I went with the Konis but left the springs stock for the A/X season.

The Koni's added about 1" height all round. That and the 15" wheels and low profile tires leave me with a ridiculous amount of room to lower the car for STS.

I need a setup that can/will lower the car significantly but will not negatively impact performance (much).
If I could pick the numbers, I would want to lower the car 4" in front, 3.5 in rear. Right now I am thinking Ground Control Coilovers... but I dont know how they work with Koni's- or if they are still cool at that low setting for A/X. Anyone been there?

 

Konis raised the car? I wouldn't expect them to...?

4" in front and 3.5" in back will probably effectively destroy your handling. Most lowered Maximas (1.5~2") have only 1" or so of compression travel available before hitting the bumpstops.

I'll let others comment, but I really don't think you can go that low without shortened struts and bumpstops. At the very least a Progress or JIC coilover setup are what you'll need.

 

I'd also watch out for ground clearance with 4" of drop and low profile tires, you'll be probably near an inch off the ground. Also being that low will negatively affect the driveshafts which will have to provide power at such an extreme angle. Some members with sprint springs have had driveshaft problems and they are only lowered about 2". Also, I'm pretty sure Ground controls are only good for about 2.5-3" of drop, and you'll definately be sitting on the bumpstops without shortened strut housings. But Ground Controls combined with Konis are a great combo.... as long as you don't drop it too low.

Also I'm running Eibach/Koni and didn't notice much of an increase of height with the Konis, as you can see in the pictures on my homepage.

 

Thanks for the critical info. I guess GC at a 1.75-2" drop would be a nice compromise..? I DO NOT want to create any mech. problems for like .05 g in the turns..

 

- Good choice in terms of the Koni's. They are nice dampers.

- I'm running Koni's and Eibach Springs. And even though the rear is very, very bouncy, the car still needs a stiffer spring rate on the rear. Maybe 8-10% more, or so.

- If anyone know what the rates are on mine, then you could have some custom Ground Controls made.

 

Thanks SleeperSE,

I like the Konis alot. Sure is fun to mess with the adjustment. Its odd that for many they didnt seem to raise the car the 1" that they seemed to for me. (if memory serves, I read to expect it)

I wonder if the install can be done better?

BTW I agree about the TireRack sticker. The car looks twice as serious, heh..

Finally, something struck me as odd- why no FSTB, sleeper?

 

Also- With the Eibach/Koni setup, how smooth a ride are you getting (turned down in front) Also, what PSI/MAX PSI on your tires. Thanks Matt

 

Somebody posted the approx rates on the Eibach Pro-Kit here on the .org but until the search returns...

 

- Hey guys, sorry I haven't had a chance to reply in so long. Been very, very busy.

- First, I do have a FSTB - must've just missed it in the sig. It's just a courtesy bar, but it gets the job done. Turn-in seems to be a little crisper with it; the car takes a set a little more resolutely.

- Second, my ride quality sucks. Its fun, for the most part, but those long highway trips and poorly paved roads give you a real beating. I let my mom drive it once and she hated it. She said that she would rather walk than drive it again. Although, with her rusty clutch-working skills, that might be a good thing for me! ;-)

- Lastly, my tire pressures are usually 40-44psi front, and about 50-56 rear. They will vary within those ranges depending on temperature, the pavement surface, and how tail-happy the car is that day. Keep in mind that those pressure are with a disconnected front sway bar and 1.5 degrees of negative camber. I don't remember what my pressures were before I got rid of the FSB and added the camber plates.

- Oh, one more thing. I found this out the hard way - with Koni's, you have to play with the adjustment at least once a month or the adjuster **** gets stuck in place. They'll often break when you do try to adjust them again (just about broke mine a few months ago). Don't drive around too long with them at full stiff, though. The extra heat generated by that setting wears them out very quickly. Save the track setting for the track.

- Hope this helps!

Matt

 

You have to watch off the shelf koni's (yellows) as they are designed in specific for the stock springs on Stock tires. They are not optimal for the car but they work great and are a hell of alot better then stock shocks. But the tricky part comes when you play with the spring rates. Alot of Guys report strange handling when they increase the spring rate or go from other shocks to koni's on a car with well sorted spring rates. In my opinion a lowered car with anything more then a 10% increase in spring rate will require revalving to make the koni's work optimally. SleeperSE's car in a case of this strange handling. His rear seems overly stiff yet it came around easier in stock form then it does now. I don't know the exact cause but I'd say more compression, Less rebound, and slightly less spring would solve his. His front's without the front sway bar just plain need more rebound then he can dial in with the koni's.

 

That's what I've been told as well. Now I just need more cash for the re-valve