Appropriate Ride Height for Street and Track
 

Hi.

In the next week or two I will be having my suspension set-up installed on my '96 Civic Coupe.

I have a set of Skunk2 front and rear camber kits, BWR lower control arms, BEAKS sway bar kit and will be picking up a set of Skunk2 coilovers - not the dampening adjustable at 10k/8k. The build is primarily for track use - time attack, autocross/slalom.

My car is not really a daily driver but there are times that I will need to drive for an extended period of time. I live in Toronto and will be dealing with city and highway driving.

I need to decide what the best ride height is for street driving and track use. I was thinking of 1.5" but I'm not sure if that is too much.

Any suggestions?

Thanks.

not sure in inches how low. but you should leave somewhat of a small gap between your tire and fender. depending how you drive, when you go to the track, there will be body roll regardless of what you have. dont "tuck" the wheels. my best advice would be to drop, bring the coilover key and a set of jacks, tools, etc with you to the track. and on breaks in between the events, you can tweak the suspension to what you feel is comfortable and safe for your car.

orrrrrrrr you can lower to something that sits just above the tire so that when your car does take a hard turn, the fender wont rub against the tire.

I speak from about 7 years of experience in setup and competition in autocross and lapping. Ride height has less to do with handling than most people think. Yes a lower center of gravity helps, but not if the spring rates and suspension geometry (camber etc.) isn't optimal. My civic raised 2" above stock handled way better than it ever did lowered 2" below stock, because the spring rates and suspension geometry were better optimized for the chassis when it was raised.

With that spring combination (10k front and 8k rear), I highly suggest you remove the front sway bar (that's right, no front sway bar) and install an integra type R rear sway bar with a rear sub frame brace (don't waste your money on a rear tie bar). Also you should install a front upper strut bar and rear strut bar for increased chassis rigidity. Also replacing all the suspension bushings with poly bushings will really help tighten things up.

Install a front and rear adjustable camber kit so you can dial in the camber. Check your tire wear after several hard laps and adjust accordingly. You will want to see even tire wear across the width of the tread with maybe a little extra wear towards the inner shoulder of the tread (because the tires won't be running flat down the straight due to negative camber). The idea is to have the outside tires sitting flat (width-wise) on the pavement during hard cornering at the limit of grip.

As for ride height, you"ll want it lower than stock, but there is no need to go crazy low. If you go too low you will hit the bump stops (the limit of the suspension travel) and you don't want that mid-corner at the limit of grip...lol. 1 inch lower than stock should be good for track and street use. Don't go crazy on the wheel size for tracking either. A nice light weight 15x7" rim with 205/50 or 225/45R15 R compound tires is a potent track combination on a civic.

Have fun and good luck. :)

Hey MPR. Glad you chimed in. You were very helpful last year when I was researching my suspension build and looking at brake options.

I can have the front sway bar removed. The BEAKS sway bar kit is a 22mm ITR sway bar with sub-frame reinforcement. Not exactly a sub-frame brace but from what I've read this together with a rear lower tie bar (I have a Neuspeed one) should suffice.


I have a Neuspeed upper front strut bar already but I was looking at a 3-point bar to replace it. The new parts either come with hardened rubber or poly.


Already part of the build.

I was looking at 1.5" for both street and track use, and of course there are also the aesthetic reasons... ;)

I have a set of 15" Rota Circuit 10's (pretty light) and 205/50-15 Yokohama Advan Neova AD08. I picked them up last year near the end of the summer and used them for a couple of events. I started participating in events just a little past mid-season last year. Once these tires are done I'll be looking at a set of R compound tires.

Thanks!

:thumbup:

3-point front strut bar is even better. All sounds like a pretty good combo. :)

Hey MPR.

I brought my car in to the shop yesterday evening to have all the suspension parts installed and set-up.

When speaking with the technician, he told me that the BEAKS braces won't help at all. He said that he's even seen the sway bar rip out the back end with just street use, never mind the track.

So... I just ordered a sub-frame brace to go with the build.

Note to self - do not question the wisdom of those with greater experience than your own! At least not all the time ;)

MPR, what offset would you suggest on a EK lowered about inch if your running 225/45R15 R tire?

I guess that depends on the width of the rim as well. To run a 225/45 on a 15" rim it should be about an 8" wide rim. I ran 15x8 rims on my civic (00 SiR coupe) last year and did not know the offset at the time. But my car was raised so I wasn't worried about any rubbing.

What I would do is since your car is only lowered 1", if you go with a rim 1" wider than stock (99-00 SiR rim is 15x7), then I would run the same offset as the 15x7 rim it should be fine. The offset on stock 99-00 SiR rims is +45mm. Just be aware of the clearance between the side wall and the suspension spindle (part that hold the hub/wheel bearing and connects to the lower and upper control arms). If possible, test-fit the combination you want to run before you buy anything. If there is not enough clearance between the sidewall and spindle, then you will need to run less + offset (so like +35mm instead of +45mm).

Yeh, I can get a set sheap 15x7 with 38 offset. $180
I new stock was around 45 thats what worried me, think I will just stick with 205 50 15 for now. I usually buy used R`s and that size is more commom.
Then with them mounted with the 205 I should be able to tell if the 215`s would fit.
Thanks MPR

Yeah +38 from +45 offset should be fine. That means the rims will sit 7mm more towards the outside of the car. Not a significant amount, and with running 205/50 it should be fine.

I used to run 205/50's on the stock 15x7 rims when my civic was lowered about 2.5" and I don't recall them ever rubbing. Maybe only when the wheels were at full lock, if that.

suspension
 

Honda civic suspension is very good. Change them for sure.