chewi

I heard that when we lower our TL's or any other cars, the car gets more rattles and squeeks....
is this true?
i don't know if its gonna be very annoying or not...
But i do love the way the car looks lowered.

The reason is that a lowered car tends to bend the frame inwards like this / \

this is what the service manager told me ....

i have a 2003 TL-S btw....

So does anybody have these problems from lowering our TL's?

will a camber kit fix the problem????????

andytran

yea lowering a car will make teh camber go off but a camber kit should fix that problem.

indoMFP

How can lowering your car bend the frame inwards??? when you lowera car, you are just completly lowering the frame and thus lowering the center of gravity.... I think the 'service manager' is trying to scare you... yes, lowering your car will cause your wheel's camber to turn / \ like that, but this is fixed with a camber kit... the only disadvantage of lowering are:
1. unusual wear of the tires (can be fixed by the camber kit)
2. going over pot holes and shit can fuck up the undercarriage of the vehicle... (drive slower)
3. stiffer and more bumpy ride (no fix, so deal with it, you have to make some sacrifices for a nice looking and better performing ride)

Now, go and lower you ride and then smack the service manager for his stupidity..... you better not come back till you have....

MADCAT

I got lowered with H&R Sport Springs. The lowering didn't do anything but get more babes to stare at your car....

If you go lower than 1.5 inches, then you need a camber adjust. Other than that, get a wheel alignment and your good to go. No squeaks or rattles at all from my Acura...from any other car I wouldn't know.

Mongolian

Only disadvantage so far is unable to go offroading after lowering.

indoMFP

dark inspire

yeah i miss that :o :fingerfawk:

Pure Adrenaline

iTrader: (2)

The height of the car just doesn't necessarily directly affect the ride quality. It depends more on the dampening rate and the shock travel length. Of course, the latter is affected when a car is lowered. However, you can have a lowered car with soft shocks and still have a soft ride. It just depends on what kind of shocks and springs you put on.

Having said that, by lowering the car, you will be more prone to bottoming out. By that, I mean both scraping the undercarriage of your car, and when hitting a bump, the suspension could travel to the max limit therefore not being able to aborb the whole impact force. Thus, you would feel that if your suspension bottomed out because you would hear a thump and you would get a jarring bump.

Every mod has its own benefits and harms; lowering springs especially. Choose carefully depending on your needs. H&R Sport springs are a pretty good compromise, although you should go with H&R OE Sport springs if you live in the snow belt or have shitty pavement in your area. I have the 50103 Sport springs, and I basically plow the snow on my street at school when we get a snowstorm.

By the way, you WILL scrape the bottom of your front bumper, so don't even sweat when it happens. It's inevitable.

NYZGREATST

i wanna lower mine but im afraid of bottoming out. from MD to NY there are alot of dips in the highway at some places. sucks when u goin 90mph and hit this dip. the hwole car bounces around, cant imagine how it would be with lowered car

ou sig

I have really noticed that also, there is a spot on the way home from Dallas on I35 that is wavy - fun actually, but now that my ride is lowered I bottom out if Im going 90 or so - no big deal really I just notice it now and try to slow down if I remember.

my one thought on lowering....I will sacrifice a 20% cut in ride softness for an 80% improvement in looks and handling any day!

chewi

thanks for all your replies....

yeah it sounds like the service manager is trying to scare me...

thanks for all your opinions and facts...

I guess when i save up enough i will get some H&R springs... (1.5 inch lowering)

I can't wait to lower my car....

poohlikeshunny

OK, I was going to order some springs last night from tirerack.com...but I forgot...which ones don't need a camber kit? HR OE? I want a minimal drop but I don't want to have to worry about camber kits...also, anyone with these springs like the handling improvement? Is it noticeable? I hope this is all I'm going to need...I have a friend that also told me if I plan on lowering I should get sways first, is this true?

keeena

They say sways make a bigger handling difference than a 1.5" spring drop. I can't speak from experience though. I did just install front sway, front strut brace and rear sway and there is a noticable improvement in body roll when taking corners quickly. I'm waiting to do the drop until the stereo is in. The weight may affect the drop in the rear - I might have to mix and match springs so the overall drop is level. Or I could go for coilovers so I could tweak the right height front and back...

chewi

how much do the sways and strut brace cost around?
i just want an idea so that maybe i'll get those b4 i lower the car

