hey guys, what is the best ways to improve the tl's handling without blowing too much cash? thanks,

 

The best way is new tires and springs.

Our stock tires have so much rubber on them, that when you take a turn, they squeal like a pig.. and don't bite the road like more performance tires would.

Springs may be a bit drastic because you have the kit, and since you are already worrying about scraping, I woudn't get them.
But if you can, they are a little less than 3 bills. And as far as ride quality, it is slightly more bouncy than stock, but hardly noticeable unless you are on a really bumpy road.

Then there is sways as an option, around $300, they are cool too.. but I don't know if they truely make as much of a difference as springs.

You should have taken a ride with bobowah, he has H&R springs and new tires with 17's. Handles really nicely, I could definately feel the difference from stock.

 

If you don't wanna spend too much then get the H&R springs, good quality and cheap too.

If you want to spend a little more and go all out in handling, then definitely have to go with NEX coilovers, they handle so much better than any spring. Then upgrade tires and sways and you are set!

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'00 Taffeta White TL w/NAV
-Weapon-R intake
-Piaa 1700x and Polarg M-14 bulbs
-white acura emblems and custom clear headlights
-NEX Coilovers ( For sale $800 + shipping)
-Tanabe Hyper Medallion Dual Exhaust
-18" Racing Hart C-5 3-piece +50 offset with P7000SS 225-40-18 (sold, ridding on stocks!
-A'pexi V-AFC
-Inspire Tails

My Ride

 

When i first got my TL, i said i would never change the springs. Now that i have my Comptechs the only thing i regret is not doing it soone!

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Tom

2001 Nighthawk Black Pearl TL

Comptech springs,Xephyr,Performance CAI, Inspire tailights,Piaa super white 001 solitare fogs, Inspire fog switch,Burlwood shift knob,Piaa Xtreme white blinkers,Razo carbon fiber pedals,BEL 870 radar detector, Acura-TL.com sticker

 

You can wait til the stock shocks are totally gone, and then get koni..... But I would much rather having coilover..

 

I'd say 3 things, 1 tires, two sways, 3 springs.... And in that order.... that's just my opinion on it though.

 

thanks guys, i was considering sways cause i didn't really want to lower it now, and tires are pretty expensive. how much do sways effect the handling? is it worth 300 bucks? and, what are the best sways out there, compech? thanks

 

Huge difference, yes, and yes. Next to a tire upgrade, sways are the next best mod.
I must add that I'm probably one of the few here that installed sways before installing springs. A couple of weeks ago, I was bored so I reinstalled the stock sways with CT springs to compare each mod individually. Having driven with each by themselves, hands down, the sways are the better choice concerning handling between the two. But the dropped look is sooo sweet. IMO

 

thanks brew. yea, i like the dropped look, but since i might be taking my car to ny and will end up driving on gravel roads, i don't want to risk messing up my body kit anymore than what my dad did while i was at school. alright, so now that im gonna go with the sways, which is the best one? comptech? neuspeed? thanks

 

The sway bars IMO give the biggest bang for the buck in improving handling. The Comptech sways on my TL has reduced the body roll during turns dramatically. I can now negotiate curved ramps at least 20 MPH faster than before on the average.

I am sure the springs will further improve the handling but I didn't want to lower my car and cause excessive wear on my stock shocks.

 

Installing Comptech springs would cause excessive wear on the factory shocks? I never even thought about that. If so, does that mean I should install special shocks with my springs, if I go that route? Or would there be any harm in waiting until the stock shocks are worn out before replacing?

DA

 

also, how much of a difference does a strut-tie bar do? is it worth it? thanks

 

Go with Comptech - designed for Acura. No need for strut-tie bar since you already have one.

 

thanks, but about the strut tie, do aftermarket ones do a better job? i mean, don't we already have sway bars too?

 

Sways are u-shaped and therefore work in a torsional mode, therby a stiffer/bigger (or greater resistance) sway bar will provide more resistance to body roll in relation to the suspension. A strut-tie bar works in a compression-tension mode which has more to do with material type/size instead on material shape/size/shape. Since our TL's already have a strut-tie bar made from steel, there would be no reason to spend money for an aftermarket type, since steel is steel during compression/tension and any differneces would be minimal. The CT's sways increased diameter and thickness will have a far greater affect upon resisting the torsional forces thus decreasing body roll. I can only remember 1 or 2 people installing an additional strut-tie bar. Maybe they can speak up.
Any engineering students out there feel free to correct me, I've been out of school for a while, plus I'm a sparky.;-)

 

thanks again brew, assuming that your info was right. i was always wondering how that stuff worked.

 

Don is back... Do you still have those nex coilovers on your TL? Or did you part it out before you left for hk?

I like my h&r springs but will start looking to upgrade by 50k either to koni yellows or maybe coilover setup...

Okay now after seeing other folks at the meet who have comptech springs I'm not convinced it is worth it... All I can say is 300 buck installed for h&r sport springs and I get a euro look vs a raked look. But it's owner's preference I guess.


J


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1999 3.2TL-NAVI Nighthawk Black Pearl
Comptech drop-in filter / '02 tail lights / Comptech exhaust / Hokuto Turugi 17x7 / Kumho Ecsta Supra 712 225/45/17 / H&R Sport Springs

<FONT COLOR="#800080" SIZE="1" FACE="Verdana, Arial">[This message has been edited by bobowah on June 14, 2001 @ ]</font>

 

What is a "raked" look?

 

Frankly, I've no idea why it's called "raked" but from what I gather it's when one end of the car is higher than the other. Comptech springs lower the front a little more than the rear so there is a slight raked look if you look close enough. One good thing is the wheel well gap in the front is the same as the rear.

Btw, I wish I had taken a picture of my car when I was lugging a few bags of concrete last week. Did you know that one measly bag of concrete weighs 80 lbs? I carried 3 bags and two 50 lb bags gravel in the trunk. Raked look was gone.


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2000 Acura 3.2 TL (Nav)[*]Comptech Springs & Sways[*]Home Depot Grill

 

I'm still in HK, and I have the Nex available. If you want I can tell my cousin to ship it to you. Shoot me a PM or post here and let me know.