REVscene - Vancouver Automotive Forum

Doubledown1 · 05-06-2012, 09:08 PM

Not wanting to lower car too much, and spend a lot of Money either. What is the best way to spend the least money and get the best ride quality and performance? Also is it a bad idea to run Ground Control coil sleeves w/ Stock shocks? Help is very much appreciated thanks. 2003 TL w/ 18". The best and cheapest way to go?

MindBomber · 05-06-2012, 09:27 PM

Running stock shocks with any lowering spring is a terrible idea.

Whether to go with Tein Coilovers or Koni/GC is dependent on what specific model of Teins you're looking at.

Doubledown1 · 05-06-2012, 09:51 PM

Just the entry level Tein Coilovers. Something under a grand.

shenmecar · 05-06-2012, 10:25 PM

koni yellows are great. i highly recommend it. perfect for a drop and still be comfortable for daily driving.

Doubledown1 · 05-06-2012, 10:41 PM

But i need something so i can adjust the ride height to my perfection probably like 2 inches max. How much do Koni yellows go for? If say for example i wanted to buy GC sleeves w/ Koni yellows/ Any aprox price? Thanks guys.

westopher · 05-06-2012, 11:26 PM

Find what you really want, and pay for it. Otherwise you will end up just doing it over again. In my last 3 cars I've had 7 sets of suspension, not including the oem

Bonka · 05-06-2012, 11:41 PM

Check out the sponsors for current pricing. Koni normally has x amount off their MSRP prices. I bought my Yellows from Overseas Auto if you want to go local.

You're probably thinking of the Tein Basics? I would personally prefer to go with the GC/Koni setup and if I recall, they are straight drop ins for your TL (not inserts). Koni Yellows are known to be one of the best off the shelf valved shocks for the price but if price is a major concern go with whichever is cheapest between the two.

Also, don't buy into the fad of buying coilovers/shocks that have dampening adjustment. Useless garbage because almost all of them combine rebound and compression adjustment through one knob

Adjustments are non-linear, have massive crosstalk and other nasty stuff.

jtrinh · 05-07-2012, 05:59 AM

The least expensive line from Tein are the Basis now. Just under the Basics. They start at $730 for the TL assuming you have 2nd gen. Koni yellows are going to run at least 500 for all 4 and I'm going to guess Ground control kits are going to be more expensive than just a simple lowering spring. You're already at the same price of entry level coilovers.

MindBomber · 05-07-2012, 06:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Doubledown1

Just the entry level Tein Coilovers. Something under a grand.

To a certain extent, this is a difficult question to answer at the moment. It's only relatively recently that Tein has released the Basis design, so long term longevity remains in question. The Basics were terrible and prone to premature blowing, accompanied by classic Tein rust. Those problems have supposedly been corrected though..

In general, if you're planning on not going very low and comfort is a greater priority than performance, I would go with Tein. If you don't mind a slightly rougher ride, and pure performance or the ability to go very low is a priority, I would go with Koni/GC with higher than the standard OTS spring rates.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Doubledown1

But i need something so i can adjust the ride height to my perfection probably like 2 inches max. How much do Koni yellows go for? If say for example i wanted to buy GC sleeves w/ Koni yellows/ Any aprox price? Thanks guys.

$900 range, make a thread in the vendor forum and get some price quotes from sponsors.

Quote:

Originally Posted by jtrinh

The least expensive line from Tein are the Basis now. Just under the Basics. They start at $730 for the TL assuming you have 2nd gen. Koni yellows are going to run at least 500 for all 4 and I'm going to guess Ground control kits are going to be more expensive than just a simple lowering spring. You're already at the same price of entry level coilovers.

