I finally had the Eibach springs and gas shocks installed, along with some aluminum adapter rings for the Black Racing Pro wheels. All wheels were aligned, afterward.
Front drop = 1.5"
Rear drop = 1.3"
Ride: Not much difference in ride quality, but vehicle sway is definitely diminished when quick steering corrections are executed.
While down at the alignment shop, I asked the guy how far out of camber the tires could be before excessive tire wear would be evident. He told me that even 2 degrees out will wear a tire prematurely, even if everything else has been corrected. For this reason, longer bolts were needed to bring the camber in to factory specs. I did ask the guy if he's seen out-of-camber spec tires that were worn on the inside and he replied "definitely".
Anyway, what good is this post without pics?
Here they are:

[IMG]local://upfiles/5780/ECE8AC54BC364EC0AA69E8EA6D53B909.jpg[/IMG]

[IMG]local://upfiles/5780/5D02EBD997534E6E8AA7C5E8CEFB4DC5.jpg[/IMG]

[IMG]local://upfiles/5780/11D793EA127742138427808DC163E010.jpg[/IMG]

 

well TOE is the majority of premature tire wear.... im sure camber hurts ALITTLE BIT...... BUT i dont see it being that much to be even noticable... just as long as the wheels are aimed straight within specs... its when they fight eachother trying to turn the car is what causes the most wear. it does makes sense

 

I agree that toe is very critical, but I'll bet some of the camber-related wear is masked by 5000-mile rotations. Regarding looks - the car is definitely lower, but not "slammed" by any stretch of the imagination. The good news is that I drove at normal speeds over a few dips in the road and nothing scraped. I think as far as every day driving is concerned, a 1.5-inch drop is a good compromise between radical and geeky.

 

yeah, a 1.5" or so drop is good if you want a decent drop without having to worry about ride quality or scraping. And toe is what makes sets of tires last about 3,000 miles before it wears down to the belts (trust me, I'm speaking from experience lol)... I'm sure camber wears the tires prematurely, but I'd guess it would be by a few hundred miles over the life of the tire... running the wrong tire pressure is probably worse for your tire life than camber (but I have no facts to back that up lol)

 

Reaper,

What is that in your avatar?

Do you guys think I should put the Eibach stickers in the rear side windows or would that look too ricey?

,,,,next mod - Magnaflow cat-back....after that - CAI.....

 

the td04 turbo I have sitting in my room

and personally, I'm a big fan of the under-hood roll call... that way, it's not too show-offy or ricey or anything like that... and it actually looks cool to just have the stickers in random places on the underside of the hood.

 

dito if you slap stickers ANYWHERE put them under the hood so when you pop the hood then you can show them off..... otherwise your just advertising to theives........

 

sweet drop, looks like a good setup

 

Thanks and good info about advertising for theives. I guess if the car were always in a garage, I wouldn't worry, but who can do that all the time? The stickers will go under the hood.

Next mod is cat-back but I may consider a muffler only. Still, you gotta love that mirror-polished Magnaflow system - not that you can see it anytime but when you change the oil!

 

go with the catback bro, ur gunnna regret the fartcan, if ur tight on money get some custom piping from a muffler shop, wont cost you to muich