To lower or not to lower....

[cooldandani]

Hmm definitely need to think this out more... Too many do its and don't do it lol

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[Bonburner]

i personally dont want to drop it until i opt for 18"s
im satisfied with how low it is from the floor (if not too low - its my dd) .. the gap isnt the best imo though and could lost half an inch or so

[Gen]

Originally Posted by N1rve

If I were you, I wouldn't lower the car. Subaru and Toyota spent TONS and TONS of money on engineering the suspension to create that perfect balance. I wouldn't want to ruin that.

They spent tons of money to ensure it fits budgetary goals and appeals to 95% of their target audience while meeting regulations and warranty requirements. They absolutely could have engineered better suspension. It's not bad, but it's designed for a 25k car.

[N1rve]

Originally Posted by Gen

They spent tons of money to ensure it fits budgetary goals and appeals to 95% of their target audience while meeting regulations and warranty requirements. They absolutely could have engineered better suspension. It's not bad, but it's designed for a 25k car.

Tips for Scion FRS owners #1:

For those who are contemplating on suspension upgrades to make that horrible ride height reduced to handsome looks of many tuner upgraded ones. Take a serious consideration and heed to my advice.

The Scion FRS/ Subaru BRZ (and Toyota 86) has a fairly stiff suspension already from the factory to cater well to the owners who visit the race track. The car is a very refined, -low gravity, center-mass balance car that requires a pretty hefty load of weight shifting to make it whip and turn (a trait of a true sports car, but at the same time, takes a pretty advanced skill set).

Now having said this, installing shorter stroke, stiffer set of suspension will easily overload the stock tires, and the result will be a car that is really difficult to rotate well, and more prone to initial under-steer, making it less entertaining to drive, and a bit more risky.

My advice is therefore, to purchase a proper set of higher grip tire if upgrading the suspension all at the same time, and to choose a spring rate that is mild and soft, so that the agility of the car is not lost due to unwilling suspension, that might be too stiff. Set your shocks very soft if it's adjustable and increase it only if you can drive it without much "push" or initial under-steer. The FRS and BRZ needs all the suspension travel and shifting of the weight to flick vectors under braking (dive), and depriving it will reduce the fun factor and increase the efforts for the driver to drive it faster.

Stiff, low, suspension and stock tire is about the worst combination you can have in the FRS. Soft compliant suspension and mild drop and healthy set of fairly grippy tires is the only way to NOT ruin a great car, if this is a mild build. 235 width Yokohama S-Drive, Falken FK453, etc equivalent level grip tires, come to mind on a good balance to use for mild street suspension upgrade from most reputable firms.

Full race suspension will almost guarantee you will have a really slow, unwilling car, if you are not a really seasoned driver, and riding on nothing but appropriate RACE compound track slicks.

It's a really well balanced car, an excellent platform, and because of that, it's just that much easier to completely ruin it if you don't do this RIGHT. Needless to say, choose your suspension kits wisely, as the FRS/BRZ is a VERY difficult car to re-tune properly, and the manufacturers must take very careful R&D unlike most others, to properly design a suspension that will actually improve on the platform for this application.

Have FUN!!

Moto-P,
Club4AG.com

/thread

[nyfries]

So in noob terms stickerier tires first and than a mild drop with soft coilover/springs?

[bodayguy]

Yeah, worry about tires first. I went to 18" rims and Falkens. No desire to lower the car. The damn thing is one of the lowest cars I've owned -- I can't believe street drivers want to mess with the suspension more. To each his own, but I'm putting mod money elsewhere.

[N1rve]

Originally Posted by nyfries

So in noob terms stickerier tires first and than a mild drop with soft coilover/springs?

At the same time !

[Bonburner]

Originally Posted by nyfries

So in noob terms stickerier tires first and than a mild drop with soft coilover/springs?

tbh any tires is automatically stickier tires from my POV

[nyfries]

Originally Posted by N1rve

At the same time !

What would be a good set of suspension for street driving than? Maaaybe the occasional track?

[N1rve]

Originally Posted by nyfries

What would be a good set of suspension for street driving than? Maaaybe the occasional track?

I'm not too sure... you might want to check the reviews. According to Moto.. you want a softer suspension when lowered and also stickier tires.

I guess find a coil over set up where you can adjust the dampening. I'd get some 235 wide tires too lol

[Kaleb765]

Idk what to really do myself... I want to just get rid of the wheel gap... But maybe I should wait and buy wheels then decide

[eSOLOR]

I would just get springs with a mild drop (1 inch) and try them out for a few months. That way you can go back to stock if lowered wasn't for you without burning a whole in your wallet. If you wanna go lower/higher and care about all the adjustability then you can invest in coil overs but I think 1 inch is perfect for this car

[headlikeahole]

I'm going to get blasted by all the coilover fanboys for this but.. If you simply want the car to ride a little lower but maintain its driving characteristics, then your best option is a decent set of springs.

Unless you are VERY in tune with your car's handling (lots of track/autox time) you likely wont have any problem with upgraded springs. Most guys with eibach pro kits or similar set ups will tell you the handling is nearly the same as stock only a bit sharper, the ride is nearly as comfortable and the drop is perfect if youre looking for a "factory" look. RCE yellows are also a good choice however the spring rates dont mimic the stock springs like eibachs do and they will change the handling a little more. I'm sure others can suggest lowering springs that mimic the stock ride as well.

Unless you are a suspension wiz, and you plan to adjust your set up often for different situations, coilovers are not justified or needed. The tuner world tends to hate on lowering springs because on most cars, they're not a good option. However the fr-s being nearly perfect in stock form works well with springs alone. Don't listen to anyone who suggests coilovers, then tells you to get the cheap set that's barely adjustable...*Cough* stupid *cough*

The best part is, its a small investment. Dont like it and you can go back to stock with little loss.

[Yellow13]

Originally Posted by HD86

I am driving the car at stock height, and the parking garage I park in has a really steep slope going from the ground floor to the second floor and I always gently scrape my front bumper going up. So just make sure you don't have to park anywhere with any hills/slopes and you will be fine.

Sounds like the One American center. I am in there all the time (used to work there also). Any chance I am right? lol