Hey guys what's up. I have a few questions about lowering springs, struts, and sway bars. I have a 1987 supra n/a and im looking to get a good setup that is smooth, yet handles very well when needed. I want to know if anyone has used the Eibach Pro Kit and if it is good or not. Also, i have heard both good and bad things about the Tokico Illumina 2s. I want to get the 2's so i can still have my TEMS, lower the car, and stiffen up the shocks. If i do remove TEMS, what would be the best non-TEMS shock. and last, are Suspension Techniques front and rear sway bars a good bargain. i can get some for $200 and it seems pretty good to me, but i dont know if they will work that good. Oh, do the front and rear strut bars make that big of a difference, or could i do without. Will i really notice it??? Thanks. And have a Happy New Year!!!!!

damn, that's a loaded post. the suspension setup really depends on what type of driving you intend to do for the most part. the eibach pro kit is a progressively wound spring, which means that as you corner, it stiffens more and more. this leads to a bit of unpredictability, as you never know exactly when you're going to hit the stiff part of the spring. they DO give a comfy ride though.

if you're into driving calmly, or even quickly on gently winding back roads, then eibachs may be for you. however, if you like the car to react instantly to the steering wheel input, then you should consider a linear wound spring. (same stiffness throughout) linear wound springs are good for taking sharp corners, and fast steering in put. the car will roll much less and react much more quickly.

as for shocks, i use koni yellows. they're stiffer than stock, and i use them with eibach springs. the difference is amazing compared to stock. (make sure you get a 4 wheel allignment after you let the car settle, otherwise you'll kill your tires) however, i dont like the eibachs, because i'd rather have the car react more quickly, as in using a linear wound spring.

sway bars make a world of difference. however, they, too, depend on your driving style. if you're a drag racer, you'll do fine without them. if you like the twisties, then they will make the car handle like it's on a rail, especially with a good set of linear wound springs.

the strut bars make a little difference, but not nearly as much as sway bars. i'd get sway's first.

something you might want to look into, and do some research on is coilovers. TEIN makes some very, very nice setups, and you can get a good set for about $700 USD or so, which is about the same i spent on my koni/eibach combo.

if i could do my suspension over again, (over the summer, i hope) i'll be ditching the koni/eibach combo, and getting some TEIN SS coilovers.

good luck with your decision!

-shaeff

I'd have to agree with Shaeff's comments, though I can't say I've tried sway bars yet. I do have the Eibach kit on my car as well as the Tokico Illumina II's and a strut brace. I've been really happy with the way the car looks and feels from the springs but I don't feel like the adjustment on the shocks makes a whole lot of difference, nor does the strut tower bar. Not to say that they don't have an effect, just that they don't have as much of an effect. Again with the alignment issue, do it right away or you will be replacing your (most likely expensive) tires quickly. If you haven't gone to different tires/rims, I would do that before any of the other things you've mentioned. Tires are the single most important suspension component on a car and the only thing keeping you on the road. Another thing about the springs, I would say they're pretty soft (at least starting in compression- they're progressive rate springs). If you plan on driving really hard on tight courses, such as autocross, I wouldn't recommend them, but then again, I also wouldn't recommend a 3600lb car.

Hey Shaeff where did you find TEIN's for 700?Pleace let me know.

I'm getting the impression here that TEMS is not the way to go. I live out in the country on some curvy roads, and I like a car that hugs them. Right now the suspension on my car is oh-so-tired, so it rolls badly. My altima can do better So does the Kubota tractor

Does anyone LIKE TEMS?

If the roads are inconsistent and you want a more gentle ride Eibach and other progressive springs are nice to have. I have to disagree about the whole "unpredictable" thing. Sure, for someone who's used to linear springs they can seem that way the first several times they drive the car. The scale at which the springs stiffen is on a curve, but after driving on them for a while (especially in the case of a daily driver) you'll find you know precisely what to expect.

Shaeff - As for how quickly the car reacts to turns, I didn't see much difference when I drove a MKIII with STs..... I think what you're wanting is generally not going to be found in an off-the-shelf shock/spring combination. Hehe, if you want crazy steering and your PS setup is 89 or earlier (nonPPS), swap on the PS pully from a 90+ with PPS. Apparently that's what's on my car, I sneeze and I'm three lanes over.

I worked on a TEMS equipped MKIII for about a month and the shocks were new tokicos. I drove the car daily. While I could definitely feel the difference, it's nothing I would ever go out of my way for. If you spend a lot of time racing autocross AND the car is a daily driver so you want an adjustable system, there are much better systems available.

As Shaeff said, suspension is a very individual thing. You know how you drive, the types of roads you drive on and what would make the experience better for *YOU*.

That said, I do plenty of mountain driving on the weekends, LOTS of driving on crappy city roads during the week, and some frogger style highway driving to and from work everyday. I'm running KYB GR-2's (yeah, über budget shocks) and Eibach springs and I'm VERY happy with the feel. The progressive rate did take a little getting used to, but I can't say that I'm bothered by it... probably partially due to the fact that almost every car on the market comes with softer progressive springs.

Sways are the next thing on my list.

quote:

Originally posted by ZoomZoomZoom:
I'm getting the impression here that TEMS is not the way to go. I live out in the country on some curvy roads, and I like a car that hugs them. Right now the suspension on my car is oh-so-tired, so it rolls badly. My altima can do better So does the Kubota tractor

Does anyone LIKE TEMS?

I have not driven a MKIII with aftermarket springs but my 92 TEMS seems to be fine the way it is. I like the TEMS personally. With the stock springs it has good travel. I drove it down the mountain a few weeks ago and I was surprised at how much better it felt once the 3rd bar kicked on the tight corners. If your going to use it as a daily driver and not race it all the time on the track or mountains. I say using the stock TEMS is fine as it is.

CRE- yeah, i'm looking into something different than ST's.

and you have my secret. i also have (and did it on purpose) a PPS pully on my non PPS car, and i know what you mean about steering. haha i love it.