Max "daily driver" lowering springs?

[melmark]

I had to remove my eibach springs that came with the car a few years back because I scraped on every @#^$ing lump, driveway and speedbump in existence. The tires also wore out early on the inner tread because camber could never be set correctly. Gets real old with a daily driver. Back to OEM but I do miss the lowered look.

What is the maximum amount that the car can be dropped without replacing the spoiler lip every few months and cringing 5 times a day? One inch? 3/4 inch? Just shut up and drive?

 

[Jin1976]

There is a camber correction kit sold here in this forum. As for the lip the oem one is tough. I have new one on my car and being not lowered it sometimes scraps but that what's the lip is for to guard the front bumper from scratch. Leave it unpainted so the scratch won't be that noticable.

I had to remove my eibach springs that came with the car a few years back because I scraped on every @#^$ing lump, driveway and speedbump in existence. The tires also wore out early on the inner tread because camber could never be set correctly. Gets real old with a daily driver. Back to OEM but I do miss the lowered look.

What is the maximum amount that the car can be dropped without replacing the spoiler lip every few months and cringing 5 times a day? One inch? 3/4 inch? Just shut up and drive?

 

[KooLaid]

Lower the car, have the camber kit installed to fix tire wear, remove lower lip. Problem solved.

 

[ChopsJazz]

A quick search for lowering springs would probably flood you with info about the Bilstien shocks with stock springs set on the lower perch. This set-up seems to work for many here.

 

[melmark]

Lower the car, have the camber kit installed to fix tire wear, remove lower lip. Problem solved.

Never even thought about removing the damn thing. Duh.

 

[KooLaid]

worth a try. Might look a bit off at first because you won't be used to it, but give it some time and you might not notice that the lip is even gone. Or even try cutting it down half way or something......

 

[melmark]

Cris at SoS recommends the Tein Flex adjustable coil over system. Anybody running this?

 

[KooLaid]

Do you plan on installing this yourself? Coilovers can be a serious pain in the @ss for the installer to PROPERLY adjust in terms of setting preload, ride height, dampening, rake and making sure it's at the proper levels left to right, front to back in addition to making sure rake is properly maintained. It's not easy either adjusting these things. Gonna take some time to do it right.

Fully adjustable coilovers are nice but they're definitely not simple. Especially compared to lowering springs on Koni or Bilstein shocks. Or oem springs on bilsteins on lower perch. If adjustable height is something you'd like but would still like to keep it simple, I recommend the Dali Bilstein coilover setup. You can keep it stock or slam it if you like. But simpler than a full adjustable coilover, and the shocks come with a lifetime warranty. A simpler setup would bilsteins with lowering springs or oem springs.

Depends on what you want.

 

[KooLaid]

BtW, go take a ride in someone's car rolling on some fully adjustable coilovers before you dish out the cash for them. Make sure you go down all sorts of roads. Coilovers are a much stiffer ride and is great on smooth roads, but when the roads get rough and your speed slows down, it can jar you pretty good.

 

[nsxtasy]

A few comments.

First, yes, you can remove the rubber chin spoiler. However, keep in mind that this leaves the painted front end body part exposed, and if you do scrape, that's what you'll be scraping, not the inexpensive and easy-to-replace chin spoiler.

Second, wearing the tires out along the inner edge of the tread may have little or even nothing to do with camber or the fact that your car is lowered. People think that negative camber wears the inner tread quickly because it's easy to visualize. However, the fact is that toe is a lot more responsible for the wear than camber. It's normal for the inner edge of the front tires to wear quicker on the NSX, even on bone stock cars, due to the toe (and this tends to be worse for cars that are driven gently rather than those driven regularly with brisk cornering).

FWIW, I enjoy the fact that I have left my frequently-tracked NSX at stock ride height. Not only does it reduce damage to the front air dam (which is still possible, BTW - stock ride height does not make it immune), but it also makes entry and egress much easier and more comfortable.

 

[jond]

Or even try cutting it down half way or something......

