nardeezy

I will be lowering my car tomorrow with Tanabe NF210 springs spec'd for the RWD GS. We raised the car last week looked at the suspension and made some minor measurements. The only concern was for the front end, however the OD for the spring is comparable to stock and the shock/strut seating looks compatible. The front shock/strut has a loop at the bottom (probably to route around the drive shaft), whereas the RWD shock/strut goes stright down (no drive shaft). The rear end is the same as the RWD. I'll update you all with pic's and analysis when the job is complete and after driving around for a bit.

Any thoughts or concerns would help, please reply?

LS4fun

I'm very pleased that someone is trying this....i didnt expect it from an AWD owner located in California though....

Please share as much as you can when you get this in...i'm anxious to also get this done.

nardeezy

It's done! Motorsport Techniques in Hayward, CA lowered my car today with Tanabe NF210 springs (spec'd for GS430). Everything went fine and so far no problems (after approx. 100 miles). The ride is not the same as stock. The AWD may have stiffer shocks than the RWD's. Some guys who installed the NF210's on their RWD say that their ride is like stock. I would have to say it's not as smooth as stock, especially when driving over harsher roads. Anyways, I'm happy with it and if you AWD owners want to lower your vehicle it's all good to use after market springs spec'd for the RWD.

Next step is to install larger wheels and tires.

Before

nardeezy

Approx. 8 miles after lowering.

LS4fun

Congrats man! Looks nice!

Were there any problems during the installation? How long did it take to do the install?

Gojirra99

Definitely looks nicer lowered

TheRupp

Wow that looks great lowered!

This car almost looks designed to be lowered, kinda like the 97-99 Eclipse... looks awesome lowered

4thone

I love you
I will be buying springs tomorrow .
Your car looks great (do you have any pics of the install?)

nardeezy

No need for pics. The installer is very experienced! He said lowering the 3GS models are easier than the 2GS. Also, the only pre determined issue I thought would be the front end. The installer said it's just like lowering a FWD car. I actually drove the car another 100+ miles that same day with my wife and baby. The car may have settled a little bit more. At least it seems like it's sitting just a tad bit lower. Other opinions may vary and I never rode in any other lowered GS except my car but I definitely can feel a difference in ride comfort (compared to stock) when driving on harsher roads (especially on the freeway). However, the car has less body roll when turning. Anyways, I think it was well worth it.

nardeezy

No issues. Typical time that it would take to replace coil springs on a double wishbone suspension, approx. 4 hours with alignment.

SGT

Looks good, can you take more pics from different angles? How many inches did you drop it from the front and back?

tmf2004

iTrader: (15)

Car looks great.. It really does look better lowered... Just wait to get your wheels.. Its going to look awesome... nice job..

nardeezy

I have more pics at home, the Tanabe NF210's are spec'd at lowering 1.3" front and .9" rear for the RWD. Being that the AWD normally sits .5" higher than the RWD i'm not sure how much it lowered my car. At first I was thinking it's because of the OEM springs but the lower portion of the front shock assembly is different thean the RWD, that could be why the AWD sits higher than the RWD. However, the rear suspension assembly is identical with the RWD. I should have performed a height measurement before and after. Anyways, after loweirng the AWD, the car is lowered approx. 1.3" - 1.8" in the front and .9" - 1.4" in the rear after compensating the stock .5" higher ride height.

I have more pic's on my home PC. Actually, i'll try to take more pics tonight because I believe the springs have settled and the car sit slightly lower than the pic I took above. The reason I posted the pic's above is because it's the best before and after pics for comparison.

LS4fun

Its tonight...AWD owners want more pics.

4thone

Yes give me a fix