I want to upgrade my TLS suspension, but am not sure if I want to get Eibach Pro Kits with Koni Yellows, or with coilovers. I have experience with Eibach and think they are great. I hear from many people on here that if you get new springs, you need to replace your stock springs.
I do not know much about coilovers, so if anyone with experience could help me out I would appreciate it. Are coilovers just a spring/shock set from one manufacturer? How much will they lower the TLS, and how would it handle compared to Eibachs and Yellows?
Thanks...

 

For my understanding Coilovers mean Coil over springs. I personally don't like eibach, but a lot of people make good comments about them. You can get a coilovers system that includes the shocks with them. you could also get the ground control coilovers and koni yellows. The only difference between coilover springs and springs is that coilovers are ajustable in height. Usually from 1" to 4" inches. Prices and Parts

 

Just put on H&R's sport springs, stock shocks. Rides great, however they do say that your stock shocks will wear out sooner. I'll replace them when they do.

 

That is what I have. Getting the koni yellows next month or so. If KYB comes out with AGX for the TL I will get them instead.

 

Thanks, guys. So coilovers aren't really worth the extra money? I'm told it's not hard to install your own springs/shocks, too. That would save me the $340 one shop quoted me. That almost pays for the Koni Yellows all the way around. I just want to get rid of the nose dive, squat, and lean in the corners.
Bricot, I see you're from Salem. I'm in Vancouver, WA. Know of any good shops in the area?

 

Good to see more TL-S's in the Northwest!,
I take my cars over to Bend, Brian Standifords Automotive Technologies, very honest and top quality work. I paid $433 for installation of the springs, headers and alignment. He has his own machine shop and is starting to get into the 4 and 6 cyl. performance. He had it all completed in 1 day.

 

SimTypeS,

I just had the Comptech Sport Springs installed on my 2002 3.2TL-S last weekend. They dropped the front about 1.75" and the rear just under 1.5". The two mechanics that installed the springs, John and Greg (Hannah Honda, Vancouver, WA), said that they were very high quality.

As far as ride, I'm blown away at the difference between the Comptech springs vs. the stock springs. While the OEM springs felt a bit spongy, the Comptech springs feel stout and help increase the road feel of the car.

If you like the softness of your TL now, I would not recommend changing from the stock springs. The Comptech springs are quite a bit more stiff (maybe even harsh for some people).

PS: I noticed you live in Vancouver, WA... You should drop me a note and I'd be happy to let you drive my TL-S before you make your decision.

PPS: The follow URL has some pics of my TL-S after the Comptech spring installation: http://www.weisong.com/images/tl_with_new_springs_01 (there are seven pics, just change the end of the URL to 02, 03, 04 and so on).

Regards,

David

 

David~

Thanks for the response. The softness of the TLS is what I am trying to get rid of. There is not quite enough road feel, and it just leans, squats, and dives too much. I don't think Comptech, Eibachs, or H&Rs would be too stiff for me. A neighbor put Skunk 2's on his Civic, by himself, and it looks great, so maybe I will look at coilovers, too. He said he would install them for free, so that would free up some more money. Did you keep your stock shocks? Did John or Greg say anything about needing to replace them? Or did Comptech recommend it? You had to get a camber kit, right, and an alignment?
Your car looks sweet. That drop was just right; get rid of the wheel gap. I'd be all for going for a ride with you to get a feel for the ride. I'm off until Sunday the 8th, so I have the time.

Sim~

 

Sim,

I did keep my stock shocks after a lengthy convo with Mike at Comptech. He said that the factory shocks provide good dampening, but probably won't last as long as aftermarket shocks (like Koni). My thought was the car was brand new so I decided to run with the factory shocks until they wear out.

As for the camber, John and Greg from Hannah Honda (as well as Mike from Comptech) said that a little negative camber would result from the new springs. All of their opinions concluded that a minor amount of negative chamber translates to better handling. From what I was told, a chamber kit would only be necessary if the tires started wearing unevenly with the Comptech springs (other springs that drop the car more that 1.75" almost always require a chamber kit according to Mike at Comptech).

I did have to have the car aligned after the spring installation. Hannah Honda has a sweet 4-wheel alignment rack and my car drives more straight than it did from the factory. The only anomaly we ran into was the passenger rear side appeared to be a little more out of whack from the factory. This was easily corrected and the numbers are well within the allowable limits.

I will probably be available this Sunday as well. Send me a private message with your phone number and we'll get together for a test drive!

Regards,

David

 

Greetings All!

Just got my TL-S last week. This car needs to be lowered immediately! How about warranty issues? I've heard that comptech accessories do not void warranty, but do they have to be installed by an Acura dealer to keep car under warranty?

