ski trips with 4 in the car, trunk full, and boards/skis on the roof, and no concerns with ride quality. It's just a bit stiffer than SE stock setup in ride, but handling is much improved (as is the car's stance).

No problems in snow....it's not that big of a drop.

 

Even w/ the Stage II (minus 1) LTB? That's the main thing keeping me from dropping her (that and not knowing actual spring rates too).

 

you may scrape stuff with Matt Blehm's ltb. I have hit roadkill several times with it, and last weekend we went white water rafting, and i scraped the ground on the campground. The road was very uneven, with big potholes and well-worn tire marks. a lowered max is NOT the vehicle to do any sort of off-roading in.

 

Illuminas and S-tech Springs...I have a lip and I never scrape.

 

Wait a minutes, you want a stiffer ride with minimal drop?! That's definitely a first! Usually people come here looking for the complete opposite. I guess if you live long enough, you're bound to see everything. Anyway, if you want a stiffer ride, don't forget that low profile tires and/or stiffer sidewalls will also do the trick.

 

im ridin on tokico illuminas and eibach springs and they sit nice and nice ride....i love it...the drop looks near stock unless u really pay attention to it then u would notice

 

OK now that I got my new tires put on (Avon Tech M550 ultra high performance all season tires) by the way for $110/ tire these are EXCELLENT ALL AROUND tires and are wider than the stock tires. but anyway, now that I got these tires with stiff sidewalls, my ride is stiffer but I still want to eliminate the sway around corners. I really want to get the eibach springs and get front and rear strut bars. I just want the car to react quicker to steering inputs, be a little firmer, and be confident around corners, Will all that do the trick?

 

I have the Avon Tech M500 ultra high performance summer tires (I don't need the light mud/snow rating of all seasons here in GA), and I love them too. Good to see another Max running the Avons on the Org. Overall, I've noticed that these tires are MUCH better than the stock Bridgestones (but aren't all tires better than those?), and what really surprised me was that they're also better than my Nitto NT450s by a LOT. I feel much more confident driving on these tires than I did on the Nittos, especially when it's wet, and they produce much less road noise than the Nittos.

As for springs, I've got a bit of extra income this month, so I'm thinking about Maxspeeds because they look to be a very good compromise between price (cheap), drop (even and not too low), and handling (better than stock SE). I'll probably wait to install them until I can buy some Illuminas. I don't see any reason to install them on the stock struts if I'm just going to have to take everything apart again later to install the Illuminas.

 

New springs and struts will help. I'm not going to say that the strut bars do nothing, but they don't really do much on their own. I'm assuming that by "strut bar," you mean the braces that go between the front and rear strut towers. This is usually an easy and cheap mod, but you're not going to feel a very dramatic improvement in your car's handling from doing it.

Maybe you should consider a sway bar for the rear (Progress and Stillen are popular) and a stage 2 lower tie bar for the front (BlehmCo is popular), or you could do a front strut tower brace plus a stage 1 lower tie bar. Matt Blehm's site has this to say about the stage 1 bar: "Handling improvements are very similar to installing a strut tower brace, which you can also add on the top of the suspension to tie the front end together really well!"