1999 EK Civic lowered not looking level

[PinoNZ]

Hi, I recently purchased a 1999 EK Civic hatch facelift edition, and for looks I put 17" wheels with 204/40/17 tyres and King lowering springs with around 50mm drop.

What I'm getting now is this rubbing sensation on my front left tyre when I make a right hand turn at speed, happens more often if somebody's sitting at the front because obviously they're putting more weight on it. Doesn't really happen when I turn left, or going straight.

On a closer look, I noticed that it's this thin plastic lining that's getting rubbed at the moment. Also, when the wheels are aligned straight forward, and doing a 'finger' test, i noticed that on the left front i can fit 1 finger, left rear 2 fingers, right front 2 fingers and front rear 4 fingers, so the left side is lower than the right.

My main concern at the moment is the rubbing, and I've been reading up and asking about on what I can do to reduce/remove it. I understand that a combination of lowered springs and bigger wheels commonly results in rubbing, and I'm looking at getting the gaurds rolled. When I asked about that, I've been told that my car doesn't really have any gaurds to roll, but another friend said that it's still possible to roll it out a bit to reduce the rubbing.

Also interested in getting front and rear strut bars for both handling, and to reduce the rolling which might be contributing to the rubbing.

In terms of the whole left side being considerably lower than the right, I've had the car taken back to the place where I got the springs put in, they've tried several sets of different springs and it's still having the same effect. I've had the shocks checked etc and they were all fine too. It's been pointed out to me that while it was in japan (it's a jap import and I'm the first nz owner) that it 'might' have been in an accident, repaired but not measured correctly, therefore wasn't really noticeable with the standard springs and wheels and passed inspection when it came into the country. With the new springs and tyres it's only really noticeable now.

What I really want to do is remove/reduce the rubbing which I'm taking steps to do now, but when I point out the left/right side level difference to others they were quite shocked and doesn't look right. Is this something I should look further into? And is there anything else I can look at doing in terms of reducing that rubbing? I might get some pictures/diagrams if that helps out all.

Also, wanted to point out, don't know if it's normal, but from takeoff, the engine/automatic transmission makes a deep grunting sort of noise, more so when going up hill or if i have a full load, might have something to do with the initial gear change from take off.

[wheel1856]

I say replace the dampers/shocks.

They may test within their tollerable limits, but you gave it the "finger test" which means that the width of your finger likely falls within the acceptable working range of the car.

Seems like the sag happens front driver side, where most of the added weight rides most of the time. With the shorter springs (progressive or not) and the larger wheels the sag in the dampers is exaserbated and is - apparently - resulting in more rubbing in turns.

My suggestion - regardless of your current state - would be to replace the shocks; IMO one should do so whenever a new set of springs is put on.

check your bushings too, a worn bushing on one side could set the balance off by quite a bit - though, there would be a DRAMATIC difference when driving. I.E. pulling hard to one side, a "clunk" noise when weight shifts (if it were really bad), that kind of thing.

[fakehatch]

Originally Posted by PinoNZ

Hi, I recently purchased a 1999 EK Civic hatch facelift edition, and for looks I put 17" wheels with 204/40/17 tyres and King lowering springs with around 50mm drop.

What I'm getting now is this rubbing sensation on my front left tyre when I make a right hand turn at speed, happens more often if somebody's sitting at the front because obviously they're putting more weight on it. Doesn't really happen when I turn left, or going straight.

On a closer look, I noticed that it's this thin plastic lining that's getting rubbed at the moment. Also, when the wheels are aligned straight forward, and doing a 'finger' test, i noticed that on the left front i can fit 1 finger, left rear 2 fingers, right front 2 fingers and front rear 4 fingers, so the left side is lower than the right.

My main concern at the moment is the rubbing, and I've been reading up and asking about on what I can do to reduce/remove it. I understand that a combination of lowered springs and bigger wheels commonly results in rubbing, and I'm looking at getting the gaurds rolled. When I asked about that, I've been told that my car doesn't really have any gaurds to roll, but another friend said that it's still possible to roll it out a bit to reduce the rubbing.

Also interested in getting front and rear strut bars for both handling, and to reduce the rolling which might be contributing to the rubbing.

In terms of the whole left side being considerably lower than the right, I've had the car taken back to the place where I got the springs put in, they've tried several sets of different springs and it's still having the same effect. I've had the shocks checked etc and they were all fine too. It's been pointed out to me that while it was in japan (it's a jap import and I'm the first nz owner) that it 'might' have been in an accident, repaired but not measured correctly, therefore wasn't really noticeable with the standard springs and wheels and passed inspection when it came into the country. With the new springs and tyres it's only really noticeable now.

