Hey all,
My 01 civic (7th gen) has a blown front left shock so i started looking for replacements. looks like i can get a new pair of front shocks for ~$180, or i can get 4 new shocks + lowering springs for $330 http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/4-New...#ht_1882wt_939


I have the stock 16 inch cheapy rims with hub caps, if i lowered my car 2 inches in the front and rear, would the car still be functional, as in like no tire rubbing or worsening the steering radius?

Thanks guys. oh and if any one has a pic of what the car looks like with a 2 inch drop and stock wheels that would be greatly appreciated.

 

Lowering a car will have no effect on turning radius, though in extreme amounts it will make the tires rub (with stock wheels you'd pretty much need to have all four tires tucked though). Two inches shouldn't be enough to make you rub with stock wheels, though. Also, I wouldn't recommend buying cheap suspension parts. Suspension and brakes are two places you do not want to go cheap with. Usually with cheap suspension you'll just encounter bad ride quality and unknown spring rates, but there's the potential for catastrophic failure at highway speeds. Personally, I'd rather not take that risk.

And I'm sorry it's not a 7th gen, but here's my old 5th gen on stock wheels with about a 3" drop in front and about a 4" drop in the rear:



No rubbing at all with the stock wheels. At 2" I doubt you'll have any problems

 

Thanks for the reply reaper. This gives me a good idea what to expect. As far as suspension goes, im still figuring out my best couse of action to fix it. Ill think twice about those cheap parts.

 

If I were you, I'd much rather go with light-weight aluminum wheels. The lighter the wheels, the faster the acceleration, the shorter the braking distance, and the better the ride. Having a lowered Civic with el cheapo steel wheels just doesn't look right to me.

This place has a huge selection of wheels:

www.jlbmotorsports.com

I just picked up some 16-inch Konigs for my Mazda that weigh only 15 lbs each. In my case, I upsized from 15-inchers and still reduced the weight of each wheel/tire combo by 3 lbs.

Also, keep in mind that some shocks do not like springs that reduce ride hight by more than 2-2.5 inches. Even if you go lower by 1.5 inches a camber kit is sometimes needed with some cars. My CX need the kit in the back, even with the 1.3-inch drop.

 

I agree with the shocks, but I'd argue a camber kit isn't necessary regarding performance or tire wear. A car with a slight amount of negative camber will generally grip the road during turns better than a car with zero camber as the car will "roll" during turns; the negative camber will cause the inside tires to become close to vertical, allowing them to maintain better grip. The exact angles needed will vary depending on driving conditions, driving style, etc, but a slight amount of negative camber will not hinder a car's performance. Along with that, camber won't outright wear a car's tires; provided the car has a toe alignment ("toe" being the angle being adjusted), the car should see very little premature wear over the life of the tires. I was running three degrees of negative camber at all four corners on my civic and didn't encounter any noticeable premature tire wear. That being said, negative camber in excess will cause the inside of the tire to wear faster than the outside.

And personally, I'd rather see a car lowered on stock wheels than a car with aftermarket wheels at stock height. Aftermarket wheels tend to look awkward on stock-height civics. Reducing unsprung weight on track cars is great, but for a street car the difference will not be noticed.

(CP, the basic explanations weren't aimed at you, but at the OP. I figure if he's asking these questions it's probably best to just explain everything outright.)

 

^ He's right. Do suspension first. My car look so awkward at the stock height and aftermarket rims

 

You might want to try out a Civic with 26lb 17-inch wheels. There is a definite acceleration difference between it and the same car with 17-lb wheels. Of course, in my Honda's case, I went from 14-inch steel wheels with baloon tires to 16-inch aluminum wheels and never gained a lb. However, had I chosen to go to 17 or 18-inchers (up to 30 lbs per wheel), my acceleration and braking would've suffered, badly.

As far as lowering, there is such a thing as too low for the street. A 4-inch drop is too much IMO.

 

I never said a 4" drop wasn't too much. I can guarantee my LCAs were at a bad angle after lowering it that far; I wasn't concerned with making my car a track car, I just wanted an aggressive stance. You can't tell me a 2" drop with proper spring rates and matching dampers would be too much though.

And yes, 100-120lbs of unsprung weight will make a noticeable difference. 10-20lbs won't. My solution is to pay more for wheels. Cheap knockoffs weigh more. Mackin Industry's Volk CE28N (in 17x9" form) weighs under 15lbs a wheel; I don't think a similar Rota would be nearly that light.

 

My car is sittin about the same height as reapers old civic, the stance is great but drivability isnt so great on bumpy roads, i cant go over any speedbumps and im scrapn everywhere. 2in drop seems pretty good for a civic with the right wheel/tire setup it should be sick. Good luck.

 

Don't get 17s. They're too big.