Help! Newbie Needs Suspension Advice

[msualero]

ok i have aftermarket chrome 16's on my car now..dealership threw them on..i sold my truck rims to a kid and hes got 18x8 5x115 chrome lezaro enzos from his lexus the rims are a universal bolt pattern(5-lug). my question is should i just put the 18s on it..or do i put the 18s on and lower it ..or lower it on the 16's...btw i live in michigan and i drive this car all year round..would sprint be too big of a drop for me?

[ryanthefizz]

i live in wisconsin and just baught sprint springs and spring tech struts, still waiting for them to be shipped. others said snow wouldnt be a problem.

[msualero]

thanx...what size wheel and tire pkg are you goin to run? yeah my alero with the aftermarket 16s looks like a 4x4 to me so im tryin to fill the wheelwells and still drive on michigan roads...anyone got the S/Ts and running 18's?

[jackal2000]

18's and lower it

[BLK03GXS]

Yea lots of ppl on here have 17/18s and lowering... go for the 18's man

[msualero]

thanx everyone..since the kid is sellin me the 18z with new tires for 700 i'll get those this week.... ok so how much should it run me to have the springs installed...i saw the prices of the springs..and are new shocks an absolute neccessity (meaning will the ride be crappy if u dont change them?)college student budget..i bought the car and everything in it...but dont wanna sacrifice ride quality also how much and where can i get the best deal on springs and struts/shocks

[BLK03GXS]

If you dont lower it too much ( like with the springs i have the H&R's )
your stock struts will last longer... but if your gunna lower it 2inches or so you would want to get better struts. EVENTUALLY its not a neccity...

[mike2002]

ive got spring tech springs, same as sprint
car sucks in the snow. the carriage now sits so low it drags on the snow everywhere. ive got decent all seasons so if i dont slow down, i can usually plow my way through the snow, but if its thick snow, i cant stop, or i wont be able to start. id say i have somewhere around 2.5-3" ground clearance between the front 2 tires.

if you live in snowy weather, skip the springtech/sprint springs. they drop it about 2", i wish i got eibachs.

how many miles do you have? you can usually tell how bad the shocks are by rocking the car. after you rock it it should stop moving fairly quickly, if it bounces around for a little while, replace the shocks too. everytime you dissassemble the suspension its another $70ish for a alignment which is a absolute necessary, so do it right the first time.

[BLK03GXS]

alltho recomended i travel the high way EVERY DAY 1000kms a week or so... and i have never alligned my car.. and i have no unsual tire wear.. except from burnouts, ebrake slides, and lockin the fronts up... haha

[Mischief007]

Also a quick question, same subject.

Do Aleros have struts on all 4 corners?? Or did my eyes deceive me.

Also if someone lowers the car with the Eibach Pro system (which is what I'm thinking off), should I replace the struts/shocks/springs. I really hate bouncy rides.

[mike2002]

kyb gr-2 struts with the eibachs will give you less of a bounce. and there are struts in all 4 corners

[white04alero]

if u get springs do u gotta get the struts

[forbidden]

Go for the 18's an lower that bitch!!!!

[BLK03GXS]

ok well yes we have struts all the way around.. and IRS, if you get the Eibach springs you are replacing the springs... eibachs dont lower too much you could use the stock struts for a while.. they will eventually blow..

[alero_ecotec]

i've been told in other topics that as long as your car doesnt have too many miles on it you can just use the stock struts, but if you're pushing 60,000 then you should go ahead and do those too

[ryanthefizz]

Originally posted by mike2002@May 1 2005, 03:52 PM
ive got spring tech springs, same as sprint
car sucks in the snow.Â;-) the carriage now sits so low it drags on the snow everywhere. ive got decent all seasons so if i dont slow down, i can usually plow my way through the snow, but if its thick snow, i cant stop, or i wont be able to start.Â;-) id say i have somewhere around 2.5-3" ground clearance between the front 2 tires.

if you live in snowy weather, skip the springtech/sprint springs.Â;-) they drop it about 2", i wish i got eibachs.

Quoted post


hope it is as bad as you make it sound because i cancelled my order for springtech springs and struts today.

[-Alero-]

Originally posted by jackal2000@May 1 2005, 02:41 PM
18's and lower it
Quoted post



A'men. bet it will look sweet

go with sprint/springtech by the way. that is if you can (depends on roads)

[Redog]

I wolud go with the Eibach just because it doesn't lower too much.

That's what I have, cause the roads here suck

[ptrudel]

well i've got Sprint springs, and in the winter had crappy winter tires(about 60 000miles on 'em) and kept the springs, got stuck a bit, but only needed a tow once..because i got off the driveway into the field :blink:

other then that i was fine...and where i live, we get snow....6-8 feet per year...

oh, i'm on stock struts too, have been for about 35000 miles...still goin alrite...gonna need new struts soon tho...

[msualero]

ok im pushin 58k miles....general consensus is eibach? i live in michigan and aside from the east lansing-okemos area our roads are poopty. but i dont do alot of driving for distances more than a few miles from home..ie school and work..gettin the 18s tommorow..does belle tire keep eibach springs in stock?

[AGT]

I say no to the enzo.

[msualero]

y no to the enzo's? im gettin em now for 600 with 2 new tires and 2 tires with 75 percent tread....my aftermarket 16's are a similar 5 spoke design in chrome

[mike2002]

most of us probalby dont like that style, very flashy, id say no too

id get eibach if you either have bad roads, or snowy winters. sprint drops 2", so i guess you could take a look under your car, and measure stuff like the front cradle, and then subtract 2" from that and it will give you a idea of what your car will sit at.

sprint/springtech (same thing) says 1.75, but its 2+ (like 2.125 tops) also, i dont know about eibach, but with spingtech's my rear sits a little lower than the front.

[msualero]

i dunno michigan weather hasnt been so bad the past few years we get snow and its gone quickly so im not sure which height to go with lol....michigan people know what i mean it can be 70 one day and get 4 inches of snow the next..u never know

[mike2002]

just like MN

i could take a picture of my dark blue 4 door on spring techs, and some under car shots to give you a idea of ground clearance....let me know. if you do, ill try to get to it tonight, but i have school work and my graduation , so it might be tomorrow.

and my car's dirty and im not cleaning it :)

[msualero]

ok how much should install cost me?

[mike2002]

i was quoted $180 for all 4, i decided to do it myself. also, that 180 did not include a 4 wheel alignment, which is necessary. even if your car still goes strait, there are other factors to the wheels being aligned that you wont notice, you could wear tires faster or get worse handling, spend the $65 on a alignment

install is pretty easy, you dont even need a spring compressor. ive done it a few times, and could probably do all 4 in about 1.5 hours if i was rushing, just take your time, the first time takes 3-4 if you kind of putz around like i did the first time.

[msualero]

ok the 18s i bought didnt fit..so i got my money back...anyone know a good place to get some 19z or 20s? obviously cant be any wider than 8 inches...unless someone can tell me where to get the adapters :huh:

[msualero]

ok went to suspensionmax and they didnt show anything for any oldsmobile cars under their search.....i remember people sayin in a forum that we can use the set up for the malibu...just wanna make sure this is correct b4 i spend money to do it that way or should i call and tell them i need them for an alero?