[BLAZETIGER]

Hey guys, some of you have already seen the pics of my car. I've attached one below just in case. One of the main suggestions (and I knew it was coming) was to adjust the suspension. I've been trying to read through all the suspension related threads since there are like thousands of them trying to decide whats better.

As you can see their is a small gap between both the front and rear tires. When I have my car fully loaded the front stays the same, but the back drops down to the point where I can barely get one finger in. The wheels pretty much tuck themselves in. Even with no people in the car the driveways/entryways/ and streets in general are pretty $hitty here and I've scraped a few times despite my best efforts to avoid it.

The body kit is pretty low as it is. If I add a suspension set up will the stiffer springs help from having the car bottom out? I don't want to lower the car too much just to lose one of my bumpers a day or two later. As of now I'm leaning towards the Nismo suspension since my car is pretty much a daily driver and the closest it's been to the track is the parking lot.

Any recommendations are welcome. Let me know if the Nismo set up is the right one or not and why? Also, have a friend who is offering the Tein SS springs. Any comments on those?

 

[Sunburst03]

first off you the Tein SS springs won't do you any good without the SS dampers with them......Tein SS is a full coilover suspension not just a set of lowering springs.......you could go with the Nismo suspension........it is the least of any drop......its .9 inches up front and about .5 inches in the rear........it will be hard for you to go with just a set of lowering springs b/c if they are too low you can't do anything about it.......if you want something adjustable so you can play with the height until it is just right......go with the Tein Basics or a set of Ground Controls with Koni dampers.....that way you can adjust the ride height until you are happy with the drop as well as the ground clearance.....best of luck to ya

Late,
Daniel

 

[cburwell]

If you are dragging your kit with the sotck ride height, your problems are going to just ge worse with a lowered suspension. I don't think you want to mess up your new paint job.

 

[BLAZETIGER]

If you are dragging your kit with the sotck ride height, your problems are going to just ge worse with a lowered suspension. I don't think you want to mess up your new paint job.

It doesn't drag all the time mostly just on some entry ways that are too elevated or have too big of a dip. Sometimes I still hit even with an angled approach.

Do stiffer springs help offset having passengers in the back? Will the back dip as much, stay the same, or dip less?

 

[SE R SpecV OmSi]

wut about GC/Koni with a stiff springs set to the stock ride height... is that possible?

 

[lawngn0mex]

I would get tein basics if I were you... you can raise the rear up some, and drop the front, when it's fully loaded it will look balanced and not ride like absolute ***.

adjustable height, dampers are preset, you'll be fine with that. NIsmo won't be good for you because you'll still drag. You should get something height adjustable that you can still bear daily driving with.

 

[Dangling Fury]

wut about GC/Koni with a stiff springs set to the stock ride height... is that possible?

Good question, in the past year several of those who have gotten GC said that the car doesn't felt right at stock height. Based on what was said, GC seem to work best when on a lowered setting (between roughly 1"-2").

BLAZETIGER - If I were in your shoes, I would get Koni Sport "Yellow" dampers only, to use with your stock springs. That way you have a stock ride height and firmer adjustable damping. I ran with this setup for half a year and thought it was a great compromise between autox and daily driving. A stiff setting for the rear shocks could also eliminate your rear sag problems. You can get the a set of koni yellows for $475 from shox.com. Check the group buy forum for ordering details.

 

[robbclark1]

I have to agree with dangling fury. You can also get custom valved Konis if you are going to be carrying some weight in the rear. If you don't want to get just Konis, then I would suggest the Tein SS. They also have adjustable Dampening like the konis and some stiffer springs.

 

[Sunburst03]

yes rob but the SS are a most expensive suspension and i personally don't think that he will ever really be able to fully utilize the adjustability of the SS.......i think that with the Tein Basics......the spring rate will be stiff enough (336 front and rear) to be able to support additional weight without requiring an adjustable damper.........that way he can affordably drop the car while still maintaining daily drivability......also.......the SS come with 336 front and 280 in the rear.......which won't help his sagging issue at all......even with the dampers adjusted to a stiffer setting

Late,
Daniel

 

[robbclark1]

Like I said, I think the koni's would be the best/cheapest option. You can have custom springs put on the Tein SS which can help with the sagging issue. That was just next cheapest/best item to get. Basics aren't adjustable, D2's are kinda iffy....I was just offering an alternative to the Koni's just in case.

