Lowered Cube comfort

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Square1
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So, for those of you who have lowered your Cube with aftermarket springs, what do you think of it.

I know some of you have already done this and I'd like you to be as honest as you can about the ride quality, and bottoming out your shocks.

I plan to lower mine simply because I like the look. I'm not at all doing it for improved handling, if better handling is a by product then great. My Cube is going to be used as my daily driver, I don't race anymore so the aspect of improving handling is much lower on the list of importance than the ride.

I've been doing Sport Compacts for many years and one of the things that always made me cringe is how some people won't even be honest with themself. Often people will swear up and down that their lowered car's ride was very similar to stock. But when I ride in the car I find it pretty harsh or bouncy. Some people won't admit that their choice of springs were a bad choice, and since they're vested in what they bought they defend it regardless of the reality.

One of the things I've learned is that you can't always depend on brand name or price being the better choice.

I've done 100's of sport compact suspensions over a span of 10 years, many times a no name coil spring would ride and hold up better than the "High Dollar" competition and experience and information is the only true test.

I realize the Cube is a very new car so there's not a ton of data out there yet. But if those of you who are running on lowered springs would give me some good honest feedback I'd really appreciate it. - Dan

I don't want it slammed so coil overs aren't being considered, and living on a retirement income coil overs are cost prohibitive anyway.


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damian666robin
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it depends, i lowered the cube when i still had the oem wheels and didnt felt almost no change on the ride other than better handling.consider the size of the tires very thickthen i jumped on 18 wheels with a 35 tire series and it did got a bit stifferi think hitman haves 18 wheels with 45 series tires so you would have to ask how his cube feels when it comes about comforti also know there,s a couple cube owners with 17" wheels you may wanna ask thems, but overall if you gona end up on your oem then dont worry, because the comfort doesnt change much at allwe gotta wait for a cube owner that dares to put 19" wheels on it, but comfortly wise i think you shouldnt go bigger than 18"

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phreakanimal
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I use Tanabe DF210 springs in my xB and the right is just a hair stiffer than stock. It isn't bouncy, just when I hit a pothole or dip in the road then it is firmer than stock.

I've heard that the Megan racing springs on the Cube ride pretty good but that's as far as I know...

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AZhitman
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I have the Megans, and I'm pretty sure the OEM shocks have suffered from the drop.

I'm looking for replacements that will work with the lower stance.

Square1
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Car: 09 Cube

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Hey thanks for the input folks. I hear the Megan's have a pretty nice stance while at the same time ride pretty close to stock. I'm not to worried about bottoming out the rear shocks. I have a good crossover chart that once I know the dimensions of the rear shocks I should be able to find a shorter replacement that will cure that problem. The front struts however are a different story. I'll just have to wait till someone makes shorter replacements.

How about alighment. For those of you who are running on lowered springs, when you had your alignment done were there any camber issues.

As far as tires and wheels go I'm going to stick with my stock 15's for the time being. When I do replace them I'll most likely go with 16's.

Having been involved in the Sport Compact's and low riders for the past several years I'm done with that. I'm tired of the ride quality of a lowered car coupled with huge wheels and rubber band tires. I like tires with plenty side wall for both comfort and wheel protection. I'm now interested in making my Cube look better and at the same time retaining most of it's comfort. - Dan

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AZhitman
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Dan - Alignment is always an issue when you lower a car.

See my post in the Versa forum (applies to the Cube as well) regarding what I had to go through to get my Cube alignment done after lowering.

Square1
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AZhitman wrote:Dan - Alignment is always an issue when you lower a car.

See my post in the Versa forum (applies to the Cube as well) regarding what I had to go through to get my Cube alignment done after lowering.
AZ, I've done lots of drops and know an alignment is alway required but I'm not familiar with the alignment on the Cube, thanks for pointing me to your other post.

I've done the rear shims on other cars before and know how to install them and may even have a set lying around. After reading your post now I know they'll be needed.

But what about the front? Is the camber adjustable? Many cars I've done in the past have fixed camber (no adjustment built in). And on these cars we either had to modify the upper strut mount or install an aftermarket kit. - Dan

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AZhitman
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Cool deal - I wasn't assuming you didn't know... Sometimes I write for other readers as well, not just the immediate audience.

Whatever they did to the front brought mine back in spec, so I assume there is a camber adjustment... Lower strut mount perhaps (like the 240sx)?

