Lowering

Wheels, Suspension, Brakes & Tyres questions and answers

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Tezzax5
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Lowering

Postby Tezzax5 » Tue Sep 16, 2008 9:02 am

AZNTieN wrote:Alright

So I've been wanting to lower my NB8A for a while now
But I want to still be legal height (I heard it was 100mm clearance)

does that 100mm clearance include the plastic under tray under my engine?

I'm looking at Tein Super Street Coil Overs
Is it worth the $$

And whats the best price you've gotten on these in Brisbane


Have a chat to NMX516 or spyvspy as both have SS fitted in fact it was NMX516 that convinced me to spend the dosh.
Coming from bilstein's with less than 75k on the clock to SS was an absolute relevation.I actually want to drive the car more than 2 hours at a time.I know i could of done things cheaper but i got the edfc with it.Nice and soft round the burbs and the ability to firm things up when curves appear...
Ask some the Brisbane NB guys to take you for a spin......You will be impressed
Like the people here have said...Do it once do it right.

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TieNN89
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Postby TieNN89 » Tue Sep 16, 2008 9:30 pm

aww now all i need is the $$

i guess if i get coilovers i can have them down low or 4x4 height if i wanted too :)

now my stupid question is with the tein ss installed am i able to adjust them up to stock height?


before i start dreaming on about having coil overs

am i right to say

having them i'll beable to adjust

comfort levels - stiff or soft

i know the stock gear is pretty nasty on the back especially on those aweful roads we traveled on on Sunday so will I beable to adjust it so when I'm dailying that its a much softer ride?

So If i have the setting on stiff = less body roll soft = more body roll?



now with height adjusting

How much higher than stock height and how much lower than stock height can I go?

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TieNN89
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Postby TieNN89 » Tue Sep 16, 2008 9:33 pm

Tezzax5 wrote:I actually want to drive the car more than 2 hours at a time.I know i could of done things cheaper but i got the edfc with it.Nice and soft round the burbs and the ability to firm things up when curves appear...


just wondering How fast does it take to adjust from soft to stiff

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Tezzax5
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Lowering

Postby Tezzax5 » Tue Sep 16, 2008 9:55 pm

Press a button and the car transforms in seconds..... :mrgreen:

Source the SS here in brissie(don't forget qld mx5 club discount) and buy the edfc overseas.. :wink:

And yes i'm just below stock height..

And if you ever upgrade to one of those hairdryer powered nb's you can take the setup with you...Just don't throw the old suspension out....

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marcusus
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Postby marcusus » Tue Sep 16, 2008 10:29 pm

philz wrote:Do it once do it right.

Amen! It's silly doing something like upgrading springs, then upgrading shocks, only to find out you want to get coilovers. What a waste of time and money. Research everything correctly, assess everything impartially, and just do it right from the get go.

AZNTieN wrote:now my stupid question is with the tein ss installed am i able to adjust them up to stock height?

Yes. You can probably go higher if you wanted to. The Teins come set at I think the lowest legal height (refer to what Sasso said re distance between wheel centre and guard).

AZNTieN wrote:am i right to say

having them i'll beable to adjust

comfort levels - stiff or soft

Yes. When you adjust the coils, what you're doing is adjusting the fluid flow rate inside the shock. When you "stiffen" the shocks, you're actually restricting the amount of fluid that can move from one part to the other. When you "soften" them, you're allowing more fluid to flow.

AZNTieN wrote:i know the stock gear is pretty nasty on the back especially on those aweful roads we traveled on on Sunday so will I beable to adjust it so when I'm dailying that its a much softer ride?

Yes. That's what I do. Currently I've got my SS set to softest at the front, and one off the softest on the rear. That's what I use as my daily settings. In all honesty, for spirited runs, I haven't changed it off these settings. It's only when I go to the track that I bother to adjust it to full hard. However, the main reason for this is purely because accessing the rear coils is a bit more of a mission than the front coils (accessing the rears involves removing the fuel line panel and the boot trim). If I had easy access, or an EDFC, I'd probably adjust them a lot more frequently.

AZNTieN wrote:So If i have the setting on stiff = less body roll soft = more body roll?

Correct. That being said, the "more body roll" is completely a relative measure. I think even the softest setting is stiffer than the original shocks/springs. That being said, I don't remember what happened last week, let alone what the stock suspension felt like in December last year when I replaced them.

