About to get first coilovers, anything I'm missing?

[ZOMFGAARON]

Originally Posted by Koa

let me know if you need more help

It didn't work from tapatalk but works on my computer.

[adamg]

Originally Posted by Flat Black VW

Why not just springs? Plenty get a 1" drop and improved handling, save money for other bits.

who goes only 1nch lower

[dem00n]

Originally Posted by adamg

who goes only 1nch lower

People who like intact front bumpers.

[wootwoot]

Originally Posted by adamg

who goes only 1nch lower

People who uderstand what bump travel is.

[Autocon]

Thanks everyone for the ideas and feedback.

I am a bit lost when it comes to "crash bolts" "camber plates" and "adjustable control arms". They ALL seem to adjust camber but are all widely different and I dont see why you would pick one over the other. It just seems the bolts are the cheapest but cost the most to install.

Are these camber adjustment options something that could be added after the fact? Like would I be fine with just the coilovers, see how they feel, decided what I want to go with next, be it camber plates or control arms? Or is it that without one of these, having the coilovers would be almost a waste?

I am a fan of the upgrade 1 part at a time method. Really lets you understand what each part is doing and how it effects the car more so than buying everything at once.

I dont plan to go lower than 1 inch if that makes any difference. As for why coils over springs, I want the adjustablity and ease that coils offer.

[kbye]

Crash course:

"Crash bolts" and camber plates both adjust front camber. Camber plates do it from the top of the strut, camber bolts adjust it from the knuckle connecting to the strut housing.

Why do you need both? Usually you don't. Some coilovers don't come with camber plates, so people run bolts. Some people run both if they need more negative camber than one application alone can provide.

Adjustable lower control arms (LCAs) adjust camber in the rear. The stock arm is not adjustable. When you lower your car, you will naturally get some negative camber. When you increase the drop, you increase camber. That's why you would get LCAs: to dial back and fine tune the camber in the rear. Most people end up with ~ -1.8-2.0 rear camber with a 1 inch drop, that's usually ok to run without LCAs.

I believe the RSR sport-i are unique in that they do not have fine adjustment on the camber plate, it is basically two settings: 0 and -1.5 degrees. I remember Moto-P mentioning it somewhere. Therefore you will need camber bolts for fine tuning. I think you will be fine without LCAs until you start hitting the track. Toe is adjustable from the factory.

Keep in mind that it's always recommended to do an alignment after your suspension is modified, to keep your camber and toe in check. This affects your handling and more importantly (imo), tire wear. Don't neglect camber and toe, it goes hand-in-hand with lowering your car. And as always, remember to search!

[HATED1]

I would recommend getting what I mentioned, I like to get the minimum requirements to ensure that I can get the car back to factory spec without spending alot of income. Everything I mentioned will help when you decide to change tire setups, go lower, or adjust for your track events.

[Autocon]

Originally Posted by kbye

Crash course:

"Crash bolts" and camber plates both adjust front camber. Camber plates do it from the top of the strut, camber bolts adjust it from the knuckle connecting to the strut housing.

Why do you need both? Usually you don't. Some coilovers don't come with camber plates, so people run bolts. Some people run both if they need more negative camber than one application alone can provide.

Adjustable lower control arms (LCAs) adjust camber in the rear. The stock arm is not adjustable. When you lower your car, you will naturally get some negative camber. When you increase the drop, you increase camber. That's why you would get LCAs: to dial back and fine tune the camber in the rear. Most people end up with ~ -1.8-2.0 rear camber with a 1 inch drop, that's usually ok to run without LCAs.

I believe the RSR sport-i are unique in that they do not have fine adjustment on the camber plate, it is basically two settings: 0 and -1.5 degrees. I remember Moto-P mentioning it somewhere. Therefore you will need camber bolts for fine tuning. I think you will be fine without LCAs until you start hitting the track. Toe is adjustable from the factory.

Keep in mind that it's always recommended to do an alignment after your suspension is modified, to keep your camber and toe in check. This affects your handling and more importantly (imo), tire wear. Don't neglect camber and toe, it goes hand-in-hand with lowering your car. And as always, remember to search!

Thanks a ton for this quick crash course kbye. It has honestly been the easiest thing to understand. So many of the things I have searched end up getting me more lost as there way too technical and not a good breakdown for someone just getting into things who just needs the basics first and build from there. So I really appreciate it

[wparsons]

Originally Posted by Autocon

I dont plan to go lower than 1 inch if that makes any difference. As for why coils over springs, I want the adjustablity and ease that coils offer.

