jwood_06TSX

Ok fellas, it’s a little long but hopefully it will be informative for some of you!

Aspec Review:

INSTALLATION-
As many of you know the aspec suspension is one of the easiest suspension installs because it is a complete damper and spring replacement and there is no spring compressor needed. I only had about 1700 miles on the car when I did this so the bolts came out extremely easy however, I did drive through a decent amount of snow this winter so there was actually a little lite rust marks on some of the bolts. Every bolt I took out I made sure that I lube it up really well before putting things back together in case I ever need to take it back apart. I did the front suspension is about 20 mins and the rear in about an hour, maybe a little bit more. It was clean no problems at all!

HEIGHT-
When you stand the stock suspension next to the aspec suspension, they are the exact same size however, the springs are what are different. There are 3-4 more coils that are closer to the top of the top mount which is what provides the added stiffness. When I finished the installation and set the car down, I was VERY disappointed. The first initial measurement comparison left me to find out that it was only lower 3/8”…..YES, you read that correct, 3/8”!!!! However, after taking one drive to drop my girlfriend off at home (her brother was giving me a hand and she was being supportive ) and returning home, the suspension had already settled to a 5/8” drop. I did the installation on this past Sunday and I remeasured last night (Thursday), to find that is has now settled to 13/16” OR just slightly over ¾”. I have only added about 40-50 miles on since then and I know it will continue to settle a little more over time and I’ll provide you with an update when it does.

RIDE QUALITY-
Guys, the car should have come like this from the factory!! This is honestly the perfect suspension for my needs. It didn’t lower it quite as much as I would have liked but with the roads in my area this is perfect. The brake dive has almost been completely eliminated, the acceleration squat has been significantly decreased, the overall handling has improved a lot, and I feel MUCH more confident going into corners at higher speeds. In addition, going over those little bumps that originally felt like the jarred my insides, now feel much better. When going over the railroad tracks, my car doesn’t sway all over the place nearly as much and is much more bearable. I also added the comptech sway bar which obviously helps the corner a TON too.

OTHER-
I bought these in the group buy I set up with Tim from HondaAcuraWorld (GREAT guy to deal with!!!) for $575 shipped and couldn’t be happier with it. I can’t wait until I put on my new 18x7.5 wheels to see if that improves handling some more!!



Comptech Sway Bar QUICK Review:

INSTALLATION-
There is plenty of threads out there for this so the only thing I will add to the installation that makes this go sooo much smoother is something that MrHeelToe (Marcus) recommended to me which is this: unbolt the driver side muffler from the pipe along with the endlinks and sway bar brackets, and this sucker will slide right out nice and easy. I threw on some white lithium greese on the bushings and bolted it all together.

RIDE QUALITY-
Having done this at the exact same time as the aspec it made it less noticeable than it would have if I had done it alone however, I had installed it alone on my 04 TSX and the ride improvement is very significantly better! The combination of this and the aspec suspension makes this car VERY fun to drive, even more so than it was before!



Comptech Icebox QUICK Review:

INSTALLATION-
First off, I must admit that this was a little harder than on my 04 for some reason. Getting the 06 bumper off was a little harder that it was with the 04 due to the fog lights. When I was almost done taking all the bolts out, I realized that since I had the wheel off for the aspec installation, I may as well just take the wheel well liner out and go that route. I had a my comptech icebox lid and filter left over from my 04 so I changed that out and took out the resonator box. So I now just have the little rubber tube that sticks out of the bottom of the air box for now until I custom fit a little inlet bent tube to mimic the icebox one. I also torqued the bolts that hold on the air box lid a little to hard and broke 2 of them (OOPS!!) so I had them order from my Acura dealership and they will be in a day or two.

