Lowering your NSX. The practical question

I've been 50/50 on if to lower my NA1. I value ride quality and given that the stock suspension is good enough for my skills i'm not really looking to sacrifice much to have the lowered look. With that said, I love the lowered look and would like to lower it to 1-1.25" for aesthetics.

I think i'm settled on going with the stock springs & Bilsteins on the lower perch for the best compromise.

Here's the question(s):
** Practically speaking how inconvenient would a .80" drop be compared to stock?
I'm already having to sideways cut some dips so that my chin doesn't take too much of a beating (in stock height) and don't have any problems with speed bumps scraping the undercarriage. If this means i'm going to be scraping speed bumps I don't think lowering it is worth that.
*** If I lowered to the .80" would that be enough to considerably introduce belly scraping, more sideways cutting dips, exhaust scraping?

On my S2000 I liked the Konis on the lower perch. It was a great balance for me without much scraping. Hoping for the same on the NSX.

Exhaust scraping? Do you own a NSX?

My NSX is lowered 3" and the exhaust is still 12" off the ground. It's just about impossible to scrap the rear.

I didn't think changing the shocks will effect height at all? .8" would be fine.

You drive a NSX, your front lip is toast no matter what height. I can clear speed bumps without bottoming out.

Just found this pic for ya:

SWIFTVISION said:

Exhaust scraping? Do you own a NSX?

My NSX is lowered 3" and the exhaust is still 12" off the ground. It's just about impossible to scrap the rear.

I didn't think changing the shocks will effect height at all? .8" would be fine.

You drive a NSX, your front lip is toast no matter what height. I can clear speed bumps without bottoming out.

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3 inches?

SWIFTVISION said:

Exhaust scraping? Do you own a NSX?

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Yes, i'm a very happy owner. I asked because I don't know and on my RX-7 back in the day, my exhaust did scrape after lowering.

thanks for the pic!!! I figure the front lip is something I should buy an extra of. I know i'm gonna tear that off someday.

Ok, so no exhaust scrapage... Great! Now, does anyone scrape their undercarriage on say... speed bumps? Or in your experienced opinion, do you think a .8" drop would introduce much more undercarriage scraping? I've never bothered to stop in the middle of each speed bump to check clearance but maybe I should.

From the pics, I don't see much of a drop at all. The pics with the Bilsteins still looks high?

The angle of which both pictures are taken is too different to make this a good comparison I think.
I am happy with the lowering of my nsx but of course I don't have a clue of what the road conditions are like where you live. We have a lot of speed bumps I have to take "sideways". I went for konis on tanabe springs.
In the first combination I used, H&R springs and original shocks, the shocks were not up to their task.
It is your personal decision you have to take. A lowered nsx looks much better to me, but you have to take the downsides that come with it. For a daily driver, I would go for the standard height again. If I lived in Poland eg, I would raise it another 1,5". :wink:

stuntman said:

3 inches?

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Confusion here as well...

3 inches? Not based on the pics and the text in the pics which states Bilsteins w/ stock springs. Is that not your current setup? I'd love to see pics of an NSX dropped 3".

A drop of 3" would most certainly not clear speed bumps without major scrapeage and cause major rubbing during most any turning maneuver. Also, aligning the car anywhere close to OEM specs would be a feat. I'm dropped less than 2" and I'm about 3" from the ground! A 3" drop would mean the front spoiler would be less than 2" from the ground!

To the OP:

The drop of ~.875" attained with the stock springs and the Bilstein lower perch is the most popular method of lowering the NSX. It's a very tasteful drop and it shouldn't result in bottoming out or scraping on normal 2"-4" speed bumps.

If you want to go lower I'd recommend the Dali springs with the Bilsteins on the higher perch. Great ride, slightly better-than-stock performance and the drop is ~1.25" from the springs alone.

I personally don't see the need to drop more than 1.25"-1.50" and after that you begin to get into alignment, rubbing and scraping issues and it looks too low IMO. Right now I'm dropped about 1.5" and that's too low for me. I didn't want it that low but my mechanic goofed up when installing my coilovers. I know if I was just at 1.25" I would scrape far less on dips, etc. however I don't rub even at full lock and I've never bottomed out although my suspension is very firm and doesn't move much up or down.

And yes, get used to replacing your front spoiler lip every year or two. It's about a hundred bucks and it's easy to install. I just chalk it up to the cost of owning an NSX.

