thisisludicrous Posted October 12, 2005 Posted October 12, 2005 I was pondering how to tighten up the suspension a bit on my 150k mile 95 LS400, to get it to stay a little flatter in the corners, a little less body lean, maybe the H&R Sport Spring with KYB GR-2 route. My independent mechanic suggests the 1" +/- drop will poorly affect the driving dynamic, chewing up 2 or 3 sets of tires before a shop - charging hourly rates for each tweak - will be able to dial in cast/camber/etc. Sounds, um, expensive. He suggested just to replace with OEM springs and struts (do the KYB GR-2's qualify as OEM?), then if I wanted, add front strut tower brace, rear larger sway bar, and larger rims with lower profile tires. Again, I don't want to autocross, I just want flatter corners and less body lean, firm things up a bit. I'm not blitzkrieging the backroads with this thing. 80% of my driving is highway, though the other 20% is fun Blue Ridge Mountain 2-lanes. Any suggestions on which of the two courses of action above would be best? Have a different suggestion? Many thanks in advance for any input.
nc211 Posted October 12, 2005 Posted October 12, 2005 I agree with the mechanic, especially for what you want it to do, and not do. I replaced my oem struts with new oem struts a few months ago, it firmed it up too and took a lot of the lean out. Not all of it, as it's not designed for sportscar type driving, but it did take quite a bit out. The tire suggestion will hamper the car's ability to smooth out the bumps, and you and I both know, Raleigh has several bumps. The roads here are horrible. Curious, who is your indi mechanic? I'm thinking of contacting Phil's Toy Store soon to try and fix this wobble thing I've got going on. My normal indi can't seem to figure it out.
sha4000 Posted October 12, 2005 Posted October 12, 2005 that roll in the corners are *BLEEP*ty on the highways and sharp turns. thats the thing that bothers me the most. i would like to firm up the suspension without buying epensive coilovers.
ko90ls Posted October 12, 2005 Posted October 12, 2005 :D not 100% sure but the lower springs can cause negative camber and kill tires :cries: look into nitto tires they have a series designed for lowered cars, also from reviews that i've read the kyb shock "suck" everyone says go with the tokicos plus they have a lifetime warranty!
SKperformance Posted October 12, 2005 Posted October 12, 2005 Lowering a car and then not getting an alignment immediatly chews the inside of the tires. I got rid of my OEM suspension 2 weeks after i bought my car. I could not stand rocking back and forth ,and side to side everytime i changed motion. With my JIC suspension it got as close to luxury with more than an added dash of sport. If i could do it again i would probably get the TEIN coilovers. All in all suspension can make or break a car and how you like it or love it. I like my LS with OEM suspension, not i love to drive my LS all the time. The wording says it all.
GSsoldier Posted October 13, 2005 Posted October 13, 2005 ahh i would have somehting to say usually about lowering and going into turns but as my car has been damaged by this type of driving i have no say really... read "hey guys story and advice" if anyone else has other suggestions for me please dont be afraid to type or berate me
thisisludicrous Posted October 13, 2005 Author Posted October 13, 2005 Gents, thanks for the advice and comments. Based on what I've read and heard, here and elsewhere, I think I'll just start with the struts (NOT KYB, I'll find OEM or Tokico, thanks!) and see what that feels like. I'll go with OEM springs for the moment. I've heard fantastic things about the TEIN coilovers, but that's a tad more change that I've got rattling around in my pockets right now for this project. NC211, the shop I use in Western North Carolina is 'Mostly Toyota' in Asheville. The people there are terrific, fair and honest. I used to travel to Raleigh regularly for sales meetings, and you have my sympathy for the condition of your roads, not Detroit-like, but hardly pleasant. Now, where to find the springs...? I've seen the Tokico structs on Ebay, but not OEM springs? I'll check the vendors on this site first. Thanks again.
nc211 Posted October 13, 2005 Posted October 13, 2005 Gents, thanks for the advice and comments. Based on what I've read and heard, here and elsewhere, I think I'll just start with the struts (NOT KYB, I'll find OEM or Tokico, thanks!) and see what that feels like. I'll go with OEM springs for the moment. I've heard fantastic things about the TEIN coilovers, but that's a tad more change that I've got rattling around in my pockets right now for this project. NC211, the shop I use in Western North Carolina is 'Mostly Toyota' in Asheville. The people there are terrific, fair and honest. I used to travel to Raleigh regularly for sales meetings, and you have my sympathy for the condition of your roads, not Detroit-like, but hardly pleasant. Now, where to find the springs...? I've seen the Tokico structs on Ebay, but not OEM springs? I'll check the vendors on this site first. Thanks again. ← www.parts.com drill down to lexus. i use discount toyota parts myself. I had a special hookup from sewell on my control arms. DTP for all the others.
branshew Posted October 13, 2005 Posted October 13, 2005 Based on what I've read and heard, here and elsewhere, I think I'll just start with the struts (NOT KYB, I'll find OEM or Tokico, thanks!) and see what that feels like. ← KYB makes the OEM struts. Why pay more for the EXACT same thing? Shop the discount places online and you should be able to find them for a good price. Might as well replace the mounts while you're in there. They're cheap.
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