That's right, just got my Toks installed with the Maxspeeds (note: I also have the Addco RSB and Courtesy FSTB). B/f the Toks the ride was very bouncy over bumps and not as tight and controlled as I would've liked. I got the Toks installed yesterday and my car is less bouncy over bumps - and that's all I can say. It doesn't feel as controlled as I'd like, and rough roads can still make me carsick. I think a lot of this may have to do with the Maxspeeds, but I can't say for sure, b/c I haven't experienced any other aftermarket springs on Maximas.

Oh yeah, I got my install guy to trim 26mm from the rear and I have bottomed out twice since then. I'll admit it's a much less harsh bam, but it's still there.

So, I am a little bummed and pi$$ed. All this fukin time, effort, research, and money and I am ready to throw in the towel and go test drive a 1999 328 tomorrow.

Well I could have told you they are pretty bumpy. Any aftermarket spring/strut combo is going to be fairly bouncy. I have toks/progres and its pretty nasty. sorry

are the toks designed to handle the spring rate of your maxspeed springs.

let me get this straight.. you buy the cheapest shocks, and the cheapest springs for the maxima and you slap em together on your car, and now you complain about wanting a 328? hahaha

Another victim. I cant stand the bouncy (not bumpy) ride with my Tok/Eibach setup either. The toks just cant seem to handle any type of perfomance springs.

Yeah, all you guys could've told me so... Why didn't you? I was set to buy H&Rs 'til all the rave Maxspeed reviews. And who has ever called Tokicos cheap? I went with direct fit and lifetime warranty.

And yeah a 328! If the best supension mod ever. I just hope I can stand the cabin size. I last rode in a '97 328 coupe and it was TINY!

'Til Tomorrow...

Same reason why I went with tokicos. I am happy with them, like I said smooth on smooth roads and rough on rough roads. The 328 coupe will be a change for sure, why not get a 330 coupe? That car is awesome! IMO it would smoke the max stock, especially on turns.

I just kept the factory Toks when I installed my Eibachs. Overall Im happy with the ride except for the fact that I didn't cut the bump stops which was a mistake. Installed the H&R springs on TRUblu2K2's car today with his factory Toks and his car rides a little smoother than mine. So the Eibachs seem to be slightly lower and stiffer than the H&R. Overall they both are well made for the Max. The factory Toks do handle the the H&R's alot better though. Us Eibach people could really use a firmer strutt.

I am glad you explained the difference between the stock struts which are made by tokico and the aftermarket replacment Tokico struts. A ton of people have this confused and think the aftermarket replacements are soft struts.

Youre wrong on this one, about the Maxspeeds. I had Eibachs on my Stang, and Trans Am, an I love the way the Maxspeeds ride. Take a ride in a Max with them one day. I have had other Max owners drive my car, and they notice the handling BIG TIME. In the world of modding if you go with the big $$ , you dont always get good results. If that was the case , the Stillen Rear section, or the HKS would be the best exhaust, and in fact , its the biggest piece of S#$%T for the price !

You're not alone NoFlash. Suspension roulette can be very difficult. When I had my Ecilpse, I had Skunk2 coilovers and KYB 4-ways installed and that was a massacre, even though I had heard from other people the Skunk's/KYB rode well blah blah blah. Anyway I ended up going with the stock springs and the KYB's and the ride was perfect, although it yielded no drop. I think the best way to approach lowering a vehicle and getting a good ride with better handling is to get a moderate to soft aftermarket spring and mate it with an adjustable shock/strut. That way if its too bouncy you can adjust the shock, b/c that is what controls spring movement in the first place. And all that is left is knowing how much to cut the bump stop.


Jesse

I think Kloog got some special edition Maxspeeds. Really, the Maxspeeds are perfect over perfect roads. Unfortunately, I ride on a lot of crappy roads.

At least I'm not crazy, though (well...)! Thanks for reports of similar findings. Maybe it has to do with how old your butt is as well.

And yes, Circo I'd love to drive a 330 coupe. They are running $40k here, so I might have to "settle" for a 328 - $30k.

I'll let you guys know what I do.

PS Is it worth it to part out my meager mods? [cost to go back to stock stuts/springs - ~$120]

that Tokicos CANNNOT handle aftermarekt springs?

It is a well established fact.



Oh man, you wasted all that money.

