ive decided to get new springs for my coilovers that are a bit more suitable for driving in an area with bad roads.
the stock rates were:
front - 2.67 kgf/mm
rear - 4.37 kgf/mm
my coilover rates are:
front - 7.00 kgf/mm
rear - 10.0 kgf/mm
what rates would be a good compromise between handling and comfort?
i take it its on a tc. 10k in the back will deff make for a rough but sporty ride.
i run 9k in the front and 7k in the rear of my 240 and its pretty solid. its so stiff i cant even drive down brick roads n semi rough roads
Stock
F - 149 lbs/in
R - 244 lbs/in
Coilovers
F - 391 lbs/in
R - 558 lbs/in
Had to put it in non sensible standard. I’d say the front is pretty much right on for “very sporty” Deffinately could come down in the rear.
If you are really bored and have a bunch of spare time try switching the front with the rear. I know that a lot of companies, and even OEM manufactures run higher rates in the rear. But it doesn’t make much sense as it is controlling less mass on a FWD.
What makes sense to me based on what I would run on a “hypothetical” 3000 lb Sentra may not work on a TC.
Based on Toyota’s stock rates and the aftermarket suggetsted rate. I’d just split the difference and run say 4.5 or 5 front, 7 rear. That way you only need to buy one pair of springs and move the front to the back.
you do understand that a spring must be matched to a correctly valved strut, right?
if you don’t do this you’ll either blow out the struts, or have a bouncy or skittish ride. Also what the above dude said - weight and weight distribution matters. You also don’t want to overlook the suspension geometry and come up with the best overall compromise.
bah.
They should be. I would guess that his have more than enough adjustability to account for it.
i wish it were that easy. the front and rear springs are different lengths.
the struts do have adjustability in the valving. they are the tein SS coilovers.
i just found on their site they recommend nomore than +/- 2 kgf/mm. so i guess 5 kgf/mm up front and 8 kgf/mm are gunna have to do. so if i wanted to go with 7 kgf/mm or less in the rear id have to get the struts re-valved?
I see:
Taken from:
I assume if I could find a Tein picture it would look the same.
But that article reinforces my 4.5 front suggestion 
The front spring rate is middle of the way stiff, and those rear rates are going to be really stiff.
the 7/10k is a nice sporty ratio to have. why not just run with that? If it really does feel like too much rate for the street then maybe go down a little, but I would keep the same ratio of the teins.
I’m running a little bit higher rates on the street and it’s really not that bad unless I hit a big pothole which I’m careful to avoid. The perfect valving in my case makes the car ride better then stock which always amazes people.
the nice thing about the tein front to back ratio is that you don’t have a to throw a giant sway bar on since the rear is high enough to be neutral vs. the stock “safe” understeer mode.
the rates are that bad on my car…to the point of where i dont even want to drive it. not because of the discomfort of the impact, but because the car is really a challenge to control when going over the rough pavement that is so common in the buffalo area. i just want to be able to enjoy my commute to work again rather than keeping it in a garage and driving the winter beater to work year round like ive been.
do you bottom out the struts?
if so then a lower spring rate won’t help since it will be easier to bottom out. If not then you’ve got the right idea and might want to drop 2k, but keep the same front to back ratio.
If after this you like how soft it became, but want some of the cornering back, then put a larger rear sway on: this will suck up bumps better on the street by effectively raising your spring rate - think of it as a sideways spring. Just remember that going too crazy on the sway will cause you to lift a wheel in turns which causes less traction.
also, even though your suspension travel does not change when you adjust the height, you might want to try raising it up a little.
last of all, you might want to try a smaller rim and a tire with more sidewall.
the strut is definately not bottoming out and the ride height isnt severe. don set it up right when he installed them. the current rates are great for the track and i wish i could tolerate them on the street. but i find myself only driving the car for fun cause thats the only time i can avoid the crapier roads. so i want to try different spring rates before i do something stupid and ditch a $1200 set of coilovers for something more tolerable.
btw, thanks for all the advice theblue