HOW TO: Lower your car the right way
KustmAce
08-22-2004, 01:43 PM
This was written by Event (http://www.j-body.org/members/eventomega/) from JBO.
Basically just a FAQ/Tutorial on lowering a cavalier in specific. Most things I write from experience, others I write from events that have happened with others who have posted about their gains or misfortunes.
The only way you will get anything out of this is by reading it in full and asking questions if needed. The suspension forum, as well as ALL of JBO has MANY people who help out with forums and individuals needing help. One thing to realize though is learning from others mistakes. If not, the saying of a hard head makes a soft @!#$ can and usually does hold true.
To start of, the suspension is the main thing that SUSPENDS your car in the air with the base being the wheels and tires. Those are the 4 points that touch ground. Suspension arms, struts, springs, shocks are all components in helping keep the car up off the ground/road and also controlled so the inside components of the car (aka you, the passenger(s) are not shaken nutty.
Through this post I will cover a few points that are now frequently asked and give explanations and or proof in form or logic, quotes, or posts made on JBO which can be referenced.
Starting off, WHAT SHOULD I CHOOSE? WHATS THE BEST…?
Firstly, BEST? Drop that word from you vocab. Seriously…Obviously what’s “best” for you isn’t gonna be best for marky mark, and what’s best for you two isn’t gonna be what’s best for jimmy jam. There isn’t a “best” you can just look up on a chart. There are plenty of parts that are good for a certain person or application that aren’t for another. SO……What should each person choose? What is better? These are two commonly asked questions by newbies and people who aren’t new overall, but new to suspension. What SHOULD you choose? Well look at what you want to use your suspension for and what you plan to accomplish. Ask yourself these questions:
How low do you want to be from stock? The lower you go the harsher the ride.
How soft or stiff do you want ride quality?
How much do you want to pay?
How many times do you want to half-@$&* this before its done right?
How quick do you want to be able to adjust it? Or are you into adjusting at all?
How critical are you when it comes to being COMPLETELY EVEN?
How are the roads in your area?
Those are just a few questions to ask yourself. Those are to help YOU decide what YOU need and or WANT.
When you get that figured out, here is an overview of the choices for suspension. In all choices however, there are CHEAP and QUALITY choices. This will obviously help you in figuring out what way you wanna go. But do realize that cheap isn’t always good and neither is expensive. Going cheap will obviously get you a cheap product. Cheap products I tend to view as this: “if this was underwear, would you want it housing family jewels?” you normally don’t put cheap stuff for protection. Cause in essence, your suspension can and will be part of the equation of keeping you safe on the road or having your car, body, and hopefully not…other passengers from being harmed, if there ever comes a time when you need to brake hard, swerve, or use some other evasive driving moves in an emergency.
*** Don’t be one of the ones, I don’t have enough money. Instead of giving the BS I’m poor story, do realize its not gonna hurt you to save up for a part you need. Everyone here is not a millionaire. If need be get a job, get two, or simply save up. There are people here with a house, 2 kids and working minimum wage and can save up. If saving up is a problem for you, then its time to start growing up. All the people who don’t wannt spend that much money, but have their car loaded with audio equipment, get real. Quality costs, and you get what you pay for. No bullsh*t. no excuses***
In a quick overview, the main choices for suspension are:
Stock: Obviously, the smoothest but prob the most sloppiest, when it comes to crisp handling. Also the cheapest.
Lowering springs: These NOW come in linear and progressive springs. They are not adjustable, so what you put on is really what you get unless you wanna pay money to buy more stuff to try and adjust em. This, in an aftermarket sense, is the “low-cost” way of lowering a car. All it really involves is a change of springs, but strut change is also HIGHLY recommended.
Coilovers: Coilovers usually always came in Linear spring rates. But they now come in progressive. But these are usually higher priced coilovers. AKA not on EBAY. Coilovers are GREAT for adjusting as that is their main advantage. You can change the spring rate as well as the spring length, the height at which the car sits and if you are critical in all sides being even you can adjust these to the nearest micrometer if you have the patience. These are especially good in racing and in shows where height may need to be adjusted low for stability, or to wow the crowd and judges, but it allows you to leave the track or show at the height you came in with if it was higher. VERY versatile. Downside, more expensive, and there are so many cheap knock offs that come without essential parts for the car. These are the kits that are made for other cars, but can be adapted, so they change the part numbers, most put them on ebay, and they are usually less that 200$…but take a moment and think. A quality set of springs are around 200$ why are coilovers, with more parts less than a decent set of springs. If you cant conduce an answer from that, sit down, drink some milk, and have a nap, cause you are really muffed up!J
***Linear means the spring throughout the WHOLE coil is the same spring rate. So if the spring was 350lb/in, that means the spring would need 350 lbs to compress it EACH inch. Now, some coilovers, mostly FULL coilovers, not sleeve style kits are coming with progressive spring rates. Progressive springs DO NOT have a set spring rate as linear. The reason why is because each section of the spring has a spring rate that is different from the next. So the top half of the spring may be 115lb/in, then gradually reach 320lb.in by the other side. The spring rate of that spring literally would be everything between those two rates, but then it would be pointless cause you would have to list every rate and some springs do jumps like 115, 225, 320. point being there is not industry standard to measure it, or no real way to measure it at all. Some people may think that you can measure the ends and come up with a range to list., but it simply cant be donw with that. What if the first coil is somewhere in the ranges of 115 starting and slightly in the 200’s after the first inch. Then for that first inch, its not really 115 nor 200 is more of an average of the two… too technical and will never be solved, but if someone is bored, they are welcome to tryJ***
Air/Hydraulics: although this is a route lesser traveled, its definitely picking up as of late. To be honest I never saw the point of this as this is not big at all in Europe where I grew up, but the more I learn about it, the cooler it gets. Also people on the forum, like nickesix, snazziz24, bagdfire, cavattack2000, baggedcavy, and a few others def changed my opinion on it. You basically get the same effect as coilovers, a lot of adjustability, and all at the flick of a switch. Some of the myths of air ride is that they are accident prone. You have more parts and you are dealing with hoses, but once again, the statement holds true about the quality of the products. Make sure you buy something decent, not some schmuck on ebay who answers you question of “does this come with everything I need?” with a reply of “yeah I think so, so and so told me.” Check with a few of the names dropped above. They have the systems installed and damn well done. The only negative I really see with air rides, is that most tracks, US wise, pretty much the majority, will not let a car with them race. Sure many have snuck in, but during tech, if they see it, most will not let you race. Track safety hazard from debris hitting the bags or lines are the common reasons. Check with local tracks before you go to get rules and regulations.
STRUTS
Now that you have a base on what choices to choose from, start thinking and prepping to spend extra money on some struts if need be applies. Air struts are specially made with either bags on them or an air cylinder inside. So you don’t need lowering struts for those. However, on springs and coilovers, struts should be your first buy. Once you have struts, you can put almost anything on them and not have to worry about the struts failing. Once the struts fail, so has the stability of your car. The struts are the mainstay of mechanical suspension. They control the motion of the spring. The spring is there to help the car stay suspended, while the strut is to control the smoothness. Remember the POGO stick from childhood. It was fun cause you kept bouncing, but imagine how hard it would have been if pressurized oil was inside and controlled motion. It would have sucked then, but now with a car its what you look for. CONTROL…
Strut choices for the cavalier are LIMITED. And since there isn’t that big of a market, they will stay high in price. With the j-body platform, you might as well get used to it.