What about all that money you wasted on those rims?
Just kidding guy, I don't think that is well-established here. But you are very smart for letting me know how smart you are.

umm.. have you tried search? all the posts (but two) have been fairly negative on the Tokicos and aftermarket springs.

I'm beginning to wonder if its not partially high expectations that leads to some of the negative responses in conjunction with the fact that the rear stock struts suck so much that an aftermarket (non-adjustable) version likely would only be strong enough to work well with the stock spring rate. The stock front Tokicos are very well damped (with low miles of course) with Eibach springs so I believe the front Tokico blues will do a wonderful job of damping those rates and an adjustable rear set will do the same for the rears....Tok blues and 4th gen AGX rears for me!

I am with you on this one People have too much expectation for $100 springs

Over the last year+, most people with H&R or Eibach combined with Tokico Blues have been happy with the result...as far as I can tell from thread upon thread on this topic. I, for one, am happy with my H&R/Tok combination.

I think most of the negative press has been around the newest available aftermarket springs which have serious drops, like 2" and are not quite as reputable as Eibach and H&R.

BTW, Don't know about HKS, but Stillen rear section is really nice

I have progress springs on toks and I'm happy with the results. A little bumpy but you can't beat the lifetime warrenty with toks. People have bad results with anything they buy and these are the same way. but its nicer with the life time warrenty

I've had the maxspeeds for almoat 6 months now with stock SE struts.

I like the ride, a little stiffer than stock, but it is rough on bad roads.

I plan to run my stock struts into the ground and hopefully the will have an adjustable strut for the 5gen by then (or I will have to go with the modified ones from cattman) Tockio blues seem to be to soft from the post I have read if you have any substancial drop

I live in Cali, where we have nice roads, but Im not sure about equating $$ to a better product. The Group Deals have gotten us a good price for them. I have seen them at online sites for $175-200.00 , but to each his own...

I really think for some that the Maxspeed/Tokico setup will work just fine.

For me, srbarnes4ever is exactly right. I did have high expectations. I bought a stripped GXE b/c I knew I could upgrade the wheels and suspension myself. I SEARCHED here (to answer smartass riceboy) and researched to find the best components for the money without creating a ghetto or harsh ride. At the time, Maxspeeds were rated as near-equals to H&R (I'm not saying they aren't now - I don't know). And I am still not sure that Toks aren't the best aftermarket shocks for the Max. I did consider buying someone's used SE struts, but I decided the Blues had to be worth the dough. I don't know where some guys get off saying that it's common knowledge that Toks suck. I have only heard rave reviews.

Anyway, my suspension is maxed out. It is better than it ever was, but I guess I still want more and I don't think a mod can provide the next level.

I drove the 328 for about an hour-and-a-half yesterday. It met all my expectations, it was actually bigger on the inside than I expected. The only downside was that I think the 24k miles it has on it were rough ones. One wheel had a great scrape with a curb, the front passenger seat was pretty scratched up (I think the last owner had a dog as a frequent passenger), and I found a peculiar amount of dust/dirt on the inside of the headlight casing. Is this evidence of a wreck? Those should be airtight, right?

Well, negotiations ended at a standstill with a difference of about $1700. I wouldn't budge b/c I kept thinking I could have a new G35 for the same price. I'll drive one this afternoon to see if I need to wait for the 6sp.

Sorry this is so long.

A lot of people in here have paid $100 (give or take) for Maxspeeds, trimmed their bumpstops, and said they still bottom out, regardless of whether they have aftermarket struts or stock. I paid $225 for H&R's, did not trim my bumpstops one bit and have loaded that car with people over all kinds of road surfaces and have not bottomed out once. I am running stock struts/shocks.

...Sometimes you get what you pay for, maybe this is one of those situations...

Good point.

Keep in mind too that bumpstops are there to bottom out against. Their main purpose is to progressively dampen the impact of a harsh bump, crater, or whatever we drive into. Even the stock suspension can and will hit the bumpstops from time to time so there really is no reason to think a lowered one won't. Part of the problem is its likely much more noticeable on a lowered car due to the higher spring rate throwing the car back up off the bumpstops, but either way I suspect that unless you're on trully smooth roads, your car will hit the stops from time to time, especially if you have weak arsed stock rear struts.

