A completely different coilover question

[OutToWinPAHC]

Soon then later I am getting off of the AGX and S-Techs and going with a coilover. I need to do some homework to figure out what spring rates I am looking for and I want something with preload.

The odd question, how high do your coilovers go? I want to be able to crank the rear up and fit some really meaty drag radials under the car, then click it back down with street wheels and tires. Have any of you maxed them out and how high was it. Stock ride height or lower?

[Dazzla]

I'm pretty sure they will go higher then stock ride height.

[E7-S14]

ive never tried going anywhere near stock with mine.but judging form available travel. they will MATCH ridehight. (Megan Tracks)

[mrgreeneyes]

your "crank it high, then lower it later" theory needs to be rethought.

suspension geometry is gonna be all sorts of goofy if you have it aligned at one height, then raise/lower, then try to reachieve the same height. not happening bro.

ANY good coilover will be able to preload. its simply a matter of upping the spring perch ring higher on the coil, compressing the spring more... which is the opposite of what you want the rear of your drag car to do.... i figured youd WANT her to squat and be a little softer.

youre trying to have the best of many worlds. pick one world, do it well.

and LOL at "click it back down" height adjustment isnt in CLICKS.

you're silly OTWPAHC.

just slam it.

drag is sooooo late 90's/early 2k's....

i mean that with all the love in the world, sweetheart
Modified by mrgreeneyes at 1:29 PM 1/6/2010

[Lonismos14]

This sounds like you havent thought this whole thing out.

This thread is locked until you think some more.

J/K wanted to feel like a mod for a sec.

[OutToWinPAHC]

Its thought out, I didn't go into detail, but I'm not gonna just click it up and go to the drag strip. My spring rates will be softer in the rear then someone who drifts will typically use, but I dont want it super soft. Squatting is good, but squatting too much causes the camber to go too negative and I will loose tire contact patch.

I have access to a really good alignment rack at my disposal.

So when I do want to go to the drag strip I will then crank it up to a a measured height, swap the wheels and have it aligned to a neutral camber, slight positive caster in advance.

Then when I am done running, I will lower it to my cruise/street measure height (lower then where I am now, but not slammed) and put it back on the rack to my specs.

[Lonismos14]

Dude after this is all said and done motor trans body kit and all how much did all this cost you. just curious.

[OutToWinPAHC]

I dont wanna know, too damn much. Its not cheap, heads alone ran me 1300, trans and swap gears is a good 2400 plus freebies. I'm probably about 20,000+

[Lonismos14]

Whhheeewww shat. yup i think after bodykit and coils im done before i get addicted.

[mrgreeneyes]

I dont wanna know, too damn much. Its not cheap, heads alone ran me 1300, trans and swap gears is a good 2400 plus freebies. I'm probably about 20,000+

damn, i tallied mine up the other week, and WITHOUT the cost of my SR, im over $23k.... granted i have a lot more suspension/driveline stuff than the average bear.

id've thought youd be in the $25k plus area once you tallied up all your crazy coolers/heater cores/ random gadgets you added.

and you plan on aligning/realigning before and after EVERY time you wanna go to the strip?

nahhhh.... thats just asinine dude. NEVER gonna work out that smoothly.

just trying to shed some realism on this fantasy parade

[sr20power]

I don't know which coilover you are going to go with.

But I do have experience with Tein Flex coilovers. The rear will NOT go to stock ride height. I haven't tried with the Tein HE's which is on my car, but from the looks of it will NOT go to factory ride hieght either.

So i assume NO on Tein's coilovers.

[IanS]

and you plan on aligning/realigning before and after EVERY time you wanna go to the strip?

nahhhh.... thats just asinine dude. NEVER gonna work out that smoothly.

just trying to shed some realism on this fantasy parade

Why is that an issue? An alignment takes all of 15 to 20 min if you know what you are doing. I think I aligned my S14 13 times last summer. Once my race car is finished I will likely have to align it before every event, plus often times you end up re aligning it between Friday stages and Saturday stages due to broken/bent parts.

[OutToWinPAHC]

If I go to 4-8 drag nightes a year it will be a lot. Alignment rack is the same one Vince at RT tuning used before he got his own. Its at my buddies shop and I we can align it with easy. Less then 30 minutes. So I may spend 4-8 hours of my life aligning a toy car.

