imported_jj2ii3344

Good evening everyone!
how ya doing! good?? good..
lol

I am just wondering what is a coilover?? (Is it just a lowering spring with adjustable height??) and what is the use of a strut bar?? I dun see how its useful by mounting it on the car or something? lol, i dunno, thanks!

imported_1sicsol

Basicily a spring sits on a thread that can lower or raise the spring for desirede height.
Stifins body roll. And you do notice a good difference.

bbarbulo

iTrader: (2)

1sicsol First one yes, second one no. The strut tower bar's purpose is to supposedly stiffen the extreme points of the subframe, that is where it is most prone to deflection from the added traction of sticky tires. In other words, it is supposed to reduce the amount of flex between the strut tower bars in relation to each other so that the spring/susp has a solid surface to push up against and do its work. From examining OEM strut tower bars like the Civic SiR, Type R and good designs like Neuspeed, I can safely say that the engineers are most worried about side to side deflection and twist. Neither of these can be solved by any aftermarket unit out there like APC, Ractive, or any of the copycats of good designs. If you look at the design, you will see that any pivot point in the bar (ie. where the bar attaches to the base with a screw) will allow for the twisting and sheering to still take place. Hence, they are cosmetic upgrades mostly. They do not reduce body roll. What a good aftermarket unit like Neuspeed does is improve steering feel and feedback, and eliminate some of the front end slop. Most slop will remain until urethane busings are used in the car. I have found the Civic SiR unit to be extremely light in weight and very sturdy. It won't win prizes at any shows, but it's a helluva great design. It will not, however, fit if you have the stock LX/DX/CX airbox in place...you need a VTEC motor for it to fit, and it requires drilling into the strut towers. The neuspeed unit requires drilling as well. Any good design will require drilling. The tubular bar in the brace acts against twising motion in much the same way a sway bar does. So any adjustable braces are crap too...Preloading of the bar can be accomplished by placing more weight in the front, then torquing the bolts down, or if you wish to have negative load, the squarely jacking the car up and then torquing. If the car is not jacked square, there will be uneven pressure on the strut tower bars, and the finest of drivers will notice it. Others will not. It takes a really good driver to really notice a difference with a strut tower bar, and it helps to have really good tires.

imported_jj2ii3344

thx bbarulo and 1sicsol!
if I buy a set of coilovers and have it lowered in the summer and rised in the winter, what is the typical lifetime of the product? How long is the process of rising and lowering the coilover?? THX!

bbarbulo

iTrader: (2)

Most ppl that don't know proper procedure for maintaining a coilover will have it seized up after the first winter...it will be stuck in that position, and you'll destroy them defore you turn them. See, aluminium and salt....bad, bad combination! Besides, salt causes pitting on aluminium, so I wouldn't trust a sleeve for more than two years. My Ground Controls were in mint shape after one winter, but I lubricated them all the time, and I washed the underneith of my car more than I did the outside, plus, I didn't drive much. I sold them last summer when I got H&R coilovers (but I don't drive the Civic in the winter now). The time depends...some have coarse threads for quick adjustment, but far less strength. Some have thin threads and take forever to adjust, but have a much greater load capacity. My H&Rs can take up to 4 hours to adjust right and service. Unless you plan to drive in the country and through savage snow, I think springs will be fine for you. Or get real coilovers. Springs for about 2" lowering will be fine for most city streets that get plowed, and spend the extra money on shocks. I would much rather spend $400 on springs than $300 on coilovers...good springs go a long way, and you get what you pay for. So if you get coilovers, get Ground Control (expect to pay $600, but they don't sell them in Canada). Otherwise, spend $2500+ on real coilovers. Or spend $400 on springs and another $1000 on shocks (Koni).

imported_1sicsol

nice. ill shut up now!

ColdAccord

well I'm not gonna read everything that everyone has posted, lol, but I will say that real strut tower bars make a huge difference. my dad's 240z has strut bars and sway bars front and back, and you definately notice, and it helps

ryuujin

you forgot to say some other brands that are wicked *** strut bars You said the Type R and the SiR are wicked designs for a factory piece and for aftermarkets bars you quoted only Neuspeed

You gotta give credit to the more race bred companies like Mugen, Carbing, JIC, and Cusco off the top of my head

As for fitment, it doesn't completely require a VTEC motor persay, all that is required for LX/DX/CX and even EX (in Canada and go 4dr power! ) is the intake manifold from an Si Very easy swap to do and it'll allow you to put the strut bar over it