Out of the choices available:
OEM REPLACEMENT struts, are just as that. OEM STYLE replacement struts. Sure some say, valved stiffer etc, but when it boils down to it, they are not valved for lowering. Many have argued that KYB are not oem replacement struts, but if you take a few minutes out of your day and contact KYB AMERICA by phone, they themselves, will tell you that they WILL NOT honor the warranty these struts if on a lowered vehicle. So much for the ability of them to be lowered. Granted some do and have lowered on them for a while, don’t be shocked if yours don’t last long. Generally a strut should last well up to 5 years or more if not abused. But choosing a strut from this category and lowering past 1.5 inches or so, and you are definitely chancing it. If it does blow before time, then that’s more money to spend on new struts, alignment (you will need an alignment after every major suspension component change), and time wasted changing them, or time and money wasted for a shop to do so. These however have proved to be good for springs like the 1.2 inch lowering springs by progressive technologies and stracing. Anything more than that and you are chancing it.
A list of all the OEM style replacement are:
-KYB Gr2’s
-Gabriel VST’s
-Monroe (Sensatracs included)
-GM stock or upgraded suspension packages.
LOWERING STRUTS
These struts are valved stiffer to handle stiffer springs and increase the stability of a lowered car. They aren’t cheap. Our struts on the J platform generally cost around 500$ besides the mantapart sport struts, most all of them are adjustable. The only self adjusting struts alone are the billsteins, converted for our cars by mantapart. The most popular strut choice for these cars are without a doubt Koni. They are two selections, the Reds and the Yellows. Both are pretty much good for whatever you plan to do, the yellow just go to stiffer damping rate than the Reds and are adjustable while they are on the car. With the Reds, you have to take them off the car to adjust them and guess what…another alignment as well. Granted once most people find a good setting for them, they usually stick with it. Now you can use other struts. ANY strut when its new and freshly installed will work good for a while. Hell a 10 matchsticks can hold up 50-100lbs, but after a while they fatigue and wear. Obviously, 10 sticks of the same size in metal would be better, or even of a better wood, would be better, but once again the fact prevails, quality you pay more for. You get what you pay for in this area. You get cheap struts, the don’t last as long. Some have been for 2 weeks, some 2 years. But most don’t have that warranty like koni and other warrantied struts. Learn from others experience and losses, get the right thing upfront and don’t wast time changing cheaper struts, and spending more money replacing things and more alignments. Although some will not listen.
Lowering Struts are as listed:
Koni (Red and Yellow)
Mantapart Sport struts
Mantapart Billstein
KYB AGX—these are not out at the time. There have been many who said they have em, but usually turn out to be liars. The company states they are not released yet for the j-body
Tokico- still not out yet
***SLAMMED CARS with struts. Most companies…EVEN KONI will not warranty a strut if you ABUSE it. Riding around on a strut with the car slammed is abuse. Your car is a 2600+ lb vehicle. The equivalent of that would closely, be related to a large person on your back and you have to walk around all day in a squatted position. Your legs wouldn’t like it and neither does your struts. They have ways of testing to find out if you have done this or not. Simply put, you know how you can tell which part of a metal bar as been used by where the wear marks are concentrated. Well they can do the same with your strut shaft…***
Now hopefully we have struts down. Now since you should have by this time made the decision on your own from reading above what you want to put on the struts/shocks….springs or coilovers kits. Generally speaking, “how low should I lower my car” are to be decided by YOU not us… YOU. If you have a body kit, you need to go outside, measure how much clearance you have and how much you can get rid of safely. This can be done by anyone on any car. Find the lowest point on your car and then simply measure from the bottom of it to the ground. Lets say you get 5 inches, and you want to take off 2 inches, then look at the chart below and make the decision.
SPRINGS
If you choose springs here are your choices: ***Courtesy of BearsFan (Jerry A)***
Spring Choices
1- Apex (1.6") - - - (Need Info & Input)
2- B-G Sport Springs (1.6") - - - (Need Info & Input)
3- DropZone - - - (1.7")
4- Eibach Pro kit (1.4") - - - (Great Choice/ Watch For Uneven on 2.2)
5- Eibach Sportline (1.7F - 2.3R) - - - (Great Choice/ Watch For Uneven on 2.2)
6- Fastco (1.6") - - - (Need Info & Input)
7- GoldLine (1.75") - - - (Nice Firm Ride, Popular Choice)
8- H&R Springs (1.6F - 1.4R) - - - (Need Info & Input)
9- Intrax (1.7") - - - (Need Info & Input)
10- MantaPart Sport Springs (1.5" or 2.0") - - - (Need Info & Input)
11- Progress (1.7F - 1.5R) - - - (Need Info & Input)
12- Spring Tech (1.8") - - - (Need Info & Input)
13- Sprint (1.8") - - - (Nice Firm Ride, Popular Choice)
14- Suspension Tech (1.2") - - - (Nice Ride, Small Drop)
Basically here quality will pretty much show in price. The smaller drops will obviously cost less, only a little is changed from stock. So quality shouldn’t really be an issue there. But once you pass the 1.5 mark, when you hear someone’s springs like Intrax for example which are rated for 1.7, they say they are at a 2-inch drop or 2 and a quarter, that means the spring has SAGGED. Like a woman’s mammaries, we all should know sagging is NOT GOOD. Sure some people may still like the ride that’s their preference. Getting used to something isn’t always the best thing. People do it, but so do inmates when they become bubba’s b****. Eibach, H&R, B-G are among the top springs, with goldline in there as well. These are the springs that get low past 1.5… Bearsfan has also had success with the 1.2nch dropping S.techs. They are one of the only sets that are linear springs. They have a decently low spring rate being linear and being spring only. Usually, even though those give a decent ride, people prefer stiffer springs, and most times lower, for increased handling and stability, but do keep in mind. There is more to the setup THAN JUST spring choice. It is possible to have a baddazz-handling car with a soft suspension and proper bracing and the correct anti-roll bars (sway bars). I will cover that a bit more in another post. Big Notice…springs and coilovers on ebay are cheap for a reason. As you see most quality springs are 150$-220$+, when you see springs on ebay being sold for 60$ there is a reason. I seriously hope logic kicks in for you.
COILOVERS
Now on to coilovers, this section will be relatively short as I have already covered this. Instead there are 2 links posted that will reference you to information on what to look for and what not to look for.
***Once again courtesy of Bearsfan (Jerry A)***
Coil-Over Choices
1- AroSpeed - - - (So Much Conflict & Opinions)
2- APC "Next Level" - - - (Need Info & Input)
3- Ground Control - - - (Best bang for the Buck get w/ Konis)
4- HMS CoilOvers - - - (Need Info & Input)
5- HP CoilOvers - - - (Good for the price, most are Happy)
6- MantaPart CoilOvers - - - (Need Info & Input)
7- Number 1 CoilOvers - - - (Need Info & Input)
8- RK Coilovers - - - (can you say "Ground Control")
9- Skunk2 Coilovers - - - (Need Info & Input)
10- Spring Tech "Blue Line" - - - (Need Info & Input)
11- Tsudo Coilovers - - - (Need Info & Input)
12- Weapon-R "Circuit Pro" - - - (Not Much Info, but bad Info)
Now for info on coilovers go here:
http://www.j-body.org/forums/read.php?f=3&i=49870&t=40664
additional info on lowering at all, especially on coilovers and rksport full coilovers listed:
]http://www.j-body.org/forums/read.php?f=3&i=46968&t=43234
I would higly advise that you def read the first and second post in full. It will save you headaches in the long run and you wont screw up your ride by being cheap or simply not knowing.