Also, has anybody been scraping driveways and such since lowering their TL-S?

Thank you everyone for a great forum. I hope to be a useful contributor.

Regards,
Jeff

 

Greetings All!

Just got my TL-S last week. This car needs to be lowered immediately! How about warranty issues? I've heard that comptech accessories do not void warranty, but do they have to be installed by an Acura dealer to keep car under warranty?

Also, has anybody been scraping driveways and such since lowering their TL-S?

Thank you everyone for a great forum. I hope to be a useful contributor.

Regards,
Jeff

 

I've got the Comptech springs and the underbody kit. No scrapes or bottoming out. However, I haven't installed the front underbody spoiler (yet) because I have a front nose mask.

 

From what I understand, after-market products do not void waranties unless it was proven they were the cause of something going wrong. So, if you got Comptechs, and let's say... one of your A-arms got bent, unless they could prove it was because of the Comptech springs, it would still be under waranty. Most Acura dealerships will endorse and even instal your Comptechs. But, even if you did them yourself, it would still not void any warranties... unless they caused another part to malfunction.

 

Did the same as dweisong, stock shock, no camber kit, alignment immediately after lowering, drives great. I also have the underbody kit all around, haven't scraped anywhere yet, there are a few areas I know I would scrape, but I would have scraped with just the underbody kit, so I avoid those areas (won't be eating at Wendys!!).

 

What about just replacing the stock shocks and struts with Koni yellow. Heard that they alone can lower the vehicle 1/2 to 3/4 inch while stiffing the suspension as well.

I'm a newbie in the suspension area so any help is appreciated.

 

I would think that if the Koni's alone lowered it 1/2 inch or more, that would mean your factory springs would be compressed more, meaning they are being worked harder, maybe? Would that mean they wouldn't last as long? If you get new shocks installed, I would get new springs installed at the same time for another $250. I can't wait to do that to mine... Braking for corners? Not anymore...

 

Excellent! I'm convinced...Suspension shop here I come. My only potential problem is that I live in a townhouse with underground parking and the driveway entrance is like this /\ (of course not quite that steep). I had a 1999 Chrysler 300M that I lowered just over an inch and I got a slight rub going into my garage. I think the stock height of the TL-S is significantly higher than my old 300M.


When I do the drop, I'll let you guys know how it goes.

Thanks again,
Jeff

 

Man, I was all hyped about getting Suspension Technique springs and sways (springs for $150, and sways ~$250). $400 sounded like a nice price compared to $550-$600 for Comptech or Eibach. Then, someone said Suspension Technique are not progressive, so I check out their site, and sure enough, they do not use the word "progressive" when describing their Sport line, which drops the '98 V6 Accord 1-1.5", which would mean 1.5-2" on our TLS (that is what happens to the Eibachs, H&R, and Nuespeeds, anyway). For the Suspension Technique Speed Tech spring line, they do use the word "progressive", so it makes me thing the Sports aren't. The Speed Techs drop a little too much for me, though. Ugh. Maybe I will just give Snook the money for Comptechs... The Eibach Anti-rolls are out of stock, and I needed them yesterday. Anyone have any other ideas?

 

Unless you're running road courses, the Comptech springs should meet your expectations. I don't feel any body roll or nose dive with just the springs. Make sure you get an alignment. Jens at Park Avenue also suggested monitoring the tire wear, and rotating the tires regularly. I don't put a lot of miles on the car, so I'll rotate annually.

 

R Man,

How many miles to you put on in a year? I have 18's and I rotate every 5000 miles and the tire dealer suggested to do it more often than that. I did this with my old set of 18's and even with a slight camber in the rear they lasted 35,000 miles.

Hey Sim,

That sucks about the springs you were looking at.. If I pull my eibachs off my Accord to put on a TL then I'll have to have both aligned so that means more money.

VG

 

Hey Guys-

I went to JOTECH in Garland and got price quotes to get a bunch of Comptech parts installed. Their prices are really good and reasonable for labor and such. Anyways, I'm really thinking about getting the springs, but I really do not want to lose much of the smooth ride. The guy at JOTECH said I'd lose "10% of the comfort". That sounds all nice and good, but I dont' really don't know what 10 percent feels like. Anyways, I was wondering if anyone in the Dallas area had the springs installed. I would like to see them first person if possible, and would pay (or buy you lunch) if someone would possibly let me ride in their car for a short bit (i know that is a weird request) so that I could get a feel for the car. Thanks a bunch guys.

-Burt

Oh, on a side note, I am also considering the exhaust, so if someone might be able to let me hear the level of exhaust note in an out of the cabin, I'd appreciate it.