novarally

Can anyone please give me some advice as I have just bought a 53 STI and I was wondering what springs could I put on her to lower it a bit but still after a firm ride
Any advice would be very much appreciated

Neilo

cant go wrong with a set of eibachs....

mine should be up for same v.soon although im not sure if they would fit your car anyway! Theyre on an 03 WRX at the mo...

Woodcote

iTrader: (1)

agreed Powerstation fitted Eibachs to my 03 STi and ride is now excellent ...much better than standard springs

novarally

In what way ?

Neilo

less jarring over bumps, smoother ride, more progressive i guess....

either way, so much niver than the WRX springs i had before....so on an STI the effect will be just as good.

budge28

Neilo, How much did these lower your wrx? any photos.
You say smoother but i guess they where stiffer (better) around corners.

RLE

iTrader: (2)

Save yourself the money mate and go straight for the AST's from Powerstation. Tried Eibachs then Prodrive springs before finally getting the AST's fitted. They are simply a fantastic bit of kit.

Neilo

i would certainly hope that 800~ quids worth of dampers AND springs would be slightly better that springs.....

but not everyone has that kid of cash to throw at things all in one go.

I found the eibachs to be a great compromise and am only removing mine because i need something VERY stiff for track use...

still manage to be quicker than most things round a track with just the eibachs anyway.....

The eibachs soak up bumps a lot better than the standard springs did, and are a little more progressive through the bends to answer an earlier question. They lower the car IIRC 30mm front and 25mm rear, but it sits very nicely. If you search for my username in the members gallery section there should be a few pics of mine side on so you can see.

RLE

iTrader: (2)

Agree completely Neilo. I was merely suggesting an alternative.......... I'm sure he could save to get the set up that he's happy with though

I bought the Eibachs and thought they were poor. Gave them to a friend in the end. Then had the Prodrive springs fitted along with the relevant laser alignment. Once again not impressed for the money. Was a passenger in a WRX with the AST set up and it was only then that I realised how the car should have been handling. Would have shown my sti a clean pair of heels thats for sure! Power upgrades went on hold as a direct result!

Factor in the cost of both the Eibach and Prodrive set up and the outlay easily covers the cost of what I paid for the AST's in the Powerstation groupbuy. False economy for me in the end but obviously just my opinion

Irony was I shyed away from the coilover option for fear they would be too harsh etc. However being 12 way adjustable they are softer than the Prodrive springs (and thats with the AST's set to hard on all corners) Plus it got rid of the troublesome knocking on the rear struts (that I could have had replaced under warranty)

If you are purely looking for a slightly better ride than the oem set up and a lower/meaner stance then I'd agree with Neilo the Eibachs are a cheap comprimise.

Hope you get sorted. Below gives you some idea of the drop on the Prodrive springs btw. Might give you a useful comparison if you can find Neilos on Eibachs? (Graphics removed before anyone starts flaming )

novarally

I loved the car with graphics on, and as for AST`s I had them on the Classic yes they were good but now the car is more expensive so less money to throw at it, would love to get them again maybe one day

davedipster

Eibach don't make springs for the sti, have you fitted wrx springs?

Dipster

Woodcote

iTrader: (1)

agreed Powerstation fitted Eibachs to my 03 STi and ride is now excellent ...much better than standard springs
the ride is now not as harsh and doesn't jar as much over our ****e roads but handles much better than standards springs - but i did get geometry, ALK and ARBs fitted as well
I am sure an AST kit is the way to go and for me that will come later but the Eibachs was a good cheaper compromise.

Dipster - had all this work done at Powerstation so i went with what they fitted. Don'y Eibach make the prodrive spring that Subaru fit as an upgrade and was fitted to the WR1?

davedipster

They do m8, but eibach make lots of springs for other companies like prodrive.

But eibach prodrive springs are made to the customers (prodrives) own specs, also the prodrive springs come with shorter front bump stops on the sti because the suspension will hit the stops on a bumpy road without these shorter stops. Not ideal.

dipster

Trap2Terrorist

iTrader: (3)

I've had the Eibach's fitted to my bugeye WRX too, still with standard shocks, (by Powerstation) and they are excellent, although I do find I have to avoid raised/sunken manholes and potholes to avoid causing the dash to shudder!!