Bilstiens w/stock springs on the "lower" perch. It's the best overall combo for DD in most situations. I have not scraped anything yet and my exhaust hangs rather low. I just can't believe I waited over a year to lower it.

Part of it depends on your front lip. I was scraping my 97 with stock suspension and stock front lip. I made a custom front lip that gave me another 1'' clearance, and then lowered it 1''. Looks AWESOME. Much much better look.

I daily drive my NSX and I haven't had any problems with it being lower. I can't see going more than 1'' though.

I'm running bilsteins w/ stock springs on low perch right now. I like the ride, doesn't bottom out or anything, but I think a .875" drop is not enough to give it that aggressive look. To me, it still looks a bit 4x4.

Picture below is bilsteins w/ stock springs on low perch.


So after looking into a few different brands of springs, I just picked up a set of Tanabe GF210 spec at 1.3" drop all around. I figure this will give me the stance i'm after. I thought about going with tein Stech but a .7 front / 1." rear (bilsteins on low perch front / high perch rear) will not drop the back enough for me and dump my front way to much. I also thought about going with H&R but a 1.5" drop and when it saggs it probably will be around 1.7" which might be a bit too low for me. I know it will probably look awesome, but I won't be able to get up my driveway it it's way to low. A friend came to visit me one weekend and his NSX is on H&R, ended up he had to park outside because he couldn't make it up my driveway. So, in the end....I think the Tanabe's will be me the drop I'm after. Low enough where I can still make it up the driveway. I'll post up picks once they are installed.

I like the drop in your pic. Having a car as low as ours can also be a PITA when you walk out to the parking lot and can't find it because it is a foot lower than all the other cars around it.

octechgeek said:

I'm running bilsteins w/ stock springs on low perch right now. I like the ride, doesn't bottom out or anything, but I think a .875" drop is not enough to give it that aggressive look. To me, it still looks a bit 4x4.

So after looking into a few different brands of springs, I just picked up a set of Tanabe GF210 spec at 1.3" drop all around. I figure this will give me the stance i'm after. I thought about going with tein Stech but a .7 front / 1." rear (bilsteins on low perch front / high perch rear) will not drop the back enough for me and dump my front way to much. I also thought about going with H&R but a 1.5" drop and when it saggs it probably will be around 1.7" which might be a bit too low for me. I know it will probably look awesome, but I won't be able to get up my driveway it it's way to low. A friend came to visit me one weekend and his NSX is on H&R, ended up he had to park outside because he couldn't make it up my driveway. So, in the end....I think the Tanabe's will be me the drop I'm after. Low enough where I can still make it up the driveway. I'll post up picks once they are installed.

Click to expand...

The Tanabe GF210 is a great spring but I would have probably not recommended them for use with the out-of-the-box NSX Bilstein. The spring rates for the Tanabe are nearly twice that of the OEM springs and will ostensibly lead to the early death of your Bilsteins and might also compromise handling. The OOTB NSX Bilstein shocks were simply not designed to handle those spring rates optimally.

That being said it's not the end of the world. I would guesstimate your Bilsteins will probably die 25% sooner than is typical and your handling shouldn't be compromised much and you shouldn't really feel it on the street. The Bilsteins do have a lifetime warranty but pulling them out and shipping them off is just a hassle.

I personally would have suggested Zanardi/Type-S shocks, custom-valved Konis for use with the GF210s or recommended the Dali progressive springs for use with the Bilsteins which lower ~1.25" and are much easier on the shocks day-to-day.

BTW, gorgeous car. :wink:

CL65 Captain said:

I like the drop in your pic. Having a car as low as ours can also be a PITA when you walk out to the parking lot and can't find it because it is a foot lower than all the other cars around it.

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Ha ha, I never though about that. :biggrin:

PS: I like the new avatar. :wink:

NSXGMS said:

The Tanabe GF210 is a great spring but I would have probably not recommended them for use with the out-of-the-box NSX Bilstein. The spring rates for the Tanabe are nearly twice that of the OEM springs and will ostensibly lead to the early death of your Bilsteins and might also compromise handling. The OOTB NSX Bilstein shocks were simply not designed to handle those spring rates optimally.

That being said it's not the end of the world. I would guesstimate your Bilsteins will probably die 25% sooner than is typical and your handling shouldn't be compromised much and you shouldn't really feel it on the street. The Bilsteins do have a lifetime warranty but pulling them out and shipping them off is just a hassle.



