Owners dropped on lowering springs - CAUTION - Leaking shocks anyone?
07-28-17, 10:22 AM
#1
The pursuit of F
Thread Starter
Owners dropped on lowering springs - CAUTION - Leaking shocks anyone?
I have been on RSR Downs for over a year now and I only put on only about 4k miles with them. Both my front shocks are leaking oil. I saw it with my own eyes at my Lexus dealer when hoisted up (wish I had taken pics), and my Lexus service rep said it is likely due to the drop adding continual stress on the shocks. Had it been just one shock it could have been perhaps considered a defect and unrelated to the drop, but I agree it is hard to deny it is likely due to the drop when both front are leaking in a similar fashion. The "shocking" part (pun intended) is there are small signs the rear are experiencing the same thing 
Owners who are on lowering springs, can you do me a favor and check to see if you have any leaks and state what springs/drop you have? You may or may not have the same symptoms as I do but my symptoms are a metallic rattle noise over road cracks when sharp suspension compressions occur and thought they were the pads/clips loose but the dealer checked those out and everything is tight.
Is it just my bad luck with perhaps a bad batch of shocks or is this a warning to all of us we should stay away from lowering springs on this car. P.S. Never had issues with my '14 IS on RSR springs for two years.
Owners who are on lowering springs, can you do me a favor and check to see if you have any leaks and state what springs/drop you have? You may or may not have the same symptoms as I do but my symptoms are a metallic rattle noise over road cracks when sharp suspension compressions occur and thought they were the pads/clips loose but the dealer checked those out and everything is tight.
Is it just my bad luck with perhaps a bad batch of shocks or is this a warning to all of us we should stay away from lowering springs on this car. P.S. Never had issues with my '14 IS on RSR springs for two years.
Last edited by corradoMR2; 07-28-17 at 02:36 PM.
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rjmalm (07-28-17)
07-28-17, 10:44 AM
#2
WTF...It's ONLY 1.25" - 1.5" drop versus stock...
...Are you BOTTOMING out...
I'll report back with results from my observation...
PS: Good Luck to you...
...GOOD news...COILOVERS...
...Now which ones...
...Are you BOTTOMING out...I'll report back with results from my observation...
PS: Good Luck to you...
...GOOD news...COILOVERS......Now which ones...I have been on RSR Downs for over a year now and I only put on only about 4k miles with them. Both my front shocks are leaking oil. I saw it with my own eyes at my Lexus dealer when hoisted up (wish I had taken pics), and my Lexus service rep said it is likely due to the drop adding continual stress on the shocks. Had it been just one shock it could have been perhaps considered a defect and unrelated to the drop, but I agree it is hard to deny it is likely due to the drop when both front are leaking in a similar fashion. The "shocking" part (pun intended) is there are small signs the rear are experiencing the same thing
Owners who are on lowering springs, can you do me a favor and check to see if you have any leaks and state what springs/drop you have? You may or may not have the same symptoms as I do but my symptoms are a metallic rattle noise over road cracks when sharp suspension compressions occur and thought they were the pads/clips loose but the dealer checked those out and everything is tight.
Is it just my bad luck with perhaps a bad batch of shocks or is this a warning to all of us we should stay away from lowering springs on this car. P.S. Never had issues with my '14 IS on RSR springs for two years.
Owners who are on lowering springs, can you do me a favor and check to see if you have any leaks and state what springs/drop you have? You may or may not have the same symptoms as I do but my symptoms are a metallic rattle noise over road cracks when sharp suspension compressions occur and thought they were the pads/clips loose but the dealer checked those out and everything is tight.
Is it just my bad luck with perhaps a bad batch of shocks or is this a warning to all of us we should stay away from lowering springs on this car. P.S. Never had issues with my '14 IS on RSR springs for two years.
07-28-17, 12:32 PM
#3
The pursuit of F
Thread Starter
Yeah it's puzzling to say the least which is why the more of us check, the more we can come to a reasonable conclusion on this.
Not bottoming out and the ride is great with the exception of the rattle.
Thanks for checking and post when you can.
07-28-17, 01:18 PM
#4
Lexus Test Driver
That typically occurs when the spring rates are too soft for the shocks to control the vertical movement of the springs. As a result, unnecessary and abrupt compression and rebound of the dampers result in premature failure. I have suffered the same consequence many years ago with the Tein S-techs. The springs were garbage and ended up leaking the front two shocks. I ended up swapping them out with Koni Yellow adjustable dampers combined with much higher spring rate Megan race springs. I have had this setup since 2012 and spring/shock combo is still stiff and solid as ever.
Last edited by 05RollaXRS; 07-28-17 at 01:57 PM.
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corradoMR2 (07-28-17)
07-28-17, 01:21 PM
#5
a $70-$80K performance car deserves better than aftermarket springs matched to stock shocks. it's a travesty so many choose to take shortcuts instead of doing it right by installing fully adjustable coilovers from a reputable vendor. and that's not all. they then fail to realize you need suspension adjustability so they again fail to buy the proper parts to get it to align within spec.
you're not alone. i see it time and time again. it's comedic how ignorant so many people are yet they type up stuff saying how awesome their new setup is and other mindless idiots pile on. joke's on them. sorry man.
you're not alone. i see it time and time again. it's comedic how ignorant so many people are yet they type up stuff saying how awesome their new setup is and other mindless idiots pile on. joke's on them. sorry man.
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MisterSkiz (08-04-17)
07-28-17, 02:30 PM
#7
The pursuit of F
Thread Starter
a $70-$80K performance car deserves better than aftermarket springs matched to stock shocks. it's a travesty so many choose to take shortcuts instead of doing it right by installing fully adjustable coilovers from a reputable vendor. and that's not all. they then fail to realize you need suspension adjustability so they again fail to buy the proper parts to get it to align within spec.
you're not alone. i see it time and time again. it's comedic how ignorant so many people are yet they type up stuff saying how awesome their new setup is and other mindless idiots pile on. joke's on them. sorry man.
you're not alone. i see it time and time again. it's comedic how ignorant so many people are yet they type up stuff saying how awesome their new setup is and other mindless idiots pile on. joke's on them. sorry man.
I decided to jack up my car in my garage and take pics to hopefully help others check it out for themselves. You can clearly see the oil (shine) at the base of the coil/strut and bottom suspension arm.
Last edited by corradoMR2; 07-28-17 at 02:35 PM.
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07-29-17, 07:40 AM
#9
The pursuit of F
Thread Starter
07-29-17, 11:22 PM
#11
My understanding is the aftermarket spring/stock damper setup will always result in premature wear. The question is how much time you get. How long did you have this setup? My personal experience with previous cars were 12-15k miles on this setup before shocks wear.
07-30-17, 03:29 AM
#13
The pursuit of F
Thread Starter
My experience with lowered springs had always been positive though I can't say I've kept cars very long to know the long-term effects. I can say that on my USB IS on RSR Downs, I had no issues with the shocks for the duration of 20k miles when I then traded it in.
08-15-17, 06:13 PM
#15
