tchdwnuga

Hello all. I'm interested in lowering my LS, however i don't want to sacrifice my ride quality. I've been told to stay away from coilovers, due to the ride quality loss, however i haven't heard anything about lowering springs. I have H&R springs on my Metro and they greatly improved the ride, but that was a Geo...this is a Lexus.

So my basic question is which way will give me the best ride quality? I don't want to slam the car, just get rid of some wheel gap and eventually get some 18s.

I searched around and couldn't find much,

Here are the two things i'm looking at:

http://www.meganracingperformance.co...kit-p-630.html

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Tanab...item35a3eb37ce

Thanks a bunch,

Kyle

thadword

First, welcome. Well, from doing all my research, i chose tanabes. These springs, depending which spring type you choose, are made for the drop and still keep as much as the Lexus ride as possible. The spring rate is increased 10-15% compared to the stock. This is a Japan based company (like Lexus). My combo is tanabe springs with kyb struts. It looks and feels aggresive. The ride is decent, especially considering the drop. Eventually, I'm putting my 20s(20x8.5) on there.

tchdwnuga

Would i need to replace the factory struts or would it be ok with them? What kind of drop did you actually get? I've seen anything from 1.5in - 2.5in.

Thanks for the quick reply,

Kyle

thadword

[QUOTE=tchdwnuga;5200676]Would i need to replace the factory struts or would it be ok with them? What kind of drop did you actually get? I've seen anything from 1.5in - 2.5in.

Thanks for the quick reply,

Kyle[/QUOTE


1.8 front/1.5 rear

Schnitz

iTrader: (5)

The lowest Tanabes are know to blow OEM struts.
Whomever told you ride quality will suffer with coilovers is uneducated in this area.
I and many many other members have Megan Racing coilovers. They passed the wife test - she never noticed a difference. I swap them out every fall and ride on the OEM stuff all winter. I know from first hand experience that ride quality suffers very very little from Megan coilovers.
Do some research and you'll find the answers to all your questions.

Li Ls4

iTrader: (12)

like Schnitz said, ride quality wont suffer with coilovers because u can tweak them to ur specifications. springs and struts will run u about $600-700 so y not add another $100-150 and u wont have to worrie about loosing ride quality and u can lower the car how little or how much u want. im on megans and love em.

Mugen_1

+3 for the Megans. If you have them set on 1 (stiffest) all the way around, it can be almost comical going over rough roads. But my fronts are on 16s and my rears on 24 (they go up to 32, softest), and there's not a considerable difference between stock and Megans except that the Megans are squeak a LOT in cold weather.

With stock wheels and tires, the difference is minor. With my 20"s on, however, ride quality suffers a bit more (due to the lower profile tire, that is).

Based on my experience, I'd recommend Megans..

thadword

[QUOTE=thadword;5200820]Oh yeah, the answer to your other question on replacing the factory struts. Yes you will.

Schnitz

iTrader: (5)

Like Mugen said, I noticed the biggest difference in ride quality switching from my stock 16's to 20's. That was a night & day difference.

tchdwnuga

Wow, thanks guys that answered a lot of questions.

So basically i'd need new struts anyways, so why not just spend a little more and get coilovers.

Thanks,

Kyle

Brandicus

iTrader: (6)

yup, it takes us all awhile to realize that you in fact cannot have your cake and eat it too. If it was possible to preserve that ride we would all be dumped.

Ive had the privledge of switching from stock to coilovers to air and back to stock again, & I can assure you, if you want stock ride than stick with what you got, if you dont mind some harshness in tradeoff for a very fun cornering ability than the coils are for you imo.

kinda beating a dead horse but i had to get in my 2 cents

19psi

i love my megan coilovers. if i leave it on full soft, it feels like stock to me. very comfortable. i run them about in the middle because it helps the handling but doesnt make it too stiff either.

tenchu

Bringing this back from the dead... What model of Megans do you all run? I've been looking for a set for my LS since my stock suspension is junk anyways, and if i'm going to spend the cash (I was looking at KYB + Tanabe) I figure I may as well spend a bit more for Megans if the ride is as close to stock as everyone here says it is. I've noticed there are at least 3 different megan models available for our cars?

python

iTrader: (4)

what settings u got it on? how many clicks in what direction? i was under the impression if u have it too soft it will bottom out to easily...am i wrong?

PureDrifter

iTrader: (10)

most of us are on LP Street. i think there's a couple guys on the cheaper EZ.

thank you for searching.