Hopefully someone will find this useful or at least interesting.
I have been riding on Eibach Pro-kits and Koni Yellows for just over a year. I have the stock 22mm front sway with a 99-00SI Rear 13mm sway. My tires are 195/55r15 with Yokohama AVS ES100.
The pro-kits were ok, but I wasn't completely happy with them. I could feel every bump in the road, but when I tried to drive hard, they were just too soft. The car sometimes felt like it wanted to roll over. Also seemed like my car just kept getting lower and the drop didn't appear to be even between the left and right side.
So, I decide to try out the H&R Sports. Keep in mind that Eibach pro-kits are supposed to drop 1.5" front, and 1.3" rear, and are 10-15% stiffer than stock. H&R Sports are supposed to drop 1.75" front and 1.5" rear and are 25-30% stiffer than stock.
I did the install yesterday and took a few pics comparing the springs. I only have one thing to say about the install... Using a spring compressor with a ratchet sucks. I was using air tools when I put the pro-kits on...
Anyways, here are a few pics comparing the springs :
Notice all of the "dead coils" on the H&R Sports. Should make for a relatively smooth ride on good roads.
Notice *NO* dead coils on the pro-kits. Really interesting since these are supposed to be progressive springs. Really seems like they are linear. Would explain my experience with them.
Funny how H&R Sports drop more in the front than the Pro-Kits, but the H&R Sport front spring is considerably longer than the Eibach... Once again, I think that Eibachs are actually linear, not progressive like the H&Rs.
Rear springs look nearly the same length, but notice the "dead" coils on the H&R.
Initial impressions... I'm lovin' the H&Rs. The car handles beautifully. The ride is a little smoother than the pro-kits, and very firm, but not stiff. It should be fine for my daily driver... Only time will tell. I got a tiny bit of bounce in the front driving down a certain stretch of highway, so I need to twist the knob on the front koni's a bit to handle that. No concerns, just needs a little tuning.
Only gripe is that while I wanted better quality springs, I loved the drop of the pro-kits. I really didn't want to go any lower. The H&Rs look great in the rear, but lower than I really want in the front. I'm probably going to raise the front end up a notch since the koni's are ride height adjustable.
So what next? Well, came home and saw the UPS slip on the door. My 16mm rear sway bar is here to replace my 13mm rear. Shouldn't have any subframe issues with this bar and even though the extra 3mm doesn't sound like much, gotta look at cross-sectional area. The 16mm has 50% more x-sectional area than the 13mm Best part is that I got it brand new for $50 shipped.
After installing the H&Rs, I noticed that handling is very balanced, I have more steering and less body roll, so no real understeer problems. It will be interesting to see what happens with the 16mm rear in place
Spring Rate Information Thread
I have been riding on Eibach Pro-kits and Koni Yellows for just over a year. I have the stock 22mm front sway with a 99-00SI Rear 13mm sway. My tires are 195/55r15 with Yokohama AVS ES100.
The pro-kits were ok, but I wasn't completely happy with them. I could feel every bump in the road, but when I tried to drive hard, they were just too soft. The car sometimes felt like it wanted to roll over. Also seemed like my car just kept getting lower and the drop didn't appear to be even between the left and right side.
So, I decide to try out the H&R Sports. Keep in mind that Eibach pro-kits are supposed to drop 1.5" front, and 1.3" rear, and are 10-15% stiffer than stock. H&R Sports are supposed to drop 1.75" front and 1.5" rear and are 25-30% stiffer than stock.
I did the install yesterday and took a few pics comparing the springs. I only have one thing to say about the install... Using a spring compressor with a ratchet sucks. I was using air tools when I put the pro-kits on...
Anyways, here are a few pics comparing the springs :
Notice all of the "dead coils" on the H&R Sports. Should make for a relatively smooth ride on good roads.
Notice *NO* dead coils on the pro-kits. Really interesting since these are supposed to be progressive springs. Really seems like they are linear. Would explain my experience with them.
Funny how H&R Sports drop more in the front than the Pro-Kits, but the H&R Sport front spring is considerably longer than the Eibach... Once again, I think that Eibachs are actually linear, not progressive like the H&Rs.
Rear springs look nearly the same length, but notice the "dead" coils on the H&R.
Initial impressions... I'm lovin' the H&Rs. The car handles beautifully. The ride is a little smoother than the pro-kits, and very firm, but not stiff. It should be fine for my daily driver... Only time will tell. I got a tiny bit of bounce in the front driving down a certain stretch of highway, so I need to twist the knob on the front koni's a bit to handle that. No concerns, just needs a little tuning.
Only gripe is that while I wanted better quality springs, I loved the drop of the pro-kits. I really didn't want to go any lower. The H&Rs look great in the rear, but lower than I really want in the front. I'm probably going to raise the front end up a notch since the koni's are ride height adjustable.
So what next? Well, came home and saw the UPS slip on the door. My 16mm rear sway bar is here to replace my 13mm rear. Shouldn't have any subframe issues with this bar and even though the extra 3mm doesn't sound like much, gotta look at cross-sectional area. The 16mm has 50% more x-sectional area than the 13mm Best part is that I got it brand new for $50 shipped.
After installing the H&Rs, I noticed that handling is very balanced, I have more steering and less body roll, so no real understeer problems. It will be interesting to see what happens with the 16mm rear in place
Spring Rate Information Thread