with all the setups he had, he could have had coilovers

 

wow, thread revival!!

Springs are holding up fine...no wear visible at all....the coating is much better quality than the Maxspeeds, which were all chipped and peeling powdercoat.

agreed, the Eibachs are more comfortable on rough roads than the Maxspeeds, but at the same time are amazingly firm (firm, not stiff) in handling. A very nice feel and still very pleased with them.

someday...if I get around to it. The moment I get a house with the 2-car garage the Maxima will never be modded again....it will be on to the British sportscars, where I can REALLY have some fun....

yes, you're very smart

I have little to no interest in putting coilovers on this car. Only car I'd ever get coilovers for is one that is a weekend driver or true track car. For a daily driver, I prefer something with a better mix of comfort and handling. I may someday test out the Boss Chens, but that would be the only ones I would consider. No interest at all in ksports or any others...

why do you think I need coilovers, out of curiosity? I don't want the "slammed" look...

right you are...though cost is not really the main concern. I could afford them if I wanted them....I just don't want them.



to address some other questions:
1. yes, the ride is still excellent - better than the Maxspeeds.
2. the fronts have settled a bit and I'm actually really happy with the stance. I expected the rear to look "saggy" from what I'd heard, but it actually sits quite level...just a tad higher in the front than the crap H-techs, but hardly noticeable.
3. I have been running 5f, 4r on the Illuminas and ride is still acceptable. at 3/3 it's a pretty cushy ride, but a little loose on handling.

 

Has anybody heard anything or have had any exericence with just lowering the front with Illuminas/ eibachs.

 

I had eibach's with illuminas on 2f/2r....

my review:

beautiful drop, exceptional handling, ABSOLUTELY HORRIBLE ride when it comes to bumps and holes. seriously, it was brutal.

i have since switched to h&r springs. they are MUCH MUCH MUCH more comfortable, but alas, i miss the nice drop.

 

With your iluminas on 2/2, I'm not surprised. You need them set higher to handle the spring rates of the Eibachs.

Then again, my SFCs, LTB, RSB, FSTB, RSTB, and bushing setup all play roles in solidifying the ride vs. just a drop....

 

I've been away form the board so long I didnt even know you got SFCs done. But as irish said, my SFCs made my Eibachs much more livable. I drove this car across country now 4 times and I drive an hour each way to and from work. So I can attest to the livability of the Eibach ride. But FYI, when I go on longer trips I do bring the Illuminas down to 2/2.. Its a little floatier but when your covering 700-1000 miles in a day all in a straight line.. it is nice to have a slightly floatier ride.

 

Thanks for the great reviews. I just purchased a used Maxima. The guy said it has the H-Tech springs with Illumina shocks. I thought it felt a little too soft too. I have the shocks set a 4 front and rear. At 5 it seems the shocks are hitting too hard and the springs aren't doing anything. But anything less than 4 it feels like the springs are just way too soft. I'm pretty inexperienced with this sort of thing, but it seems to me I would prefer to have a stiffer spring to help with handling and a softer shock setting to allow quicker response and improved ride. Does this sound right?

This car is the family car used as a daily driver and a long distance vacation hauler. I need to maintain a decent ride. I always thought the stock SE felt about perfect. I never would have changed it if the previous owner didn't. Any suggestions?

1) Is the H-tech spring softer than factory springs on an SE?

2) Could I just replace the front springs with something like the Ibach and leave the rear H-Tech? It sounds like it would sit a little more level that way.

 

in my living room sits a pair of h-techs, s-techs, and illuminas are on the way.

this is the first time me looking at this thread and i a amazed that i hear the h-techs are getting such bad reviews.

i drive all day, on my stock '01 SE

i want illuminas because koni yellows are out of my budget.

do i stick with the illuminas???

do i sell my s & h-techs and go eibachs???

trying to make some sort of decision this week.

 

My suggestion is to go with the H techs and illuminas if you spend much time in your car.
S techs wil most likely be too rough for all day driving. Eibachs are great but they might be a bit rough if your susp. is stock otherwise. I have no personal experience with these setups, just what I've read and what seems reasonable to me.

