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    Springs!

    what springs do you guys use? i need to drop my car and i dunno which ones to buy. is 2" too low? is 1" not low enough? feeedbaaacck pls!
    Tag Team

    #2
    I have the sprint 2" springs. I like them, has a nice drop. Ride isn't too bad, but you will bottom out the struts. I don't personally think 2" is too much, but others will argue differently. Its all a matter of personal preference and will depend heavily on weather or not your doing it to go autox or just for looks. If its just for looks go for the 2" but if you plan on autoxing or the likes get something such as the eibachs.
    2013 Dodge Dart Aero

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      #3
      I've got a set of Sprint springs on my car with Tokico blue struts. Even though my car is dropped 2 inches, it still handles beautifully and weather conditions do not chage how my car handles/reacts. I've auto-x'd my car before and have had no problems with rubbing or anything else. And personally, I like how they look too.

      Adam
      1991 Protege GTR
      1991 Mazda 323 GTR Sedan
      MODS:
      GTR motor swap, F&R Familia strut bars, MX-3 Rear Lower strut tie bar, GTX front bumper, GTX grill, EDM headlights & corners, EDM 323 rear garnish, EDM spoiler, EGT sideskirts, MX-3 seats, GTX steering wheel, EGT glass sunroof, WRX hood scoop (functional!!), and other things that take too much space to list.....
      TO DO LIST:
      EDM/JDM rear bumper
      EDM/JDM power folding mirrors
      Repaint car

      Comment


        #4
        I'll agree, for just tooling around the streets, get whatever, but don't do something stupid like cut springs or get cheapie coilovers just to scrape frame. You still need to react under pressure in traffic and if the car can't handle it, it won't be very fun.

        I'd say the very most you want to go with an off the shelf strut is 2", as i do believe there is only about ~2.5" of travel. By dropping 2" that leaves .5" of travel, cut the bumpstop an 1" that brings you back up to 1.5" Well thats all well and good, but the strut now has to travel longer, possibly farther than it should and will self destruct over a much shorter period of time. I've seen struts blow their guts out the bottom becauase no bumpstops were used with cut springs....pretty cool to see, but wouldn't catch me doing it. It was a hard learned lesson.

        Now if you plan to race, regularly. Then a properly "tuned" set-up is the best way to go. You can still use regular pigtail springs, but other aspects will need to be accounted for or your still fighting an uphill battle. It may not have that drop your looking for, but it will corner on rails. There's a difference between street performance and race performance, a car is setup to the driver and the type of driving your doing. You can spend thousands even 10s of thousands on struts alone on a race setup.

        I still drive my car on the streets every day, but the harsh ride is nice, i like it. Racing does take it's toll on the car, even autox. The obvious, tires, then Brakes, struts, springs, bushings, then the whole car..the frame twists, the subframe flexes as it's pushed to it's extreme limits....it's really pretty cool when you think about it...i wonder how much it infact moves? would be cool to figure a way to measure it...anyway, it's up to you how far you want to draw the line between street driver/race car, that is, if you plan to race at all....but you should at least try it

        My suggestions are Eibach, ST and H&R. All about a 1-1.5" drop. Coilovers, i'd go with Ground Control or a complete kit from PPC.

        Comment


          #5
          Originally posted by MazdaRacer

          I'd say the very most you want to go with an off the shelf strut is 2", as i do believe there is only about ~2.5" of travel. By dropping 2" that leaves .5" of travel, cut the bumpstop an 1" that brings you back up to 1.5" Well thats all well and good, but the strut now has to travel longer, possibly farther than it should and will self destruct over a much shorter period of time. I've seen struts blow their guts out the bottom becauase no bumpstops were used with cut springs....pretty cool to see, but wouldn't catch me doing it. It was a hard learned lesson.
          Yeah, and I would highy suggest getting a decent set of struts (ZX2's) at the same time. Im still on stock struts (we forgot to put the bumpstops back in....oops :p: ) and they are pretty much toast now and bottom out on big bumps, dips, holes, etc.. Have yet to have one blow its guts out though......
          *note to self, buy the ZX2 struts!
          2013 Dodge Dart Aero

          Comment


            #6
            i've got cheapy drop zone coil overs on my car. and it's definitely lowered at least 2 inches with 17" wheels. so far i've not had any problems with excessive tire wear or anything like that. i'll definitely be upgrading the struts and the coil overs at some point in the near future. i've experimented at several ride heights 1in front .5 in back 1.5 in front 1 in back etc... and i've settled on as low as i can go. the difference in ride quality did not change between 1.5/1 and where i've set it now....that of course my opinion.

            i've never bottomed the car out. the worst thing that's happened so far is an occasional tire rub depending on how hard i hit a dip or something, nothing to make me nervous. i had one of my friends drive the car, because i was a little concerned about the suspension travel. he said that i was riding better than he expected considering how low the car is [ tires are almost tucked]. the point is that it handles like a dream. the benefits of a lowered ride height multiply the capabilities of the car as far as performance. the ride is a little bit of a trade off. but its really cool to be able to drive through corners at 50 mph that every one else takes at 40.
            Current Mods
            - 1991 Mazda Protege
            - Coil over suspension
            - Front sway bar
            - 17" wheels
            - Kuhmo 205/40/17
            - Custom Air Intake
            - NextGear Intake Gasket
            - Custom molded front bumper
            Future Mods
            - BMW E36 headlight conversion
            - Custom Turbo system
            - Interior rework
            - ICE