Square1
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AZhitman wrote:Cool deal - I wasn't assuming you didn't know... Sometimes I write for other readers as well, not just the immediate audience.

Whatever they did to the front brought mine back in spec, so I assume there is a camber adjustment... Lower strut mount perhaps (like the 240sx)?
No offense taken AZ.

I do appreciate the info you've provided. I'm just trying to decide what springs I'm going to use. I want to have everything together when I do the swap so I can get my alignment done without delay. - Dan

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AZhitman
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Knowing that there's only a few factories that even MAKE springs, I'm inclines to forego the marketing hype and go with a less-expensive option.

A lot of the supposedly "high-end" springs are made by the same companies that supply the lower-end models - The difference? Powdercoat color and packaging.

I used the Megans and haven't seen any reason to spend twice as much.

Square1
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AZhitman wrote:Knowing that there's only a few factories that even MAKE springs, I'm inclines to forego the marketing hype and go with a less-expensive option.

A lot of the supposedly "high-end" springs are made by the same companies that supply the lower-end models - The difference? Powdercoat color and packaging.

I used the Megans and haven't seen any reason to spend twice as much.
I'm with you on this one. My years of experience in lowering cars has taught me one thing. Price and a name isn't everything. There are only a handfull of company's winding springs and they do so for many resellers. During my Ford Focus days we found that more often than not, we got better results from the lesser brands than their high dollar counterparts in both ride and cost.

After reading several posts on the subject, I'll most likely go with the Megan's. So far I've heard only good things about them including price. The stance looks good to me and from what I've read the ride is similar ro stock.

Thanks again, Dan

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elDizzle_foShizzle
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Joined: Mon Jul 06, 2009 7:23 pm
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got the megans. based on my experience with my other lowered rides, these maintain a totally comfy feel. I even had a couple buddies ride in after i installed, and they couldn't tell, except when we were merging on onramps and corners. very compliant and confident. and for about $150 you can beat their value.

i had an alignment done. they could only do the front and they were pretty close to neutral. they weren't able to do the rears cos shims weren't available and i think i'm more than .5% off. gonna need to rotate more often or until they wise up and get shims.

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damian666robin
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i actually like the look of the wheel a little angled due the no alignment gives it a hint of those lexus vip

any local cubes wanting to get the megan springs i can hook you guys up with my price (local) i cant really say the real price but it is below the $90

Square1
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damian666robin wrote:i actually like the look of the wheel a little angled due the no alignment gives it a hint of those lexus vip

any local cubes wanting to get the megan springs i can hook you guys up with my price (local) i cant really say the real price but it is below the $90
man I would take you up on this, but unfortunately I'm not local

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damian666robin
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Square1 wrote:
man I would take you up on this, but unfortunately I'm not local
yeah the only reazon i can do it locally is because they know me for a few years now and they know sometimes i hook up my friends or other cars involved on the show scene if they see me buying some megan products and find out im shipping left and rite they may get mad at me you know...

Square1
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damian666robin wrote:
yeah the only reazon i can do it locally is because they know me for a few years now and they know sometimes i hook up my friends or other cars involved on the show scene if they see me buying some megan products and find out im shipping left and rite they may get mad at me you know...
I understand, it takes a lot to build up a relationship with local vendors and we wouldn't want to screw that up. Too bad we don't have anyone here out in the sticks of TN.

ViolentRunning13
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damian666robin wrote:i actually like the look of the wheel a little angled due the no alignment gives it a hint of those lexus vip

any local cubes wanting to get the megan springs i can hook you guys up with my price (local) i cant really say the real price but it is below the $90
Hey I want in on these springs. Hit me up on aim or something.

Jers03

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damian666robin
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ViolentRunning13 wrote:
Hey I want in on these springs. Hit me up on aim or something.

Jers03
email sent

ViolentRunning13
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For some reason that email is not working for me right now.

Could you email me at [email protected] ?

Thank you.

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1HoTcUbE
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Just got my springs in today from Bean Garage..great guy to deal with! Pending install with the +0 offset wheels this week

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superskunk
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i have a set of 20" inch rims sitting in my backyard if anyone dares, i used to have them on my Versa...

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damian666robin
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ViolentRunning13 wrote:For some reason that email is not working for me right now.

Could you email me at [email protected] ?

Thank you.
ok i will, yeah the previous email failed


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