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I've got a 98 Civic DX that is stock right now. I was contenplating replacing the shocks and springs, figure they are probably a bit worn by now and ride quality would improve with replacing. Since I'm going to replace anyway, why not lower it a bit?

I'm not looking for anything extreme, but would something like this work for me?

http://www.autopartswarehouse.com/sk...n+%26+Steering

What else would I need to buy/do when installing these going from stock? I'm also about to replace my 14" with 15" rims and tires.

Thanks in advance!

 
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I can't see the website in the link you posted from the computer I'm on but when you lower a car it can get quite expensive from the other things you need to do.

When you lower, it'll cause the body to sit lower, putting a different angle of strain on your control arms and other suspension parts. This causes your wheels to lean in or out at the top and the tires will no longer make perfectly flat contact with the road. The best way to fix this is to buy a camber kit, install it yourself and have the shop adjust it when doing your wheel alignment.
A wheel alignment is necessary every time you raise/lower your car because obviously your alignment will be off. This is a must unless you like eating tires.

Alignments are usually about $75 and I think the camber kits are about $130 so even after you replace your springs/struts, you're still looking at another $200.

 
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Thanks for the input DeX! So, really, if I'm going to replace my shocks and springs anyway, I'm only looking at a couple hundred bucks anyway to lower it, for a camber kit and alignment?

If I wasn't to buy a 'kit' with springs and shocks together.... I do see springs that are listed as 'lowering springs', but do I need special 'lowering shocks', or are shocks the same regardless?

 
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lowering springs 1-1.5 inch $100-200
"lowering shocks" like tokico HP rated for lowered car $300-400
camber kit front/rear $150
alignment $75-100
install of all parts $250

may as well throw on some new front LCA bushings cause the stock ones will tear up in no time. may also need new tie rods cause usually the boots get torn when changing the shocks.

 
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ok so unless my calculations are off you are looking at $625-$850. If i were you i'd go with ksport kontrol pro full coilovers. i got mine for $620 shipped and i installed them myself. then you could get your camber kit for 150. that would be $770 and you have height adjustment too.

 
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Hmmm.....I guess I didn't consider the stress on the other OEM parts. I obviously don't want to induce damage to other components that don't need replacing.

I may rethink the lowering and just replace the OEM shocks and springs with an upgrade.

 
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Am I understanding correctly that coilovers replace the stock spring AND shock?

 
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Gearbox, would you just suggest getting new shocks, and keeping the stock springs? (and height, obviously?) Mainly...do springs wear out over time? I've got no noticeable problems, and I'm not trying to do anything 'extreme', but at 145K, just trying to improve my ride a bit. Sorry for the stupid questions, but I'm learning!

 
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Coilovers do replace both the spring and shock. That's why it's called a coilover, it looks like a coil (spring) over a shock. Hence coilover.

Coilovers offer a much better ride but I cheaped out and just installed lowering springs while keeping the factory shocks. I can get a way with it because it's a newer car than yours with less mileage. You'll probably have to replace both as your car is much older and the shocks will die soon after replacing the springs.

 
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you can just keep the stock springs and replace with better shocks. alot of guys use tokico hp even with stock springs for a firmer ride. stock is too muchy and bouncy. springs are usually a lifetime part.

 
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Thanks again Gearbox! Probably the way I'll go, the Tokico HP's with the stock springs. I can always lower later if I decide to spend the extra $$$

 
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good choice, having a lowered car in the winter especially sucks. everything is cold and doesnt move as smoothly so it feels like i have plastic tires lol. i can feel every pebble in the road even with only 32 psi in the tires.

 
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the more I read about shocks/struts/and springs the more I get confused...probably because I'm not using reputable sources...damn internet!

Can someone actually tell me the difference between a shock and a strut, and/or correct me where I'm wrong? The way I understand it, a shock is just the metal shock absorber, basically a heavy duty version of what you'd have to lift a hatchback. Add a coil spring around the shock, and you have a 'strut'. Is this basically right in laymans terms? A strut is a combination of a shock and a spring. So, why is that any difference than a 'coilover'? Is it just the fact that they are two separate components as opposed to one assembly?

