Rep Power: 0

Hope I'm in the right place.

I've got an '02 EX sedan with 124k on it, the suspension has me concerned. I'd like to think the wheels shouldn't land a foot away from where they leave the ground when I hit abnormalities in the road—bumps, cracks, potholes, etc., of which there are *plenty* in SW PA. I'm not interested in "slamming" the car, if possible I'd actually prefer to avoid lowering it at all, but given what I've gone over with a former mechanic I work with, sounds like time to lay the factory struts/springs to rest and replace them.

Some of the jargon I've seen around the web: koni yellows, tokico blues, pro-kit, tein s-tech, ground control, AGX. I'm aware these are all products, not sure if geared towards "upgraded performance" or otherwise, I'd really just like to restore the ride to near-stock quality, preferably without coughing up Honda's going-rate for genuine OE components. Anyone here have some input as to what I should be looking for?

Any feedback is appreciated

 
Rep Power: 513

Yeah, sounds like your struts are gone. The springs are likely fine. You'll notice close to stock dampening with tokico blues and you can put the OEM springs on those.

 
Rep Power: 245

New KYB struts. Springs are fine unless they are broken.

 
Rep Power: 211

Did you or a mechanic perform a shock/struts rebound test? (Google it)
Are the current shock/struts stock KYB's or on lowering springs?

I'm not sure if adjustables would go any higher than stock height? Maybe others here can confirm. Lifting it too high might compromise safety?

 
Rep Power: 368

The adjustable height, aka coilover usually have the shock body shortened for lowering, so usually they can't even get to stock height.

As the others said, keep springs, change shocks.
They called strut in the parts store.
kayaba is equivalent stock.

 
Rep Power: 513

Quick and dirty rebound test: push down on one corner of the car with some force and watch it for bouncing. If it bounces instead of almost immediately going back to regular height, bad strut. Repeat 3 more times, one for each corner.

 
Rep Power: 0

Yeah it's rocked side to side since I bought it. Particularly when larger vehicles drive by while I'm at a red light.

 
Rep Power: 124

Mine would keep bouncing on the highway. It became scary when it would bounce on the off/on ramps while turning. The back end wanted to get out while it bounced. That was when I changed them and also installed some springs for a mild drop.

 
Rep Power: 0

How did the ride feel in similar circumstances after you switched the struts/springs?

 
Rep Power: 124

Far better! Bounce was gone and I could take the on and off ramps without fear