Looking To Install 20" Wheels And Lower. Any Issues?

[sidewayz]

I have a 92 LS and was thinking of installing a set of 20" wheels and then lowering the car to get rid of the space between the tire and wheel well that I believe makes the LS a "granny mobile". I have always enjoyed driving these cars and I would like to give it a more aggressive stance by lowering it anyway.

MY QUESTION IS...

has anyone done this and know of any problems I may be running into i.e. the wheels making contact with the fender????

I would really like to get an idea of what kind of problems lie ahead before I get all gung-ho doing this.

[jcrome04]

Hello and welcome to the club!

I lowered my old 91 LS on Tanabe DF210's and had 20x8.5s +35 offset, and never rubbed once. Could turn fully from lock to lock. I BELIEVE the tires were 225.30.20... I'm not 100% though.

Tanabe DF210's

http://luxurymods.com/index.asp?PageAction...&ProdID=394

The 20's i think may have been a little hard on the hubs though. After some time I noticed a popping noise when I'd stop from reversing time to time. But i think that may be a common problem on the LS anyways.

Good luck on the drop!

[sidewayz]

I appreciate the pic and the info.

[landar]

Just remember that in doing so you will be very dramatically altering the original design and the ride

comfort may suffer dramatically as well.

[killerFatty]

jas anyone evenr used the H&R sport springs to lower there LS? Are they any good?

[jcrome04]

They don't lower much. To me it would be a huge waste to spend all this money and only drop 1". The Tanabe's settle close to 2"

Also... I DID NOT replace my shocks. and the ride was fine. It was still comfortable and smooth. Obviously not AS smooth as on 15" wheels, but it was still a very nice ride.

[G Alex]

They don't lower much. To me it would be a huge waste to spend all this money and only drop 1". The Tanabe's settle close to 2"

Also... I DID NOT replace my shocks. and the ride was fine. It was still comfortable and smooth. Obviously not AS smooth as on 15" wheels, but it was still a very nice ride.

I thought the Tanabes were a 1 inch drop ? Did it drop you two inches ? Did you measure before and after ? It is pretty low. Looks nice. Do you drag front nose ?

[jcrome04]

No. The Tanabes are the lowest drop for a conventional spring/shock setup.

The DF210's are rated at F: -1.8" R: 1.3"

But they settle closer to 2"

[sidewayz]

what offset are you running on your wheels?? I put 20" wheels on a customer's 94 LS yesterday. They came back this morning and the rear rub the fender when you hit a bump (sounds like weak struts to me) But now I worry that if I drop mine 2" or better that I may have similar issues unless I get the backspacing right.

[jcrome04]

Did you read my first post?

The 225's are the trick to no rubbing with no fender mods.

[sidewayz]

I feel like a dumbass. I read that the other day. DUH!!! You have permission to slap me in the back of the head

[jcrome04]

How about with a chair?? :chairshot:

hahaha jk man. Decide on any wheels yet?

[sidewayz]

Decide on any wheels yet?

The ones that i am wanting to get are all black with thin spokes and a very thin stripe of chrome down each wheel. I saw a picture a week ago, but I can't get any pictures or any more info on the wheel until it is released next month. I can't wait, I got my paint work done, tinted the windows, ordered the drop springs, and I am having the stereo(upgraded factory speakers no big subs in the trunk, yet anyways) installed tommorow. Everything will be ready for the wheels by next week. I will post pics of the car after I get the wheels installed. It is kind of *BLEEP*ing me off that I am rocking such a nice car and it has some ugly 15" wheels on it.

[python]

heres mine on 235-40-18's...... 20 inch rims dont look good on a gen 1, they look better on a gen 2, btw i have megans on it

[jcrome04]

Python your car is gettin pretty slick.

You ever thought of lightly tinting your tails? I think it would look great not totally blacked out.

[rwallican]

I had 20s (245/35/20) on my 96 but I didn't lower the car. If I hit a decent dip, it would rub on the frame. I'm thinking you'll be rubbing quite a bit if you lower on small highway/street dips. You'll also feel a little more road with the low profile tires but mine still rode great.

[jcrome04]

.....He has a 1st gen.

THERE WILL BE NO RUBBING WITH 225's AND DROP WITH TANABE DF210's....... only under VERY aggressive driving. That was the case with my 91 on STOCK struts.

[954rrboyz]

What Up Thats For all the in for but i need more I got a 1991 ls 400 and i want to drop it sic!!!!!!!! real real real real LOW iam talkin negative camber on the back wheel you no the vip way how?????????? much should i cut i want to put 18"s on well 18x9 in the front and 19x9.5 in the back

[PureDrifter]

What Up Thats For all the in for but i need more I got a 1991 ls 400 and i want to drop it sic!!!!!!!! real real real real LOW iam talkin negative camber on the back wheel you no the vip way how?????????? much should i cut i want to put 18"s on well 18x9 in the front and 19x9.5 in the back

if you want to VIP it then spend up the right amount of money and get yourself a set of coilovers.

Tanabes are IMHO only useful if you don't care about the way the car drives, and they will blows the OEM shocks quicker than any other spring, notnecesasarily make them ride poorly. really only useful for going low and getting a close-to-stock ride.

H&R are great springs, the only current equivalent to the ones Eibach used to make. the H&R springs have a totally different purpose than the Tanabes, so J, the Tanabes are made to go low and give a stock-like ride, whereas the H&Rs are made to give a moderate drop, but greatly improve the feel/handling of the car. so saying a spring that gives a 1" drop isn't worth the money is a pretty ignorant thing to say.

[jcrome04]

So a 1" drop to me is a waste of money! It's not ignorant just because it's not what YOU think.

I think if people wanted a sports car that rides on rails then the LS is the wrong car. If however you want to stiffen the ride up, and don't want to drop much, then by all means go for the H&Rs.

I personally wanted to go low and keep a comfortable ride... why is that ignorant??

and 954................... What!?!?????????

[PureDrifter]

So a 1" drop to me is a waste of money! It's not ignorant just because it's not what YOU think.

I think if people wanted a sports car that rides on rails then the LS is the wrong car. If however you want to stiffen the ride up, and don't want to drop much, then by all means go for the H&Rs.

I personally wanted to go low and keep a comfortable ride... why is that ignorant??

and 954................... What!?!?????????

im not saying that you can't have your opinion, i said what i said because you seemed to be saying that any 1" drop is a waste of money, and the OP didnt say he was or wasnt looking for a sporty feel, so why put down one liable option because of your personal preference?

oh, and the H&R settle to ~1.3-1.5 inches from what my friends running it tell me.

[jcrome04]

Cause I'm offering advice from my own opinions and experiences. Just like you are doing ;)

[blacklexus90]

I have a 92 LS and was thinking of installing a set of 20" wheels and then lowering the car to get rid of the space between the tire and wheel well that I believe makes the LS a "granny mobile". I have always enjoyed driving these cars and I would like to give it a more aggressive stance by lowering it anyway.

MY QUESTION IS...

has anyone done this and know of any problems I may be running into i.e. the wheels making contact with the fender????

I would really like to get an idea of what kind of problems lie ahead before I get all gung-ho doing this.

i have a 1992 ls 400 20 inch wheels i have a 40 off set and my rear dont rub at all even with people in the back seat,but when i hit a nice dip my front wheel rub a little.s o i bought coil spring helper and no problem since.hope this help as well

[jcrome04]

Pics?