Well I have decided to lower my car this spring/summer when I get back to work. So I thought I was going to go with Tokico HPs, seemed good and a reasonable price. But I have been reading reviews online and they are pretty disheartening. Alot of people complain about excessive bounce (I expect [I]some bounce and I'm ok with that) and also alot have complained about leaking oil and wearning out very fast (although this could be just over excessive driving and trying to race them in autocross, etc). Tokicos average rating out of 5 was around 3.5, not great IMO (Konis were 4.3). Other company suggestions were Koni, they are about $165 a pair for both front and rear (so around $330 with shipping). Then I was thinking Tein H Tech springs which offer about 1.1 inch front and 1.3 rear drop. My goal was around 1.5, but these are just fine. I don't want to go anywhere past 1.8 cause 1. I don't want my camber screwed up 2. I don't want to rip my front lip on the speed bumps here in MD(those 5mph ones are HORRIBLE) and 3. I just don't like super low cars like that. So my question is Konis with Teins or just go with the Tokicos? Comments are definally appericated, as are pasted experiences. Thanks

 

i can speak from personal experience with both products both on street and autocross.

I had the Tokico HP(strut/spring) setup for about a year, daily driven and autocrossed a bunch of times on it. held up just fine and as a matter of fact, i'm currently driving on them temporarily while i re-valve my Koni's and get new springs for my coilovers. one of the reasons people may say that the ride may be bouncy is because they are probably running springs that are way to stiff for those shocks to handle. in-turn creating a horrible ride. with springs like the Tien H-Techs, the ride will be smooth, very much bearable. same thing with the shocks leaking, they are probably running springs too stiff for the valving on these causing them to wear out prematurely and blow(really bouncy ride, improper valving, high spring rate=blown shock). They are a reliable shock and will offer a good, smooth ride when matched with the correct spring.

now Koni, i'll have to favor over Tokico. very reputable company that produces top notch products. If you have the money, go with the Koni's. If not, the Tokicos will def. do just fine.

what part of MD are you from? i'm in Howard County. i've never had any problems with roads or speed bumps around here and my car is about a 1/4" away from tucking tire. don't even have to slow down much for the height, just have to since my suspension is pretty darn stiff so it dosn't feel real nice to hit a speed bump fast haha.

 

I live in MoCo. I have issues with those darn neighborhood bumps. And also the ones in shopping centers, I've tried to blow past them, but I hit my head on my roof LOL. So I take it slow. Well if you have even been on Norbeck where it interects Georgia, they are some nice bumps that my car loves to follow and if you arn't careful, you'll be in the next lane. Also Grayheaven in Olney is horrible too, lots of pot holes. I've learned to slow down on those roads.

 

i have the hp shocks and struts on my 93 hatch and its a pretty decent ride for aftermarket suspension i dont really think it would do great in autocross but they make for a very fun DD setup

 

Thanks for the comments guys. So either will be fine, thats good to know. I never had ever really liked reviews and have always perfered to ask someone and get their opinions that way. Either way I'll have to come up with probably about $550-600 (extremely rough estimate). Guess I better start working.

 

I have a similar predicament, and so I decided to continue this thread. I have been reading different threads here, and considering the Tokico HP Spring and Shock set wondering if the HP set would suit my needs. I want an aggressive, reliable, and comfortable suspension system that's in the $400-$500 range. I checked prices on ebay first and found this one:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/TOKIC...Q5fAccessories

Looks legit, but on ebay you get what you pay for so I have doubts that there is some BS catch to what I'm being shown. This will be my first suspension upgrade so I was hoping you guys with the experience could set me strait.

Thanks

 

it's not BS. name brand parts on ebay are fine, they are the same name brand products on other sites.

 

Cool thanks for the reply.

What would you do Tokico HPK201 or Tokico Illumina?

 

w/e is cheaper i'd go for. the only difference between those two is that the Illuminas offer adjustable shocks which you really don't need. the Tokico HP shocks are fine for street driving. the ride is a little more harsh that OEM but definitely bearable.

 

i've heard bad things about the illuminas because the adjustment **** is weak and has a tendency to break. that's what prompted me to get the KYB AGX shocks instead.