Wanting to go 1" lower. Spring recommendations?

[Bling]

Just keep it at current height IMO. It doesn't look horrid or anything. Is that small drop really worth spending $2k+ (expect to pay at least 50% of the price of coilovers on top of purchase price to get them installed, certified and an alignment done) to end up with worse handling and comfort?

Pretty much my thoughts. To go lower you have to put a lot more effort than is worth the effort / $$$.

[h8wrxs]

mmmm i still vote cutties....

[siren676]

Find the heaviest optional extra and keep it in the boot

[Dell'Orto]

As far as coilovers (and dampers in general) go, try reading this link that Al posted on the mr2 club forums.

http://farnorthracing.com/autocross_secrets18.html

It might put you off the sort of coilovers you can afford for life. Of course if you want to spend $7-15k on coilovers im sure koni or ohlins will be able to sort you out.

Koni yellows are a budget shock Clearly has far too much money!

[Snoozin]

Just keep it at current height IMO. It doesn't look horrid or anything. Is that small drop really worth spending $2k+ (expect to pay at least 50% of the price of coilovers on top of purchase price to get them installed, certified and an alignment done) to end up with worse handling and comfort?

Hmm, yeah it's starting to sound more and more like it's not going to be worth my while to spend such a huge amount of money on something that isn't going to make a hell of a lot of difference (in terms of looks anyway). I'd be better off spending that sort of money on an engine swap

Slamming the shit out of your car is ALWAYS worth the spend.

[Kiwi-Corolla]

Fit a 3SGTE and e153 box up front and some bags of sand in the boot. Ride height sorted. It will only work for a week though

Haha, with a 3S-GTE in a FWD the ride height would be the least of my worries . It's been done overseas in the past a few times to my shape Corolla though. One crazy bastard even did a full 4WD conversion then whacked the 3S-GTE in

Pretty much my thoughts. To go lower you have to put a lot more effort than is worth the effort / $$$.

Yeah, I've pretty much come to terms with the fact that my car will remain at it's current ride height for a while, at least until I can save up for coilovers. Was willing to sacrifice a bit of comfort by going for lower springs such as Kings SL, but I don't think the Mrs and baby would appreciate having their teeth jarred out on every trip

mmmm i still vote cutties....

Haha, of course you would

Find the heaviest optional extra and keep it in the boot

Hmm, the ultra rare TRD2000 model came with a 3S-GE under the hood, so maybe I could chuck one of those in the boot, lol. I've got an optional extra air purifier in the boot but sadly it doesn't have much weight to it. Or I could be crazy like one guy in Jamaica to an AE92 wagon and make a twin-engine 4A-GE 20v Blacktop (one in the engine bay and one in the boot)

[XSVWGN]

yea i have seen that. And there is also a guy in europe with an old liftback corolla with two 4agtes in it!!! mental

Matt

[Bazda]

As far as coilovers (and dampers in general) go, try reading this link that Al posted on the mr2 club forums.

http://farnorthracing.com/autocross_secrets18.html

It might put you off the sort of coilovers you can afford for life. Of course if you want to spend $7-15k on coilovers im sure koni or ohlins will be able to sort you out.

This is why I supply Fortune Auto shocks - They are not going to break the bank account.
They dyno each shock, the are valved digressive like a Koni/Bilstein so you get a nice comfy ride at low speeds.
The price starts lower than $2k by far, but can go up to $5k if you want external reservoirs
Their top of the range model uses Penske adjusters
ATS racing uses them on all their MR2s and people love the ride quality.

[rollaholic]

and do they supply said dyno plot with each shock bazda, as the link above demands they must?

[Grrrrrrr!]

Hmmm, I might be interested in a set in the future then. If you get a set for an SW20 in i'd love to see a scan of the dyno graph.

[Bazda]

and do they supply said dyno plot with each shock bazda, as the link above demands they must?

Yes they do with their 510 series upwards.
The lower spec 500 series they dont as this is how they keep the costs down for the end user. It can be requested for a few hundred more.
The 500 series shocks goes onto a go/no go shock jig which quickly identifies if its within spec.

http://www.fortune-auto.net/shocktech.htm

[rollaholic]

are the shocks rebranded or do they actually manufacture themselves?

prices seem quite competitive.

[Bazda]

are the shocks rebranded or do they actually manufacture themselves?

prices seem quite competitive.