I'm going to give this a try. I bought a used lip, and I'm going to try to get an inch clearance out of it without messing it up. We'll see. If it looks okay, I'll make a post about it.

I scrape with stock ride height, so my goal is to gain 1'' clearance, and lower 1''.

If anyone has any tips on how to cut the lip, please PM me.

 

[nsxtasy]

I'm going to give this a try. I bought a used lip, and I'm going to try to get an inch clearance out of it without messing it up. We'll see. If it looks okay, I'll make a post about it.

I scrape with stock ride height, so my goal is to gain 1'' clearance, and lower 1''.

If anyone has any tips on how to cut the lip, please PM me.

The entire lip is only about 1.5" high. So if you're trying to get an inch, you may as well just do it the easy way and remove the lip entirely.

 

[KooLaid]

I'm going to give this a try. I bought a used lip, and I'm going to try to get an inch clearance out of it without messing it up. We'll see. If it looks okay, I'll make a post about it.

I scrape with stock ride height, so my goal is to gain 1'' clearance, and lower 1''.

If anyone has any tips on how to cut the lip, please PM me.

That'll be cool to see.

Ken, that's true it'd end up taking off paint with the chin spoiler removed. However with my car, I always scrap it low that I'd never hit the paint.......so far. And I'm lowered about 7/8".

 

[Zishan]

Melmark,

Here is my advice, as one who likes the lowered look. First, do not remove your lip. It is there not only for aesthetics, but to protect your lower bumper. Imagine scraping a driveway/ramp with your lower bumper. You will now need to repaint or even replace your lower bumper, which is not cheap. Instead, if you retain your lip, it can easily be replaced and not as costly as the above scenario. Trust me, I learned the hard way.

Now, as for dropping your car, I run the Dali Eibach/Bilstein coilover set up. The ride is extremely comfortable, almost OEM like. But the car handles a bit better and I still have the adjustability with coilovers so I can raise or lower the car in an hour. This can be done very easily. Here is a great deal on a set:

http://www.nsxprime.com/forums/showthread.php?t=99377
(disclaimer: I have no affiliation with the seller or Dali, nor do I want any affiliation with Dali)

Regards,
- Zishan

 

[NSXFRIEND]

http://www.scienceofspeed.com/sos_resource/FAQs/NSX/spp/coil-over_suspension/default.asp

specifications (early Type-S compared to standard coupe):
ride height F -.6"
R -.3"
damper compression F 150 kg/.3m/s (99% increase)
R 170 kg/.3m/s (31% increase)
damper rebound F 195 kg/.3m/s (72% increase)
R 230 kg/.3m/s (50% increase)
spring rate F 6.5 kg/mm (103% increase)
R 5.0 kg/mm (32% increase)
stabilizer bars F 18.3 mm (no change)
R 19.1 mm (1.6mm larger)

 

[davidf]

How about the fact. springs on bilstiens lowering purches? {I think thats right} Since I don't track I may go this route. So do I still need to buy a camber kit?

 

[Zishan]

How about the fact. springs on bilstiens lowering purches? {I think thats right} Since I don't track I may go this route. So do I still need to buy a camber kit?

You shouldn't need to, but it all depends on what you want your rear camber to be. :smile:

If you want to ruin your handling, but get the most out of your rear tires by having rear camber set to -ZERO-, then most likely you will need the camber kit to acheive this. - Not recommended

If you want to lower it 3/4 an inch(which is approx. what the lower perch with OEM springs does) and have 94+ OEM alignment specs, then you should be ok. - Recommended

 

[I1O101I]

http://www.scienceofspeed.com/sos_resource/FAQs/NSX/spp/coil-over_suspension/default.asp

specifications (early Type-S compared to standard coupe):
ride height F -.6"
R -.3"
damper compression F 150 kg/.3m/s (99% increase)
R 170 kg/.3m/s (31% increase)
damper rebound F 195 kg/.3m/s (72% increase)
R 230 kg/.3m/s (50% increase)
spring rate F 6.5 kg/mm (103% increase)
R 5.0 kg/mm (32% increase)
stabilizer bars F 18.3 mm (no change)
R 19.1 mm (1.6mm larger)

Now that is doing ur homework.

