Opinions on springs and shocks

SON240sx Automotive
1

Hey guys,

my car still has another week at the bodyshop… God willing it’ll turn out good, but after this the next thing is mechanicals on the car… one being suspsension.

The car has all original stock parts from 1991 the body and everything is at 200k, not a single modification. I was very very very pleased that the car is not a rust bucket as I was at first depressed about. The frame, chassis, etc… is actually in great shape, I thought it was scandalous, but happily it is not!

The parts however are all stock from 15 years ago…

One of the things that’ll need replacing are the springs and the shocks…

I’m pretty certain I’ll go for KYB GR2 Shocks. I want to first restore this car to a safe and happy state… I do not want anything radical plus money does not grow on trees. I believe the KYB GR2 Shocks are a good choice, price-wise, comfort, performance and quality wise from what I’ve read overall (definetely better than stock, and definetely better than 15 year old 200k stock rusted up parts lol).

Please do tell me your experiences though on the product and if you think there are better priced/better bang for the buck (get more but same price or get more less price or wahtever what’s out there). Etc…

When it comes to springs however… I’m not quite sure…

I’m reading up on springs here eand there it seems alot of people use Eibach Springs.

Eibach sportline and prokit (I am thinking prokit is the better way to go as it doesnt lower as much as sportline? or the other way around I might be mistaken please correct me).

The other springs I see people get are Tein STech Lowering Springs.

What do you people think? Share your thoughts, experiences, preferences, opinions and so on.

I am still largely learning about the 240sx and am a newb.

Coilovers are not even good for street use are they? Too hard/stiff? Plus the prices are insane! 1500$ and such… wow… I don’t believe this is the route I want to go at the moment hell no… I’ll also have to work on other parts of the car, KYB GR2 shocks seem like a descent start and definetely better than what i have but… anyways hmmz

Thanks alot, sorry if I sound very newbish :slight_smile:

2

hey man… good thing your asking qustions…

well many people will tell you to get coils cause they are good for both street and track, but think of this, when you drive you will do something stupid and screw up and think its the coils improperly adjusted etc, as when you get springs and shocks you will face the facts and actually try and fix your mistakes instead of adjusting yrou coils, go coil in the future when you are driving hard seriously, no need for them yet, and its too expensive, just learn everything on springs and shocks and than when you understand what to do and how to control your suspension when driving, and feel the need for coils than go coils

as for experience: i have tokico shocks and eibach sport lines, the front of my car is a little high, but now i feel like its good cause the front is heavier and engine momentum up and down plays with gravity thats why it needs to be a little higher, otherwise it isnt too bad, but isnt the greatest, thats my opinion

3

no complaints with my tein S-tech springs…

many tell me eibach are better, but I got a good deal, and as such am very happy with them…

They’re not to low that I scrape, even with tons of shit in my car, say an rb motor in the trunk for example…

my $0.02

4

I used to have Eibach sport line kit springs on my 240sx and I was happy with them, I switched to Kei office coilovers later on but not because I didn’t like the Eibachs I switched because I wanted to drop my car lower, If you are gona go with springs Eibach sport line springs and KYB AGX struts make a good combo.
If you don’t mind spending the money then Kei office coils are great or even Tein too, that’s my opinion.

5

good to hear that you’re starting the mod game from the ground up.

imo, suspension upgrades should always come first… however, i really don’t think your decision should be based on price. there are so many options available that the difference between a new or used set of coilovers vs. spring/shock combo is negligible.

unless you’re building a track monster, ride height and comfort are your main concerns.

you should think about where and how you drive your car (ie. highway, city, country). even things like encountering speed-bumps or underground parking garages on a daily basis should be considered.

what look are you going for… aggressively low or moderately lowered?
wheel and tire choices also come into play.

fyi, KYB GR2 are merely OEM replacement shocks and are not meant to be used with lowering springs (you’ll blow them in no time).

make your decision based on personal factors rather than opinions of others and you won’t regret it. :thumright:

personally, i don’t think Eibach Pro-kit lower the car enough… and while i preferred the “drop” of Sportlines, i found it uneven looking (front-end higher than the rear). so i now roll with a pair of Tein HR coilovers up front and Eibach Sportlines with adjustable KYB AGX shocks in the rear… and it’s perfect… for me, that is.

6

Hmm… so GR2 are a bad idea? A few people told me they’d blow up on eibach or tein springs… too much stress…

I was just told that AGX are a better solution… but I believe they are double the price. I don’t like the cheapning out route, but, I am taking it easy and tring to plan, I definetely don’t want coilovers at the moment… I think… unless the price comes the same (with springs and shocks together ending up being the same as a coilover).

Hmm…

Well… I’m mainly restoring this car… and it’ll be my daily driver… to begin with… but I would like to experience a little track time eventually…

7

This thread has a few pics remaining that might help or give you ideas:

http://www.son240sx.ca/forum/viewtopic.php?t=5228

You should consider getting Tokico’s off eBay, they’ll be cheap and will work with lowering springs.

