Suggest a non-coilover suspension setup

[L1MTD]

Currently the car has Tanabe Sustec coilovers, looking to possibly switch over to non-coilover setup and just spring and shock but a little lower than stock. Trying to keep it simple and never will be adjusting height once set.

Any suggestions? I see Spoon has a setup that lowers 30mm from stock.

Hope I’m not derailing too much but can I ask what you don’t like about the Tanabe Sustec setup?

I have them on a car en route to me is why I ask.

[Dave7CDMTYPER]

OP, I think Konis with oem springs is the best "entry level" set up.

[aklackner]

One thing I found with the konis and probably holds true with any damper spring combination was that with the H&R OEM sport springs there was definitely a sweet spot for the adjustment, too far either way of that and the ride deteriorated noticeably. If I understand correctly this sweet spot is probably driven by spring rate used.

For the Koni yellows with off the shelf(ots) valving is probably safe to guess the low end of targeted range is probably ~150lbs/in (a bit softer than stock ITR spring), many have said 550-600 lbs/in is about the upper limit that’s successful with OTS valving. You can sort of find a starting point based on where your springs fall in this range but make sure to try a few settings to get a feel for how the ride changes.

Also worth noting is tires have continuously evolved and although their contribution to suspension is relatively small they can have a noticeable impact on the ride feel. Modern high performance rubber, that’s increasingly designed to comfortably support heavier cars with smaller sidewalls, may help minimize streetability issues that were more glaring in past combinations.

If you go the Koni sport route though keep in mind these have a larger than OEM shaft. This means you’ll either need to use aftermarket upper mount bushings (not included) or attempt to drill out the ITR bushings (unlike lower models the ITR upper damper mount bushings are basically a thick metal washer bonded to the rubber bushing)which I found pretty challenging as the OD is coated with rubber and hard to hold fixed. The OEM dust shields also need to be opened up where the shaft goes through. OEM bump stops will squeeze over a little silicone grease helps. Though if lowering significantly you may want to get new bump stops to preserve the gradual engagement without constantly riding them.

[Dave7CDMTYPER]

Yes, I remember I took my upper mounts to a machine shop to get them drilled out for the konis.

[touringteg]

I have used:

Stock shocks and springs
Tein Monosport coilovers
Tanabe df210 spring on stock struts
Spoon springs and shocks (made by Showa)

The Spoon setup is my favorite. 30mm drop and a good balance for street and track. Thanks Dave7 for selling them to me.

The Tein monosport are way too stiff for my taste. I also wanted non dampening and non height adjustable. I just wanted a simple setup so I can focus on improving my driving skills.

[Hakjai]

Came across this thread the other day:

viewtopic.php?f=8&t=20

Stayed up wayyy too late reading it. A lot of awesome nuggets in there.