A few combos of note in the spring & strut/ full coilover area are
***Once again courtesy of Bearsfan (Jerry A)***
Complete Coil-Over/ Spring & Strut Combos
1- RKSport "Pro-Street CoilOver" - - - (Need Info & Inout)
2- MantaPart Sport Strut Coil-Over - - - (Need Info & Inout)
3- Bilstein Coil-Over Package - - - (Bilsteins, What Else can You Say)
4- Koni Reds w/ Eibach SportLines - - - (Very Popular & Satisfying Combo)
Also that should be on this list are the K&W’s which will be out sometimes soon. I may be switching to these in the future. I’m from Germany…whaddaya expect?J but once again there was a post about these in the past month where someone claimed to have them already for a week back then…. Once again another newbie liar. There’s no reason to lie to impress people.
Lastly we get to Air ride. Its way more expensive than any full coilover kit, usually by 300 dollars. The avg kit runs about 1500 dollars for starters…the avg full coilover is around 1200$ but while I’ll spend 20 minutes lowering or raising my car, most air kits will do that in 2 seconds. That’s the advantage. Quick raising or lowering. The weight isn’t too much heavier than most regular suspension setups. Granted you will use up trunk or backseat space with the equipment needed. Air ride is def something you should look into if you should look into for sure IF you want to ride around slammed Reason being is that they are designed to ride low and be in that position…I mean, besides farting, when was the last time you hurt air? Air rides have a high level of instant adjustability and when don’t right can last a long time. But the same as the other two options…this one still lives by the same rule of thumb. You buy cheap parts, you get cheap results. From what has been posted the AIM and ART kits are usually the most popular. Look on the boards for JasonAudio, I believe his name is as he is a distributor for one of the kits. Also the members I listed above, and also including Darren Schiling.
PRICE
prices for springs, a decent set are around 150-200$
prices on OEM replacement valved struts are around 150-250$
(these are ok for minimal drops-1.2 inches- and stock springs, but keep in mind, most companies dont warranty them. maybe the place you buy em from MAY, but in the long run, if you go past 1.5 inches, you are risking blowing them and wasting money and time)
Struts made for lowering usally start at around 450$ and range all the way up to the billsteins at 950$
Coilovers, a decent set start at around 350$. cheaper coils start at 75-80$ and that should be your first warning. coilovers under 300$ are def suspect. if you read the post above on coils, it shows why...
(just a hint. if you find the post i made about DEAL BABY! rksports garage sale has the rksport coils for around 250 hint hint.)
full coilover kits like rksport full coils and KW start at around 1100$ and go up to 1500$ which is the price of the mantapart billstein setup.
after you do any change, def look into an alignment. theres no chart on how soon you will need it afterwards, but try to do so within a week. wearing your tires down cause you were too lazy...well its not smart , but to each their own. alignments in the US of A cost about 40-60$, maybe 70 at some shops...
some things you should know when getting an alignment
you dont need camber bolts. camber isnt changed much. so no matter what you friends and shops who drive imports say, its not needed. not unless you go extreme at like 3.5+ inches, but if you go that level, then CV joints will wear quick and you'll most likely blow struts riding around... so you might as well buy camber bolts, cause on reg suspension you'll be paying more in due time...
you shouldnt have to supply specs as the place should already have em
and
if a shop says they cant align a lowered car...leave... right then and there is a line of pure BS. i'd rather hear saddam say he sympathizes with the US and the world on national TV.
Hope that helps!
Basically just a FAQ/Tutorial on lowering a cavalier in specific. Most things I write from experience, others I write from events that have happened with others who have posted about their gains or misfortunes.
The only way you will get anything out of this is by reading it in full and asking questions if needed. The suspension forum, as well as ALL of JBO has MANY people who help out with forums and individuals needing help. One thing to realize though is learning from others mistakes. If not, the saying of a hard head makes a soft @!#$ can and usually does hold true.
To start of, the suspension is the main thing that SUSPENDS your car in the air with the base being the wheels and tires. Those are the 4 points that touch ground. Suspension arms, struts, springs, shocks are all components in helping keep the car up off the ground/road and also controlled so the inside components of the car (aka you, the passenger(s) are not shaken nutty.
Through this post I will cover a few points that are now frequently asked and give explanations and or proof in form or logic, quotes, or posts made on JBO which can be referenced.
Starting off, WHAT SHOULD I CHOOSE? WHATS THE BEST…?
Firstly, BEST? Drop that word from you vocab. Seriously…Obviously what’s “best” for you isn’t gonna be best for marky mark, and what’s best for you two isn’t gonna be what’s best for jimmy jam. There isn’t a “best” you can just look up on a chart. There are plenty of parts that are good for a certain person or application that aren’t for another. SO……What should each person choose? What is better? These are two commonly asked questions by newbies and people who aren’t new overall, but new to suspension. What SHOULD you choose? Well look at what you want to use your suspension for and what you plan to accomplish. Ask yourself these questions:
How low do you want to be from stock? The lower you go the harsher the ride.
How soft or stiff do you want ride quality?
How much do you want to pay?
How many times do you want to half-@$&* this before its done right?
How quick do you want to be able to adjust it? Or are you into adjusting at all?
How critical are you when it comes to being COMPLETELY EVEN?
How are the roads in your area?
Those are just a few questions to ask yourself. Those are to help YOU decide what YOU need and or WANT.
When you get that figured out, here is an overview of the choices for suspension. In all choices however, there are CHEAP and QUALITY choices. This will obviously help you in figuring out what way you wanna go. But do realize that cheap isn’t always good and neither is expensive. Going cheap will obviously get you a cheap product. Cheap products I tend to view as this: “if this was underwear, would you want it housing family jewels?” you normally don’t put cheap stuff for protection. Cause in essence, your suspension can and will be part of the equation of keeping you safe on the road or having your car, body, and hopefully not…other passengers from being harmed, if there ever comes a time when you need to brake hard, swerve, or use some other evasive driving moves in an emergency.
*** Don’t be one of the ones, I don’t have enough money. Instead of giving the BS I’m poor story, do realize its not gonna hurt you to save up for a part you need. Everyone here is not a millionaire. If need be get a job, get two, or simply save up. There are people here with a house, 2 kids and working minimum wage and can save up. If saving up is a problem for you, then its time to start growing up. All the people who don’t wannt spend that much money, but have their car loaded with audio equipment, get real. Quality costs, and you get what you pay for. No bullsh*t. no excuses***
In a quick overview, the main choices for suspension are:
Stock: Obviously, the smoothest but prob the most sloppiest, when it comes to crisp handling. Also the cheapest.
Lowering springs: These NOW come in linear and progressive springs. They are not adjustable, so what you put on is really what you get unless you wanna pay money to buy more stuff to try and adjust em. This, in an aftermarket sense, is the “low-cost” way of lowering a car. All it really involves is a change of springs, but strut change is also HIGHLY recommended.