BTW, gorgeous car. :wink:

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I have never had to use the bilstein warranty, in 17 years of buying bilsteins.
ran them with all sorts of crazy spring combinations!
I even have a set in my DD integra that are from the auto wrecker , look like crap and all rusty but don't leak a drop!

NSXGMS said:

The Tanabe GF210 is a great spring but I would have probably not recommended them for use with the out-of-the-box NSX Bilstein. The spring rates for the Tanabe are nearly twice that of the OEM springs and will ostensibly lead to the early death of your Bilsteins and might also compromise handling. The OOTB NSX Bilstein shocks were simply not designed to handle those spring rates optimally.

That being said it's not the end of the world. I would guesstimate your Bilsteins will probably die 25% sooner than is typical and your handling shouldn't be compromised much and you shouldn't really feel it on the street. The Bilsteins do have a lifetime warranty but pulling them out and shipping them off is just a hassle.

I personally would have suggested Zanardi/Type-S shocks, custom-valved Konis for use with the GF210s or recommended the Dali progressive springs for use with the Bilsteins which lower ~1.25" and are much easier on the shocks day-to-day.

BTW, gorgeous car. :wink:

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Thanks for the advice, I'll look into it a bit further, but if it's a bad combo than why does NSXGOD himself sell this combo on his site?

http://daliracing.com/v666-5/catalog/index_browse_part.cfm?focus=1755

and on this the link below, Mark does state that the GF210 is "similar in handling balance to the Zandardi springs but with an aggressive stance."

http://daliracing.com/v666-5/catalog/index_browse_part.cfm?focus=1754

I have these springs on my S2000 and really like how they handle.

NSXGMS said:

The spring rates for the Tanabe are nearly twice that of the OEM springs and will ostensibly lead to the early death of your Bilsteins .... I would guesstimate your Bilsteins will probably die 25% sooner than is typical

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This doesn't ring true - if you think about it stiffer springs will reduce travel of piston inside shock body, and thus protect the shocks, IMHO. And I've never heard of a spring tearing a perch off the shock body, even super stiff springs.

ryu, this post in your related thread shows my car lowered with Dali racing LowRider progressive springs sitting on Bilsteins upper perches. These springs are 1.25" lower than stock.
http://www.nsxprime.com/forums/showpost.php?p=1082755&postcount=17
The back of the car is never a problem, the front is as low as possible for street use. Yes I do scrape the front on awkward driveways occassionally, but because I do this at an angle and ever so slowly it's only superficial scraping of lower edge, not damage as such. For really tricky entrances I have even reversed in ! But it's all worth it for that low sleek LeMans look ...

For the record, and a 91 NSX, can anyone quote actual the lowering measurements due to Bilsteins only (i.e. OEM springs + Bilsteins) for:
1) upper perches
2) lower perches

I'm going to GUESSTIMATE they are
1) upper perches: lowers car by 1"
2) lower perches: lowers car by 1 + 3/4" (due to the 3/4" between slots)

If these figures are right, then my car with Dali LowRider springs on UPPER perches of the Bilsteins, has total lowering compared to OEM of 1" (shocks) + 1.25" (springs) = 2.25".

And if I were to move springs down onto lower perches it would total 3" !

(IMHO this would be impractically low around town, only suitable for highway or track)

sparky said:

For the record, and a 91 NSX, can anyone quote actual the lowering measurements due to Bilsteins only (i.e. OEM springs + Bilsteins) for:
1) upper perches
2) lower perches

I'm going to GUESSTIMATE they are
1) upper perches: lowers car by 1"
2) lower perches: lowers car by 1 + 3/4" (due to the 3/4" between slots)

If these figures are right, then my car with Dali LowRider springs on UPPER perches of the Bilsteins, has total lowering compared to OEM of 1" (shocks) + 1.25" (springs) = 2.25".

And if I were to move springs down onto lower perches it would total 3" !

(IMHO this would be impractically low around town, only suitable for highway or track)

Click to expand...

There are no changes to the stock ride height by using Bilsteins and the OEM springs on the upper perch. It's a 7/8" drop if you use the lower perch.

If you put the Dali springs on the upper perch it will be a 1.25" drop, if on the lower perch it will be a 2.125" drop.