If I'm reading this correctly, you're inferring that the Koni/GC arrangement of a damper with a thread sleeve is inferior to a one piece coilover, and therefore since Koni/GC is at a comparable price point to a one piece coilover it would be a poor purchase. The idea that a one piece coilover is of superior design to a thread sleeve is relatively common, but blatantly false. The characteristics that matter are the quality of the damper, design of the damper body (to a minimal extent), and the quality of the spring. I could turn a Koni/GC two piece design into a one piece in under a minute with a welder and a few tack welds.

jtrinh · 05-07-2012, 07:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MindBomber

If I'm reading this correctly, you're inferring that the Koni/GC arrangement of a damper with a thread sleeve is inferior to a one piece coilover, and therefore since Koni/GC is at a comparable price point to a one piece coilover it would be a poor purchase. The idea that a one piece coilover is of superior design to a thread sleeve is relatively common, but blatantly false. The characteristics that matter are the quality of the damper, design of the damper body (to a minimal extent), and the quality of the spring. I could turn a Koni/GC two piece design into a one piece in under a minute with a welder and a few tack welds.

Sorry, in no way was I trying to infer that a spring and strut combo would be inferior to any coilover. In this case, sleeve and strut . Not trying to mislead OP or anyone else in the community into that sort of assumption. OP was looking for an inexpensive solution and I was just trying to point out price.

Doubledown1 · 05-07-2012, 09:10 AM

i'm most likely gonna go w/ Koni/GC as that seems to be a better choice as far as performance goes i suppose.

MindBomber · 05-07-2012, 10:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jtrinh

Sorry, in no way was I trying to infer that a spring and strut combo would be inferior to any coilover. In this case, sleeve and strut . Not trying to mislead OP or anyone else in the community into that sort of assumption. OP was looking for an inexpensive solution and I was just trying to point out price.

Ah okay, cool. I wasn't sure if that's what you were intending to imply or not, but I wanted to clarify just to be certain since people have made comments along the lines of that ideology before.

chivic · 05-09-2012, 09:16 PM

If you don't mind crossing the boarder tire rack has 20% off koni, yellows or sport should be available for the TL. I picked up a set and had it delivered to Blaine purchased online. Sale ends May! Good luck

artmotion · 05-10-2012, 12:10 AM

I suggest heading over to honda-tech for pricing on this combo. A couple of their sponsors (THMotorsports, Weaksauce.org) have very competitive pricing. Give them a shout for a quote.

Doubledown1 · 05-10-2012, 10:56 AM

Tein SS vs Koni/GC? tHOUGHTS?

subenoob420 · 05-25-2012, 07:10 AM

I can't speak for the Teins, but I have Koni Sport (yellow) inserts on my Impreza with Eibach springs and I love them! The ride is amazingly well controlled and tight. Barely stiffer than stock. Price was fantastic. I got mine from Dale's Alignment/Motorsports in Langley. Give them a call and talk to Jason. He's super helpful.

ncrx · 05-26-2012, 07:31 AM

I'd recommend the koni yellows, if u can get the koni specific height adjustable sleeve hardware. (Koni Racing - ITT)

I'd go with swift metric springs over the eibach's personally, but this may put you over your budget by a few hundred bucks. (Swift Springs USA)

But a few hundred bucks on something that you will have to drive every single day, feel, use.. is worth it.

crazyazn · 05-26-2012, 11:50 PM

Just so you know, GC/Koni is not necessarily more uncomfortable than the Tein. It depends on what spring rates you choose, and with OTS yellows you shouldn't go over 450-500lb/in on a McPherson setup anyway.

I would suggest having a look at H&R and KW to see if they offer anything for your car. IMO euro > JDM in the suspension game.

Overseas Auto1 · 05-30-2012, 02:46 PM

other than Tein, there are no coil overs that are from popular suppliers. The best thing is Koni and a set of good coil springs. I think sleeves are not the best.

When you buy Tein and then you crash your car, you cannot buy a single corner

dvdjels · 06-07-2012, 01:54 PM

^totally agree up there

I run koni's with H&R and have not regret it since putting them in. The koni's are adjustable in stiffness as well and for me, riding at the softest setting feels almost oem. However, the drop might not be intense enough for you. But then again, too much low ruins geometry.

In the end though, like westopher said, pick something you like, or you'll jsut keep changing it.