Coilovers: Coilovers usually always came in Linear spring rates. But they now come in progressive. But these are usually higher priced coilovers. AKA not on EBAY. Coilovers are GREAT for adjusting as that is their main advantage. You can change the spring rate as well as the spring length, the height at which the car sits and if you are critical in all sides being even you can adjust these to the nearest micrometer if you have the patience. These are especially good in racing and in shows where height may need to be adjusted low for stability, or to wow the crowd and judges, but it allows you to leave the track or show at the height you came in with if it was higher. VERY versatile. Downside, more expensive, and there are so many cheap knock offs that come without essential parts for the car. These are the kits that are made for other cars, but can be adapted, so they change the part numbers, most put them on ebay, and they are usually less that 200$…but take a moment and think. A quality set of springs are around 200$ why are coilovers, with more parts less than a decent set of springs. If you cant conduce an answer from that, sit down, drink some milk, and have a nap, cause you are really muffed up!J
***Linear means the spring throughout the WHOLE coil is the same spring rate. So if the spring was 350lb/in, that means the spring would need 350 lbs to compress it EACH inch. Now, some coilovers, mostly FULL coilovers, not sleeve style kits are coming with progressive spring rates. Progressive springs DO NOT have a set spring rate as linear. The reason why is because each section of the spring has a spring rate that is different from the next. So the top half of the spring may be 115lb/in, then gradually reach 320lb.in by the other side. The spring rate of that spring literally would be everything between those two rates, but then it would be pointless cause you would have to list every rate and some springs do jumps like 115, 225, 320. point being there is not industry standard to measure it, or no real way to measure it at all. Some people may think that you can measure the ends and come up with a range to list., but it simply cant be donw with that. What if the first coil is somewhere in the ranges of 115 starting and slightly in the 200’s after the first inch. Then for that first inch, its not really 115 nor 200 is more of an average of the two… too technical and will never be solved, but if someone is bored, they are welcome to tryJ***
Air/Hydraulics: although this is a route lesser traveled, its definitely picking up as of late. To be honest I never saw the point of this as this is not big at all in Europe where I grew up, but the more I learn about it, the cooler it gets. Also people on the forum, like nickesix, snazziz24, bagdfire, cavattack2000, baggedcavy, and a few others def changed my opinion on it. You basically get the same effect as coilovers, a lot of adjustability, and all at the flick of a switch. Some of the myths of air ride is that they are accident prone. You have more parts and you are dealing with hoses, but once again, the statement holds true about the quality of the products. Make sure you buy something decent, not some schmuck on ebay who answers you question of “does this come with everything I need?” with a reply of “yeah I think so, so and so told me.” Check with a few of the names dropped above. They have the systems installed and damn well done. The only negative I really see with air rides, is that most tracks, US wise, pretty much the majority, will not let a car with them race. Sure many have snuck in, but during tech, if they see it, most will not let you race. Track safety hazard from debris hitting the bags or lines are the common reasons. Check with local tracks before you go to get rules and regulations.
STRUTS
Now that you have a base on what choices to choose from, start thinking and prepping to spend extra money on some struts if need be applies. Air struts are specially made with either bags on them or an air cylinder inside. So you don’t need lowering struts for those. However, on springs and coilovers, struts should be your first buy. Once you have struts, you can put almost anything on them and not have to worry about the struts failing. Once the struts fail, so has the stability of your car. The struts are the mainstay of mechanical suspension. They control the motion of the spring. The spring is there to help the car stay suspended, while the strut is to control the smoothness. Remember the POGO stick from childhood. It was fun cause you kept bouncing, but imagine how hard it would have been if pressurized oil was inside and controlled motion. It would have sucked then, but now with a car its what you look for. CONTROL…
Strut choices for the cavalier are LIMITED. And since there isn’t that big of a market, they will stay high in price. With the j-body platform, you might as well get used to it.
Out of the choices available:
OEM REPLACEMENT struts, are just as that. OEM STYLE replacement struts. Sure some say, valved stiffer etc, but when it boils down to it, they are not valved for lowering. Many have argued that KYB are not oem replacement struts, but if you take a few minutes out of your day and contact KYB AMERICA by phone, they themselves, will tell you that they WILL NOT honor the warranty these struts if on a lowered vehicle. So much for the ability of them to be lowered. Granted some do and have lowered on them for a while, don’t be shocked if yours don’t last long. Generally a strut should last well up to 5 years or more if not abused. But choosing a strut from this category and lowering past 1.5 inches or so, and you are definitely chancing it. If it does blow before time, then that’s more money to spend on new struts, alignment (you will need an alignment after every major suspension component change), and time wasted changing them, or time and money wasted for a shop to do so. These however have proved to be good for springs like the 1.2 inch lowering springs by progressive technologies and stracing. Anything more than that and you are chancing it.
A list of all the OEM style replacement are:
-KYB Gr2’s
-Gabriel VST’s
-Monroe (Sensatracs included)
-GM stock or upgraded suspension packages.
LOWERING STRUTS
These struts are valved stiffer to handle stiffer springs and increase the stability of a lowered car. They aren’t cheap. Our struts on the J platform generally cost around 500$ besides the mantapart sport struts, most all of them are adjustable. The only self adjusting struts alone are the billsteins, converted for our cars by mantapart. The most popular strut choice for these cars are without a doubt Koni. They are two selections, the Reds and the Yellows. Both are pretty much good for whatever you plan to do, the yellow just go to stiffer damping rate than the Reds and are adjustable while they are on the car. With the Reds, you have to take them off the car to adjust them and guess what…another alignment as well. Granted once most people find a good setting for them, they usually stick with it. Now you can use other struts. ANY strut when its new and freshly installed will work good for a while. Hell a 10 matchsticks can hold up 50-100lbs, but after a while they fatigue and wear. Obviously, 10 sticks of the same size in metal would be better, or even of a better wood, would be better, but once again the fact prevails, quality you pay more for. You get what you pay for in this area. You get cheap struts, the don’t last as long. Some have been for 2 weeks, some 2 years. But most don’t have that warranty like koni and other warrantied struts. Learn from others experience and losses, get the right thing upfront and don’t wast time changing cheaper struts, and spending more money replacing things and more alignments. Although some will not listen.
Lowering Struts are as listed:
Koni (Red and Yellow)
Mantapart Sport struts
Mantapart Billstein
KYB AGX—these are not out at the time. There have been many who said they have em, but usually turn out to be liars. The company states they are not released yet for the j-body
Tokico- still not out yet
***SLAMMED CARS with struts. Most companies…EVEN KONI will not warranty a strut if you ABUSE it. Riding around on a strut with the car slammed is abuse. Your car is a 2600+ lb vehicle. The equivalent of that would closely, be related to a large person on your back and you have to walk around all day in a squatted position. Your legs wouldn’t like it and neither does your struts. They have ways of testing to find out if you have done this or not. Simply put, you know how you can tell which part of a metal bar as been used by where the wear marks are concentrated. Well they can do the same with your strut shaft…***
Now hopefully we have struts down. Now since you should have by this time made the decision on your own from reading above what you want to put on the struts/shocks….springs or coilovers kits. Generally speaking, “how low should I lower my car” are to be decided by YOU not us… YOU. If you have a body kit, you need to go outside, measure how much clearance you have and how much you can get rid of safely. This can be done by anyone on any car. Find the lowest point on your car and then simply measure from the bottom of it to the ground. Lets say you get 5 inches, and you want to take off 2 inches, then look at the chart below and make the decision.
