Anyone here lowered w/stock sshock/struts? Just ordered my ASB and
want to lower to finish my handling mods- Shyt startin' to get expensive- I wanna lower my ride, will it ride legit without
upgrading struts? If so, which are better springs for this set-up?
Appreciate anybody's response-holla at your boy!

 

from what i heard the TEINS are designed for stock struts. Not sure about anything else. also not sure why you would want anything else but TEINS, but thats my opinion

 

I think there's a few guys here that have lowered on stock springs without any problems. The thing is that the stock struts have adjusted to the stock springs so putting new springs on with a different spring rate could possibly shorten the life of your shocks. So instead of spending additional labor costs to install new struts down the line most guys get it done in one shot, unless you do it yourself.

Up to you, good luck.

 

I've got the Tein springs and I'm quite sure they would suck with the factory shocks (on my SE suspension). I opted to go with the KYB GR-2s as many others have with these springs.

As said above, it will kill the life of your stock struts and you will end up replacing them anyway. Other people here have complained of the ride quality with an aggressive drop like Teins and the stock struts. I think if you went with Maxspeed or H&R the ride quality would be better, but the drop is not as much as the Teins.

Personally, I think you should do it once and do it right. Esp. if you are not doing it yourself, you will end up paying labor twice

 

i had the maxspeeds on my 2001 w/ stock struts. it did drop nicely but ride was okay. stiffer ride, cornered better but the problem w/ them is that they bounce more than usual over bumps. like everyone stated above, stock struts will not last long w/ performance springs on. if you can install it yourself and don't mind the bounce, it's good for a short time...until you can afford matching struts. just my opinion...

 

To comment on the bouncing, I get that with my Teins. It's weird though, the tire is still planted and all the bounce gets transferred to the cabin. When I had my 97 Ram Air T/A I would hit a bump and the tires would come off the ground. One time the car actually jumped from one lane to another after hitting successive ripples in the road!

I'm so happy with the ride now that I've adjusted to it. Feels like a bimmer

 

now if i lowered my car i know i would probably go with either tein, maxspeed or eibach springs.. and def go with KYB GR2 struts but i have a question with those combos how is the ride compared to stock because i still want a comfortable ride with good handling???

 

I can speak for the Tein / GR-2 combo. As far as harshness, it was maybe marginally rougher than the 2K3 SE suspension. I was really surprised about it. The 1st week is a little rough, but it softens when the springs settle.

As far as bumps, you pretty much feel every imperfection in the road. Now, these imperfections are transferred to the cabin as bounces. Not bone shattering rough ride, but just bouncy.

The handling is awesome. The car has significantly less body roll and corners MUCH better. Even lane changes feel more controlled. The weak link is the tires at that point, which I will be upgrading with some new rims / tires as soon as my house refinance goes through (been waiting a 1 1/2 months in underwritting).

The Tein / GR-2 combo makes the car feel the way it should have out of the factory. The engine has too much power for such a lack of control that the SE suspension gave. I give it a & &

 

i am thinking of lowering my 2k3 max. i have been searching the internet for prices on teins, maxspeeds, etc & kyb gr-2s(shocks/struts) & i am estimating $800. the $800 is for items only & not installation, does this sound about rite?

 

i'm also looking for a lowered set up for my 02 Max SE. with the Tein set up, do you need to get a camber kit also ?? and how low will it drop withe Tein/GR2 combo ? THANKS !!

 

teins are not for stock shocks, get something else like sprint or maxspeed or eibach or ground control or progress, just not tein..

if you want tein, to be even lower than the above (tein is lowest ecluding ground control), get aftermarket shocks too.

 

This low:





I didn't get a camber kit and was told I didn't need one. The alignment is fine so far. The Tein drop claims 2.2" Front, 1.6" rear (if I recall correctly).

 

so if i just want a conservative drop and not too stiff of a ride i should go with Eibach springs & stock shocks ??

 

I think I paid about $630 installed. $320 for the GR-2s, $150 for the springs, $150 for the install (+ tax). Do a search for Tein AND Drop and you'll see my thread with all the info and phone numbers on where I got it from.

 

I have H&Rs on my car with stock shocks and car rides great. No bouncing at all. Handling and look improved 100%.

As for Teins, this is just my opinion, but they look too low in the front. I don't like the dropped look, and H&Rs lower the car perfectly I think. Lower than stock, but still not too low which I like.

 

I'm on Sprint springs and OEM sruts and I have been for over 20,000 miles.

 

thanks Spta97, your ride looks good !! i recently e-mail the folks at Stillen.com about lowering my Max, and they told me that the most that i should lower it without needing a camber kit, is about 1 to 1 1/2 inch. i hope your right. i would like to go with 1 1/2 inches.

 

how come you guys never really talk about the H&R springs but talk about every other spring out there when it really compares to the maxspeed but just double in price as in i am wanting to drop mine. learning towards H&R springs as i want a conservative drop and dont want a harsh ride. well i am down to the H&R and Eibach springs and kyb gr-2s

 

The Sprints are a 2" drop and I have had 0 alignment issues on my stock struts, no camber bolts.

 

You will love H&Rs. They give you conservative drop, perfect in my opinion, and car rides great on them.

 

what's the drop between all the different springs Eibach, H&R, Sprint, Tein ??

 

Try searching, there was a recent thread with pics of all the different drops. I know that Eibach and Tein are the more aggressive. H&R are conservative, but the Maxspeeds are supposed to be very close for a lot less money.

It really depends on what is more important to you - handling, ride harshness, looks.

Personally, I wanted an even drop and the Teins seemed to give the most even (I think the front and rears are 1/4" different). I was willing to sacrifice ride softness for it. The way the car handles now is just a bonus - an amazing one at that.

 

I'm going with the HR's - the tein drop looks too slammed in the front -and I do wanna keep my stock suspension(wait for shocks when I'm ready for aftermarket wheels)maybe ia year or so (30-35K on the ODO

thanx for the imput Dany