The shock internals are all sourced in the USA by Fortune Auto - USA made shim stacks, Fortune Autos own designed digressive piston, AMSOIL shock fluid etc.
They do all the valving in house.
I got my set custom valved and all I can say is they feel amazing on the road. Not harsh and bumpy at all,

The mounts etc they source overseas - This is how they keep their costs down. Mounts dont make the car handle. The shocks do

http://www.fortune-auto.net/aboutus.htm

[Kiwi-Corolla]

Probably a good thing I didn't go an inch lower or I would have become beached yesterday

[Kiwi-Corolla]

Bit of an update on this - I ended up finding a set of Super Low King Springs on an AE110 Toyota Levin at Pick-A-Part last Friday and fitted them on Saturday. The only problem is that they haven't made the car any lower than what it was when I had the Jamex Super Lows installed......

The lack of more of a drop is somewhat frustrating, but the thing that frustrates me the most is that the front left corner is higher than the other three corners by about 10mm. Admittedly I installed the passenger's side front spring upside down originally (writing was facing the right way up and this is the way it was installed at Pick-A-Part so assumed it was correct) but flipped it back the right way on Sunday after discovering that the tighter coils should be up the top. Unfortunately this didn't bring the front left down any lower.

The springs didn't have any markings for left or right on them and I know that spring manufacturers usually make the driver's side slightly higher to accommodate for the driver's weight, so I weighed the two front springs and put the heavier one (30-grams difference) on the driver's side. The rear springs only differed by about 3-grams so I also put the heavier one on the driver's side. The top strut bolts were tightened correctly, only when the vehicle was un-jacked and sitting on level ground, so I don't think it's an installation error as I did everything by the book.

Should I try switching the front springs from left to right to attempt to balance out the front end more? The springs shouldn't need any time to settle as they looked like they've already been used for a couple of years, but maybe the driver's side has sagged a bit, causing the passenger's side to be higher? (perhaps the driver was a fatty ).

On a positive note, the handling has certainly increased compared to what it was like with the Jamex springs installed. They seem to be considerably firmer, but don't make the ride noticeable harsher. Around corners there seems to be less 'float' than what I was previously used to. Plus at only $10 a spring and doing the install myself I had nothing really to lose

[Bling]

Bit of an update on this - I ended up finding a set of Super Low King Springs on an AE110 Toyota Levin at Pick-A-Part last Friday and fitted them on Saturday. The only problem is that they haven't made the car any lower than what it was when I had the Jamex Super Lows installed......

You were expecting a drop when comparing super lows and super lows? I know they are different brands, but they are all pretty much the same. Pretty sure super lows are around 50mm drop and lows tend to be 25-35mm depending slightly on brand.

Not sure on the level issue though, never really compared mine to know if they differ.

[Kiwi-Corolla]

You were expecting a drop when comparing super lows and super lows? I know they are different brands, but they are all pretty much the same. Pretty sure super lows are around 50mm drop and lows tend to be 25-35mm depending slightly on brand.

Not sure on the level issue though, never really compared mine to know if they differ.

Haha, one of the Corolla guys here on TS with an AE101 sedan had SL King Springs and it sat at exactly the height I was hoping to achieve so I thought I was on a winner by doing the switch to Kings but sadly it appears that my efforts have been in vain

Yeah the level issue is really starting to piss me off. With my Jamex springs the passenger's side always used to be a little higher than the driver's side, but it wasn't by much, and certainly not by 10mm like the Kings. Interestingly, the Jamex springs aren't marked with a left and a right either, so maybe they were installed wrong at the garage I originally went to back in 2010. I also weighed them the other day and one side is definitely heavier than the other (by only about 15-grams though).

Might just end up swapping the two sides around and see what happens. Don't really have much to lose aside from an hour or two. Any suggestions in the meantime are welcome though (and no, strapping a fat chick to the LH front guard is NOT an option ).

[siren676]

Install a 4age and swap the springs left to right

[wde_bdy]

and no, strapping a fat chick to the LH front guard is NOT an option

Stap her in the passengers footwell so no one can see her?

Callum

[jaypines]

did you measure the free height of the springs? 10mm of a difference could be just an install issue. just make sure the spring seats properly on the top strut mount rubbers. theres usually like a marking/groove there left by the older spring that the new springs should seat.