Faizalstar

IMO having negative camber will make the corner of ur tires wear out sooner than they should, by this i mean how long/far u drive, HOWEVER, having negative camber reduces the risk of u fishtailing or spinning out and being able to take sharp turns quicker with less possiblity of spinning out. The car also won't feel like its going to roll over. there are pros and cons for lowering. bottom line is, if u live someplace where the roads are shitty (NYC) then drop it 1.5 but don't get 40's. I had them on my civic and got bent rims from bumps and potholes and damaged roads when it was too late to stop. Otherwise, drive slowly and carefully and you won't hit anything!

btw, most sport cars come with negative camber already (ie: BMW)

69ssrscam

If looks are more improtant to you get springs and lower first. If performance is more important get sways first. Sways help handling way more than lowering does.

MADCAT

You’ll have no regrets other than wishing you have done it sooner. And you look different and better than the other folks who use a TL for only driving. Mostly older folks who look at you weird and wondering why your cars is broken….sheeezzzz….

SilverIce2000

seroiusly, lowering it is not that bad... i was SO AFRAID to lower my car ... TRUST ME if anyone i SHOULD BE THE ONE who is the biggest pussy to do anything soo dramatic to a car... i live in NY (long island) and i commute to queens everyday.. but seroiusly, i lowered the car iwth comptechs and illumina struts and im still chilin... i dont think its that bad either like everyone makes it out to seem... AND i have the stock body kit too.., sooo if your worried about bottomin out and stuff... dONT cuz its not that bad.. and as for the camber kit- you dont need it if u have 16" rims and lower with comptechs.. well atleast for that i kno you dont.. TPATEL- if you driving a lot highway its not bad the highway seems totally fine just gota watch out for mAJOR MAJOR pot holes and thass about it... if you want maybe we can meet up and chek it out see for urself how the ride is...go for it your car will look hottt TRUST Me mann

goldendragon576

with the right dampening on a lowered car, the car should not bounce when you hit a dip. My biggest concerns are the driveways, going into and out of, the lip hits something if you go too fast.

Pure Adrenaline

iTrader: (2)

Man, you're telling me. Some girl hit my front bumper, so I got it replaced and had the body kit molded into the bumper and repainted while it was in the shop.

Took it out after a few days, looking all sweet. Went over to my friend's house, going up the driveway, scrraaaaapppee. FOCK!! An hour after picking it up, I scratched the underside of the kit. I was so pissed, but I knew it was going to happen sooner or later -- just happened sooner than I could bear, that's all. :o

HeLLxRiSeS

What setting do you have the illuminas on? Is the ride close to stock?

Pure Adrenaline

iTrader: (2)

You can adjust camber without lowering, if negative camber is all you're looking for. Also, it may help you take corners quicker, but the car will be more susceptible to hydroplaning in the rear, since the tires are not making full contact with the pavement.

The key is to figure out just how much negative camber you need for everyday driving and occasional crazy driving. Mine's at about slightly less than -1 degree in the rear tires, and I'm happy with that, although after months of riding like that, they are showing uneven wear on the inside, although very slightly. It's nearly impossible to see unless you're looking for it, but the uneven wear is there. I've been lazy with tire rotations for the last 10,000 miles, so it's time to get one -- when you have more negative camber than factory setting, rotate tires more often.

PDX3.2TL

I have my Illuminas set on 2 with Ground control coilovers and the ride feels stock except for when i hit big bumps or speed bumps. That tends to equal a good shake in the pants... Other than that though, it is the same ol' ride with just a hint of stiffness. Corners on the other hand are a blast! heheh... I have to get a chamber kit even though i am running stock rims and rubber though. I can plainly see the negative chamber is going to unevenly wear the tires. Best do it now before i get Bigger rims! Have fun!

guavawang

does anyone know:

1. can the Tein SS ride height be adjusted to about the same stock height? or what is the least amount of drop for the TEIN SS?

2. generally how soft do you set the damping force for a more comfort and less noice?
( - 8 as the softest, + 8 is the hardest)

3. are you also showing any - camber in front and rear? or when you did the aligment?

i just got it lowered, but for a person that has never drop a car before.

i just wanted a more control of the road. i am looking for good handling and good
comfert.

my first time in a lower car. please give me some ideas for the installation, to as close to stock as POSSIBLE!!