Suspension options are as follows:

1- JDM coilover kits such as JIC
2- JDM Lowering springs such as Insurance Group
3- EDM lowering springs such as H&R (H&R Europe part number 29844-2)

4- Using Acura Legend 91-95 (KA7/KA8) coilovers.

This requires using the front pinch forks from the legend and drilling holes in the top hats so that the strut bar can be mounted




5- Using First Gen TSX (04-08) or Accord (03-07)

Some coilover kits will allow/require you to reuse your OEM top hats without any mods, Such as the Tein Basic and the Newer Tein Basis. I think the Tein CS can also reuse the OEM top hats with out mods. Other Brands of coilovers such as Ksport, Buddy Club, D2, BC, and etc... May require you to modify your oem top hats to fit. IE, drilling the center hole, or removing rubber

You will also need a #5 washer for the rear coliovers in order to make them fit.




(Unfortunately I dont think the TSX top hats will fit. although they look like they will because they have the same bolt pattern, the bolts are spaced a little too close together...i measured our OEM RL hats and they measure just a CM and a couple MM bigger...)





6- Air ride suspension. AIRRUNNER is the only company that makes a KA9 specific kit available here in the US. Japan has many more options.
Most Air suspensions from companies like Ksport and D2 or others, use the same shock bodies the use for their coilovers, so what ever piecing together you can do with their coilovers, you can do with their air ride kits...

Camber kits and stuff to come in Part 2.

 

I had my friends at VEX Motorsports, and SONIC MS call Ksport and ask if they can put the Legend front Top Hats on the TSX suspension kits and they said it was possible, so give your local shop a call.

Not too sure who else makes kits for both the legend and the tsx, but if they do, then you might want to have your local shop rep call and ask if they can do the same!!!

 

Do the cheap coilover kits really make the ride this bad? If that's the case I'll just get the H&R lowering springs...

 

ride how bad? there is a certain procedure you have to do when installing your coilovers, if you dont do it right, it will make it hard to really fine tune the dampening.

my friend that works at vex told me that you have to set the dampening to all the way hard and then dial it back from there.

so i assume therefore that you should be able to set it all the way soft and dial up the dampening from there... but thats just a guess...

 

My underlined words were a link to a post on acura-legend forum saying that the cheap no-damping-adjustment coilovers like the tein basic/basis result in a crappy ride. I don't mind a stiffer ride but he describes it as bouncy which doesn't seem good. I wish the ksports were cheaper:



damn!

I also found a place selling the H&R springs: http://www.skn-tuning.de/en/produkt....=28&id=456404& but I don't know if they ship to the states. When I went to place an order there was no North America/USA option for the country. Maybe I'll email them and see what's up, because the price doesn't seem too bad.

 

OK, one last question: I found a place that sells the H&R springs and ships to America, but the guy's telling me that springs alone won't lower the car and that I need shocks (he mentioned Konis) to get any drop. Is this true or can I just get the springs alone? I read elsewhere that the springs are compatible with OEM shocks so I don't see where this guy got that info from.

 

From what I've heard, you don't want to put lower springs on an OEM shocks. It will blows the shock in no time. Aftermarket spring go with aftermarket shocks I'm going to get the new Tein basis lol but I have to wait till next year if my car pass the emission test

 

this is true to some extent, i have lowering springs on stock shocks currently, and my shocks are ok still, although if i were to put on the stock springs then my ride would be crap, over time your shocks dont return to their top position as they did when new, so as your shocks wear out, your springs would sag along with them... so as long as your lowering springs have roughly the same spring rate and dont lower your car more than an inch to 1.75 inchs you are fine, its when you go to stiffer spring rates or softer spring rates or really low springs that you risk blowing out your shocks

 

I don't see how TEIN coilovers of any model, would be a crappy ride. I have Tein SS and even maxed out, they rode beautifully.

Kudos for having the sack to retro fit to make a setup to make that car sit right. Looks great above with the 3G wheels, too.

 

It's because of the weight difference. The TSX coilovers are set for a much lighter car. Throw that setup into a heavier car and the shocks are probably doing too much of the work. That's my understanding anyway. I haven't been able to find anyone who is riding on the TSX tein basis so I can't get a definitive answer on how "bad", if bad at all, the ride is.

The H&Rs are meant to lower the car about 1.2 inches so that might be too much for the stock shocks to handle. The ones on my car now are pretty old to begin with so I don't want to stress them more. I can't risk losing my DD like that. If I'm going to do this I wanna do it the right way (or best way )

 

the tsx isnt actually that much lighter...

500lbs according to edmunds...

dunno if thats alot or a little to you but its pretty much the equivalent 2.5 full sized adults