SPRINGS
If you choose springs here are your choices: ***Courtesy of BearsFan (Jerry A)***
Spring Choices
1- Apex (1.6") - - - (Need Info & Input)
2- B-G Sport Springs (1.6") - - - (Need Info & Input)
3- DropZone - - - (1.7")
4- Eibach Pro kit (1.4") - - - (Great Choice/ Watch For Uneven on 2.2)
5- Eibach Sportline (1.7F - 2.3R) - - - (Great Choice/ Watch For Uneven on 2.2)
6- Fastco (1.6") - - - (Need Info & Input)
7- GoldLine (1.75") - - - (Nice Firm Ride, Popular Choice)
8- H&R Springs (1.6F - 1.4R) - - - (Need Info & Input)
9- Intrax (1.7") - - - (Need Info & Input)
10- MantaPart Sport Springs (1.5" or 2.0") - - - (Need Info & Input)
11- Progress (1.7F - 1.5R) - - - (Need Info & Input)
12- Spring Tech (1.8") - - - (Need Info & Input)
13- Sprint (1.8") - - - (Nice Firm Ride, Popular Choice)
14- Suspension Tech (1.2") - - - (Nice Ride, Small Drop)
Basically here quality will pretty much show in price. The smaller drops will obviously cost less, only a little is changed from stock. So quality shouldn’t really be an issue there. But once you pass the 1.5 mark, when you hear someone’s springs like Intrax for example which are rated for 1.7, they say they are at a 2-inch drop or 2 and a quarter, that means the spring has SAGGED. Like a woman’s mammaries, we all should know sagging is NOT GOOD. Sure some people may still like the ride that’s their preference. Getting used to something isn’t always the best thing. People do it, but so do inmates when they become bubba’s b****. Eibach, H&R, B-G are among the top springs, with goldline in there as well. These are the springs that get low past 1.5… Bearsfan has also had success with the 1.2nch dropping S.techs. They are one of the only sets that are linear springs. They have a decently low spring rate being linear and being spring only. Usually, even though those give a decent ride, people prefer stiffer springs, and most times lower, for increased handling and stability, but do keep in mind. There is more to the setup THAN JUST spring choice. It is possible to have a baddazz-handling car with a soft suspension and proper bracing and the correct anti-roll bars (sway bars). I will cover that a bit more in another post. Big Notice…springs and coilovers on ebay are cheap for a reason. As you see most quality springs are 150$-220$+, when you see springs on ebay being sold for 60$ there is a reason. I seriously hope logic kicks in for you.
COILOVERS
Now on to coilovers, this section will be relatively short as I have already covered this. Instead there are 2 links posted that will reference you to information on what to look for and what not to look for.
***Once again courtesy of Bearsfan (Jerry A)***
Coil-Over Choices
1- AroSpeed - - - (So Much Conflict & Opinions)
2- APC "Next Level" - - - (Need Info & Input)
3- Ground Control - - - (Best bang for the Buck get w/ Konis)
4- HMS CoilOvers - - - (Need Info & Input)
5- HP CoilOvers - - - (Good for the price, most are Happy)
6- MantaPart CoilOvers - - - (Need Info & Input)
7- Number 1 CoilOvers - - - (Need Info & Input)
8- RK Coilovers - - - (can you say "Ground Control")
9- Skunk2 Coilovers - - - (Need Info & Input)
10- Spring Tech "Blue Line" - - - (Need Info & Input)
11- Tsudo Coilovers - - - (Need Info & Input)
12- Weapon-R "Circuit Pro" - - - (Not Much Info, but bad Info)
Now for info on coilovers go here:
http://www.j-body.org/forums/read.php?f=3&i=49870&t=40664
additional info on lowering at all, especially on coilovers and rksport full coilovers listed:
]http://www.j-body.org/forums/read.php?f=3&i=46968&t=43234
I would higly advise that you def read the first and second post in full. It will save you headaches in the long run and you wont screw up your ride by being cheap or simply not knowing.
A few combos of note in the spring & strut/ full coilover area are
***Once again courtesy of Bearsfan (Jerry A)***
Complete Coil-Over/ Spring & Strut Combos
1- RKSport "Pro-Street CoilOver" - - - (Need Info & Inout)
2- MantaPart Sport Strut Coil-Over - - - (Need Info & Inout)
3- Bilstein Coil-Over Package - - - (Bilsteins, What Else can You Say)
4- Koni Reds w/ Eibach SportLines - - - (Very Popular & Satisfying Combo)
Also that should be on this list are the K&W’s which will be out sometimes soon. I may be switching to these in the future. I’m from Germany…whaddaya expect?J but once again there was a post about these in the past month where someone claimed to have them already for a week back then…. Once again another newbie liar. There’s no reason to lie to impress people.
Lastly we get to Air ride. Its way more expensive than any full coilover kit, usually by 300 dollars. The avg kit runs about 1500 dollars for starters…the avg full coilover is around 1200$ but while I’ll spend 20 minutes lowering or raising my car, most air kits will do that in 2 seconds. That’s the advantage. Quick raising or lowering. The weight isn’t too much heavier than most regular suspension setups. Granted you will use up trunk or backseat space with the equipment needed. Air ride is def something you should look into if you should look into for sure IF you want to ride around slammed Reason being is that they are designed to ride low and be in that position…I mean, besides farting, when was the last time you hurt air? Air rides have a high level of instant adjustability and when don’t right can last a long time. But the same as the other two options…this one still lives by the same rule of thumb. You buy cheap parts, you get cheap results. From what has been posted the AIM and ART kits are usually the most popular. Look on the boards for JasonAudio, I believe his name is as he is a distributor for one of the kits. Also the members I listed above, and also including Darren Schiling.
PRICE
prices for springs, a decent set are around 150-200$
prices on OEM replacement valved struts are around 150-250$
(these are ok for minimal drops-1.2 inches- and stock springs, but keep in mind, most companies dont warranty them. maybe the place you buy em from MAY, but in the long run, if you go past 1.5 inches, you are risking blowing them and wasting money and time)
Struts made for lowering usally start at around 450$ and range all the way up to the billsteins at 950$
Coilovers, a decent set start at around 350$. cheaper coils start at 75-80$ and that should be your first warning. coilovers under 300$ are def suspect. if you read the post above on coils, it shows why...
(just a hint. if you find the post i made about DEAL BABY! rksports garage sale has the rksport coils for around 250 hint hint.)
full coilover kits like rksport full coils and KW start at around 1100$ and go up to 1500$ which is the price of the mantapart billstein setup.
after you do any change, def look into an alignment. theres no chart on how soon you will need it afterwards, but try to do so within a week. wearing your tires down cause you were too lazy...well its not smart , but to each their own. alignments in the US of A cost about 40-60$, maybe 70 at some shops...
some things you should know when getting an alignment
you dont need camber bolts. camber isnt changed much. so no matter what you friends and shops who drive imports say, its not needed. not unless you go extreme at like 3.5+ inches, but if you go that level, then CV joints will wear quick and you'll most likely blow struts riding around... so you might as well buy camber bolts, cause on reg suspension you'll be paying more in due time...
you shouldnt have to supply specs as the place should already have em
and
if a shop says they cant align a lowered car...leave... right then and there is a line of pure BS. i'd rather hear saddam say he sympathizes with the US and the world on national TV.
Hope that helps!
Classicrocjunkie
09-09-2004, 09:58 PM
Event is good guy... just don't asks stupid shit or things that can be found using the search button!
KustmAce
09-10-2004, 02:44 PM
^Amen
BTW, your sig isnt working. Cant link from jbo.
BTW, your sig isnt working. Cant link from jbo.
Classicrocjunkie
09-10-2004, 10:52 PM
i can see it just fine.... o well if ur on JBO then you prolly have seen the sig... I'm not here to often.
KustmAce
09-13-2004, 10:53 PM
Now it works, and ya, im on JBO every day. I just dont post much.
noshun
01-05-2005, 01:22 AM
Camber is affected by even slightly lowering a car and can adversely affect braking and tire wear on the inner edges. The best way I find, to check this is to measure the tires surface temp on the inner and outer edges just after a run and any difference means that there is camber. He never mention race applications. Personally I'm trying to budget for TeIn coilover shocks and springs (00-04 pillow mount needed for models pre 00) or if funds are not permitting Eibach springs with KYB AGX shox and struts. I wonder how many people have actuallt read the whole thing though!
