skawt01

Can someone who has experience with both of these items tell me if the ride quality improvement with the coilovers can justify the extra expense for the coilovers over the lowering springs? I'm guessing it boils down to the quality of the Scion shocks, which don't seem too bad. Anyone?

hahaitzskippy

coilovers are WAY better than the s.techs.

especially the basics. i havent ridden in the SS's yet but they are adjustable shocks so im guessin they can be very smooth.

if i had the $$ i woud of bought coilovers over my S.techs jus because the shocks were designed to work well with the springs(coilovers) to produce a comfortable ride with a little performance.


i also have taken my STECH's onto the track. i highly believe the TEIN STECH are made for looks with little to performance. a lot of poeple complain about my ride being bumpy and bounce (blown shocks).

HKSpeed

i'm guess this thread will be moved to the "corner carvers" section.

dgHotLava

correct you are...


moved!

artdoesart

Coils are always better... I got the Tein Basics about a month ago. And well though they are a bit more, its always nice to have the benefit of being able to adjust ride height and also get the car to look just as you want. A lot of the time from Tein or TRD springs (only) you may rake a bit in the rear or front and vice versa. As for "ride" the ride will be similar riding on springs will be close to stock since they don't really make "mad" aggressive spring ratios like SWIFT springs (which are in practically all JGTC cars etc.), and well riding on Coils is almost like riding on stock since the spring is the same and well you are just adjusting the base point.

I say spend the money and get the coils they are very very very easy to install especially if you have experience in the lowering arena. If you need help just ask.

artdoesart

Oh yeah I forgot to mention don't worry about performance so much in terms of your suspension, after all its a 100hp car you know? So Tein Basics opposed to like Tein Flex etc. won't matter having adjustable dampening doesn't really do much unless your car is like a trackable care like a WRX, Evo, or s2000. Likewise I wanted a good ride but don't spend any more money than the Basics because its super overkill for your bB. But I assure you, you will love your Coils. Also during install you won't need an impact gun to remove the struts like you do with most cars. The torque is so low you can remove the tower bolt with a simple ratchet.

skawt01

Great info here. Thanks you guys.

It sounds like even with the TEIN Basic coilovers the ride quality won't improve much from stock, which is what I am seeking. Also, I was hoping that the progressive rate springs would help w/hard cornering, as I'm hoping to race the lil xA after I install a turbo down the road a bit.

I guess what I'm wondering is if it's really worth spending $800 for the coilovers vs. $150 or so for the S.Tech springs. I have no direct experience with either of them, but when I called for an install price for the springs alone it was going to run me $400 for the whole package. So, I went upgraded to the coilovers since I was way up there cost wise. I figure they will be easier to install than the springs alone would've been.

artdoesart

Oh i see you have a xA, well same thing. If you want improved ride quality then I would go for a higher line of Coils for your Scion. Something with adjustable dampening so you can make for a better/stiffer ride. But then you are looking at coils in the 1200-??? range. Then I would proceed with front and rear sways, the towers will not do much. But the Tein Basics will do most the job they are looking for. For me I wanted a lower ride with a stock feel, and the Teins Basics will do that for you. The Springs will to sort of but you won't have the customization. If you truly want a better ride in terms of tracking the car you need dampening. If you have more ?'s I can help you I have an STi which I work on a lot and thats all done up suspension wise... So I have experience in the "real deal" as well...

HKSpeed

once you go coilovers, you'll never go back to springs. i've never met anyone regret buying coilovers in the long run (once they got over paying that much). the ability to adjust dampening, height, and camber (if you got camber plates) makes every penny you pay worthwhile. granted 90% of people who have adjustable dampers dont know how to set them properly to the car's characteristics and individual driving style.

boostedscion

HKS your totally right.. coilovers is way superb over springs

skawt01

I'm convinced that coilovers are superior to springs alone. I'm questioning whether the ride improvement w/coilovers is substantial enough to justify the expense.

The thing about height adjustment is that every time you adjust it you need to do an alignment if you want your tires to roll flat - at least that's my understanding. The Tein S-Tech springs give you 1.7" front/1.5" rear drop, and I can't see why you'd wanna change the height after installation. So, the height adjustment thing is not really a benefit from my perspective.

I went ahead and ordered the coilovers, so I'll be finding out shortly.

artdoesart

skawt01 like i said i got cheap teins basics on my bB and apexi n1 pros on my sti. both ar e great for their purposes. one cost $700 and the other roughly $2k when they came out... Anyhow I know you are suppose to do an alignment after each time you mess with the base plates, however note I have worked on many cars, those of my own and my crew, and i have NEVER did an alignment. Its not good but its not terribly bad... u know? i mean you have to pretty **** to do this, this is of course if you car has a nasty-___ alignment problem then get it done otherwise don't sweat it man... no joke...

tenchiguam

I'm still a total n00b to tuning in real life...and I haven't been doing all the reading I should be (work, and studying for officer's exams..)...so here goes:

Will I need lowering springs to go along with the coilovers or can both items be used independant of one another?

I'm in the market of doing some great things to my car...I just need some knowledge (and massive amounts of money) before doing so.

skawt01

tenchiguam:

It's either lowering springs alone or the coilovers.

The spring replacement is just that, nothing else. You use the stock shocks w/them.

The coilovers replace both the shocks/struts and the springs. If you read what the other guys have posted, there are many advantages to the coilovers, but it's tough to justify the expense, at least for me.

I went ahead and bought the Tein Basic coilovers, but I'm having trouble getting them even though I ordered them two weeks ago. Suprastore.com, where I ordered them, says Tein is backordered, which is frustrating.

Good luck in your info search. Hope this helps.

tenchiguam

Thanks for the info.

krazie1

coil overs u can compare springs to coil overs in ride comfrot or lowering to whatever size wheel u have or get later

stilyn

i think a lot of it is preference. i personally feel like unless u are tracking the car, coilovers are pointless. for hundreds less u can get a nice spring/strut upgrade or if u go for a spring that doesn't have a huge drop u don't even need to upgrade the struts. there are many people that lower more for the look than the performance aspect. it all comes down to what the car will be used for. i don't track my cars, so coilovers are a waste of money for me. don't get me wrong, coilovers are great in their ability to be lowered and raised, not to mention the improved steering response. i just think a lot of people need to be informed that a coilover will provide more benefit for those tracking the car than just using it as a daily driver.

qbnlykwhoa

iTrader: (1)

The TRD Shocks and springs will run you about 500 - 600. And if u get springs by them selfs ur eventually going to have to replace struts. I wanted like a 2" drop. But i drive alot and if i get just springs i have to replace the struts soon. So any other good springs/strut combo? Not as $$$$$ ??

stilyn

for $150 u can get tein s-techs or h-techs.

qbnlykwhoa

iTrader: (1)

But eventually wont you have to get struts anyway? So might as well get them now.