z31 coilover/lowering spring clutter

[shift_fearZ31]

alright, so I'm really tired of bouncing back and forth from coilovers to lowering springs because I just want to lower my freaking car already.I guess I've narrowed it down to Eibach, B&G, or H&R. the plan is to lower my 85 z31 around an inch and a quarter or somewhere in that range, I don't know, I just need it to fit 18" rims and still look classy.I've heard coilover sleeves suck, so I spose that rules that out. I'd rather go the slightly less expensive route with lowering springs and matched shortened shocks. coilovers are adjustable, and since I'm iffy about the height, thats a plus. if i never adjust them, i might as well just buy the springs, right? but apparently coilovers ride quite stiff? idfkI've also been told that lowering springs are a 'you get what you pay for' alternative, and if I can roughly afford to do it once, I would rather not have to pay for it twice.so opinions are always great, and more specific information would be appreciated, too. seeing as I have a feeling it's obvious that this is quite a blurry subject for me. thanksss:)

[AZ-ZBum]

Have you priced coilovers for the Z31?

[shift_fearZ31]

at this point, I honestly don't care. I would rather not spend over $600, but it depends on who I go through. being a girl definitely has its perks, so I would have to do some asking around to see what discounts I can get. I know that no matter what, it will be beneficial to the ride of my car, which is what I'm ultimately looking for. I just need to get opinions about the difference between my two options and then I'll go from there. and if it's more than 600, so what? I live to splurge on my car.

[evildky]

z31parts.com

[AZ-ZBum]

at this point, I honestly don't care. I would rather not spend over $600, but it depends on who I go through. being a girl definitely has its perks, so I would have to do some asking around to see what discounts I can get. I know that no matter what, it will be beneficial to the ride of my car, which is what I'm ultimately looking for. I just need to get opinions about the difference between my two options and then I'll go from there. and if it's more than 600, so what? I live to splurge on my car.

Even the cheapest coil overs you can get would still be over $1000. And then there would be the cost of installing them. No one makes a set of bolt in coil overs for the Z31. This means you have to modify the suspension of the car to install. Custom work means a lot more money. Right now, a guy on another board will modify your current strut housings to accept S13 coil overs. He'll do it for $350. And then you'd have to buy the coil overs. And that would just be for the front. Rear also needs modification.

So your only real option, in the price range you're talking about, is regularly available springs and shocks.

[shift_fearZ31]

okay, so then with all that being said, I'm prepared to pay more, the price isn't really my limiting factor. so let's say that cost didn't matter at all. between B&G, Eibach, and H&R which is the best one to go with? or is there a better one that I'm not even aware of? I'm willing to pay whatever the cost for what I'm looking for, as long as the performance of the product matches the price tag. if I'm going to pay $350 for springs, but they're crap, I would rather wait two more months to spend a lot more money on something that will be worthwhile.

[AZ-ZBum]

B&G springs are crap for performance. The spring rates are too low.Never heard of H&R springs for the Z31. Don't know their spring rates.Eibachs are great springs for daily drivers that see some spirited driving.Z3P springs are the way to go for drop in springs if you really want performance springs.

drop in spring rates:http://z31.com/wiki/doku.php?i...rings

If cost isn't an issue, go get some good coil overs made for a S13 240SX and pay someone to do the work to make them fit. It will probably run around $1500 to $2000 when all is said and done. But if all you care about is performance, that's the only way to go.

[Perrenial Badass]

Performance-wise, do you want something smooth, or something that makes the car run on rails? If a good ride is it, then get the Eibachs. If you want it to handle better, get the Z3Rs from Z31parts.com.

Coilovers are great if you track a car any. But a lot of what people think about coilovers is false. Coilovers aren't any more capable than a spring and damper setup with the same rate/dampening ability. Their advantage is that they are adjustable. That adjustability is only an advantage if you have the knowledge, time, and willing to set them up. There's also the chance that you could set it up so that it negatively affects performance. Either way, a set of coilovers that are adjusted to have the wheel sit exactly as it did stock is a waste of money. You just got a shiny tube to hold it all together. There are more damper and spring selections available for adapted S13 coilovers, but for the price of a set of coilovers you could have springs wound to the rates of your choosing and get a good damper, and probably still have enough left over to get some polyurethane goodness. Or a 5 lug conversion.

I have the Type 1 Z3Rs, matched with some Gabriel Ultra dampers. To do it again I would get the Tokico Illumina adjustable dampers, but the dampers I have now seem up capable of keeping up. I don't really think that the ride is too rough, but I come from Vettes so my kidneys don't notice too much these days. Once I get it back on the road I could let you drive it some since you are local. That is, if time isn't too big of an issue here. I'm having electrical gremlins.
Modified by Perrenial Badass at 12:47 AM 5/16/2009