Classicrocjunkie
01-05-2005, 07:53 PM
I've read the whole thing.. couple of times at that while trying to choose my setup
bigdaveangell
01-11-2005, 09:20 PM
Camber is affected by even slightly lowering a car and can adversely affect braking and tire wear on the inner edges. The best way I find, to check this is to measure the tires surface temp on the inner and outer edges just after a run and any difference means that there is camber. He never mention race applications. Personally I'm trying to budget for TeIn coilover shocks and springs (00-04 pillow mount needed for models pre 00) or if funds are not permitting Eibach springs with KYB AGX shox and struts. I wonder how many people have actuallt read the whole thing though!
If you want to lower more than 1.5 inches you wont want to use kyb struts. Any lower than 1.5 and you void the warranty
If you want to lower more than 1.5 inches you wont want to use kyb struts. Any lower than 1.5 and you void the warranty
noshun
01-11-2005, 09:40 PM
If you want to lower more than 1.5 inches you wont want to use kyb struts. Any lower than 1.5 and you void the warranty
Not planning too. Don't want to put it in the weeds, mainly just to stiffen the rates. Only 1.2" drop with Eibach
Not planning too. Don't want to put it in the weeds, mainly just to stiffen the rates. Only 1.2" drop with Eibach
Classicrocjunkie
01-16-2005, 10:48 PM
Eibach pro-kit is 1.4" and Sportline is 1.7" (F) and 2.3" (R). Those are the only spring replacements Eibach makes other than coil overs.
noshun
01-16-2005, 11:07 PM
Eibach pro-kit is 1.4" and Sportline is 1.7" (F) and 2.3" (R). Those are the only spring replacements Eibach makes other than coil overs.
W/E man!!!
W/E man!!!
Classicrocjunkie
02-19-2005, 09:15 PM
are we a bit upset?
noshun
02-19-2005, 10:08 PM
are we a bit upset?
I can't remember I posted that over a month ago!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
However GT4 for the picking up of tues morning 22nd feb @ 9am will make me a very happy man!
I can't remember I posted that over a month ago!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
However GT4 for the picking up of tues morning 22nd feb @ 9am will make me a very happy man!
Classicrocjunkie
02-19-2005, 11:38 PM
I'm not a gaming person. Although n64 was the shit for me, i'd rather save that 40+ dolla and thats almost half the price for new Stainless peformance valves 1mm oversized.. muhahahaha
noshun
02-19-2005, 11:47 PM
I'm not a gaming person. Although n64 was the shit for me, i'd rather save that 40+ dolla and thats almost half the price for new Stainless peformance valves 1mm oversized.. muhahahaha
I'm not a gamer either. have GT3, Street racing syndicate (shit!!!) and R Racing Evolution (shit) after I get GT4 i'm trading the others in and just gonna have GT4 as my only game! That's all I need! That's why I bought the thing!
I'm not a gamer either. have GT3, Street racing syndicate (shit!!!) and R Racing Evolution (shit) after I get GT4 i'm trading the others in and just gonna have GT4 as my only game! That's all I need! That's why I bought the thing!
tragic_hip
08-06-2005, 11:19 AM
Hey There,
I've noticed no one has posted to this thread in awhile, so I'm hoping someone comes across this.
First off, I wanna apologize ahead of time for my ignorance.
Secondly, I would like to thank all the posters on this site and j-body.org for the wealth of information out there. Although, I am more confused than when I started doing research, at least it is a bit more of an educated confusion ... many times I have been very close to buying coilovers from ebay.
My question is this, I like the height at the front wheel well, basically I wanna drop the back end to match the front end, level it off. The front fender above the wheel is 26" off the ground and the back is 27.5". Can I just get coilovers and new struts for the back? and drop it the 1.5"? then get an alignment? Or is there better way for me to do this?
Thanks in advance for any replies and your patience.
Peace.
I've noticed no one has posted to this thread in awhile, so I'm hoping someone comes across this.
First off, I wanna apologize ahead of time for my ignorance.
Secondly, I would like to thank all the posters on this site and j-body.org for the wealth of information out there. Although, I am more confused than when I started doing research, at least it is a bit more of an educated confusion ... many times I have been very close to buying coilovers from ebay.
My question is this, I like the height at the front wheel well, basically I wanna drop the back end to match the front end, level it off. The front fender above the wheel is 26" off the ground and the back is 27.5". Can I just get coilovers and new struts for the back? and drop it the 1.5"? then get an alignment? Or is there better way for me to do this?
Thanks in advance for any replies and your patience.
Peace.
noshun
08-06-2005, 08:00 PM
Hey There,
I've noticed no one has posted to this thread in awhile, so I'm hoping someone comes across this.
First off, I wanna apologize ahead of time for my ignorance.
Secondly, I would like to thank all the posters on this site and j-body.org for the wealth of information out there. Although, I am more confused than when I started doing research, at least it is a bit more of an educated confusion ... many times I have been very close to buying coilovers from ebay.
My question is this, I like the height at the front wheel well, basically I wanna drop the back end to match the front end, level it off. The front fender above the wheel is 26" off the ground and the back is 27.5". Can I just get coilovers and new struts for the back? and drop it the 1.5"? then get an alignment? Or is there better way for me to do this?
Thanks in advance for any replies and your patience.
Peace.
You can do that. BUT. you will be increasing the spring rate at the rear of you car and not at the front. This will make the back end stiff and the front will stay the same. This will cause poor ride quality and poor handling. You will probably suffer a lot of understeer followed by a violent snap to oversteer if you push it due to these rates. If you only want to lower the rear then you could fit all four coil-over with new struts and have the fronts fully extended and the rears lowered you will have a harsher ride, as coil-overs have a high spring rate as they are able to be lowered 3" or more so need it, but, you will have the appearance you are looking for. If you are not planning to race your car at all, either 1/4 mile or circiut, then maybe you could just get yourself a large stereo install in your trunk. Heavy enough that it weighs the car down that 1.5" but that will be a lot of stuff. 4 12's (JL W7's or something), Amps all in custom enclosure could probably produce a good result. The Cheapest route that would get you somewere near what you are looking for is to but a set of Tein S-Tech springs. These use a stock rate and are designed to work with stock struts (despite what anyboy may say to the contrary, trust me on this one!) and lower the car about 1" in the rear. You could then install just the rears on the stock rear struts and have close to what you seek! good luck!
I've noticed no one has posted to this thread in awhile, so I'm hoping someone comes across this.
First off, I wanna apologize ahead of time for my ignorance.
Secondly, I would like to thank all the posters on this site and j-body.org for the wealth of information out there. Although, I am more confused than when I started doing research, at least it is a bit more of an educated confusion ... many times I have been very close to buying coilovers from ebay.
My question is this, I like the height at the front wheel well, basically I wanna drop the back end to match the front end, level it off. The front fender above the wheel is 26" off the ground and the back is 27.5". Can I just get coilovers and new struts for the back? and drop it the 1.5"? then get an alignment? Or is there better way for me to do this?
Thanks in advance for any replies and your patience.
Peace.
