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Let me just add to what Robert said
by making one comment - have your alignment checked and set after the drop for
sure. Alignment setings after the drop are not all the same. We have Neuspeed
Race springs with the Neuspeed Koni yellows (shorter shocks) for a total drop of
about 3" on 17s. Our camber is -1.7 on one side and -1.6 on the other. With the
toe properly set and a rotation of the wheels/tires every other oil change we
are not experiencing accelerated wear at all. Sure, the insides will wear-out
before the outsides but it won't be accelerated wear. Then again, I've seen
Hondas with 1.5" of drop wear tires left and right!
Just have the alignment checked by a
reputable shop and DON'T let them sell you a four-wheel alignment!
Brian
----- Original Message -----
Sent: Tuesday, January 21, 2003 3:57
PM
Subject: CRX: Re: coilovers
On 01:52 PM 01/21/03 -0800, Biggin said...
So the coilovers werent that bad
to install huh? Im about to put coilovers on mine because my springs were
heated. the person that did it was a moron. i heard the coilovers made the
ride pretty bouncy, is that true? Do they ride good? And also did u have to
get a camber adjustment kit when u put the coilovers on because right now my
cam*ber is way off from the ghetto way my car was lowered, im thinking of
getting the dropzone coilovers with the stock shock. well email me back im
very interested in hearing from u as i will be doing the work
soon.
I really need to put up an FAQ of some
sort because I get a lot of the same sort of questions from other
people. :^)
The VIS VSpec-II that I have was easy and straight
forward. I've also installed the Skunk2 kit and some other "generic"
brands. Basically they're all pretty much the same.
As to being
too bouncy, that will depend on the springs that come with whatever kit, the
shocks that you are going to be using and how low you plan to go.
Most
people try to reuse the stock shocks which will work but will be very
bouncy. The reason for this is because the shock is now in a sort of
"compressed" state and unable to dampen properly and so you're pretty much
riding on the "springs" only. If you only plan to lower the car an inch
via the adjustable coil over kit, then you might be able to get away with
using the stock shocks. My recommendation (as well as many others) is to
just replace the stock shock with a performance shock. Something like
the Tokico and KYB are very affordable and common.
The springs that
came with my kit, however, I felt were too soft and so I just replaced them
with a set of Eibach Sport's that I had originally purchased for the
car. The ride is a bit stiffer but now the car handles the way I like
and it fits my current driving style.
When it comes to ride quality,
this is really a personal opinion. What seems harsh and stiff to someone
else may seem perfectly fine and normal to you (and vice versa). You
also have to take the wheel and tires into consideration. My current
wheels are 16 x 7 inch with 205/40-16 tires. Not much sidewall and it
doesn't absorb bumps as well as my 14 inch Del Sol rims with the 195/60-14
inch tires.
I also typically run my car with a 1 to 1.5 inch
drop. The Eibach springs are kinda stiff but the Tokico that I have on
there are kinda soft (though not as soft as stock) so they kind of balance
each other out. Most people that have ridden with me comment on how
smooth it rides (even with the low profile tires). When I run with the
car down between 2 and 2.5 inches (about as low as I can go and still be able
to drive), the ride gets noticeably stiffer and unforgiving.
As to a
camber kit. You don't really need one but if you can swing the cost,
then get one. I have (and have STILL yet to install...) the Ingalls
camber kit (front and rear).
When I run my car at what I call the
"daily driving" setting (which is 1 to 1.5 inch of drop), I have about a
negative one (-1) degree of front camber and the rear wheels are pretty much
at zero degrees. When I run the car down below 2 inches (the pics on my
site show my car sitting are the 2.5 inch drop), the front camber has been
measured to be as much as negative two (-2) and the rear close to negative one
(-1).
One thing about camber kits, if you plan and want to run your
car down around or below the 2 inch mark is that when you go to adjust the
camber, sometimes the top of the tires will rub or hit the inside of the
fender (this of course also depends on what your wheel size, width and offset
is) and so you are forced to raise it. Or flare the fenders.
As
for the adjustable coil over kit that you are looking to get, which I believe
is made by GMP Performance, I've not had much experience with them other than
I know they offer two kits - the traditional sleeve kit that slips over the
body of the shock and the full bodied style (which is basically a shock with
the adjustable perch integrated into the body of the shock). And they've
been around for almost 30 years now... At least 20 or 25...
I
didn't know they made one for the CRX. I know they made them for the 6th
or 7th Generation Civic's but it's been awhile since I last looked at what
they offer.
But most are copies of other designs where it's a threaded
sleeve that slips over the body of the shock with an adjustable perch.
As mentioned earlier in my reply, I strongly recommend that you not use your
stock shocks.
And whatever you do (using the stock shocks or a
performance shock), DO NOT RUN WITHOUT THE BUMP STOP! If needed, cut the
stop.
As in my tech article, I did have to cut mine about a half inch
when I was using the stock shock. But when I later went to a set of
Tokico, I replaced the stops with new ones from the dealer and I found, for
whatever reason, I did not have to cut them. I suspect that my stock
shocks were just worn out in general (it did have a lot of miles on
them...).
And while on the topic of the bump stops, I've seen some kits
include their version of the bump stop which is nothing more than a flat piece
of rubber that goes between the top of the spring and the bottom of the spring
holder/cup. I've even seen one where it's made of metal. THESE
THINGS ARE USELESS AND YOU MIGHT AS WELL NOT BE RUNNING WITH BUMP STOPS AT
ALL! That, of course, is my personal opinion ~ other's will most likely
differ. :^)
Anyway... if you do get the one from DropZone, please
let me know what you think (installation, how it performs, etc...) of
them.
Robert K. Kuhn
CRX Owners Group President (http://www.crx.org/southcal)
1990 Honda CRXsi (http://www.hooligan.cc)
ICQ # 3714283 (nickname:
godzilla)
Alpine Drive (San Diego County) -
February 8, 2003
http://www.crx.org/southcal/events.html
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