Coilover vs. Lowered Spring/Shocks

[xintersecty]

I just got my coilovers on the car. I am really not pleased with the ride. Fantastic around corners! However considering this is my daily driver, and I have to go over 7 speed bumps just going into the office, I may drive myself crazy.

Granted I don't have the super expensive coilovers. They are low end quality like raceland. I tried to get ones with softer springs. So the front is a bit harsh. I can deal with that. What kills me is the rear bounces. Since I am using MKII shocks from the Rabbit World (pun intended), the rear shock travel is more than the current frame geometry. So what happens, the rear end rises and then bounces down on the spring.

This causes a bit of bounce bounce bounce oscillation effect after hitting a bump. Or when the road is a bit wavy, the oscillation starts up until the road smooths out.

So I think we can all work on a solution and learn from each other. So I encourage a reasonable logical discussion. I plan to do some videos of my current setup, so we can have some good evidence on ride quality. I also discourage trolling or religious wars.

I am considering getting these springs:

H R Sport lowering Springs 2004 Up Chevrolet Aveo | eBay

I know a couple people have put these on their cars. Comments welcome.

[northguest47]

subscribed.. we are going for similar setups, Xintersecty, as i was going to go with Rokkor mkii coilovers on the front and H&R lowering springs on the rear (with airbags).. since they both sell as sets i would have the mkii rear coilovers left over and the front h&r springs to sell on the forum if it all works out... im interested to hear what the experienced have to say too. One thought for discussion - would putting wheel spacers on the front 'soften' up the ride a teensy bit because of the slightly wider stance?

[xintersecty]

I just spent a weekend in Atlanta for a dance even for the weekend. I drove up friday night and GF and I went over for friday dancing. Had issues with the ride and it's really harsh hitting a transition in the highway at 70MPH. The front end whams then the back end oscillates. In the parking lot, the tires would rub on the springs on really steep turns. So I may have to get spacers. This week I am planning to put together a video showing ride quality.

As for wheel spacers, I think that extra, 1/2 inch is not going to be enough to soften the ride. Most of us already riding the stiffer tires and shorter walls. So all that energy is transmitted into the spring. That spring is only to defect so much. Currently I am using MkII coilovers on the front.

I can't even put a shoe in the front (between the tire and fender). Personally if there was a coilover that was a bit taller (more travel) with a softer spring, the ride would not be as bad.

I am curious Northguest47, what is the purpose of the airbags? I do agree with the not using the rear MKII coilovers as they are really too tall for the rear.

So the tradeoffs with a lowered car are, hitting more stuff vs. lowered center of gravity. Personally I love the way the car handles being lowered.

The tradeoff using adapter coilovers is much cheaper vs a harsher ride.

I don't know enough about the lowered springs to say what are the tradeoffs.

[northguest47]

Xintersecty, the reason for the airbags is for towing with the car - since I have the audacity to do it, I want to do it right, and so being able to level the rear end is why for handling, braking, safety, etc. (I'm building a super lightweight, aluminum, travel trailer/cargo hauler, but that's another story).

I too want the coilovers with Rabbits endlink adapter kit for the handling, I care a lot less about ride quality. Now I had some pm's with Rabbit a ways back and he spoke favorably of the H&R lowering springs - he said they really did improve handling and that the spring rate is also better than stock. But he also said for the rear the mkII coil-overs can go almost to stock height (I've heard to -1"), which for my towing setup could actually be a good idea, but then I'd have to jack the car and remove the tires every time I want to adjust the height - I like the idea of just hooking up a 12v tire compressor, and 20 seconds of 'ffffft', 'fffft'. The only negative I've heard about airbags is that one can puncture them, a risk I'm willing to take to have the adjustable rear ride height.

I've got the funds and I'm ordering the rest of the stuff today - the Ultraracing Stuff from nextgen has the longest lead time.. but in April this setup will be done, so if your still looking into stuff then, I'll give you my feedback and post a whole thread on the session with pics. To get back on topic we need someone to chime in about what options there are for shocks - I am new to suspension and after reading about your 'bouncing' I want to make sure my car doesn't suffer the same effect. OEM?, Sensen?, does it really matter considering the rear axle of this car rides about 1020lbs (front is about 1620lbs) with the rear seat removed?

[xintersecty]

I have a tow setup on my car too. However I use it for bicycle and have not towed with it. It has been tempting considering I have a super light jet ski, Seadoo Spark. I would not tow my RXT, that gives my Ranger a fit at 900 pounds.

I am excited to see what you do with your ride height and airbags. Please do take the time to document the implementation.

I had a discussion with an other engineer (car guy) regarding shocks. He seems to think that the damping should be picked first and then the spring second. In my case, I just bought a set of shocks for MKII that have a fixed spring and fixed damping. Considering my ride, it could be I have crap shocks (bad damping). I am not sure at this point and until I get some video with expert opinion.

Here is a great article that covers the spring and dampening.
Shock Tech - Compression, Rebound, Twin vs Mono, and more

[xintersecty]

So I placed an order using the HR application finder. I am getting these springs:
Amazon.com: H&R 50701 Sport Spring: Automotive

I am getting these shocks:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002T07098/

It will be past Easter when the parts come. By then I should have my video done. Once I make the swap, I will be selling my coil-overs and rabbit anti-sway connect kit (which is very nice imho).

[Aaron_Angstadt]

I just purchased these springs too! Very excited to install them. Question though, my car has 50,000 miles on it. Should I replace the rear shocks while I'm at it or would it be fine? Thanks.

[xintersecty]

I just purchased these springs too! Very excited to install them. Question though, my car has 50,000 miles on it. Should I replace the rear shocks while I'm at it or would it be fine? Thanks.

SilentPaul on Amazon posted this review:

I replaced my OEM springs on my 2007 Chevy Aveo with these. The springs are compatible with OEM shocks but, I wasn't too impressed with the ride! It looked great but the stock shocks were too wimpy and often bottomed out! Especially at highway speeds! It felt like the springs were working harder than I thought they should so I replaced the OEM shocks with KYB GR-2 shocks and struts and its an INCREDIBLE improvement! The combination of H&R springs and KYB shocks made it handle AND LOOK better than stock! I got an inch and a half drop all around. Hope this helps!

My own shocks were way past dead. So I needed a change out too. You can do a road test and follow the advice of this video (by our own RockAuto!)


I was searching an other forum regarding how long shocks last and I found this bit O'advice:

Shocks are a wear item. By the time you have 70K or so on them you'll probably see a very noticeable difference by replacing them. That doesn't mean they are 'bad', but a shock doesn't have to start leaking to have lost most of the ability to do its job.

[Aaron_Angstadt]

That answers my question! Thanks again.

[Aaron_Angstadt]

Springs installed! Very pleased and love the look. Pictures to come soon.