You can do that. BUT. you will be increasing the spring rate at the rear of you car and not at the front. This will make the back end stiff and the front will stay the same. This will cause poor ride quality and poor handling. You will probably suffer a lot of understeer followed by a violent snap to oversteer if you push it due to these rates. If you only want to lower the rear then you could fit all four coil-over with new struts and have the fronts fully extended and the rears lowered you will have a harsher ride, as coil-overs have a high spring rate as they are able to be lowered 3" or more so need it, but, you will have the appearance you are looking for. If you are not planning to race your car at all, either 1/4 mile or circiut, then maybe you could just get yourself a large stereo install in your trunk. Heavy enough that it weighs the car down that 1.5" but that will be a lot of stuff. 4 12's (JL W7's or something), Amps all in custom enclosure could probably produce a good result. The Cheapest route that would get you somewere near what you are looking for is to but a set of Tein S-Tech springs. These use a stock rate and are designed to work with stock struts (despite what anyboy may say to the contrary, trust me on this one!) and lower the car about 1" in the rear. You could then install just the rears on the stock rear struts and have close to what you seek! good luck!
tragic_hip
08-06-2005, 10:11 PM
You can do that. BUT. you will be increasing the spring rate at the rear of you car and not at the front. This will make the back end stiff and the front will stay the same. This will cause poor ride quality and poor handling. You will probably suffer a lot of understeer followed by a violent snap to oversteer if you push it due to these rates. If you only want to lower the rear then you could fit all four coil-over with new struts and have the fronts fully extended and the rears lowered you will have a harsher ride, as coil-overs have a high spring rate as they are able to be lowered 3" or more so need it, but, you will have the appearance you are looking for. If you are not planning to race your car at all, either 1/4 mile or circiut, then maybe you could just get yourself a large stereo install in your trunk. Heavy enough that it weighs the car down that 1.5" but that will be a lot of stuff. 4 12's (JL W7's or something), Amps all in custom enclosure could probably produce a good result. The Cheapest route that would get you somewere near what you are looking for is to but a set of Tein S-Tech springs. These use a stock rate and are designed to work with stock struts (despite what anyboy may say to the contrary, trust me on this one!) and lower the car about 1" in the rear. You could then install just the rears on the stock rear struts and have close to what you seek! good luck!
Hey,
Thanks for the info. Sorry I didn't add any details of my car or plans. I do not plan on doing any racing, I have a 2.2L 4 door. I like your idea of the Tein S-Techs. If I lower the rear the one inch, maybe I can add some audio to the trunk to drop it the other half an inch. I have been doing some quick searching and could only find the springs for a 2.4L cavalier, does that mean I'm SOL?
Just to make sure I'm starting to understand this a little better, which I'm still not sure I do ... If I can get the Tein springs, I would put them on all four stock struts, and lower the rear the one inch? The pricing I saw was $220US, does that sound about right?
Thanks again for your help.
Ohhh, I have a page on cardomain, if you wanna look and see what I'm working with.
http://www.cardomain.com/ride/2070048
Peace.
Hey,
Thanks for the info. Sorry I didn't add any details of my car or plans. I do not plan on doing any racing, I have a 2.2L 4 door. I like your idea of the Tein S-Techs. If I lower the rear the one inch, maybe I can add some audio to the trunk to drop it the other half an inch. I have been doing some quick searching and could only find the springs for a 2.4L cavalier, does that mean I'm SOL?
Just to make sure I'm starting to understand this a little better, which I'm still not sure I do ... If I can get the Tein springs, I would put them on all four stock struts, and lower the rear the one inch? The pricing I saw was $220US, does that sound about right?
Thanks again for your help.
Ohhh, I have a page on cardomain, if you wanna look and see what I'm working with.
http://www.cardomain.com/ride/2070048
Peace.
noshun
08-07-2005, 11:35 AM
Hey,
Thanks for the info. Sorry I didn't add any details of my car or plans. I do not plan on doing any racing, I have a 2.2L 4 door. I like your idea of the Tein S-Techs. If I lower the rear the one inch, maybe I can add some audio to the trunk to drop it the other half an inch. I have been doing some quick searching and could only find the springs for a 2.4L cavalier, does that mean I'm SOL?
Just to make sure I'm starting to understand this a little better, which I'm still not sure I do ... If I can get the Tein springs, I would put them on all four stock struts, and lower the rear the one inch? The pricing I saw was $220US, does that sound about right?
Thanks again for your help.
Ohhh, I have a page on cardomain, if you wanna look and see what I'm working with.
http://www.cardomain.com/ride/2070048
Peace.
the springs are the same whether 2.2 or 2.4. That Price is ok but I would belive that you can find better. try www.customcartuner.com they are located in Niagara Ontario. You can use stock struts with Tein springs as they are deisigned to do so. and then adding a sub enclosure in the tunk wouod push it down the rest of the way.
BTW check out www.j-body.com it's the J-body club of Ontario. Noticed on you car domain that you are from Windsor ON! I'm over by Oshawa. The chapter that would cover Windsor have weekly meets and you will meet people that are J-enthusiasts and will be willing to hel[p you out inperson with any questions etc!
Thanks for the info. Sorry I didn't add any details of my car or plans. I do not plan on doing any racing, I have a 2.2L 4 door. I like your idea of the Tein S-Techs. If I lower the rear the one inch, maybe I can add some audio to the trunk to drop it the other half an inch. I have been doing some quick searching and could only find the springs for a 2.4L cavalier, does that mean I'm SOL?
Just to make sure I'm starting to understand this a little better, which I'm still not sure I do ... If I can get the Tein springs, I would put them on all four stock struts, and lower the rear the one inch? The pricing I saw was $220US, does that sound about right?
Thanks again for your help.
Ohhh, I have a page on cardomain, if you wanna look and see what I'm working with.
http://www.cardomain.com/ride/2070048
Peace.
the springs are the same whether 2.2 or 2.4. That Price is ok but I would belive that you can find better. try www.customcartuner.com they are located in Niagara Ontario. You can use stock struts with Tein springs as they are deisigned to do so. and then adding a sub enclosure in the tunk wouod push it down the rest of the way.
BTW check out www.j-body.com it's the J-body club of Ontario. Noticed on you car domain that you are from Windsor ON! I'm over by Oshawa. The chapter that would cover Windsor have weekly meets and you will meet people that are J-enthusiasts and will be willing to hel[p you out inperson with any questions etc!
noshun
08-07-2005, 11:43 AM
Checked the customcartunersite and the server may be down. somethimes it works sometimes not. recently they had Tein springs for $200 CDN. If you go onto j-body.com username White_Zzzzz works at custom car tuner, pm him and he will be able to help you. I bought a subframe brace form them and service was good and prompt!
tragic_hip
08-07-2005, 11:43 AM
the springs are the same whether 2.2 or 2.4. That Price is ok but I would belive that you can find better. I'm in Canada though so not sure of any places there that you could ge them from. You can use stock struts with Tein springs as they are deisigned to do so. and then adding a sub enclosure in the tunk wouod push it down the rest of the way.
Whew that's a relief. I think I like this idea alot. I'm in Canada too, Windsor, Ontario to be exact, not sure how easy it will be for me to find the springs anywhere around here, I imagine I'd have to order them on line or something. Do you know of any Canadian places I might be able to get them from?
Thanks again for all your help, you are def. making me more comfortable in going ahead with this little project.
Peace.
Whew that's a relief. I think I like this idea alot. I'm in Canada too, Windsor, Ontario to be exact, not sure how easy it will be for me to find the springs anywhere around here, I imagine I'd have to order them on line or something. Do you know of any Canadian places I might be able to get them from?
Thanks again for all your help, you are def. making me more comfortable in going ahead with this little project.
Peace.
noshun
08-07-2005, 11:46 AM
check what i posted just before you posted!
tragic_hip
08-08-2005, 01:44 PM
check what i posted just before you posted!
Thanks very much, you have been a great help.
Peace.
Thanks very much, you have been a great help.
Peace.
noshun
08-08-2005, 10:05 PM
no problem
tragic_hip
08-11-2005, 10:17 AM
no problem
Hey There Again,
I saw this on ebay.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1,1&item=7992177724&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWA%3AIT
These are what I'm looking for eh?
If I were to get these, just double checking, cuz I'm still not 100% on everything, I would put the springs on all struts and then just lower the back the 1.5" and leave the front alone? Curious also, why would the front be able to be lowered 0.2" more than the back.
