This thread is for people that have owned their aftermarket springs and struts for a while now and can tell me if they have added to their maintenance bill at all and others that are looking into the same thing. After 2.5 years and 45k my struts are pretty much shot. I feel like I am driving a station wagon at this point.

I wanted to know if the firmed up suspension and changed geometry contributed to any new issues with your cars.

I am pretty sure I am going with Illuminas and Eibach combo. If anyone can comment on that specific combo that would be great too.

-Justin

 

your combo is a good one..

i've had tockicos blues and maxspeeds for aover 3 years now .. and no issue.
i just wish i could get softer shocks..

 

Im thinking about tien h-techs,
and tockico alluminas......................is this a good combo???

 

yea .. any spring with illuminas is pretty much good.. tien are ever better

 

I've had Eibach's on for 4 1/2 years. Have had Tokico Blues on for about 3 - 3 1/2 years. I have had no issues at all.

 

how long are OEM struts and springs designed to last. i understand they will last the life of the car, but how many years will they be effective as close to original purchase date? the reason i ask, is i have close to 40k miles on mine, and have H&R springs, and i dont know if it's worth it to get illuminas and replace everything right away, or wait a few years, and swap out the sturts then.

 

Bear with me here....my wife has an 03 GLE that rides horribly. If it were mine, I trade it tomorrow but...it's not mine. Anyway, I'm willing to put some $ into it to get it to ride better. Over dips it bounces like a boat and over bumps it makes your teeth rattle. It has 46k miles and is all stock , There are spring cushions installed to keep it from bottoming-out. We put those in when it was almost new.

I'm no mechanic or street racer, just a regular guy that likes to drive. What should I be looking to do? Specifics would be nice. Thanks.

 

you should be fine with eibachs and illuminas. theyre really good combo. i have progress and kybs. progress offers the best drop imo.

 

If you would like to improve the car's handling while maintaining RIDE QUALITY as a high priority, you might want to consider some springs with a slightly less harsh drop and firm ride than the Eibachs or Progress springs that some other Org members have. H&R springs sound like a perfect match for your needs, since they offer a mild drop and improved handling while maintaining a high level of ride comfort. If you're on a tight budget, put them on Tokico HP (also called Tokico Blue) shocks, and you should be just fine.

The ride on H&R springs with Tokico HPs/Blues should be good, but if you can afford a bit more, you might choose to put them on the adjustable Tokico Illumina shocks. Then you have a bit more control over exactly how soft or firm you want the ride to be in both the front and the rear of the vehicle.

 

Thanks guys for all the input. I am finding online that the Eibach Pro Springs are 275 for the kit, and the struts are 105 for each rear and 145 for each front. Does this sound right to you? Anybody know where I can get a better deal.

 

i have the eibach pro + illumina combo. love it. handling is bomb, and depending on the level you set your illuminas on, the ride is comfortable too. i'm not sure why people were saying that the eibach kit is a low drop, it's actually much more subtle than the others (check housecor.) if i remember correctly, it drops the max the least.

anyhoo

i just purchased this entire setup(eibach and illuminas) for $650 including shipping, brand new. you can find distributors on eBay that sell brand new items for cheap (eibachs ~200, illuminas ~400)
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...spagename=WDVW
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/TOKIC...QQcmdZViewItem
i can't really speak for other people, but i was happy with the customer service, etc. good luck! you'll be really happy with your max's cornering abilities.

 

Kind of sounds like the I30 I just got. Well I don't really have any teeth chatter, but even with the 'upgraded' touring suspesion I'm still not really impressed with the way the car handles bumps.