 

thanks a lot for the info. i use all that i am given

so next year when i start to stiffen up my chassis, i might want to move to the eibachs? and are those sportlines or pro-kits

 

Hey guys i just wanna share some info. I had tried many combinations before. One of the best I had tried in the past was 4th gen KYB's adjustable (modded) with 5th gen Eibach's on a 01 max. At that time KYB's adjustable was not availabe for the 5th gen yet, but I think they are avaiable now. My personal suggestion about a good setup will be KYB' AGX/Eibach PERIOD.

Right now I'm running Maxspeeds on Tokico blues. The rides is almost close to stock and the handling is a little better than stock. This is a cheap way that works, because I don't plan to keep this max for too long, but if I do, then I will put KYB's AGX in the rear with the maxspeed and leave the front with maxspeed and tokico's. But like I said above, Eibach's/KYB AGX combination can give you all the comfort/handling...

I do all the installs myself so I just hate to go back and redo the front. I will just slap in a KYB AGX in the rear with the maxspeed and leave the front with Tokico blues and maxspeed.

Maxspeed/Tokico blues are not bad.

If anyone of you running maxspeeds/tokico blues please let me know how is the ride...........thanks guys...

 

hmmm sounds like my setup lol...don't forget the raxles, new ball joints and tie rods, even though those have little to do with the suspension setup but do help when everything is new, I noticed a major difference when I replaced all of it with the strut bearing

 

wasup fellows...alright, here is my situation:::I need new struts and i drive into queens every day (roads can get a little nasty), but since i know someone very well in the auto business he can get me either kyb or monroe struts very cheap...now i was thinking if i put eibachs in (everyone says they are stiff) i should go with the monroe because they are a softer spring, but im afriad they will be too soft...i love my stock feel of struts but i hate the wobble...now i was thinking if i got kyb (not adjustable) they would be way to harsh on queens roads BUT that would limit bottoming out because of how stiff they are..i am not sure wat i would like to do..any suggestionss??? THANKS

 

Hey dAAmax. I used to live in Queens driving a 2001 SE Sunlit Sand 5 speed max. I had many combinations of suspensions setup. My advise to you, since you are in NY, you want to stay away from KYB GR2's on Eibachs. Your car will drive smooth and nice at first, then as the weather gets colder the GR2's will drive like a truck (very aggressive and hard ride like a truck). Monroe >> stay away from them, you better off going back to stock OEM Tokico's. If you want a stock ride, get H & R or Maxspeed springs with stock OEM Tokico's or HP blues. Good luck, that was just my suggestions from my experience living in NY. .... oh if you don't want to lower your car, use HP blues on the stock springs, you will not regret it. But it's all up to you.

 

which eibachs are the ones that are being talked about, sportlines or prokits?

 

that would be the prokit. sportlines were not made for 5th gens.

 

Doh! thanks

 

the thread that never dies!!!

 

may this thread rest in peace

 

because this has more info than most of all the threads here. because you guys have tried so many types and combonations! thanks!

 

eibachs, s-techs, and h-techs in my possesion. awaiting illuminas.

i believe i will sell the s-techs though, too low

 

Tein S-Techs should be better than the H-Techs.

 

In what sense? The only reason in the world you would get s-techs is if you want a ghetto drop and you're too cheap to get coilovers

 

and then you wake up

hey Irish...I may have missed this but with the eibachs was the rear of the car saggy? Reason being is b/c Im on htechs up front, h&Rs in the back and the rear is way too saggy. So I got a pair of eibach rear struts hoping it would go away. So basically the new setup: htechs front, eibachs rear. Give me your predictions on ride quality before I put 'em on and I'll let you know just how accurate you were

 

further up the post he put up a pic and another org member posted one also. with a stick shift it sits a little higher in the front. but barely noticable. another member said an auto may sit lower in the front, more even due to the weight

 

 

so far they are the best spring I have driven in a 5th gen. The car feels very planted but not harsh like your organs are turning to mush.

 

well i got mie yesterday, now just waiting on illuminas. what have people heard about the koni yellows? on a 5th gen

 

Hey Irish,
I'm new to the forum but I have done some reading and searching about which springs and shocks combo I want. I decided on Illuminas and eibach and I am just excited to see that there is actually a thread on this very topic. I don't know if you are still running that setup now. I just want to know how they feel right now. Another thing is I read mix reviews of coilover VS spring/shocks. I just want to know besides the ride height of coilovers being very low, is there any ride comfort to them at all? I read it on other threads that people say they are a better combo of performance and comfortable over any spring/shocks setup. Just want to know what you think.
THanks!