What ease do coilovers offer over springs? More things to adjust makes it much more complicated, not simpler.

Unless you're actually going to adjust ride height and have the car corner balanced, having adjustable spring perches is a waste of money. Unless you're going to learn how to properly adjust the shocks (and have people to help you learn), having that adjustability can actually make it handle much worse. A better use of money is to get good shocks that aren't adjustable, and good springs (like a Bilstein/RCE tarmac, or swift spec R combo), and just enjoy the car.

As for buying one part at a time... if you get coilovers (or springs), you'll need an alignment since you're pulling the suspension apart. If you get the camber adjustment parts, you'll need another alignment. There's nothing to gain by waiting (unless you need time to save the $$$) to do the camber adjustment later.

[Autocon]

Originally Posted by wparsons

What ease do coilovers offer over springs? More things to adjust makes it much more complicated, not simpler.

Unless you're actually going to adjust ride height and have the car corner balanced, having adjustable spring perches is a waste of money. Unless you're going to learn how to properly adjust the shocks (and have people to help you learn), having that adjustability can actually make it handle much worse. A better use of money is to get good shocks that aren't adjustable, and good springs (like a Bilstein/RCE tarmac, or swift spec R combo), and just enjoy the car.

As for buying one part at a time... if you get coilovers (or springs), you'll need an alignment since you're pulling the suspension apart. If you get the camber adjustment parts, you'll need another alignment. There's nothing to gain by waiting (unless you need time to save the $$$) to do the camber adjustment later.

Coilovers give the ability to adjust the firmness of the suspension for DD and Track time with just a flew clicks. That is what I meant/am seeking from coils over springs.

Springs while cheaper make you locked into that setting. My buddy has coils on his Miata and when taking it to the track it was very noticeably different when he adjusted from softer to more firm. And that is something I would want and coils seem to be the only way to get that.

Also the ability to drop it an inch lower and get it corner balanced and aligned with my weight in the driver seat is what I hope to accomplish as well.


Your points about not getting things part by part as it will all require a new alignment each time makes a lot of sense. Something I didn't realize and I don't see any reason to not just get it all in one go if I am going to rip up the suspension. So I appreciate the info!


Now time to research front camber plates and control arms :O

[wparsons]

You can get adjustable shocks without going to coilovers, probably better quality shocks than most cheaper coilovers too. You also need to know what you're doing when adjusting shocks. Just because it's firmer doesn't mean more grip, and you can make a real mess of the handling balance if you're adjusting it wrong.

For what you're after, you're probably not going to get any noticeable benefit from corner balancing. Is it a good thing to do, sure, but until you're much more experienced or trying to get every last tenth out of it, it's probably not worth it.

You'll also want to look at different tire sizes if you're trying to squeeze more grip out of it. 225's are better on an 8" wheel, 245's will be a better fit on a 9" wheel next time you need tires.

[Autocon]

Originally Posted by wparsons

You can get adjustable shocks without going to coilovers, probably better quality shocks than most cheaper coilovers too. You also need to know what you're doing when adjusting shocks. Just because it's firmer doesn't mean more grip, and you can make a real mess of the handling balance if you're adjusting it wrong.

For what you're after, you're probably not going to get any noticeable benefit from corner balancing. Is it a good thing to do, sure, but until you're much more experienced or trying to get every last tenth out of it, it's probably not worth it.

You'll also want to look at different tire sizes if you're trying to squeeze more grip out of it. 225's are better on an 8" wheel, 245's will be a better fit on a 9" wheel next time you need tires.

Ok so I always assumed when people mentioned adjustable shocks they were just referring to coilovers. I had always seen "coilovers or springs" and thought that was it. I assumed coilovers were the only way to replace the shocks and have adjustability in that regard. I thought that with springs you were just putting them around the OEM shock housing and that was it. I didn't realize that you could also replace the shocks as well. I assumed that if you were replacing the shocks and springs thats basically what coilovers were for.

Did a lot more reading up over the weekend on shocks and springs and boy was I way off base on all of this :X Super appreciate you taking the time out as it gave me a lot more insight into all of this and kept me from making a purchase so quickly as it seems springs/shocks indeed might be a much better solution for what I want.


As for the tires, yeah I was suppose to get 245's but my buddy hooked me up with his friend who gave me 40% off a new set of tires. Only problem was I didn't check the actual tires sizes they put on till I got home. A really stupid mistake :/ But I will burn them at the track quickly enough ha