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I'm dropping my car. What do I need?

you need new springs to drop your car, and technically, that's all you need, but it will probably make your suspension just a bit rough as it wasn't designed to be that close to the ground.

basically, someone correct me if i'm wrong...haven't really done much suspension work
springs are what keep your car a certain height from the ground, wheel, etc
shocks are what allow your car to bounce when it hits a bump
struts contribute to the springs effectiveness
 
I really don't feel like typing about all the differences, but if you dig around on google you can find definations of them all. Why are you dropping your car out of curiosity? Don't forget the alignment after you change the suspension.

edit: Okay I'm bored 😀
spring - those metal "leaf"s or coils that hold up the car and allow the play in the suspension.
shock - dampens spring movement to keep the car from continuing to bouce on the springs
strut - essentially a shock built into part of the suspension

read this
 
why in the heck would you want to drop your car and ruin a perfectly well engineered suspension system?

If you want a sports car, then buy a sports car in the first place!

<---amazed at my buddy who loves his civic..base price 18000 + 15000 in addons. for christ sakes buy a used M3 for that price. I still dust him because his suspension geometry is so far out of whack.

Let me try without thinking too much
coilovers - added spring coil to stiffen suspension
shocks - used to dampen action of springs so you don't bounce all over the road.
springs - used to level attitude of car as weight transfers from left/right/front/back
struts - various swing arms and levers in suspension. dictates geometry of wheel travel and traction.
 
well, i plan to make my Sentra an &quot;all show no go car&quot;. i know many of you may say it's foolish, or looks bad, but it's personally what i like and i think that's what matters. don't worry, there's no stickers, no outrageous wings or body kit.

it's got rims, tints, and fogs and it's missing a drop for a more aggressive look. if it doesn't cost too much, i would go ahead and do it.

i found those coilovers on ebay, and was wondering if that would do the trick. does the price look right? what about labor? how much should that be?

i'm not blowing a lotta money on this car. i bought it for $4500 and spent maybe another $1000 on exterior parts. i think that's decent money on a car that'll make me happy for the next 3-5 years.
 
whats funny is those ricer honda's who cut their springs or put super low springs on and don't realize you MUST put struts/shocks designed for the drop on.

their cars bounce all over the place on the road, handling must be hideous!

Then they cry that their stock struts blow out.


Do it right, buy full coilovers ($1100-1400) or get some neuspeed/bilsteins or h&amp;r springs and those cool tokica illumina adjustable struts.

Figure:
$600-700 for struts/springs
$150-200 for install
$50 for alignment which you must do afterwards.

 


<< whats funny is those ricer honda's who cut their springs or put super low springs on and don't realize you MUST put struts/shocks designed for the drop on.

their cars bounce all over the place on the road, handling must be hideous!

Then they cry that their stock struts blow out.


Do it right, buy full coilovers ($1100-1400) or get some neuspeed/bilsteins or h&amp;r springs and those cool tokica illumina adjustable struts.

Figure:
$600-700 for struts/springs
$150-200 for install
$50 for alignment which you must do afterwards. >>



I think the one's you're thinking about that bounce all over the road went the cheap route. They just cut the springs. To the car does ride lower, but the spring does not have the same tension. Hence the bouncing.
 
You can't lower your car like 2&quot; with stock struts/shocks. Trust me. they are not valved correctly. You will mess them up.

Just do it right, or don't do it all. You can easily mess up the handling of your car by going cheap.


 
Rule 1) Never cut your springs. A lot of kids my age do this as the cheap way to lower their ride.

Rule 2) If you have the money, invest in some high quality coil-overs.

Basically, the purpose of lowering your car is to lower the centre of gravity. This *can* improve handling. Little do some people know, this doesn't *always* improve handling.

Might I suggest some &quot;sway&quot; bars as well? These are a great compliment to some new springs.

 
ok, great explanations and great site Soybomb.
so how will these do?
Coilovers for my car on Ebay
the seller says they are adjustable which will allow me to drop to my desired height.

i can't go the expensive/quality route cuz i'm a poor mofo.
i've budgeted about $300 to $500 for the project.
i won't be racing in this car, so i guess it won't matter.
 
i just got a set of tokico blues with their springs from carparts for ~$360. drop is ~1.5 inches, which is perfect for me. i know the blues aren't top of the line or adjustable, but my shocks are worn and the drop should be just enough to improve handling without sacrifcing too much ride comfort
 
Let me add in that cops will pick on you more if your car is lowered. Or so people who have lowered their car tell me.
 
I'd go with a set of eibachs. They make applications for just about every car you can think of, and they are generally considered good. Even ricers stay away from most Arospeed stuff, that's how bad it is. 🙂
 


<< Just take it to the edge, put the gear in neutral, and give it a little push. It should drop fine. 😀 😛 >>

ROTF!!! i saw gonna joke about this one too, damn..


danny~!
 
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