 

+1

 

So how do this springs compare to progress? I just love the progress drop. Cant decide!!

 

Hey guys... Has anyone cut a coil on the front Eibach springs to help with the saggy rear syndrom?

I'm too looking for a new shock/spring setup and I can't decide. On my 4th gen I had the KYB AGX / Sprint Spring combo and loved it. The drop was perfect! Not too low, maybe about 1.5" in the front and 1" in the rear and no saggy rear issues. The ride was a little harsh, not too bad. I'd go with the same setup on my 2003 but I don't feel like modding the AGX springs and I'm older now and want something a bit smoother.

 

^ Get illuminas for sure, for the springs, eibach is just good because of the handling and overall better quality(IMO) but progress has a really nice drop, its also a little softer.

 

You could try it, but its not recommended, When I brought the I35 to the drag strip I actually pulled everything out of the back including the spare and carpet and rear seat and put the rear suspension to full stiff with the Illuminas and the car was actually raked forward and normally it sits level, so I would say take some stuff out of the back if you are carrying tons of stuff in your trunk it will actually make a noticible difference in the stance.

 

I have seen some pictures with the eibach springs, they don't look that saggy in the back to me. I would say it's comparable to the stock's stance where the back seems to sit more level compared to, let's say, camry or accord. Is it me or am I imagining the "level" part?

 

There not that saggy, just that if you put 19s(I want to put the nismo a34 rims), it will feel like the cars not dropped.

 

Well, I sold the car over a year ago but I think it's still on the Eibachs (another local bought it)....If I had kept the car, I wasn't going to change the Eibachs.

It's all personal opinion. If you must have a LOW drop, then go coilovers. But go with QUALITY ones, not crap. But for a mild/moderate drop springs/struts will *generally* provide better ride quality, comparable handling,, and are far less expensive. Also far less maintenance.

The upside to coilovers is more related to the ability to change spring rates, and have camber/caster adjustments, as most good coilovers have camber/caster plates.

again, it all comes down to your budget, your intentions for the car (daily drivign, crappy roads, track, autocross, etc), and the look you want.

Progress are pretty harsh. Progress makes good springs, but many here that have had them report too much bouce and lack of correct damping from illuminas or other available struts. The locals I know that had progress and wanted to be low ended up switching to coilovers to get more suspension travel back, and better damping, and eliminate bottoming out on the bumpstops, which happens alot on maximas with Progress.

Eibachs are a progressive rate spring. Cutting them will have unpredictable results, and may also really FUBAR your camber settings.

If you want low and don't mind bounce, go with Progress.

Cutting springs is ALWAYS a bad idea, no matter what anyone says.

Eibach ride quality is similar to stock, really. +1 on Illuminas. Progress you'll be on the bumpstops alot.

Here is a straight side shot on Eibachs on my car:
Keep in mind tht the back LOOKS a bit lower but that's because the rear wheel well isn't as tall as the front one. In actuality, the subframe angle of the car is PERFECTLY parallel to the ground.

In short...an "even-looking" drop is not necessarily an even drop.

 

I cut half a coil maybe less off of my front springs prior to installation. No ill effects as it is the dead coil you cut from. I would NOT recommend cutting more than that. The front springs of many strut suspension cars have very few live coils. The fewer the amount of live coils the higher the spring rate will be if you remove any of the spring. I used a spring rate formula along with the know rate of the Eibachs. The front springs are linear so you dont have to worry about it ruining the rate, though it WILL be stiffer.

Do I like the way my car rides? Yes. do I like the way it handles? Yes. (for a maxima) Would I recommend someone else try the same setup? No, unless they researched it ad nauseam and already have experience with what can happen and are willing to deal with the added difficulty of install. Remember the original flat dead coil is gone, and the cut springs must now settle and form a new dead coil area from the weight of the car. This is dangerous in its self and why I can't recommend that anyone else try it.

Cliffs: I did it, but you shouldn't.

 

Thanks for the info irish, looks like I'll stick with the eibach.

 

Looks like I will be stick with Eibach too. Cannot wait to put them on this weekend if all goes to plan. Irish, I thought even drop means the front and back looks level on the ground, no? Maxima has always had the subframe level to the ground whereas a lot of the front wheel drive sedans don't. Could you clarify what an even drop means?