PERFORMANCE-
The engine got pretty noticeably louder than before and I couldn’t tell if that is because I only have 2 bolts holding on the air box lid or just because the resonator box was gone with no inlet tube. Either way, it was louder than when I put the icebox on my 04 and the performance gains are def noticeable above 3.5k RPMS’s The RPM’s def jump up a little faster once you hit 3.5k and when I hit VTEC in 2nd gear, there was a HUGE difference. It literally moved my head back a little bit. Not sure of the reasoning but hitting VTEC in 2nd gear felt more powerful than it did in 1st gear. Either way, it’s not a full icebox but it 90% of it and it def feels better than before.


OVERALL Review:
Having done all these mods in the same day, it took me about 6-8 hrs depending on if you count the pizza break or not. The car is def MUCH more fun to drive than before and the handling just makes it more connected to the road. There isn’t anymore motion in the ocean when going around a corner, the car just goes with it and takes it very well. When merging onto the highway, I can now take the on ramps at a greater speed and drop it (or keep it) in 3rd gear, and listen the slight growl of the icebox push the car onto the highway. I am very happy with all the parts I installed and just love being in my TSX more than I did before!


FUTURE Mods-
At some point, I may convert to an Injen CAI and I most likely will buy Hondata in the next year and MAYBE an exhaust, but that would be the extent of my engine modifications. I am just happy to have a problem free car at this point (except for the moonroof squeak that I need to lube up with 303 Protectant when it comes in from Exceldetail) with a great ride and nice look.


I hope this was helpful to a few of you guys and if you have any questions just ask.

I always wanted to just thank all of you guys here at Acurazine that have helped answer my questions over the past year (almost year )!!! Just call a few guys out and give them a big Ryan, Jan, Marcus, Dom, Patrick, CCC, LuvmyTSX, Eric, and I’m missing a few but thanks for you help guys, I finally found the setup for me!!!



EDIT: Sorry for no pictures for the install, my sisters camera is broken and i don't have one. I will have pictures of my car though in a week or so!

lcrazyaznl

iTrader: (1)

I did the group buy as well aspec was well worth it if you don't know your suspension qwerks =P

No to mention in nyc i got enough bad driveways that i can't clear with the front lip...

jwood_06TSX

I do know my suspension quirks pretty well now though. I have now installed Tein Basics on 2 cars (mine and my buddies Civic), unistalled the Tein's from my car, uninstalled springs on my car, and now the aspec suspension installation. I agree with the road comments though, my roads suck and when i was lowered on Tein Bascis 2" with my body kit, i had to be VERY careful!!! This is perfect for me

And tomorrow, i'll have the same wheels you have crazyazn!!

curls

Sounds like you are definitely happy -- that's great! Keep it safe and thanks for the review!

CarbonGray Earl

Great review....as for your future mods, Hondata is great for sure, but I think you should think about a header before exhaust. The TSX's exhaust flows pretty well already, and in my experience, the header has made the most difference in performance.

Audioserf

I love the ASpec too. My drop has settled in nicely since installing last weekend.

Do you think I should do an alignment tomorrow (as I have planned) or should I hold off another week incase it needs to settle more?

dom

The A Spec sounds great. Its really too bad it wasn't the stock setup.

I'm shocked to hear how quickly you got it installed. Was it easy or are you mechanically inclined?

jwood_06TSX

Audioserf - I waited one full week and i am getting my tires mounted and put on tomorrow and will have them do an alignment then. Usually, when you get an alignment, it is guaranteed for a certain period of time, so i will just go back to them in like 2 weeks just to make sure things are still good. If its ok, they'll tell you that, if not, then they should fix it for free. Just don't tell them you lowered the car with an aftermarket suspension. They won't be able to tell by just looking at the car so that is what i suggest!

It also depends on how much driving you did on it since you installed them, how many miles did you put on it?


