hey i've been doing my research for a while not on suspensions and i think i wanna go with koni's but i wanted to know how much maintenance do they require? or are they like stock struts where you can pretty much forget about them till something goes wrong or do they require you do like fix them every so often?

i was also looking at KYB's but i hear they aren't as nice and i really don't see anything else besides koni's and kyb's for my car (i know WRX ish will fit but most of those are coilovers )...

i know i wanna go with crucial springs so now could someone suggest a nice strut (that is if the koni's require to much maintenance)

 

I haven't had to do anything other than adjust the dampening for track days on my Koni GC setup. The GC's require some maintenance though.

If you end up going with the koni's PM me and I'll give you some tips for the install.

 

btw i think i am gonna go with the koni's at first i was confused looking at their online documentation on how to install them...then i came across

http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/show....php?t=1219607

and it makes perfect sense now lol...thanks...i'll pm you if i have any questions

 

Sounds good. What are your plans for the car? Just curious since the Crucials run a progressive rate in front.

 

"...but the Crucial springs have better materials quality, smoother progressive rates (plus are progressive both front and rear, while the JDM Pinks are only progressive on the rear, and linear front)..."

the are progressive front and back...

i'm just looking for a nicer suspension and a nice clean drop...i don't want anything crazy (none of those tein s/h techs). right now i have an injen CAI on my car and a kartboy sts...my exhaust should be here this week...

all in all im just looking for something fun. i think the intake and exhaust (and maybe a pulley) will be all my power mods for a while and im just gonna focus on suspension after.

now that i gave my cars life story to you lol...i just wanna have fun and i heard the koni's are some of the best for the 2.5's and i like the drop on the pinks...but i heard the crucials hold up better and over all are a nicer ride...

what do you think? what are you running?

edit: ah i see you were saying they are progressive front/rear lol i just didn't understand it till after i made this post...it's because the pinks are progressive rear...gg but im not gonna edit what i said because there is no point :P

 

also...when i do these koni's am i going to need camber adj. bolts or adj. pillow mounts? or can i just put the inserts in and use all the stock parts after?

 

I don't know a lot about the RS's but I'd guess you will want some rear camber bolts after the spring install and that would be it. Some group N tops would be nice but not necessary. The Crucials seem like they will be a great spring for your needs. I just wanted to make sure you didn't plan on tracking and auto xing a lot.

Not sure if you still want to know what I'm running but here are some of my suspension mods. Koni's with the D_REX spacers, Ground control (GC) coils and GC top mount C/C plates (front), group N tops (rear), Whiteline sways, Kartboy links, steering rack bushings and last but certainly not least 225/45/17 RE01r's. This setup is pretty rough and high maintenance but it very fun at the track and on back roads.

 

if i was going to track/autox what would be the best spring/strut setup? would the koni's hold up?

also you said i might need rear camber bolts (like the whitelines im guessing) but will the front also go out of spec when i lower it or should the front be fine?

 

Crucial makes some high quality stuff (no experience with their springs) and I think you would be fine if you plan on a few events a year and you want to maintain a comfortable ride. If you're more concerned with performance and you don't mind losing some comfort you will be better off running a spring with a linear rate like Swifts, Tanabe GF210's, Pinks (linear in front) or ground control coils. There are some issues with Ground control's and they do require maintenance but I like working on my car and don't mind pulling the front struts every year to grease the bearings on my C/C plates. FYI, I'm in no way an expert and I have no experience with Swift's or the Tanabe's but on paper they seem to be better than the Crucial's from a Performance standpoint.

If you need an explanation on the difference between linear and progressive rates and why linear is better for performance just ask and I'll be happy to explain.

Yes, the Koni's will hold up great. If my memory serves me right Koni offers free rebuilds for life.

Any time you lower a car you will increase negative camber. Some people (me included) want as much negative camber in front as possible. I used RS or wagon strut bodies (forgot which ones) on the front of my WRX to get as much as possible.

I went with Whitelines in the rear and just use the OE bolts for the front since the WRX comes equipped with camber bolts in front.

 

ahhh i see...

ok what is the diff between linear and progressive (you KNEW i was going to ask that lol)

 

A linear rate spring maintains the same rate as it compresses and a progressive rate spring increases the rate as it compresses. The Crucial's will be able to ride smooth and also decrease body roll. That is the reason a progressive rate is more comfortable and appealing to many people.

If you want to get the most out of you're springs performance wise it is important to match the spring rate and strut dampening. Since the rate of a progressive rate spring changes that becomes impossible. The other drawback of a progressive rate spring is that the car will roll more since the beginning rate is softer.

Don't think I'm trying to talk you out of the Crucial's. There are quite a few people that are running them @ the track and auto X courses that love them.

FYI, I have run both progressive and linear springs and I noticed a huge difference but I also added the Koni's and increased my rates quite a bit.

 

not that I'm intending to thread jack but... I'm wondering if I'm going to be disappointed in the kyb gr-2's? I'm not sure if the koni inserts will be in my price range since they're a bit of change more money than the gr-2s (and those seem to be the only 2 real choices for wagons).

 

How much do the gr-2's run? I bought mine here http://www.alexperformance.com/products.asp?cat=10&pg=1 . Not sure who has the best price now but when I was shopping they had the best price. They're asking $680 for front and rears (01-06 WRX).

 

shox.com has them listed at $409 for the set. They list the koni inserts at $680 there. Fastwrx.com has the gr-2's listed at $399 for the wagon and $499 for the sedan.

 

Do you plan on installing them yourself? Unless you plan on having them installed I think it would be worth the extra $280 for the Koni's. If you don't plan on doing the install it would be quite a bit more than $280 extra since the Koni's are inserts.