[AZ89two4Tsx]

I know my JICs will go up pretty high. I have them maxed out as low as they can go in the rear right now, and that's perfect for me.

They are definitely quality coils too, which is what I'm assuming you're looking for since you don't skimp on things.

[OutToWinPAHC]

I have heard great things about Endura Tech, PBM, and BC so I was thinking about those guys there.

I want to keep a clean look to the car, So I want to keep the tire off the fender without pulling it. If I can get the rear up some (front too so its not too slanted) and fit a wide tire under her without making contact under squat.

So still in the rear is needed, just not rock solid. A 15x10 5.25-5.5BS with a 305-50-15 DR would be optimal.

Much like this S14 but with a lower sidewall, hes running a full 28x10.5 slick

[ILoveMyRHS13]

PBM is definitely not the coilover you want for drag. With an 8k spring rate in the rear, it's WAY too stiff for drag.

[chaosli]

PBM has 6k spring for the rear for 60 bucks

[240lookis]

i am no help on this issue.

but that s14 is bad a**.

[s13beast]

Could always go the k-sport bag set up like AZhitman... raise the rear with the flip of a switch. Goes up pretty high too. I dont know how soft or stiff they are tho...

[OutToWinPAHC]

i am no help on this issue.

but that s14 is bad a**.

Does 9 second 1/4 miles

[assassin7420]

HKS makes drag coilovers for our cars IIRC.

[Gabes13]

how high do your coilovers go?

I was going to start a thread like this awhile ago.Was curious to see if my psms will put me in the nose bleed section.Don't think they will.The rear bottom brackets are kinda small.

[Bumnah]

I'm a fan of KTS.

All the coilovers in the $1000-$1500 range are all the same. I'd probably get the cheapest of the bunch.

The consistency of the shock is what I have the least faith in.

Get monotube, inverted front shocks.Adjustable shock body height, and they're all the same.

If you want quality, the GC/Koni option just can't be beat. You'll be looking at $1500-$2200 range for those.

Ride height MAY equal factory height if you crank 'em up.

Forget all that, get some flares!

Better yet, tub the rear, and put in a 9" ford rear end.

[mrgreeneyes]

didnt realize that you only planned on 8 max events.

that makes more sense.

the "drag" people i know go EVERY weekend over the warmer months.

nevermind. carry on.

PSM DOES make 6k springs. i own a pair. have yet to put them on... but i shall.

[Xdisaster240sX]

Are these going on your Hatch or did you get a s14 that I missed?

[OutToWinPAHC]

Yeah that is the bracket racing guys. I work with a few, and have done it in the past. Too much time required for that. I just do it for fun, work keeps me busy and I rather pay the bills you know.

I asked the endura tech guys to chime in. They offer tons of spring rates to choose from.

A 7/6 would probably be ideal. But its odd, I want to be able to clear a wide tire that is 26-27 inchs tall under squat.

[AZhitman]

Forget all that, get some flares!

Better yet, tub the rear, and put in a 9" ford rear end.

^ This.

MGE is right - Jacking with your ride height is gonna cause all kinds of wonkiness in alignment - You could theoretically wind up with LESS contact patch after all that effort.

You want the front to loosen up at launch, so a lot of travel in the front end is important, and you want to limit rear squat.

Realistically, it's gonna be hard to have the best of both worlds. A drag car is a b**** on the streets. I think I'd focus more on maximizing tire width and stickiness and less on sidewall height.

Hit up PDM and Enjuku - They both have had lots of experience with drag 240's.

[johnny butt]

damn, i tallied mine up the other week, and WITHOUT the cost of my SR, im over $23k.... granted i have a lot more suspension/driveline stuff than the average bear.

id've thought youd be in the $25k plus area once you tallied up all your crazy coolers/heater cores/ random gadgets you added.

damn wtf are you guys using. i've counted mine and I am ~15k with rb25 and full suspension & brakes, silvia front, work wheels, etc...

23k and only sr swapped.....?

to OP: get a S14 subframe for your s13 & start from there. You'd only need to replace one suspension arm / bushing.