Dom- Both actually! The install is very easy, but i am also pretty mechanical inclined. When i do something once or see it done, i can repeat it very easily. I am also really good at figuring things out and making them work. I'm a bridge engineer too, so i think that helps a little bit



CarbonGray Earl - I have read that actually and honestly, there isn't any header that i would really want to go with for the same reasons that Curls mentioned in one of his threads. Comptech is out of business and rattles, DC isn't fixed unless i get additional welds, and the ebay Topspeed is just what it is. I would only do an exhaust primarily for the sound, not the performance....lol



Edit: Dom, the fronts are seriously VERY easy to install. All you do is, jack up the car, take the wheel off, unbolt and drop the fork out, unbolt the top 5 bolts and the whole unit drops out. If you have trouble, have a friend push the rotor down to give yourself a little more room to play with and it drops right out. As for the back, again, take the back seat out, jack the car up, take off the wheel, take out the lag bolt, dissconnect the upper endlink, unbolt top 2 bolts, turn and pull hard or pry it out with a crow bar...boom unit out! As for installing the new ones, just get the unit in place and use the jack to preload it and give it a little push to go where its suppose to and rebolt it back up! Lots of words, but its really not hard when you don't need to use a spring compressor and even still, if i had to compress the springs i could do it much faster now.

Audioserf

I've put about 150 miles on the suspension since installing it. I'll go through with my alignment tomorrow as planned, and see how things go.

And I agree, the front IS really easy to install. I had a bitch of a time with the first corner because, like a MORON, I undid the center topmount bolt and released the whole strut to its full extension. When I got that mess fixed and did the 2nd corner, it was a 20 minute job. The rear was a pain in the ass because of the rusted, ungodly tight endlinks, in my case.

jwood_06TSX

Those endlinks can be tricky because of the need for a hex key to hold it still while you take the bolt off however, if you get a pair of needle nose vise grips and clamp them down on the washer, then use an air rachet to take off the bolt, they are sinchy

curls

Jordan / Audioserf: Did either of you have problems accessing the top of the rear struts -- the flange bolts -- that are located behind the rear seats? Any tricks here? They look like a b!tch to get to w/o a bunch of seat removal and body contorsion.

vthree

iTrader: (1)

we could be twins!
im installing aspec today and i already have the ct rsb
i just ordered the injen cai tho.. =( but we'll see the guy is sending me the old injen rd1430. and i want the new one sp1431.. so maybe i mgiht end up having to get an icebox :-D. but we will see lmk how it looks when u get 18s.. im thinkig about getting the tl aspec 18s.. to eliminate some wheel gap ?

CarbonGray Earl

Hey jwood, that's cool about the exhaust. Some people assume the exhaust is going to make you a ton of power when that's just not the case.

In any case, you seem to know what each part really does, so more power to ya.

dom

Thanks, but it still doesn't sound like its something I'd could try on my own. I'd mess something up.

Let me know when your coming up here to help.

Audioserf

ASpec def. removes some appreciable gap with the stock 17's. My advice to you regarding 18's is make sure to run 235/40/18 tires. That matches stock diamaters nearly exactly and will make sure you don't re-gain any of the gap the ASpec managed to remove. That's my plan, anyway.

@curls: those bolts really weren't that hard. You pull the seat bottoms out (easy), remove the side bolsters (also easy), then you can get a ratchet w/short socket over top of the bolt and do work. You have to use pretty short rotations, but once you have loosened them initially you can finger-remove the bolts.

Tightening is a little harder. You have to finger-tighten them on once you have the strut in position. Then once you load the suspension with the car's weight on a floor jack, you just take your time and properly torque the two nuts - again, with very short rotations of the ratchet.

tsxnation

I too was disappointed with the drop, it is very unnoticable. I went with the comptech springs that advertise 1.6f/1.4r (more like 1.3ish all around)

jwood_06TSX

Eric - The trick for those bolts is lifting up the plastic so that it pops up. You have to be careful not to crack it though but it does pop up enough to get my socket wrench in there and the you don't have to turn it at all, just pull the trigger


Audioserf - i like your statement about the "appreciable gap" that is a good way of describing it. I am going with 225/40/18's anyway just cause i don't like the look of 235/40's on a 7.5" wheel


CarbonGray Earl - Yea i have def been doing my reading and research on here man, its addicting! I was even hesitant about the CT rear sway bar but my engineering backround tells me if i keep it lubed up enough i will be ok. PLUS, i will NOT be driving the car all that hard anyway!!


