is this setup ok?

 

why would you want to put aftermarket struts on stock springs... doesn't make sense... save your money... but if u decide to put aftermarket springs... then do it.. but otherwise, forget it..

 

Some people don't know any better (me included). Could someone explain why it doesn't make sense? I have Tokico blues with H&R springs and love the ride.
Thanks

 

 

alright, it doesn't make sense to have toks on stock springs... why waste your money??? unless your stocks struts are blown, then go ahead, but thats highly unlikely... and u should be covered by warranty if you have under 36,000 or 3yrs...

But u got H&R's... so your good to go... the toks will handle the stress of the lowered springs, but not stocks...

 

Upgrading struts could make sense to someone who was trying to get rid of some floatiness/rebound in their suspension. There are many different ways to tune your suspension, and strut valving/damping rates is one area you can adjust.
Although it probably would not be worth it in this case because in my opinion (and most everyone else on the .org) the maxima is too high off the ground with the stock setup. So general concensus here is that the first order of business in the suspension tuning (after throwing a sway bar on that body-roll prone rear end) is to bring the center of gravity down a bit with lowering springs.

General idea here is that shorter, stiffer springs will a) lower center of gravity for better stability and b) make the suspension more taught and resistant to roll/pitch/dive (Eibach calls it "horsepower for the turns"). Stiffer struts will control wheel-bouncing, control body motions to some degree, control rebound of the springs, and get rid of oscillations in the suspension.

I agree the order of greatest improvement for the money if you are going for all-out performance is 1) RSB/FSTB 2) springs and THEN 3) struts.

 

So for those of us who (1) don't want to lower our cars and (2) already installed a FSTB and a RSB and (3) do want to tighten up our suspension, are you saying that replacing the stock struts with Tokico Blues is a waste of money?

 

well said... , but still dont' just buy struts, buy the whole package or wait and save up for it.

 

Looks like we crossed posts, O2'maxed-out. I'm still waiting for tita6 to respond to my question.

 

Assuming you are keeping the stock springs, Yes IMO it would be a waste unless your struts are blown out or something. The stock struts are well-matched to the stock springs. Toks are pretty stiff but keep in mind the stock ones are stiff to begin with. Hard to justify spending the $$ in my book. If more choices in struts were available where you could get some adjustable Konis or KYBs on there it (might) be worth it for YOU. But for ME I am going to do the struts/moderate-drop springs together b/c again they compliment each other & doing them together makes the most drastic improvement.


Just curious, why r u against a little drop> Do you go off road often?

 

Nicely put y2kse

that's exactly my question, i dont want to make it lower, i just want to get new struts and shocks cuz mine suck already.

so is it ok or not? the toks will hold at stock spring height?

 

Yes its OK for replacement, no doubt. They would work fine w/ stock springs. You will notice they will last WAY longer than the stock struts/shocks too.

 

The OEM struts are made by TOKICO.
OEM STRUT PIC

 

I replaced the front struts on my 2k3 SE, kept the stock springs and couldn't be happier. I did not want to lower the car but I did want to get rid of the front bounce and float which is, in part, due to the very soft stock front stuts on the 2k3. BTW, there are 2 suppliers of stuts to Nissan and Tokico is one. Mine were NOT Tokicos. The replacement Tockico blues are signifincantly better than the stock ones. No more bounce and float, kept the stock hight and the ride is still good.
FYI, the rear Tokicos are softer than stock and I did not replace the stock units. The stock rears are my car were, however, Tokico. Total cost was $200 and put them on myself.

 

Maybe KYB GR2 is a better option? I have also suspected that a lot of the "float" had to do with the struts and not the springs. The 2K2 SE feels underdamped.

 

Occilation and "float" as you guys call it is controlled by struts (shocks), ride height is dictated by springs.

 

I had H&R on toks and decided to go back to stock springs. When I did that, I just decided to keep the toks to help control the ride. In my opinion I think if you don't want to lower your car, but would like a more controlled feel, this is a good way to go.

 

So it appears that we've a consensus on some points. The first is that Tokico Blues will work just fine with OEM springs. The second is that aftermarket struts (Tokico or KYB) will reduce oscillation.

Does everyone agree?

 

Yup..yup

 

Why did you go back to stock? any problems with H&R's?

 

yep, that's what i wanted, to get a little bit better performence but not to lower the car, cuz it will make the ride more stiff and plus the winter here in boston sucks so you gotta have some height

 

hey dude..you got pix of your drop??

 

I actually really liked them at first, but then the roads here in Boston started getting really bad, and my commute was killing my car. Now that I am back on stock springs, it is a little better, but the roads are just atrocious.

 

I am fortunate enough to be part of a 2-Max household.
My wife has a 2000 SE 5-spd, I have a 2002 SE 6-spd.
I was never really happy with the 02's suspension. Her 00 is much better planted and stiffer in my opinion, while the 02 felt under-damped. While by no means an expert, I consider myself as having a decent feel for suspension tuning having owned several cars in which I have done a mix of right and wrong things suspension-wise over the years.
I have learned that lowering a car is not always a good thing. While lowering C of G is one potential benefit, altering its relationship to the cars roll center is a potential detriment.
Living in New England I was not inclined to want to lower my car and reduce suspension travel or take a chance on increasing ride harshness too much. If I knew of aftermarket springs that kept the stock suspension height with a slight increase in spring rates I would certainly have considered them.
I decided to try the Toks with stock springs and could not be happier. My 02 feels "right" now, a much better spring/dampening match and more like my wife's stock 2000 SE.
To each his/her own. It's a matter of taste and what you are looking for in *your* car. I just wanted to share my experience and opinion on the topic.
Having said all of the above (sorry it was so long) I would guess that the 2001 models are set up more like the 2000s and therefore may not have the crappy, muchy stock dampers that my 2002 had - so the Toks may not make as much as a difference.

 

Good info, mbernier. Thanks.