Just make it easer on ur life, just get some JIC Magic Coilovers

Bryan

 

[NSXFRIEND]

Now that is doing ur homework.

Just make it easer on ur life, just get some JIC Magic Coilovers

Bryan

I think my factory shocks have some life left, Eibach springs 1.2 inch drop on factory shocks inexpensive route.lol Do like the H&Rs but 1.5 inches is to low

 

[jond]

The entire lip is only about 1.5" high. So if you're trying to get an inch, you may as well just do it the easy way and remove the lip entirely.

Well I think I've found a trick, but we'll see. I'm not sure how well I'll be able to execute this.

The trick is, I only scrape the corners(I enter and leave steep places at an angle). If you measure the lip, the corners are almost exactally an inch lower then the middle/front of the lip. I'm thinking if I simply trim the corners and make the entire piece one uniform size, I should be good. The side benifit is it will look REALLY low from the front, and I should still be able to get up steep driveways.

 

[greenberet]

I removed the Eibach springs I had mounted on my NSX because over time, the front of the car kept getting lower. It started scraping just driving out of my garage. I replaced the Eibachs with OEM springs mounted on Bilstein shocks. In front, the shocks are set to the lower of the two standard positions and the car hardly ever scrapes anymore.

What may give me a little bit more ground clearance is the OEM 1991 front spoiler lip, whose corners aren't lower than the middle. The newer, updated spoilers with lower corners give the car better aerodynamics, but they probably tend to scrape more, too. From what I've heard, the original lips aren't available new anymore but you may be able to find one used.

 

[melmark]

Do you plan on installing this yourself? Coilovers can be a serious pain in the @ss for the installer to PROPERLY adjust in terms of setting preload, ride height, dampening, rake and making sure it's at the proper levels left to right, front to back in addition to making sure rake is properly maintained. It's not easy either adjusting these things. Gonna take some time to do it right.

Fully adjustable coilovers are nice but they're definitely not simple. Especially compared to lowering springs on Koni or Bilstein shocks. Or oem springs on bilsteins on lower perch. If adjustable height is something you'd like but would still like to keep it simple, I recommend the Dali Bilstein coilover setup. You can keep it stock or slam it if you like. But simpler than a full adjustable coilover, and the shocks come with a lifetime warranty. A simpler setup would bilsteins with lowering springs or oem springs.

Depends on what you want.

Oh hell no, I wouldn't do it myself. I'd have Ramon or Shane do the install. After more discussion with members, it looks like the dali bilsteins/OEM springs are the ticket.

 

[Paul91]

The Type-S Suspension that SOS sells is considerably more that the one Dali is dealing. Is this because the SOS version is the updated one and the Dali is the older spec?

 

[NSXrunner]

A few comments.

First, yes, you can remove the rubber chin spoiler. However, keep in mind that this leaves the painted front end body part exposed, and if you do scrape, that's what you'll be scraping, not the inexpensive and easy-to-replace chin spoiler.

FWIW, I enjoy the fact that I have left my frequently-tracked NSX at stock ride height. Not only does it reduce damage to the front air dam (which is still possible, BTW - stock ride height does not make it immune), but it also makes entry and egress much easier and more comfortable.

Thanks for the tip. Threads like this are nice because they snap me back into reality. There are lots of speedbumps where I live and once in a while I find myself contemplating lowering the NSX for looks. But reading about the problems it might cause lead me to keep the stock height. I don't want to deal with all the speed bumps and scrapes everytime I take the car out, even though its not very often. (plus I actually like the look of the OEM lip) :biggrin:

 

[hofffam]

My car is stock height and I sometimes scrape the chin spoiler going into parking garages. I probably would like a slightly lowered look but as it is I have to very carefully go into some ramps and driveways to avoid scraping.