Dom - You pay for my trip up there and i'll give you a hand any weekend How far is Toronto from Philadelphiaanyway?....lol


Vthree - i hope you enjoy your intake and i'll put up pictures soon!!


tsxnation - Well i honestly think people get their hopes up and have certain expectations. After having gone through a Eibach Prokit, Tein Basics, i read enough about the aspec not expect a lot. Also, when i stood them side by side, my first thought was CRAP, they are the same size...WTF?!?! But looking closer at the springs and such, you can see the differences. You need to also undertand they will settle, same goes for your CT spring. Your 1.3" might settle down to the 1.6"F/1.4"R. Companies don't want to advertise their initial drops, they would sell anything. If Acura sold the apsec as saying 3/8" because that was the intial drop, who in their right mind would ever buy it??....ya know what i mean?

Audioserf

I hear ya - might look a bit "beefy". My buddy put 225/45/18 on his new 18x7 rims and the tires look pretty thick. I like the look, though. 235/40/18 on my 18x8 Weds should be just about right.

tsxnation

True, you are right jwood_06 tsx. Having previously owned a civic with an eibach prokit, I wanted to go for the pro-kit "ish" look and the comptech did just fine. I'll see how mine looks after a month or so when everything should be nice and settled!

vthree

iTrader: (1)

man i wanted the wedsport tc005 18's.. but now i cnat find them anymore @ tirerack =(

jlukja

Congrats Jordan, nice review. I see you wanted to mod your car to be just like me. (A-spec, CT RSB and Icebox)
Let me know how the rear camber specs out when you get your alignment done. I'm curious if you'll need the camber kit.

BTW, I didn't realize you were in Philadelphia. I was just there Thursday-Sat for a funeral. Tony Luke's cheesesteaks FTW

vthree

iTrader: (1)

have you gotten your 18s on yet??? =)

jwood_06TSX

DUDE, i'm sorry about the reason you were in Philadelphia, but i was at Tony Lukes friday night before i went to see a hockey game!!! Tony Lukes is DEF better than Pat's or Geno's!! (PS i didn't copy, i admired )

Anyway, i have the alignment sheet at home, but i posted it in my other thread, i do need the camber kit in the back though, the right was at 2.5 so that needs to be brought back in!



vthree - I did actually just get them put on saturday I am getting tint done soon and THEN i will be taking some pictures and posting them up I think it looks SWEET! The 7.5" tires did actually increase handling slightly too! So with the aspec, CT sway bar, and the wider wheels, its a FUN car to drive!

jlukja

Yeah, I saw that after I already posted. I was catching up on threads in reverse chronological order.

lcrazyaznl

iTrader: (1)

We have to compare man haha...

jwood_06TSX

YEp, i'll be taking pictures this weekend after i get the tint if its nice, which it isn't suppose to be though

jimbo3123

Is that group buy for the A-spec suspension still going?
I didn't see it in the black market.

Tsx536

Very nice write up JWood!

jwood_06TSX

Thanks Kenny Still loving your wheels too!!




jimbo3123 - I don't think the GB for the aspec suspension is going on anymore, but you can check out hondaacuraworld.com and see if its still there or call Tim via the website number and ask him!!

Roffles

I got my A-spec in the mail a few days ago. Plan to have it installed next week.

Today I had Bridgestone Potenza 960AS Pole Positions mounted. If ever there were a car that needed an OEM tire upgrade, the TSX is the one. Economy tires on a double wishbone suspension makes baby Jesus cry.