AZNTieN wrote:How much higher than stock height and how much lower than stock height can I go?

No idea how much higher you can go, but why would you want to?
As for how much lower, I had it pretty bloody low when I got them. So much so in fact that I raised it back to the Tein factory settings, which is the wheel to guard measurement that's been mentioned before.
In short, I would say "more than enough" in both cases.

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TieNN89
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Postby TieNN89 » Wed Sep 17, 2008 12:20 am

marcusus wrote:
AZNTieN wrote:i know the stock gear is pretty nasty on the back especially on those aweful roads we traveled on on Sunday so will I beable to adjust it so when I'm dailying that its a much softer ride?

Yes. That's what I do. Currently I've got my SS set to softest at the front, and one off the softest on the rear. That's what I use as my daily settings. In all honesty, for spirited runs, I haven't changed it off these settings. It's only when I go to the track that I bother to adjust it to full hard. However, the main reason for this is purely because accessing the rear coils is a bit more of a mission than the front coils (accessing the rears involves removing the fuel line panel and the boot trim). If I had easy access, or an EDFC, I'd probably adjust them a lot more frequently.


so i can adjust it so its more comfortable than the stock gear?

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sliq
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Postby sliq » Wed Sep 17, 2008 1:45 am

AZNTieN wrote:So I've been wanting to lower my NB8A for a while now
But I want to still be legal height (I heard it was 100mm clearance)


like i said earlier, just get what you need and go with the springs.
i can't brain today.. i have the dumb..

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philz
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Lowering

Postby philz » Wed Sep 17, 2008 1:57 am

dude, have you read anything that has been said?

Sure you can get springs, but with coilovers you can independently adjust them to your liking.

If you get for example king springs, it's at a set height.

It's either gonna be too low or too high/stock height.

Not only is it about lowering, getting springs that aren't accustomed to the shocks will mean a sh*t ride, and might even make your mx5 handling worser than stock.

Coilovers will transform your car's handling. to great > even greater.

Also if you want to reduce body roll, suspension will decrease it. But if you want better results get thicker swaybars.

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sliq
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Postby sliq » Thu Sep 18, 2008 12:31 am

:roll: :roll: :roll:
i can't brain today.. i have the dumb..

wun911
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Lowering

Postby wun911 » Thu Sep 18, 2008 12:32 pm

I think he has to take an NB with SS for a drive, some think like comfort you just cant explain.

If your short on coin install them yourself, get jap spec ones, and forget about EDFC.

If pockets not deep enough, would rather have Tein basic than a mixed bag of springs and shocks.
every ounce counts

Adam_NAclubman
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Lowering

Postby Adam_NAclubman » Thu Sep 18, 2008 12:46 pm

Stance. They go lower

rjastra2
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Lowering

Postby rjastra2 » Thu Sep 18, 2008 7:38 pm

Dont bilstein, koni etc make matched spring/shock sets for the mx5?

Actually.. Koni makes 3 kits depending on your needs. Though only one is a coilover.
Bilstein makes 3 variations as well (though they seem pricey)

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marcusus
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Postby marcusus » Thu Sep 18, 2008 7:51 pm

I didn't think Koni did a coilover? Bilstein do it though. When I was looking, I was considering PSS's and PSS9's. Benny swears by his PSS9's, and I don't doubt their effectiveness. However, the PSS9s are the top of the line Bilsteins and will set you back something ridiculous.

I think the PSS and Tein SS are on the same level, but I'm not sure what the price differences are (although I seem to recall them being in the same ball park, hence me thinking they're at about the same level), or indeed what the differences are between the SS and the PSS.

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philz
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Lowering

Postby philz » Thu Sep 18, 2008 8:37 pm

Koni do make a coilover, but it's not readily available here, you can only get adjustable shocks.

And bilstein are up to $3000 which is mighty expensive.

RG.net
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Postby RG.net » Fri Sep 19, 2008 2:38 pm

as sliq stated earlier, i dont understand why you want to spend 2k to lower your car? by the sounds of it, you dont know what other abilities coilovers have other then lowering your ride height. you can get a matching shock and spring combo for less then 1k, (cheaper if you go 2nd hand, i picked up kyb's for $200 AND they also have knobs you can play with :roll: ) in my opinion, your wasting your money.
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