melteye

I want to lower my car for stability purposes. I do not want the ride to be much more harsh then my '02 SE stock is. A little bit is ok. Does wind noise increase/decrease with lowering. And how soon will I need new struts/shocks (and will they make things smoother?).

Thanks.

2000 SE

You are going to get all kinds of responses, but I have the Maxspeed springs. I only paid $85 bucks new (in the groud deal section)and I think they are fine. The drop might not be extremely drastic, but it is enough to tighten the car up. The ride quality with my SE has gotten a little bit tighter (won't say rough riding), but my stock shocks have over 22k miles on them.

Bottom line if your on a budget get the maxspeeds, if your not I would say go with the H&R's they will give you that stock ride with a lowered look. They are going to run you something near $250 just for the springs!!

MichaelAE

iTrader: (1)

The generally accepted theory is that the H&R's are closest in ride comfort to the stock springs (of course most of the people who come out on the ORG saying stuff like that, don't actually have them installed). Expect a noticeably more firm ride. Any lowered spring is going to stiffen up the ride, so I'm not sure what you mean by "a little bit is ok" but I would expect the ride to get, at least, 25%+ firmer (whatever that means). I have both the H&R Sport springs and the Tokico Blue's.

I swapped out the struts with Tokico Blue's at the same time as I replaced the springs so I can't comment on strut life with lowering springs.. I find the combination a great mix of comfort and performance. Noticeably better handling but no complaints from passengers. Although the bumps in the road are more evident, the Maxima "handles them" better, if that makes sense. A solid "thud" instead of a mishandled "bang" on large potholes. I had already installed an FSTB and RSB when I did the strut/spring swap.

There is no decrease in wind noise that I can speak of. Theoretically, due to lowered wind resistance, you should get a barely noticeable increase in gas mileage the lower to the ground your car gets.

zman187

I have the progress springs on the tokico blues. The look is great with a real nice drop. It takes sharp turns better than a porshe. But the ride is ruff. The first couple days i had them i was all over the place but you get used to it and how hard to take turns and bumbs so it isn't as bad. You get used to it so don't worry so much about the ride quality. good luck on your choice

nissanmaximas

All of this is correct, I have Eibachs and Tokicos. I find my Max takes bumps with authority instead of a bang that you would worry about, Also lane changes are more precise for me but i have STILLEN FSTB RSTB and RSB, as for the H&R's when first ordering my Shocks/Struts/Spring setup i asked all these crazy questions, my STILLEN rep had told me that if i wanted a stock ride i should go with the H&R's (he had them himself on his Civic SI).

Greg's2kGLE

Haha, good luck beating a porsche.

Greek to the Max

iTrader: (2)

I have a 2001 SE with H&R's and Stock Dampners. Its very close to stock ride. Yes it handles better, but you cant tell anything untill you push the car. Push meaning, speeding over big bumps, taking turns quickly, or just flat out going fast doen the freeway. I had to go this route, cause my dad would of killed me if he noticed what i have done. Yes it is my car, but he's paying for my wedding......So he hasn't noticed. I had people in my car last week, and nobody knew for the worse. Good luck...Here are some brands to look at.

APEX - Good drop and stiff.
Maxspeed - Not a low drop, good ride.
H&R - Average drop, very good ride.....ride meaning how close to stock.

Eibach - Average drop, good ride.....close to H&R.

Other brands, well, these are the best for good reason.

KLOOGY

iTrader: (12)

I think should should never mention your car in the same breathe as a Porsche, when it comes to handling !