Thanks.
Hey There Again,
I saw this on ebay.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1,1&item=7992177724&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWA%3AIT
These are what I'm looking for eh?
If I were to get these, just double checking, cuz I'm still not 100% on everything, I would put the springs on all struts and then just lower the back the 1.5" and leave the front alone? Curious also, why would the front be able to be lowered 0.2" more than the back.
Thanks.
noshun
08-11-2005, 10:01 PM
those are what I was talking about yes. The fornt cna be lowered a lot more and so can the back, these springs are ideally for the 2.2/2200 cavs that sit even where as z24 have a heavier motor and sit a little nose down and the springs i have lower the rear 0.6" more in the rear than the front. They would give a nose down look to the 2.2 or coudl be good for cars with large I.C.E installs that weight the back end down and it would keep it more even looking. You may even be abble to contact the main US distributor and see if you can just buy the rear springs so you don't just have an extra pair laying around. but yes you could just use the rear springs with these, they are stock rate but you will probably still experience a slightly deteriorated ride but nothing bad.
Young Chuck D
07-10-2006, 04:42 AM
ok i have a 1989 cavalier 2.0 4cylinder automatic trans. vehicle (PICTURE BELOW AS ALWAYS!)
i'm completely blind deaf and dumb when it comes to lowering, suspension, springs, struts, coilovers, etc.... i learn quick but just need to be taught.
NOW.. i found this page and i think it has everything i need but i don't know which parts i need because there are several.
i want the car lowered 1.25-2.0 inches, hopefully evenly front to back, and would like to know what my options are to do that.
here are the parts i found:
http://www.mantapart.com/83cav.html?118,33
i'm completely blind deaf and dumb when it comes to lowering, suspension, springs, struts, coilovers, etc.... i learn quick but just need to be taught.
NOW.. i found this page and i think it has everything i need but i don't know which parts i need because there are several.
i want the car lowered 1.25-2.0 inches, hopefully evenly front to back, and would like to know what my options are to do that.
here are the parts i found:
http://www.mantapart.com/83cav.html?118,33
ryan99
11-08-2006, 09:46 AM
I saw this topic and it was very informative.Thanks to the author.Now i don't have to ask stupid questions.Except one..nobody ask about the clearance from fender to tire(rim and tire size should be considered)I've got a 16" rims with 205/45 tire size.bought cheap coilovers from ebay(i know guys,:banghead: should have listened or should have ask first.don't worry, am planning to buy groundcontrol coilovers for stock shocks.)still have 3 fingers gap from fender to tires.now am wondering if i'll get 1-2 fingers gap(sorry, too lazy to measure) with ground control....
Classicrocjunkie
11-08-2006, 10:54 AM
I saw this topic and it was very informative.Thanks to the author.Now i don't have to ask stupid questions.Except one..nobody ask about the clearance from fender to tire(rim and tire size should be considered)I've got a 16" rims with 205/45 tire size.bought cheap coilovers from ebay(i know guys,:banghead: should have listened or should have ask first.don't worry, am planning to buy groundcontrol coilovers for stock shocks.)still have 3 fingers gap from fender to tires.now am wondering if i'll get 1-2 fingers gap(sorry, too lazy to measure) with ground control....
With a good set slammed all the way down you should be almost able to start tucking ( 1/2 a finger). How ever you need Koni struts or another brand similar in quality to handle such a drop.
With a good set slammed all the way down you should be almost able to start tucking ( 1/2 a finger). How ever you need Koni struts or another brand similar in quality to handle such a drop.
noshun
11-08-2006, 11:17 AM
also your tires are the wrong size, a little too small here is a diagram of this the correct againt the ones you have, you've lost close to an inch of sidewall either side of the rim and so your gap is almost that inch larger
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v336/noshun/tyre.jpg
btw w'sup cody?
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v336/noshun/tyre.jpg
btw w'sup cody?
ryan99
11-09-2006, 01:05 AM
does it mean i have to change my tires to 205/50? don't want 17's.bought it before and it shakin my brains out from bumps so i switch to 16's to give a comfy ride.anyway.thanks guys, you're all a big help to me from getting screwed up.:iceslolan i've got a tight budget now for screwing my car.still don't know if i'm going to buy groundcontrol coilovers or KYB AGX shocks....hmmm..:banghead:
tpl_6
04-24-2007, 08:58 AM
i have a 97 caviler is a 2 in. drop to big or to much...i already have low profile tires and a body kit?
tpl_6
04-24-2007, 09:00 AM
i have a 97 caviler....is a 2 in. drop to big or to much....i have low profile tires and a body kit?
Lances133
04-25-2007, 12:06 AM
just get good struts ie: koni yellows or tokico d specs
yhandor
02-22-2008, 08:47 PM
Hey you can update B-G Sport springs 1.6 all around drop, I have them, and hadem on my car for about a year now on stock struts, not a problem, struts are still fine, good ride quality, no complaints whatsoever.
fathan16
02-01-2009, 03:56 AM
i have my 04 cavalier on eibach sportlines and kyb gr-2 struts, so far they work great, but my sway bar bushings went out about 1 or 2 months down the road, i'd recommend getting them swapped out too
Classicrocjunkie
02-01-2009, 02:45 PM
so far they work great...
Exactly... till they blow. When AGX's were only maybe $100-150 more than a full set of GR-2's.
I loved my Prokit/AGX combo, but nothing nearly as much as I love my TEIN SS coilovers with the EDFC! :)
Exactly... till they blow. When AGX's were only maybe $100-150 more than a full set of GR-2's.
I loved my Prokit/AGX combo, but nothing nearly as much as I love my TEIN SS coilovers with the EDFC! :)
TrentWalker
09-03-2009, 08:42 PM
Hey
Help is appreciated.......
I have a 74 VJ Valiant sedan.
It has 3 inch lowering blocks in the rear and the ride is very bouncey......
I have put Gas Ryder shocks which has helped but still a little bouncey....
and scraps due to how low the car is......
It has the standard leafs in the rear.....
What are my options to get a smooth ride........
Do I need new leafs?????Or....
Should I use 2 inch lowering blocks?????and leave the original leafs???
If yes can I cut the 3 inch lowering blocks to 2 inch or purchase new ones????
Dont really want to take it to a shop......I want to do myself so I can understand more and be proud of work well done.....
Any help is much appreciated and welcome......for me and my Valiant.
Thanks
Trent
Help is appreciated.......
I have a 74 VJ Valiant sedan.
It has 3 inch lowering blocks in the rear and the ride is very bouncey......
I have put Gas Ryder shocks which has helped but still a little bouncey....
and scraps due to how low the car is......
It has the standard leafs in the rear.....
What are my options to get a smooth ride........
Do I need new leafs?????Or....
Should I use 2 inch lowering blocks?????and leave the original leafs???
If yes can I cut the 3 inch lowering blocks to 2 inch or purchase new ones????
Dont really want to take it to a shop......I want to do myself so I can understand more and be proud of work well done.....
Any help is much appreciated and welcome......for me and my Valiant.
Thanks
Trent
suzuki19
05-19-2010, 09:44 PM
I bought a coilover kit for my 1999 cavalier. It's made for 95-02 so it should work with my stock struts right? Can anyone give me some directions on how to install the kit?
Thanks in advance.
Thanks in advance.
noshun
05-19-2010, 09:51 PM
they will work but those stock struts will last about a week at best. you have to remove the perches off of the struts and slide the sleeves over them. make sure you are using decent bumps stops. if you have no idea about how to remove and reinstall the struts and springs might be an idea to not attempt this alone. have someone with some knowhow there.
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