Spring Sag? Fact or Fiction.
 

So I want to lower my car an inch or an inch and a half.
My buds tell me to save $2000 for coil overs.

I don't drift or track, but I may AutoX a couple times a year.
Yes, spirited driving.

So, the guys tell me if I do buy springs they will only be good for year or so then they will start to sag.

Is this BS? or is it real?

To me the bang for buck with $250 on springs seems like a good choice.

If you're just looking to lower about an inch, just go with RCE Yellows and be done with it. Every spring will settle after installation, but quality springs should be fine after that.

They are correct, springs would only last you about a year give or take. Putting aftermarket springs on the stock shocks/struts will only make them wear out faster. As for coilovers, they could last 50k+ miles. If you do labor yourself, you could start off with the springs and when your stock shocks blow, just upgrade to coil overs. If you're paying somebody to do it, it'll end up being more expensive in labor to change the springs on the shocks vs. changing the whole coilover itself.

Some of my friends have had good quality springs for over a few years. They haven't noticed sagging, excluding the initial settling after install. With a spring, you'll probably wear out your struts faster. If you go with a coilover, go with a good quality coilover; you get what you pay for when it comes to suspension. Just realized that you'll eventually need to rebuild them. Everything eventually breaks.

Thanks,

So, it's not that the springs will sag so much as the extra stress on the dampers will wear them faster.

Now I think I get it.

So I'm going to do Tien springs for now, Installed with a buddy. Meanwhile save for a good coilover set.

I don't buy the whole "spring sag" idea at all. I've run two cobras, a Mustang GT and an M3 on lowering springs alone and NEVER had an issue with any of them sagging. All have been for multiple years.

Once again, I went with springs on this car. Like you, I wanted a mild drop and the car DOES have coil overs on it already, they just aren't adjustable. I put on some eibach pro's and couldn't be happier. I would have absolutely gone with the yellows, just got a kick ass deal on the eibachs from a local guy and I couldn't pass up the deal.

Save your money and go springs. I already have the money set aside for when the shocks blow to get some Koni's. You will spend 1/2 the money (with the koni yellows), and with your mild drop and limited track interaction, you really won't need the adjust-ability of coilovers IMHO.

And yes, the car will be autox'd as often as I can get the day off work.

Spring sag. Lol. Okkkkkk. I had eibachs on my 240sx for years and had no issue.
And if springs sag so bad then your stock ones would eventually do the same thing.
Springs do settle. But sag? Highly doubtful.

Coilovers and a spring/shock are essentially the same thing, it's just that the coilover is height adjustable. Saying one sags and not the other is wrong.

A crappy spring can sag whether it's on a coilover or if it's a conventional spring. A quality spring will not sag.

- Andy

Saying coilovers are height adjustable is a pet peeve of mine. The way the term is used by most enthusiasts that's true, although of course it's not a requirement of a coilover (which is obvious).

Agreed on the spring quality :thumbup:

It's true that any spring over shock arrangement (height adjustable or not) is a coilover, but in today's wordage it's just the way it goes that coilover = height adjustable. For better or worse.

For anyone that cares, the stock car technically has coilovers. :headasplode:

- Andy

My advice, dont take advice from that guy anymore.

A quality set of springs will last just as long as the OE springs were can. Check out a set of Eibach springs.

RCE or Swift. I went with Swift for extra 0.20 inches drop.

This is terrible advice. A little drop and minor bump in springrate aren't going to kill your stock struts. And most coilovers that don't cost a fortune are absolute garbage with poor performance and probably won't last nearly as long as stock struts. Even if they did, you could buy OE struts 4 times for what they cost.

If you want to look cool and say you bought something for your car, go for coilovers.

it all depends on quality.