Rep Power: 0

I have purchased my coilovers, and camber kit to lower my 2002 Civic DX. I wanted drop it right so i'm going to have everything put on (coilovers & camber kit), and then drive stright to the tire shop to get an alignment. However, I was wondering, it looks like if when my car is dropped the 2.5 inches in the rear, and the camber is set back to factory specs it will hit the lip on my rear fender.

Has anyone who has lowered there civic 2.5 inches or lower with a camber kit (set back to factory specs) had this problem?

I hope not, but if so where can i get it professional rolled (i figured a body shop but everyone has turned me down so far)?

 
Rep Power: 318

are you running stock tires still? if so, you'll be fine. I think any wheel will fit fine at factory specs unless it has an offset of less than 42mm or tires that are are wider than 205/45

 
Rep Power: 0

i have 17 inch rims on 205/40/17's

 
Rep Power: 412

you should be fine with the 205/40s. If you notice they are scraping then you might have to start the rolling. I have never heard of a body shop doing that. I always thought it was just a thing "tuners" did because they get huge tires with such a low drop.

 
Rep Power: 417

well you might want to re-think something.. you might want to wait a few days before getting an alignment so that everything can settle. and how do you know you'll be happy with the 2.25" drop, maybe after driving around it for a couple days you'll think its too low so are you going to raise it and get another alignment?
i would just install everything, drive around like that for a week or so untill you find the perfect height. when you do find the perfect height, you'll be able to guess whether or not you need to roll your fenders, you probably will have to. i have no camber kit running neuspeed sports on 215-40-18 with +42 offset. when i have 5 people in the car, the whole tire tucks, i have about 4mm gap between the tire and fender lip. if i were to have corrected my camber i'm pretty sure i would have to roll it.

so ya 1) get everything installed. 2) after you find the perfect height, guess if you have to roll it(you probably will) 3) then get an alignment. if it still rubs even after rolling fenders tell them to set it to minimum spec which is like -1 degree up front -1.5 degree rear

 
Rep Power: 0

Wider tires = better traction and steering response.

Lowering on 215-45-17 or 215-50-16 requires rear fenders to be rolled. I'm trying to get this done myself.

I have 195-60-15 with 0 camber in the rear (which needs to be fixed!) and it always looks like the tires hit the fender lip but nah. You've gotta keep in mind that when there is more weight in a car that allows it to be pushed further than normal, the wheels will start to face inward naturally. This is also known as camber.

Say if you were on stock suspension, and you had about say a person that's 250, 160, and 180 in the back seat and even an additional person that's 150 in the front as well as yourself. Your bone stock suspension (including tires) would handle better than only you being in the car because the car is pushed lower to the ground closer to it's center of gravity resulting in your wheels curving inward + the weight allowing more traction.

 
Rep Power: 0

I think I like VNlilMAN's idea. However, the point of doing it all at one time right away was to eliminate the horrible irregular tire ware that comes with no camber kit. I have never lowered any of my cars before so this is new to me. How long does it take before you start seeing irregular tire ware with no camber kit? If at any case the rims and tires I put on my car are only fractions smaller that the stock rims and tires I took off so i guess i could put the stock rims and tires back on the rear until I get the alignment since the tread is wore down pretty good anyways.

Also, I purchased the coilovers do to the fact I wasn't sure what size drop I wanted. I will most likely change to springs later on when I decide what that size is. If the size drop i like is too low then I will get better coilovers or fullcoilovers.

Ok so what about were to get the fender well rolled. Some buddies in my car club have needed to roll theirs (non-7th civic’s), but in my opinion they did it the ghetto way, which was using a crowbar, baseball bat, or a grinder. I’m sorry but I just can’t do that to my 7-month-old car. There has to be some place or some method of rolling it (pushing the lip upwards) and the roll being consistent (unlike using a crowbar where there’s an indentation here and there and pushing up the lip little by little as you go).

 
Rep Power: 417

dont worry your tires arent going to wear out in a matter of a few miles... it takes a few thousand miles before you start to notice it. your tires last what 30k miles(depending on what tires) its not going to take a **** after driving 2k miles with even a 3" drop. 2k miles is a long time, its atleast a month for most people(2 months for me). so ya i wouldnt really worry about getting an alignment right after getting everything installed.

rolling fenders, eh i personally would just use a baseball bat... it should roll it evenly enough.. but ya if your paranoid, good luck looking for a shop. well actually i know spider888 does it at his shop in florida(sorry not sure where, i think it might be tampa, not even sure if thats close to you or not). he doesnt roll the fenders but he trims it.

 
Rep Power: 0

hey vnlilman so how do u exactly roll your rear fenders in using a baseball bat? im interested in doing this myself and i need your input. thanks.

 
Rep Power: 417

stick the thick end of the baseball bat in between your tire and fender. if your car is lowered, just jack up the car so that it can fit. then push the bat down inside toward the center of the wheel, this should fold the fender lip. just keep going around the whole fender little by little. might want to do it 3-4 times rather then just folding it all the way with 1 shot. some say your paint can chip this way, i think you should be fine. just dont blame me if it does

 
Rep Power: 0

I have had my fenders rolled and yes your paint can chip, cuz mine did. Also, if your not careful, you can crack your paint on the face of the fender. Mine did this and it looks like crap. If you have someone that has done this alot then go ahead, but IMO I would try to avoid rolling your fenders.

 
Rep Power: 0

vincenzobar took a dremmel (sp?) rotary tool and just cut off a few centimeters of his fender lip... his car is slammed and now he has no problems with tire clearance. needless to say, this is an extreme measure that should be carried out with caution, but it worked for him.

 
Rep Power: 0

I had to roll my fenders using a baseball bat. I have Neuspeed Racing Springs (2.25" Front/2.0" Rear) & my tire size is 215x40x17. After getting an alignment my tires were rubbing with the rear fenders when i made turns. I simply raised the car up & put the bat with a rag wrapped around it in between the fender/tire & rolled the car back and forth. After that was done I took it for a test drive and cornered pretty hard & guess what no more rub. Only worry about rolling the fenders after your car is lowered and after you have had your car aligned.

 
Rep Power: 0

SDE: do you have any pics or any comments for me. I am thinking about getting Neuspeed Race springs, but I have a couple of concerns. I have 215/45/17 tires on my car, and I am using a camber kit. I would like to see what the drop looks like and want to know from you how the ride is...

 
Rep Power: 0

We need to pursuade him to do a DIY.

 
Rep Power: 0

Tires that wear quickly (most performance tires) are more likely to show wear on the inner tread faster if the wheels are cambered.

 
Rep Power: 0

haha, I don't know how "precise" an operation that was... he also mentioned the use of a crowbar so a few beers would be on the parts list of the DIY I bet