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i have a 99 Rx300 AWD and we are the original owner, car now has 96k miles, and its time to replace the suspension, i was wondering what are your thoughts on this setup? or what other setups you guys recommend
so after owning this setup for a week, so far its awesome, looks great lowered and it handles like how the car should have, and over bumps it still gives the car a new feel
so after owning this setup for a week, so far its awesome, looks great lowered and it handles like how the car should have, and over bumps it still gives the car a new feel
Hi, before I try this combo out to replace my suspension, can I get some more feedback on this setup? I'm going to be using OEM mounts in tandem with the new struts/shocks.
I don't have an RX300, but I've had this setup for over four years now on my 2002 Highlander. H&R 1999-2003 RX300 springs and KYB struts. The 1st gen Highlander's suspension is shared with the RX330/350, but the spring fitment and perches are near identical plus the geometry is similar enough that the springs are a perfect fit on the car. I can say this has been one of my favourite things I have done to the car, and they have withstood the abuse I have given them. Springs have no rust after four winters, and the car doesn't sag a good amount even with 1000 lbs in the trunk. Handling is a lot sharper and there is a lot less body roll, nose dive is reduced a huge amount as well. Compared to Eibach, the H&R springs are A LOT firmer and that smooth pillow ride will be gone, but the car is not overly harsh at all, and the handling improvement is very worth it IMO. The H&R springs also put more of a bias towards rear stiffness, so the car will understeer less and be a lot more fun to drive.
Good call to stick with the OEM mounts. No aftermarket ones come close, if you want you can replace the bearing too but they don't seem to commonly fail on these. You can open up the bearing too with a tiny flatblade screwdriver to grease / inspect the bearings.
Bearing: 90903-63014
If you have an AWD, I would also throw on the 2011-2018 Ford Fiesta front sway bar end links for the rear struts. They're aluminum and a lot thicker, stiffer and improved vs the OEM design. They also weigh half as much and use a 15mm welded nut for ease of removal should the allen head strip out. If you're going with 2nd gen RX rear struts, you'll need 2000-2011 Ford Focus sway bar links instead, these are aluminum as well but the correct 237mm length for the newer style rear struts. The 2nd gen RX / 04-07 Highlander rear struts are are valved a little stiffer and should handle a lowering spring better, the 2006-2007 RX400h / Hybrid Highlander rear struts are even stiffer if you want something beefier.
I don't have an RX300, but I've had this setup for over four years now on my 2002 Highlander. H&R 1999-2003 RX300 springs and KYB struts. The 1st gen Highlander's suspension is shared with the RX330/350, but the spring fitment and perches are near identical plus the geometry is similar enough that the springs are a perfect fit on the car. I can say this has been one of my favourite things I have done to the car, and they have withstood the abuse I have given them. Springs have no rust after four winters, and the car doesn't sag a good amount even with 1000 lbs in the trunk. Handling is a lot sharper and there is a lot less body roll, nose dive is reduced a huge amount as well. Compared to Eibach, the H&R springs are A LOT firmer and that smooth pillow ride will be gone, but the car is not overly harsh at all, and the handling improvement is very worth it IMO. The H&R springs also put more of a bias towards rear stiffness, so the car will understeer less and be a lot more fun to drive.
Good call to stick with the OEM mounts. No aftermarket ones come close, if you want you can replace the bearing too but they don't seem to commonly fail on these. You can open up the bearing too with a tiny flatblade screwdriver to grease / inspect the bearings.
Bearing: 90903-63014
If you have an AWD, I would also throw on the 2011-2018 Ford Fiesta front sway bar end links for the rear struts. They're aluminum and a lot thicker, stiffer and improved vs the OEM design. They also weigh half as much and use a 15mm welded nut for ease of removal should the allen head strip out. If you're going with 2nd gen RX rear struts, you'll need 2000-2011 Ford Focus sway bar links instead, these are aluminum as well but the correct 237mm length for the newer style rear struts. The 2nd gen RX / 04-07 Highlander rear struts are are valved a little stiffer and should handle a lowering spring better, the 2006-2007 RX400h / Hybrid Highlander rear struts are even stiffer if you want something beefier.
Thanks for these amazing tips and love the look of your highlander! Yes, I have a 2000 AWD. So if I go with the 2nd Gen RX rear struts or 06-07 rear struts, it's okay to do KYB on the front? Would the 2000-2011 Ford Focus sway bar links work with both of those 2nd Gen RX or 06-07 rear setups? Also, OEM mount has the bearing inside it, right?
Thanks for these amazing tips and love the look of your highlander! Yes, I have a 2000 AWD. So if I go with the 2nd Gen RX rear struts or 06-07 rear struts, it's okay to do KYB on the front? Would the 2000-2011 Ford Focus sway bar links work with both of those 2nd Gen RX or 06-07 rear setups? Also, OEM mount has the bearing inside it, right?
One more question, would the 2nd Gen RX or 06-07 rear struts be the AWD version?
Wow a pre-2001 AWD, you might have the Torsen Limited Slip rear diff if your car wasn't equipped with VSC! A VERY rare option and nice feature for sure. I recently got one for my Highlander to throw in hopefully before the snow hits.
The aftermarket 2nd gen RX struts are all the same in terms of valving between the same brand, but I would avoid 08 400h and 08-09 350 because they made the strut holes 2mm bigger than the 1999-2007 cars to accommodate for the larger knuckles some North American made RX models got. I got these for my 08 RX350 but my car still still had the smaller holes (Japan-made model), It made it so you had to be careful while tightening down the bolts as you had to ensure they were lined up or else there would be too much positive camber.
The FWD and AWD cars have different rear struts, while the front struts remain the same. The AWD rear struts are shorter as they are mounted higher up due to the AWD cars having a taller mounting knuckle to clear the CV axles at the back. It would be impossible to put a FWD rear strut on an AWD car because the knuckle hole-distance is taller on FWD and the assembly itself is too tall. The front struts should probably be left as 99-03 RX300 ones, as the Highlander and RX330/350 have a different front suspension and frame compared to the RX300. The Fiesta links are for RX300 rear struts, the Focus ones are for 04-07 RX/HL including the Hybrid cars. They're the modern size that most of the newer cars use.
1999-2003 RX300 and 2001-2003 Highlander AWD rear struts are the same. These have a bit more give and travel to them. It's not a big difference, but if I could go back I would have got the Hybrid ones for my Highlander.
2004-2007 RX330/350 and 2004-2007 Highlander KYB rear struts are the same. These are a little more heavy duty and designed for a ever so slightly shorter spring
2006-2007 RX400h / 2006-2007 Highlander Hybrid rear struts are similar to 04-07 rear struts, but are valved a little more stiffer.
I reused my OEM mounts and just bought new OEM bearings. The mounts seem to last forever and sadly they don't come with bearings and are very expensive. If the rubber isn't cracking (mine looked perfect), I wouldn't hesitate to reuse them. The rubber boots are very expensive too so I went aftermarket with them. I would avoid the Monroe boots like the plague - they ripped on me within a year. Second set I got was from eBay from Europe. I don't remember the brand but they were high quality like OEM and holding up. For rear strut mounts, I would just get those aftermarket as they come with a new boot and are very cheap. Or reuse if the boot isn't ripped. (I was never able to find just a replacement boot for the rears despite all the cross-referencing, etc). I got most of my parts on Rockauto. The KYB struts are holding up great and mine were made in Japan.
12-31-10, 12:01 AM
KYB GR2 / H&R Springs any good?