The Potenza's have endless grip and make considerably less road noise...and they aren't even broken in yet. Performance tires alone give this car an entirely new personality. I can't wait to stiffen things up a little with the A-Spec.

zainzb06tsx

JWOOD! you just convinced me into getting the aspec suspension, thank you. lol

curls

Best. Quote. Ever.

jwood_06TSX

I hope that is a good thing....lol. Just try not to have too great of expectations, that way you won't be let down at all, you'll just enjoy it for what it is


Roffles- HAHAHA, LOVE that quote!!......i agree with Eric...lol

jwood_06TSX

Ok guys,

Well first things first, it seems that the back settled just over an 1" and the front has settled to right in and around an 1". I had a very tight 3 finger gap up front and VERY tight 2 finger gap and now that it settled to, what i think is its final ride height, i am happy enough with it. Again, this fits MY needs perfectly, meaning that is may NOT fit yours. I also have mounted my new Ron Jon Servo's, size 18x7.5, and now my gap is a perfect 3 finger gap, and the rear is a perfect 2 finger but slightly tighter than the front. The ride has actually gotten better as well and is handle bumps even better than before. I have the 225/40 Falken Ziex 512's on there and they are really great tire except they seem to tramline a decent amount BUT, they are VERY quiet tires. The car just seems to hold the road and it is so much more fun to drive. The ride quality decreased by about 1-2% in going from the stock wheels and tires to the new ones, it really wasn't that much of a difference, but very slightly noticable.

I seriously would recomment this setup to anyone who is looking for a good performance upgrade without the sacrifice of ride quality. The car really is SOO much more fun to drive and just fits exactly what i was looking for. If your in the mood to take on the twisties and enjoy the ride its ready to go at moments notice but if your in the mood to just cruise, it can do thta comfortably as well

I have officaly found exactly the setup that i wanted/need for my environment. I am not going to lie though, if the roads were better in my area i would like to have the Tein Basics back!

lcrazyaznl

iTrader: (1)

hey jwood i had the falken ziex 512, their heavy rubbers, but they grip and hold on. I managed to drive up to buffalo on them when it was snowing, hailing, slush, sleet...
Scary but the gripped better than the kuhmos 711 i have now.

711 are crap for the tsx's weight their so much roll just becasue the tires flex when i push it and they are stiff when cold. err, not to mention bumpy. I miss my falkens but they were long over due a change. One bubble and tear in the inner lining, another had a nail in it , another had a rock towards the side.

I want to change my height but bad enough I wouldn't clear any driveways.

jwood_06TSX

Aww man, you did a number on those tires huh?...lol Do you remember what psi you were running in them? I had them mounted and balanced and they came with 42psi, which is about where i would put them based on the 10% rule however, i was thinking of dropping them down to like 38%-40% but wanted to see what you had. Could i drop the pressure down that much on that tire, which has a max psi of 50?

mrgold35

Hey Jwood, when are you going to post some before/after pics?

I've still haven't installed my A-spec from the group buy and the progress RSB yet. Looking forward to doing the install and hitting the Sandia mountain switchbacks.

jlukja

This is what you'll be feeling --->

jwood_06TSX

I am getting the windows tinted tomorrow and then as soon as i have a nice day i will be taking pictures. I honestly don't have any before pictures though I seriously have NOT had one nice enough weekend here and i'm stuck in the office everyday so i never got to take pics.....and this weekend is going to suck as well, but as long as i at least wash her, i'll try and take some pics!

I didn't want to post pics and then have everybody say, you "get those windows tinted ASAP" or crap like that since i was planning on it. I know i'll still get haters but i like it and thats all that matters

lcrazyaznl

iTrader: (1)

I usually ran 40 psi atleast it might be a bit high, but since buffalo is colder i inflated a bit more since the dense air makes them look flat. I was stupid and ran them too high so i had the inner tearing occuring soon. But I got the tires used from the old set ronjons, and my friend ran them way past 20k miles.

So i ran about the same so about 50k sounds reasonable for summer tires.