Good luck

As for coilovers, bbarbulo, could you tell us the proper way to maintain real coilies? I'm curious to know cuz I've been trying to find out for quite sometime. I mean what do you lube it with any how

bbarbulo

iTrader: (2)

Yeah, for the sake of affordability I only mentioned Neuspeed, but yes, Cusco, JIC, Spoon, Mugen and Comptech make NYYYCE strut bars. As for the fitment issue, it's quite an elaborate thing to do...swap manifolds for the sake of getting a strut tower bar to fit, but yes, it's possible. With my intercooler piping going straight to the throttle body I won't have that issue anymore, but it's something to consider for those with the stock airbox.

For coilovers...salt is killer for aluminium...so if at all possible get in there with a pressure washer once a week and blast it out. When installing sleeves, coat your shocks in grease and the inside of the collar with grease too...the $5 C/T crap called chassis general purpose grease will do the trick. It is true...rocks and debree will stick to it and make it look like ***, but at least you won't have rusted struts...grease is easy to wash off...rust doesn't wash off. Now that they are installed, use anti-seize compound (the silver goo you put on your brake pad clips) on the threads...just one vertical line of this stuff is okay, then spin the collar all the way up, and all the way down...the threads should no be evenly coated all around. Then, adjust to your liking and you are all set...do all four like this, and have many many happy years of sleeving For real coilovers, just get antiseize on the threads all the way up and down, and that's it...wash weekly, and in the spring clean up for that undercarriage bling bling. The End

ryuujin

cool, thanks man.

I thought however aluminum wasn't prone to salt. Endless Zeal coilovers are made from aluminum and don't rust for **** I'm pretty sure of that

SiR-Racer

as for coilovers seizing up, yup that happened to mine in the back. thing wont budge at all. i never lubricated or anything though. guess i deserved it. oh well. the ride height is at a good position for me as it is anyway.

bbarbulo

iTrader: (2)

AL breaks down by pitting, not rusting per se. It kinda turns into this white powder when it oxidizes. Zeal coilovers are of the highest quality and are anodized that cool blue colour right? If the anodizing rubs off (usually the threads through adjustment), the AL is exposed and prone to oxidizing. My windshield wiper bracket on my winter car just snapped a few weeks ago cause it was so badly pitted with oxidization...it was aluminium....I fixed it right up with some clever dowling and epoxy. (I didn't wanna spend any money on the winter beater). Also, aluminium has a nasty tendency to fuse together and seize up. Just ask anyone that's been asked to machine parts out of 3032 aluminium...the 6064 is easy to work with, it's machine grade aluminium, but still tougher than some good ol' cold rolled

bbarbulo

iTrader: (2)

Remove the assembly, soak in WD40 or other penetrating oil (overnight), then heat the outer ring with a torch, and then give it firm taps with a plastic mallet. Continue to soak as necessary and heat it again while tapping. The heat expands the ring, and the tapping lets the oil get in deeper and knocks the seized bits loose. It will let go.

imported_loudsubz

So If I get a ractive front and rear strut bar there garbage? How much are the Mugen and Spoon etc.

ryuujin

Spoon is light and very strong, but it's not as effective as Mugen per se (thanks bbarbulo for the spelling)

imported_loudsubz

Im just looking for a little better than stock handling, I dont like to sink alot of money into one aspect of the car, but rather buy moderate items all around to balance it out more.

How much can these be had for, and where?

thanks.

ryuujin

in that case, purchase yourself an SiR strut bar or Type R (replica of the real thing your choice ) That should satisfy your needs as far as strut tower bars go

bbarbulo

iTrader: (2)

GS-R stock bar will do your needs well for a 5th gen. Bolt on install, and nice fit and finish. Cheap too. Mugen and Spoon are way overpriced because of the demand and low supply. I would stay away...prolly 3-400 for a strut tower bar. Not worth it...unless you are vain about your car like those JDM-ers

imported_loudsubz

I saw a Mugen on ebay for $60 US, prolly not the real one though, but looks real nice.

bbarbulo

iTrader: (2)

Not the real deal...waste of cash...crap materials and crap manufacture. I once won a set of 2 strut tower bars and 2 underbody braces for my Civic, for $80USD!! That's 4 parts...for $80. I can't even go out w/o spending that much anymore. But then I came to my senses and realized I had bid on crap...so I'm a deadbeat bidder, but that's what you get for selling **** products...I cannot stress the importance of buying well chosen parts...