awdandrwd

iTrader: (1)

Hello,

I have a '94 LS400 with 192K miles. I bought it as second car, but ended up selling my main, more expensive car and am daily driving the Lexus now. I like it more and more all the time.

I currently have it on new KYB GR2 shocks and OEM springs. It handles surprisingly well and the ride quality is nice.

I'm used to fairly nice suspension setups, so I would not mind having a nicer adjustable damper. Being able to adjust the height would be great too. I'd consider spending some cash on a set of nice coilovers, but I don't want to sacrifice the ride quality. I'm not looking to slam the car, though I'd run it 1/2" - 1" lower than stock.

Any suggestions? What are my good options -- Yellow DPS, Megan, Ksport, BC Racing, D2? Any comments and comparisons are welcome, as well as recommendations on spring rates/length. Keep in mind, priorities are good quality ride and improved handling, not planning on going lower than 2" from stock.

Thank you much,

Stan

PureDrifter

iTrader: (10)

BC or Megan LP Street. (didnt like how the EZ series rode but personal preference)

not a fan at all of KSport or D2's poor reliability. Never even heard of DPS.

awdandrwd

iTrader: (1)

^^ Yep, those are the choices I came up with after doing some searching. Which ones do you have, the LPs? I'm concerned with loosing ride quality. I'll keep the ride height reasonable and should have enough travel, are the 10K/8K springs going to be alot stiffer than stock?

I wish I knew what the stock spring rates are, just for comparison. I tried the Eibach springs with the GR2s, but I want a better damper -- GR2s were a bit too weak and the height in the front was a hair too low for my taste anyway.

Thank you much,

Stan

PureDrifter

iTrader: (10)

Yeah I have LP streets. the stock spring rate on them now is actually 12kg/mm and 8kg/mm i believe. they ride pretty well at most heights.

too bad you don't have a 2nd gen, perfect mild setup for those cars is Bilstein HDs+H&r/Lsportline (eibach) springs.

awdandrwd

iTrader: (1)

Honestly, I'm not the biggest fan of HDs. I had them on a Passat and have ridden in at least one Audi equipped with them, and I find them too harsh and uncomfortable. I'm more of a Koni guy -- I've had Konis on 3 cars and like their approach more.

I PM'ed CircuitMS, maybe I can get some info from them. It'd be really nice to get a ride in a car equipped with Megans. I'm worried about loosing comfort and having extra noises due to pillow ball mounts. My goal isn't too typical since lowering isn't my main concern, I want better performance while still retaining a good ride which should be possible with a double wishbone setup. It's just a matter of having a good damper matched with good springs. I guess I could try the Eibachs again.. I just hate to go through the hassle of swapping springs only to find it too low and bouncy, I'd much rather have whole assimbiles I can just swap in and dial in -- I can't get any adjustments out of the KYBs with Eibach setup. Besides, I've never had coilovers before and have always been curious about running a decent set.

Thank you again,

Stan

PureDrifter

iTrader: (10)

if BC can do you a set with rubber upper mounts then you'd be set from the sound of what you're looking for.

awdandrwd

iTrader: (1)

Aright, let's talk spring rates for BC Racing coilovers.

Standard, they come with 200mm 12K springs front, 220mm 8K springs rear. This concerns me a bit since some of our roads are crappy and I want to retain comfort. I am not planning on going more than an inch lower than stock, so I'd stick with longer springs. Maybe 10K 220mm front / 8K 220mm rear would be better, or even 10K 220mm front / 6K 220mm rear? Would 8K / 6K be ridiculously undersprung?

Stan

CircuitMS

iTrader: (51)

The standard kit is 12k/8k just because the front of the LS400 is so much heavier than the rear. Usually the standard springrates are a good rate to go with for a daily driver. They are set to be firm for Better handling and roll control as well as steering feel, but while still maintaining street civility.

If you want a really soft setup we could so a 10k/6k setup, but I wouldn't go softer than that. If it were me, I'd stick with the 12/8 for an all around good handling upgrade.

You can always get extra springs down the road too if you want a softer kit, so you're not "stuck" with it.

PureDrifter

iTrader: (10)

the car will likely bottom out and be wallowy and boatlike, and be grossly overdamped unless BC valved to spec.

you won't gain any extra travel by doing that anyways, as travel isnt spring limited, it's damper limited (stroke).

if you don't want to lower more than an inch or two, and want nothing but comfort, the old king Tein CS still reigns. if you're lowering much more though (2.5"+ iirc) you'll see pretty bad ride quality and it simply will not go as low as the megans or BC. Tein CM:CS is 6kg/mm front and 4kg/mm rear from the factory, and is a single tap coilover.

having springs is useless unless BC will revalve the body for him, but afaik they only sell complete damper assys, no revalving service.

and as mentioned, Tein CS (which don't go as low due to their single-adjustment design) have been ~6/4 for the better part of a decade+.

RA40

iTrader: (6)

PD has you covered.

Scratch that, you are 1-LS and I got into 2-LS mode. ugh...

The Bilstein HD spring set-up isn't bad in this car, very comfortable...I still have this in mine. Take the wheels off and it is very stock like though maybe a touch firmer but not obvious. The Eibach springs are progressively wound so only under compression will you begin to notice them firming up. Normal day-to day conservative driving, it is very tame.

awdandrwd

iTrader: (1)

I don't think Tein CSs are available for UCF10, are they? 6k/4k is 336/224 in in/lbs, that sounds pretty soft for a 4,000lb car.

I would guess BCR uses the same basic damper for all of their coilover kit vs. valving it specifically for each model? I mean, these are $1,000 coilovers.. but, if they do, that's actually pretty great. I notice LS430 gets the 10k 220mm/8k 220mm springs, and it weighs a bit more.

It's probably best to stick with stock 12k/8k rates and see how that goes -- after all, that is how they were designed for the car. I'm hoping there was a good amount of R&D done that led to this final decision. If worst comes to worst, I can always try some 10k/6k Swift springs, and if that fails I can go back to my current setup, which is comfortable.

I've gone through a bunch of different spring/strut/shock setups on a few cars and learned that I'm personally not a fan of the progressive springs. They are just too tricky in handling and usually don't handle as well as linear springs, you sort of get stuck between "too soft" and "their max" with a funky transition inbetween. Just easier to predict what a linear spring will do, but alot of this is personal preference.

Thank you for the comments.

Stan

PureDrifter

iTrader: (10)

oops, yep CS are 2LS only.

BC does the same as most other budget coilover companies and have several basic shock bodies+stroke lengths, with differing valving codes and piston lengths depending on spring rate and vehicle configuration.

i would think you could get BC to do a relatively soft 8/6 or so setup with rubber top mounts for you, idk if they could get it down to 6/4 without still overdamping the hell out of it with their valving.

awdandrwd

iTrader: (1)

I could always get a set of 10k spring for the front, or get 6k for the rear and move 8ks to the front. I guess we will see what happens, I'll keep you updated. Always wanted to try coilovers, closest I came were Konis with Ground Control sleeves on a Miata.

Stan

LiCelsior

iTrader: (32)

teins suck. D2 or BC please.

PureDrifter

iTrader: (10)

the valving on the dampers would still be off.