...Ok, then maybe I should say, I haven't noticed that my car has bottomed out. I am not noticiing it, and others are, doesn't that basically mean the same thing? If people bottom out in stock suspension setup, but it is so much quieter and softer, than obviously it is the loud, violent BANG that they have a problem with once they go aftermarket. What I am saying, is that I am running H&R's with stock struts/shocks and I am BANG free up to this point, even over bad roads with 3-4 passengers...

I didn't mean to disagree with any of your points my friend.....you're right in that some people are experiencing much harsher bangs then others. I have Eibachs on stock SE struts and the only time I even notice contact is when my trunk is loaded and I have people in the back seats. Even then its not violent, at least not to my butt dyno. Can't wait to get some aftermarket struts to really damp things out better though! If only there was a way to get rid of that skittish rear end feeling...My poor little 95 Escort is soooo much more stable making hard turns on uneven pavement due to the IRS compared to the beam from hell on the Max. Oh well, Max wins in EVERY other category imaginable!

...Do you have a RSB? I don't but I have heard that it helps stability in the rear quite a bit... I am considering that as an upgrade to help the skittish rear syndrome you refer to...

I don't have one yet but I'm just not certain how it can help with this problem. The RSB only stiffens the beam axle structure thus (in theory anyway) causing even more skittishness on uneven roads. I vaguely remember a thread from Dave B in the General forum saying his car felt better without the RSB than with in combination with lowered springs and aftermarket struts. I think that with the two sides tied together there isn't much you can do to eliminate the feeling, could be wrong though and I hope someone confirms that I am.

I think you already know the answer to that question.


Tokicos = Waste of money on 4th and 5th gen Maximas


They are not valved for aftermarket springs. A simple bit of research would illustrate this.


People amaze me. They want Bimmer handling and want to pay Pinto prices........unrealistic.

They work good with aftermarket springs, I drove an H&R/Tokico equipped 2001 SE through downtown NYC and it did fine, they have been on the car for over 10K miles and the car is fine. Many others have had this same set-up for alot more time. Tokicos have a lifetime warranty, enough said!

Regards,
Jason

A bumpstop is not meant to dampen any impact; it is there to prevent your struts and shocks from bottoming out and getting blown. Stock suspension will only bottom out if you overload your car. IMO the main reason for bottoming out is inadequate spring rate for the amount of drop given by the spring. While having a good set of struts and shocks will dampen that up and down movement smoothly. That's why it's critical to have a set of spring and damper that works in harmony. Research and development does not come cheap. Just like
what Matthew said "Sometimes you get what you pay for."

Ian, since you've already got the Toks, why don't you just swap your Maxspeed with H&R or maybe the stock SE springs if you're looking for a little more comfort.

I did consider that. It's just going to be a little ridiculous if I have to buy and install every mod on my own to see how it compares to others. Obviously, if i had to do it all over again I would've gone with H&R.

I think the prob is that I have been trying to make my Max handle like a true sports sedan. Some will argue that it is, but compare it to a 3-series w/ sport package and there is no comparison.

I've got one in mind right now. I'll let you know how it turns out.

I think we're probably arguing the same opinion on this one Bsetiawan. By preventing the struts from bottoming out, the bump stops are in fact dampening the impact because some of the energy will still be transferred through the bumpstop into the strut body. Either way, bottoming out in my response was compressing against the bumpstops and it can happen with stock or aftermarket spring/shock combos. I certainly agree that having a good spring/shock combo goes a looong way towards preventing any mishaps.

BMWs could only wish they could handle as good as my car ) 1.08 Gs on the skidpad baby!

I had Tokicos blues on my 95 SE and I hated them. They are not performance shocks, I don't know what they are.

My 2002 SE with stock shocks and H&Rs rides much better compared to the other Max I had with Tokicos. I think they are just waste of money.

Not very much by way of choices out there unfortunately for our 5th gens. I think its unlikely that the 5th gen Tokico blue is the same shock as you ran on your 95 but I understand your concerns based on previous experience. However, there are multiple people here (myself not included...yet ) who have Tokicos on their 5th gens and I've heard very solid reviews. The majority of the negative reviews stem from previous gen Maximas and Tok blues. For what its worth, my Ford Escort has Eibach pro-kits and Tokicos and it rides wonderfully in all situations thus far. Anyway, I hope to have the front Tokicos soon and the rear 4th gen AGXs and I'll draw my conclusion then and see how bad they trully are.

Me too...

Rear AGX are on back order ...front tok's should be here by tomorrow though

Installing the fronts on sat. Will let you know.

Brian