What I really want to do is remove/reduce the rubbing which I'm taking steps to do now, but when I point out the left/right side level difference to others they were quite shocked and doesn't look right. Is this something I should look further into? And is there anything else I can look at doing in terms of reducing that rubbing? I might get some pictures/diagrams if that helps out all.

Also, wanted to point out, don't know if it's normal, but from takeoff, the engine/automatic transmission makes a deep grunting sort of noise, more so when going up hill or if i have a full load, might have something to do with the initial gear change from take off.

I'm having this EXACT same problem with my 96 civic hatch. I've had springs and gr-2's for awhile and am going back to stock this weekend, I'll let you know if it helps...

[fakehatch]

Originally Posted by fakehatch

I'm having this EXACT same problem with my 96 civic hatch. I've had springs and gr-2's for awhile and am going back to stock this weekend, I'll let you know if it helps...

Well not this weekend, after 2 years, the shit is STUCK on their, and don't feel like breaking bolts. regardless, I'm sure that this will help, I'll post up when I get it done.............

[TurboLaxx]

Your problem isnt shocks, it's your whole setup. Civic's arent equally balanced. Each tire doesnt support exactly 25% of the weight. The front supports more than the back and the front left (drivers) side is the heaviest of them all. If you are putting the same spring rate on the fronts the nthe car is naturally going to sag to the left. What you need is an adjustable coilover to dial in the correct height for the car. That way you can raise the friver's front up a hair so it will also have a 2 finger gap, and lower the pass rear so it will have a 2 finger gap.

I bought some ground control sleeves and koni sport yellow shocks for about $800. They work together to make an adjustable coilover. I have 450 pound/in springs in the front and 325 pound/in springs in the rear. Basically my ride is 3x stiffer than stock. Some people really dont like the ride comfort cause it's so bumpy but I dont mind. I also added front and rear camber kits to correct the wheel lean. It's prob a 2-2.5" drop all around. To stop the rubbing you need to roll the fender with a wooden bat to get the tire to stop rubbing against it. Hope some of this info helps. Here's a couple pics of my car if you're interested.

[GScivic7]

it's not just weight distribution that's the problem here, he needs to wait for the springs to settle over time. I just dropped my newest car on monday with Eibach sportlines and did the finger gap test too and my results were the same as yours. Pretty much all four corners were different. I didn't want to wait for the springs to settle so I had two friends jump up and down in the trunk and me and another sat on the front fenders to get teh springs to compress all the way down. Little over one finger gap at all four corners now. I'd wait about a month before you do anything and let the springs settle

and it doesn't sound like he's rubbing the lip, but the splash guard in the fender. Just either remove the whole thing or cut out the piece that it's rubbing on. Should get rid of that easy enough

[PinoNZ]

Thanks for the tips guys, I have been doing a bit more reading up on this. At this stage I'll give the springs more time to settle. And yes, it is currently rubbing on the plastic gaurd. I could remove it, but I'm worried that will instead start to rub up on the fender, which looks like it will cause harm to my tyres instead, whch will lead to me needing to roll the fender. But from what I understand, rolling is for when the tyre actually sticks out a bit, where as mine fits in. Will give an update after some time to see how it goes.

[fakehatch]

If it is the same problem is mine, with the rubbing and worse with a passenger, it will only get worse. I am changing my shit Tuesday, July 10th.

[iCivic]

i had alot of problems lowering mine...

1. remove your splash guards in the wheel well as someone said
2. roll your fenders (i had trouble doing this and quickly gave up lol)
3. you have a camber kit? that should definetely stop the rubbing
4. like everyone said, they jus ride uneven due to the weight distribution diff.

after i removed the splash guards and put on my camber kit i had no trouble and i have a 2.5"front and 2.25"rear drop on my civic with sprint springs and koni struts

[fakehatch]

Well, swapped the suspension, it fixed the rubbing problem, and I can carry passengers once again!!

Thing is it's not looking level, drivers side is lower than passenger side??

Not to concerned about it as It rides like a dream with stock shit. word.

[GScivic7]

make sure the springs are seated right and that you didn't put rears up front and fronts on the rear. Other than that, I'm not sure why you'd be so uneven on stock suspension.