So, I want to replace my shocks. They are easy to find, I'm going to go with the Tokico HP's. I don't want to do any lowering. Should I also replace my springs, even if I DON'T want to do any lowering? The springs would already be out to replace the shock, so, no real extra time involved.

Would an aftermarket spring make for a better ride? Or do I just use the springs that came with the car, because as Gearbox said, springs generally don't wear out. Is upgrading to something like an Eibach worth the expense, again without lowering, pointless?

Just trying to get my terminology straight, and figure out what's worth replacing. Thanks in advance to all in the know!

 
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shocks are the small ones, struts are the big beefy ones lol. its more technical but you get the idea. 01-05 civics have front struts and rear shocks. struts or shocks do NOT have coil springs on them. if they do, its called a coilover (or "full" coilover).

if you are not lowering the ride height, keep the oem springs. they last for the life of the car and never need replacing unless one breaks somehow (rare). the oem springs have the best ride quality. any lowering spring will greatly reduce ride comfort in favor of better handling. even on 15s, i am lowered only 1 inch and the ride is very rough but firm (no bounce like oem). alot of guys have just upgraded to tokico shocks/struts with oem springs and said the ride gets firmer but not harsh. imo, the oem shocks are too mushy and even when my car was new, the rear would be very bouncy which i hated. tokicos fix that problem.

now if you feel like since you are doing all this work just for shocks, tein does make a mild H-tech spring that lowers the car around 0.8 inch, subtle but noticable and does not affect ride quality much. but then you will also need aftermarket camber kit to adjust the alignment. also if you only get tokico shocks with oem springs, the ride height may actually go up higher, since alot of times the oem shocks will have sagged from old age and the car is sitting lower than it used to. i know when i had prokit springs and oem shocks, the rear was slammed and the front was 3 finger gap. after installing tokicos, the ride evened out to 2 finger front and rear.

 
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Thanks Gearbox..informative as always! And exactly what I wanted to know. I'm really not ALL that concerned with ride height, at least not for aesthetic reasons. If the tokico shocks increase my height, back to where it was ten years ago, it's not a big deal. I'm more concerned with getting the best ride quality I can, and best bang for my buck.

I'm also about to replace my 14" stock rims and tires (185/65/R14) with 15" rims and 195/55/15's which shouldn't change the overall diameter of the tire or speedometer reading. I thought I'd do the shocks and tires simultaneously so I could then get one good alignment. Any other issues I may want to think about with doing this?

The only thing that I'm confused about still is that you said "struts or shocks do NOT have coil springs on them. if they do, its called a coilover (or "full" coilover)."

But, if I look at my 98, I see springs that come down 3/4 of the way, and then the shock inside them. Majestic honda pictures them like this. Is that not a shock inside a spring?

 
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what i meant was, shocks/struts and springs are separate entities. the springs on most cars can be removed as a separate piece whereas most aftermarket coilovers are a single piece design with shock and spring all one piece. so yes technically a stock shock and spring (when they are assembled together) is also a coilover. but the difference is you can change either spring or shock by itself, rather than as one complete part.

 
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Gottcha..thanks for the clarification!

One more question, then I'm done (famous last words!).

When removing my shocks/springs, do I need to use a spring compressor before I remove the assembly, or does the assembly remove, then I use a spring compressor when separating the two components?

My Hanes manual seems to imply that I remove first, then compress to separate.

 
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it comes out as one piece, then once you have the spring/strut combo off the car, you use the spring compressor to get the springs off. altho, when some friends did mine, they didnt even need one cause the oem shocks were so tired. the rears did not pop open at all, the fronts popped maybe a foot lol.

 
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I laid mine on the ground, stood on the spring, then opened the top with a ratchet until it popped off. I spent 15 minutes looking for the nut all over the parkade until I realized it was still inside the socket in my hand. So you don't need a spring compressor but it's a little safer. You can rent them for free from a parts shop.

 
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lol...sounds like fun! And the auto parts store 5 minutes from my house does loan spring compressors. No offense to your process, but I think I'll take that route instead!