For the record, I have my car on Bilstein upper perches with Dali springs.

clr1024 said:

There are no changes to the stock ride height by using Bilsteins and the OEM springs on the upper perch. It's a 7/8" drop if you use the lower perch.

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OK thanks clr1024. So my car (which happens to have same setup as yours) is only 1.25" below OEM height, and in theory I could go to 2.125" total lowering if I move down onto lower perches. Maybe, maybe .. but on rear only..

sparky said:

This doesn't ring true - if you think about it stiffer springs will reduce travel of piston inside shock body, and thus protect the shocks, IMHO. And I've never heard of a spring tearing a perch off the shock body, even super stiff springs.

ryu, this post in your related thread shows my car lowered with Dali racing LowRider progressive springs sitting on Bilsteins upper perches. These springs are 1.25" lower than stock.
http://www.nsxprime.com/forums/showpost.php?p=1082755&postcount=17
The back of the car is never a problem, the front is as low as possible for street use. Yes I do scrape the front on awkward driveways occassionally, but because I do this at an angle and ever so slowly it's only superficial scraping of lower edge, not damage as such. For really tricky entrances I have even reversed in ! But it's all worth it for that low sleek LeMans look ...

Click to expand...

According to this logic shock valving is irrelevant.

Shocks are designed to dampen based on spring rates.

octechgeek said:

Thanks for the advice, I'll look into it a bit further, but if it's a bad combo than why does NSXGOD himself sell this combo on his site?

http://daliracing.com/v666-5/catalog/index_browse_part.cfm?focus=1755

and on this the link below, Mark does state that the GF210 is "similar in handling balance to the Zandardi springs but with an aggressive stance."

http://daliracing.com/v666-5/catalog/index_browse_part.cfm?focus=1754

I have these springs on my S2000 and really like how they handle.

Click to expand...

I've had conversations with Mark about this and while he does sell the combo if pushed I think he'll really tell you that there are better options if you want to spend the money.

The Tanabe springs are very close in rate to the Zanardi/Type-S springs and that combo (Zanardi/Bilstein) has caused some minor problems with some NSXs.

NSXGMS said:

According to this logic shock valving is irrelevant. Shocks are designed to dampen based on spring rates.

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I'm genuinely interested in the issue, but still not on your wavelength. Yes shock valving is important, but what does shock valving have to do with stiffer springs causing shock damage? (since we're talking about changing springs, not changing valves)

sparky said:

This doesn't ring true - if you think about it stiffer springs will reduce travel of piston inside shock body, and thus protect the shocks, IMHO. And I've never heard of a spring tearing a perch off the shock body, even super stiff springs.

Click to expand...

I totally agree, so that's why I was so dang confused...why would a spring that is a bit stiffer than stock ruin a shock body? I can understand if it were the reverse, where you have a super soft spring and that seems more logical that it would be putting most of the stress on the shock therefore possibly ruining the shock itself. That's why alot of theories and no proven data to back up these claims. Always a bunch of "I heard this and I heard that..."

NSXGMS said:

I've had conversations with Mark about this and while he does sell the combo if pushed I think he'll really tell you that there are better options if you want to spend the money.

The Tanabe springs are very close in rate to the Zanardi/Type-S springs and that combo (Zanardi/Bilstein) has caused some minor problems with some NSXs.

Click to expand...

This goes true with everything in life. You can buy a $10k suspension set up and still there is always going to be something better in the market or worst. In my opinion, unless spring and shock manufactures are designing a setup together and have strict set parameters, I don't think a shock manufacture really cares how or what a spring manufacture does and vise versa with the spring manufacture. Out of the 2, I'm sure their intentions was just to design a product that is fitted for an OEM replacement part and works with just the OEM product.

Either way, all great suggestions but I think I'll try out the Tanabe still. I probably won't notice any issues since I only drive the car like 500 miles a year. So for the most part, this is all for cosmetics.

sparky said:

OK thanks clr1024. So my car (which happens to have same setup as yours) is only 1.25" below OEM height, and in theory I could go to 2.125" total lowering if I move down onto lower perches. Maybe, maybe .. but on rear only..

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If you do that in the rear only, I think it would look weird as you will be sitting lower in the rear, in effect you would have the nose pointing up more. I would do one or the other. Alternatively you could get the coilover bodies for the bilstein and put it whereever you want.

http://www.nsxprime.com/forums/showthread.php?t=112321&highlight=Dali