They do make the car handle much better though by removing the body roll when chucking through a succession of bends.

A couple of pics to show the drop before and after (235/40/R18).

Before (crap pic):


After:

alex_00s

iTrader: (18)

I will have a set of Eibach lowering springs for sale soon as I'm getting coilovers.

2mnths old done about 1000miles, practically new. Retail at £190, yours for £90.

They are off MY03 WRX so I would guess they would fit straight onto your car... could be wrong tho??

SamUK

iTrader: (1)

There is something wrong with the before pic there....that looks little too high on the rear no?


The more i look at my car MY03 STI the more it annoys me....the front just looks too silly!

http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v6...gAnch=imgAnch6



So i was thinking about a set of Tein springs, which lower the front more then the rears, which will make the car look level....Prodrives only have near 25mm drop which i dnt think will be enough to cover the holes in the arches...i have heard good things about Tein, however just not got around to having them fitted...


The cash just aint there for Coilovers

MikeWood

Sam

Our springs lower the front more than the rear and this does indeed make the car look level. The reason we 'only' lower it by 20-25mm is that the front suspension doesn't have a huge amount of bump travel and lowering it too much means it just sits on the front bumpstops. We also include new bumpstops in the kit to help with this problem.

Mike

SamUK

iTrader: (1)

Mike,

what brand are they?

Tone Loc

iTrader: (1)

They would be Prodrive

Having had coilovers on my classic and now Prodrive springs on my 06 i know which i prefer.

Why buy springs designed for Japan's roads such as Tein, or Eibach's with a 'generic' drop when you can have Prodrive's springs and bump stops which have been extensively developed on UK roads. Ok they cost a bit more and do not drop the car as much, but if you want cheap springs and the car sat on it's ar$e you should have kept the old classic and joined the rest of the chavs outside McDs in theirs

If you want springs only it's Prodrive all the way for me.

Tony.

SamUK

iTrader: (1)

But from what i have heard prodrives do not lower the fronts more then the rears?

Tone Loc

iTrader: (1)

Forget what you have 'heard'... its there in black and white from Mike. I presume he knows his own products better than most

Tony.

Tone Loc

iTrader: (1)

Here's a pic of my 06 with Prodrive springs...



As you can see the gap between the arches and tyre looks fairly equal front and rear which backs up what Mike was saying. The springs lower the front more so the bigger gap between the front arch and tyre (as seen on your pics) reduces to the same as the rear... so it looks 'level'.

Tony.

Hol

iTrader: (1)

Do you think I can still post on the AST groupbuy thread and get the same price

If only!

Chris123

Tone - did you find the prodrive springs tamed some of the jiggly ride the 06 STi seems to have ?
Chris

Tone Loc

iTrader: (1)

Chris... i couldn't say as mine is a WRX. However i have heard from Sti owners they have stopped some of the bouncy that appearr on the motorway and they seem far more suited to our roads. Mike would be able to say for sure if he reads this thread again.

Tony.

53

iTrader: (41)

Main reason I bought PD springs for my 53 plate WRX was to eliminate the motorway warble, which they did.

Big Sky WRX

For lowering springs for the STi w/ the oe dampers you want to look at the STi jdm pink ones- they lower right at 20mm f/r and provide a nice bump up in rates to 45/40 N.

Designed for the oe STi strut, by STi

http://www.subaru-sti.co.jp/parts/gd...eimage/2-2.jpg

I'd pass on the Eibach's- nice upgrade for the WRX, downgrade for the STi IMO- unless your looking for a cushy ride.

Prodrive doesn't post their rates (which doesn't help a lot), but it appears the lowering might be a little much- lower a Mac P strut too much and performance really starts to degrade.

corradoboy

Heart rate settled down yet Rob

Put the graphics back on

Tone Loc

iTrader: (1)

The problem with that being designed by STi for Japan's roads.....

Tony.

Big Sky WRX

As is the oe strut I think most find the car off the showroom floor slightly overdamped, it's sounds counterintuitive, but firmer springs (and tops) can actually go along way of actually improving the ride quality- obviously performance is bumped a notch as well