 

[baby GT-R]

Just get the Nismo suspension.

To everyone who is suggesting coilovers - it doesn't take 15 minutes to adjust the entire ride height of the car. Its going to taek forever for him to properly adjust the ride height of the car so everything will be equal. The nismo suspension yields the smallest drop and should help you since it is a bit stiffer than your stock SE setup.

 

[Sunburst03]

it will take forever? no way in hell........i don't know how you plan on adjusting the coilovers but its soooooo easy to do........all you need it a tape measure........it doesn't take very long at all and the benefits are more than worth the little time it takes to set them up

Late,
Daniel

 

[baby GT-R]

Oh well I don't know personally, but my friend never touches his because he's dumb then because he gave me that explaination. Sorry about that one.

 

[Sunburst03]

its all good ......i can tell you though coilovers are such a superior suspension setup over springs and dampers that its worth the little time it takes to adjust

Late,
Daniel

 

[BLAZETIGER]

Thanks for the input guys. So basically right now my options are as follows:

Koni Sport Yellow Dampers only.

Tein SS Dampers (or complete setup?), but the rear is only 280 so I still risk sagging.

Tein Basic (Springs?) which have 336 to the rear which would mean a stiffer setup in the rear.


Did I interpret those correctly? Also, how difficult is it to adjust the settings/height on the adjustable suspension options. Is it something I can do without taking off the wheels and such. (Sorry, but I'm pretty new to this).

 

[specvspeedfreak]

are those 18's? if not 18's would of been better...but get the tein basic if u dont have the $ for the SS

 

[Dangling Fury]

Even with no people in the car the driveways/entryways/ and streets in general are pretty $hitty here and I've scraped a few times despite my best efforts to avoid it.

I don't think you can run either Tein product very well on the stock ride height setting, you can confirm that with anyone who's tried it. Also, check out http://www.tein.com/nissan.html and you'll notice that the specs too indicate that the highest ride height setting for the Basic is lower than stock ride height. So you will be scraping your nice body kit much more often. I say again, go with the konis, they are the cheapest option for you right now and are a proven product among dozens of members here.

 

[robbclark1]

ALL coilovers ride heights are lower than stock. Dampening adjustment is easy. Koni or Tein will send you knob. I think the Konis adjust on the top for both the front and rear. So you just turn the knob the number of clicks hard or soft you want. Please don't set the front to full soft and the rear to full hard. It might make your car dangerous to drive. Konis should come with instructions and I believe Koni instructs you to put them one off of soft and see how you like it. I personally think that you might want to run 2 to 3 off of soft in the front and 3 to 4 off of hard in the rear to help the sagging. But you will have to play around with the settings.

 

[Dangling Fury]

I think the Konis adjust on the top for both the front and rear.

Actually, the rear shocks have to come out to be adjusted, the piston must be fully pushed in, then you turn it until it catches a groove, which allows about 2.5 full turns from soft to stiff.

Please don't set the front to full soft and the rear to full hard. It might make your car dangerous to drive.

I agree completely, and that is good advice. More than once in autox have I had that setting and if I brake too hard going into a corner, or take a slalom to fast, I suddenly become a passenger as the rear end starts to come around. Definitely not a wise setting for the street, in fact, I have the fronts on one full turn from soft to prevent anything like that from happening.

 

[Sunburst03]

he still needs to get springs if he wants to take care of that large wheel gap........even if he does get the konis they won't lower the car........he did say he wanted to lower the car remember?.....i personally don't think the Koni's will be that great for him b/c he has to remove the rear dampers just to adjust them........what a pain in the as s if you ask me.........the Tein's adjust on the top of both dampers.....much easier and faster

Late,
Daniel