8

doesn’t a couple people on here have coilovers for sale? i don’t know where you’re getting your springs and shocks from, but $650 for D2s or $800 for MRs are unbeatable.

anyway, that’s some food for thought, the most economical way is to buy someone’s used setup. that way you can also ask them about how they felt and what they’d improve on it.

i’m running GAB 4ways in front and GAB 5way in rear with KGMM S21 springs. they’re not a crazy spring rate, and the car feels pretty solid. compared to 8/6K coilovers, they’d be really mild. the GABs are done though. i need to change them. i’ll probably go with KYB AGX, my cousin had tokico illumina and they didn’t last long at all, and his car is lowered about 3/4" only on H&R springs.

9

Im running the GR2 shocks with the megan springs and its a pretty decent ride. No problems with the shocks blowing on me as of yet. how ever this is not the setup im sticking with it was cheap and temporary but gets the job done a bit better than OEM.

10

Hmm… so many solutions… but money doesn’t grow on trees. If it did it would be easy to spend 1000-3000$ on some kind of insane setup…

I wouldn’t want to lower car anymore than 1.0"-1.5"… that’s another thing.

The only reason I woul get coilovers right now would be if I can get the same price as some good shocks/springs setup… other than that I don’t need any extremities… this is a car project that has just began and I have to do alot of planning…

For instance, I also have to rework the brakes… I’ll tell you how it stops right now. Barely! You have to press the pedal ALL THE WAY and then it still barely catches… the feel is mushy… so at the least, I need new pads and something like steel brake lines.

The rotors are apparently new and replaced by the seller though… but tiny. Stock calipers.

So I have alot of work to do on this car… I am not intersted in creating a road warrior for the track… I mean that’s nice to dream… but it’ll be first my daily driver I have to make it first capable.

I know there’s alot of experienced people on here and people who do track days alot, but I am not ready for any of that yet… I am just doing a little bit of research and planning and my first priority is to restore the car to a descent new shape. I am still learning about this car too…

11

i will vouch for the AGX’s because i have them front and rear and they give of a good stiffness. I also have H&R lowering springs which lower the car but not an insane amount where when u go over something your not gonna scrape. I would definately go with AGX shocks though and whatever preference in springs you want.

12

http://www.texas240sx.com/forums/showthread.php?t=138

here is a good link comparing stiffness and height of springs might help

13

Wow! Awesome find!

That one other link that was posted had broken links and images in it (one son240sx thread trying to compare various springs visually).

14

Hey, I’m running KYB-GR2’s and H&R springs. So far so good . Its a nice ride and was cheap to put together.

15

I ran KYB AGX’s and Tein S-techs for a season, great setup.

16

Ok I’m pretty sure im going for KYB AGX’s

I just gotta decide on springs now…

17

Im in the same boat as you, Ive got the Tokiko’s and not sure on springs yet but leaning towards Eibeck sportsline for the aggressive stance.

18

^^^ Eibach Sportlines are lower that most others, but I wouldn’t call it an ‘aggressive stance’ at all… the front will still be significantly higher than the rear.

I ended up swapping out my fronts for a pair of Tein coilovers just to get it lower.

K

19

Well one thing I might have not mentioned also is that I intend to when it comes to handling build a car in the long run that’ll have good grip handling, not slide-factor… if that matters to anyone… that’s my desire and intention with the car anyways.

I’m pretty 100% on the AGX’s now though.

20

Thank heavens for fire retardent underwear …

Anywho, the GR2s are not OEM shocks. They are actually re-engineered to outperform OEM. Not by miles, but they’ll take a pretty healthy drop ( I was running 2.5" drop springs, about 250-300% stiffer S/R than stock)

Unfortunately a lot of guys don’t use bumpstops, and end up ruining their struts in a hurry.

My 2¢

Build your car for what it spends the most time doing.

If you’re going to be on the track once a season (equates to about .001% of the driving you will be doing) does it really make sense to go with track-bred suspension?

Coilovers were not engineered to a) last b) deal with shitty roads.

If 99.999 % of your driving is going to be spirited commuting, you don’t need coilovers. Save your $2Gs

Then you also have oodles of people who buy coilovers for height adjustability alone.

The problem with most aftermarket lowering springs is they are designed to lower the car, but not actually affect the handling much.

ST, Teins, Eibach, etc all have maybe 15-20% firmer spring rates. The handling difference, especially when paired with cheap struts, is going to be pretty sad. I posted a link somewhere in tech a while back with the spring rates for all available lowering springs for S13/14. Not a single set is even close to being considered a performance spring. Most are barely cresting 200/lb-in

For under $300 CAD I had a set of 4 lowering springs custom made for my car (not an S13/14/15). I was able to pick and choose my ride height and spring rate.

For $291 cdn, taxes, shipping everything … I got a set of 8kg/6kg (450/350 lb-in) 2.5" drop springs, that came powdercoated blood red, with new rubber insulators.

My car sat nice and low and handled really well. The ride wasn’t harsh or bouncy.

Springs are just that, springs.

Canuck Motorsports/SSC made them. Yeah, I had to hook up a group buy, but with spring coming, it shouldn’t be too hard to find a few guys on SON that want non-weaksauce lowering springs for under $300 for a set of 4.

They probably already have stock on S13s, so all you’d have to do is tell Geoff (the guy that runs the place) to make them with a stiffer spring rate.