Yes, the shorter springs result in a lower ride height. The lower you go, the stiffer the springs need to be to prevent bottoming out.

You all have probably seen some lowered Hondas and such that are always bouncing around like they have no shocks. Well this is because they lowerd the car too much for the shocks to handle and it resulted in blown shocks. The stock shocks/struts will work for a while on lowered springs, but yes, the shocks/struts should be properly paired with the springs you want. Companies like Koni can revalve their shocks to be properly paired with the springs.

The other type of bouncing that can happen is when the suspension is so stiff that instead of the suspension absorbing all the imperfections of the road, the entire car follows the imperfections. This type of bouncing is not the oscillated type described above, but rather sudden jerks in the car moving up and down.

 

If the bounce is like a jolt, what is happening is the suspension is bottoming out on its stops.

With suspension lowered, available travel is less (duh). You need stiffer springs to be able to control the bump w/o the suspension bottoming out on a lowered car. comparing length of coil springs vs stiffness and installed height can be misleading indicators as wire diameter and no. of coils has a large impact on the final result.

From an engineering standpoint I can not see why strut wear will accelerate on a lowered car, other than in extreme lowering, its bottoming out will eventually destroy it.

[good] Struts / shocks for lowered cars are built [engineered] to compensate for the lower ride height and maybe even offer some extended travel. Struts / shocks for lowered care are also valved to handle the extra stiffness of the springs. A lot of these have rebound damping adjustment. Too much rebound stiffness will actually hurt suspension performance because the tire is restricted from returning to normal ride height quickly.

Looks like the bunch of you went thru the school of hard knocks in understanding what it take or needs to be considered when lowering your ride.

 

Ok, so what kind of shocks are people using on lowered cars?

Mike E

 

There don't seem to be too many out there yet (I had been hoping for Koni or Bilstein). Only one I know of for sure and was recommended is the Tokico strut / shock package. Adjustable rebound.

This is the source of that recommendation if you want to check it out:

SCOTT NABB
AJ-USA, INC.
www.ajusa.com
scott@ajusa.com
800-877-1911 ext. 124
858-452-8900 LOCAL SAN DIEGO
Performance parts and auto accessories
7:30am-5:30pm PST Mon-Fri 9am-1pm Sat

 

Eibach has the Pro-System Plus kit. This kit includes Pro-Kit Sport Springs + Pro Damper Sport Shocks + Anti-Roll Kit and is available on tirerack.com for $902.

 

Now that Eibach has the Pro-damper kit for the S197 stang, I will be ordering a set and installing it for next spring. I like my Eibach pro-kit but it is time to swap out the shocks.

 

It sounds like lowering your car right can get expensive.

 

It can add up. You just need to be informed before you get started. Generally the lower you try to go, more problems develop and the heavier duty everything needs to get (spring rates / shock dampening) because you give up suspension travel.

Even with a conservative lowering as a minimum you need to plan on realignment (toe and camber) and possibly some panhard bar change out if you are running wide tires / wheels or large wheel offsets. As you have already read, some of the guys are lucky and camber will re adjust to with in spec, some not so lucky. Depending on the final spring rates shocks and sway bars may come into play as well. This game is almost like having a boat .... the money just keeps going in

Some one going for that rice burner look will have more problems to deal with, assuming they care or understand.

 

I think I'll leave my car alone for the meantime - the cost to do it right are intimidating.

 

I'm pretty happy with the stock ride height myself. Plus, if you lower it, I wouldn't be able to do a half-@@@ job or drive it in the winter..... The 18" fanblades with 255's definately do wonders for getting rid of a lot of the gap.

 

what does the Ford alignment kit do? Is the kit different than slotting the struts, or is the same?

How much does it cost?

Is there enough adjustment to get Eibach pro springs back to factory specs?

Thanks.

 

Ford kit is camber bolts, they notch the holes in the struts and then use the proper camber bolts which allows them to adjust the camber.

 

I know this has become repetative but I want to make sure I do this right the first time. My car is going to be riding on 19 x 9.5. I am going to purchase Steeda springs and now I need clarification. Do I also need to buy:

Camber kit
Shocks (and if so will they work with the Steeda springs)
Panhard bar

Anything else?

Can use all the info anyone is willing to give.

 

Steeda claims their kit does not lower the car as much as the Eibach kit, however, if you talk to somethere there a few guys will say, "No, you don't need a camber kit" while others will say you do. It all depends on the car really and honestly, you won't know until after the kit is installed and you go to adjust the camber. Personally, if I had to do this all over again, for the price of the FORD camber bolts, I would have had them installed in the first place. Cheaper than having everything removed again just to have the bolts installed.

Shocks, well if you want to do it right, yes, get proper shocks. Do you need them, no. The ride will be stiffer if you don't replace them and the factory shocks will wear out faster once the car has been lowered. I will be replacing mine with the Eibach shocks.

Panhard rod - if you go with wider tires you will notice that the rear has shifted towards the drivers side. An adjustable panhard rod will fix this. I am going to order one soon for my car, just have to figure out which one to get first.

 

So, if I went with Steeda springs do you know if they are compatible with a different aftermarket shock?

Also if I can't get my car aligned at ford, what kind of shop is capable of doing this? (I know this seems like a newbie question, but supension is not where my knowledge lies)

Thanks for your help!

 

Ford is your best place to get it aligned.

Anyway, if you go with Steeda springs you don't have to stick with steeda shocks. You just want to get shocks that are specifically designed for lowered cars.

 

So in order to this right you need:

* Lowering springs
* Camber kit (why gamble - just get it)
* Adjustable Panhard bar
* Shocks

What sort of $$ are we talking about for all that?

$1000 or more?

 

Well I am not sure about US funds because just the springs here cost me close to $600.00 CAD. I just searched the net and see that the pro damper shocks are going to run around $500.00 US. That does not include the springs.

 

I took mine to be aligned finally today and it has to have the camber adjustment kit to be aligned properly. So the Steedas require the plates also. I guess that proves it, don't believe everything you read.

 

That's why I would get the camber kit from the get go. It's a lot less aggrovating and time consuming to have it and not need it than to not have it and need it. You may also not save much by not getting the camber kit.