Suspension FAQ

There IS NO BEST suspension setup. You have to figure out what you want your car to do and do your research when it comes to parts you want to buy. If you want to compete heavily in autocross or road racing, then just a set of springs is not going to do it for you. But if you want to compete in shows, have a nice ride stance, and have a comfy ride, then control arm bushings, really high spring rates, and all the chassis strengthening you can do, may not be a good choice. Remember that too low WILL NEGATIVELY affect your handling and can damage your steering components. Please do your research before you buy anything!

You dont NEED a camber kit even with a 5" drop. however, with any type of drop(even if its .5") you should get one in order to get a correct alignment. most people will say that with a drop lower then 2", a camber kit is HIGHLY recommended. just think of it this way would you like to save $200 by not getting a camber kit but replace your $400-500 tires twice a year? just invest in a camber kit, it'll save you in the long run.

Springs - fairly comfortable ride, set height ~$100-$200
Sleeved coilovers - ride is usually rough/bouncy, adjustable height ~$300
True Coilovers - coilover and shock in one designed to work together giving a great ride. adjustable height ~$800-$1300

Yes and No. By law they have to prove that lowering your car cause the problem. Whether you have a easy/hard time getting something repaired under warranty is up to the dealer. Most likely your suspensions warranty will be voided but all other warranties won't. However there are exceptions. Some dealers will allow you to lower your car with only the struts not being covered under warranty. Some dealers will even agree to give you all warranties only if they install it for you. There are some that will say you need to pay for your bad tranny because your warranty is voided due to lowering your car. That is when you should take action. Call Honda of America or get lawyers, do whatever it takes to get it fixed under warranty because chances are, lowering your car didn't cause the tranny to break. If you're worried about warranty issues, best bet is to call up your dealer and ask what is allowed and what is not.

It mainly depends on the springs. Also the way you drive and luck. I've heard some people blowing their shocks in one week with the prokit(about 1") and others going for 2 years with the neuspeed sports(1.7"). But most likely you wont need it for a while with anything higher then 2". So for a drop lower then 2" it's best to get them so that you won't have to pay for installation again or for you DIY'ers you dont have to waste that much time again. If your drving 100mph over speed bumps then chances are your shocks are gonna blow faster. But if your going over them at 1 mph then you have a better chance of them not blowing.

Besides worrying about your shocks blowing, do you care about the ride quality? The ride on lowering springs is never going to be the same as stock. Their going to be stiffer and your going to feel more bumps. It will probably be more bouncy as well. Usually the lower the drop, the worse the quality and sport springs are going to be worse then race. Aftermarket shocks or even shorter shocks are going to improve the ride quality. Right now the only ones available for our cars are Konis(these are inserts so you'll have to modify your stock struts in order to put these on your car because these are not full struts).

SWAY BARS – generally provide an excellent means for adjusting roll couple Distribution (Handling balance) & they control body roll, reducing camber change through corners

STRUT BARS – chassis reinforcement/strengthening to reduce body flex

TIE BARS – some front under tie bars, specifically U braces/X braces/etc, do some under body reinforcement. Rear tie bars strengthen weak points (control arms) so that the chassis will not crack under pressure. Rear tie bars are not a performance part, but a brace if you upgrade your rear sway bar. The same goes for regular front under tie bars that attach to the control arms.

CAMBER KITS - When lowering your car, sometimes the wheel will angle in do to the change in ride height. Every car is different on how they respond. Camber kits allow you to adjust the camber of the car so that you can go back to stock or near stock specifications

CAMBER PLATES – allow quick and easy front camber adjustment. Some cars have rear camber plates too, but not ours.

POLYURETHANE BUSHINGS – Most cars come stock with rubber bushings for the control arms, sway bars, and motor mounts. This is to increase ride comfort because they are pretty soft, but durable. Poly ones are harder and deflect less under loading, thus don’t allow as much travel. They increase handling responsiveness but decrease ride comfort.

There is much physics behind suspension tuning. Though you cannot figure it all out, you can do some things to help you. Most people who want to lower to slightly increase ride handling, look better, and have a nice ride stance. Others want to make their car a track beast. Other things to consider would be weight reduction and distribution, tires, rims, brakes (rotors/pads/fluid/etc), camber, caster, toe, custom parts (e.g. custom spring rates, custom valved shocks, roll cages, etc.), tire pressures, among other things. Do your research wisely before purchasing parts. For more information look here Suspension Tuning 101 & AutoX FAQ and Other Suspension Stuff