            Comment


              #7
              I have Eibach springs and am very satisfied with them. The drop is about 1" and lowered the car exactly how I wanted it. Right now I am still on my stock struts and they have been hoding up pretty good for the six months that I have had the car lowered. Regardless, ZX2 struts are on the way.
              -------------------------
              '91 LX
              '03 Mazdaspeed Protege #235
              -------------------------

              Originally posted by pigeon
              well if you're a fan of inaccuracy and uncertainty.... then by all means, go set your timing by feel and sound

              while you're out there, you might as well adjust your air/fuel ratio by smell... and your tire pressure by ride height

              Comment


                #8
                Originally posted by MazdaRacer
                I still drive my car on the streets every day, but the harsh ride is nice, i like it. Racing does take it's toll on the car, even autox. The obvious, tires, then Brakes, struts, springs, bushings, then the whole car..the frame twists, the subframe flexes as it's pushed to it's extreme limits....it's really pretty cool when you think about it...i wonder how much it infact moves? would be cool to figure a way to measure it...anyway, it's up to you how far you want to draw the line between street driver/race car, that is, if you plan to race at all....but you should at least try it

                My suggestions are Eibach, ST and H&R. All about a 1-1.5" drop. Coilovers, i'd go with Ground Control or a complete kit from PPC.
                without a tie bar the frame twist is interesting. ever drive up on a curve??when the first wheel goes up all you hear is the creak of the frame flexing.

                also the internal forces in our subframe while driving realy hard, were enough to break something in my suspension setup .
                When you turn your car on... does it return the favor?

                Originally posted by goldstar
                Yes, still have it. It was my attempt to immortalize you in verse.

                A Protege driver named Brock
                Once said 7 seconds he'd clock.
                So his engine he goosed
                With much too much boost,
                And drove a rod through his block.

                Comment


                  #9
                  I know boostedpro has sprints on his car. and I have to say it pretty damn low.
                  I have the BG extreme's on my 2nd gen ..
                  my car and boostedpro's are approx. the same height.
                  bruce
                  photo album|photo album 2 (pbase)

                  dbest1a AT yahoo DOT com

                  Comment


                    #10
                    wow thanks for all the info guys. now when i decide to buy springs, for example eibach . . . their website specifies a specific part number for my car. So that means I cant buy a set of eibach springs unless it has that part number?

                    i assume that is true because there are different part numbers for the exact set of springs depending on what car i input

                    EDIT : what do you guys think of this...
                    Last edited by JProtege; 09-05-2003, 11:03 PM.
                    Tag Team

                    Comment


                      #11
                      Bruce, you have no idea how low my car is now. I reinstalled the GTX bumper and now I have about 1 1/2 to 2 inches of clearance from the ground to the bottom of the bumper. I think I'm going to switch back to the stock LX bumper for the winter so I'm not acting as a snow plow.

                      Adam
                      1991 Protege GTR
                      1991 Mazda 323 GTR Sedan
                      MODS:
                      GTR motor swap, F&R Familia strut bars, MX-3 Rear Lower strut tie bar, GTX front bumper, GTX grill, EDM headlights & corners, EDM 323 rear garnish, EDM spoiler, EGT sideskirts, MX-3 seats, GTX steering wheel, EGT glass sunroof, WRX hood scoop (functional!!), and other things that take too much space to list.....
                      TO DO LIST:
                      EDM/JDM rear bumper
                      EDM/JDM power folding mirrors
                      Repaint car

                      Comment


                        #12
                        Originally posted by BoostedPro
                        Bruce, you have no idea how low my car is now. I reinstalled the GTX bumper and now I have about 1 1/2 to 2 inches of clearance from the ground to the bottom of the bumper. I think I'm going to switch back to the stock LX bumper for the winter so I'm not acting as a snow plow.

                        Adam
                        1991 Protege GTR
                        My car acts as a snow plow even with the LX bumper and we don't get much snow here.
                        2013 Dodge Dart Aero

                        Comment


                          #13
                          If your interested in the Eibach Pro Kit for the 1st gen, I would surf around eBay for awhile. You'll pick them up cheaper that way. I got mine for $175.00
                          Scott
                          '94 Protege LX - gone, but not forgotten
                          '96 Volvo 854T Platinum Limited Edition
                          '98 Volvo V70 T5
                          '03 Mazda MPV GFX

                          Comment


                            #14
                            yeah, even when it wasnt lowered, my car acted like a snow plow

                            Comment


                              #15
                              the best i found on ebay was about 170, plus 30 for shipping.

                              that link i gave are for ST springs and they do free shipping.

                              im not sure what i'll do.
                              Tag Team

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