lowering causes bouncing?

[andy_95sl2]

i have a quick question... I saw a civic *yuck* that went over a bump in the road at about 20 MPH and it just kept bouncing about 7-8 times, and it appeared to be lowered. I was told by a few of my friends that by lowering a car, it bounces and doesnt go back to flat for about a minute. I disagreed and told them the job of a STRUT and yet they still disagreed. Who's right? does a lowered car still bounce about 7-8 times despite the new struts?

[PACT Man]

it depends on what kind of a lowering job u do, new good struts that are meant for lowered cars with actual good quality lowering springs not so much on the bounce altho it will be more than stock unless really stiff setup, OEM struts arent meant for a lowered car either, they are made for the stock height of your car, for a smooth ride that dosent wear any your struts a strut meant for lowering(KYB, Tokico, etc.) is a must, or there is always the full out race coilover setup

as far as the civic, what u saw was probably someone that was cheap and had bad stock struts in the first place and then threw on some cheap ebay coilovers just for that car on the grounf look and then yes ull bounce around like crazy and have a horrible ride, ive experienced that as that is what i had on my old civic hatch cuz i was poor then andmy struts were so bad that when i was switched the springs i could push the struts in by hand, never get ebay coilovers!

[AceDerry2]

That's the dumbest thing anyone could do to a car in my opinoin. I actually drove a 1997 Civic Sedan (my brother's friend's car) just to see how it was... First of all, it felt WAY weaker than my Saturn, second of all it rode like a 1985 3 wheeler with no suspension! And the stupid exhuast hit a 3 inch speed bump i went over!Terrible!

What's the point? So you can get that cool "tight cornering" experience when you park at the supermarket?? Cmon! :-D

[S3aturnR]

i have a quick question... I saw a civic *yuck* that went over a bump in the road at about 20 MPH and it just kept bouncing about 7-8 times, and it appeared to be lowered. I was told by a few of my friends that by lowering a car, it bounces and doesnt go back to flat for about a minute. I disagreed and told them the job of a STRUT and yet they still disagreed. Who's right? does a lowered car still bounce about 7-8 times despite the new struts?

all will be fine if you get a strut that matches the spring rate of your new springs. the civic you saw probably had 300-400lb/in springs on stock struts, which would cause quite a lot of bounce. this is usually a clear sign that they have no clue as to what they're doing...


s3aturnr

[ProDarwin]

First of all, it felt WAY weaker than my Saturn, second of all it rode like a 1985 3 wheeler with no suspension! And the stupid exhuast hit a 3 inch speed bump i went over!Terrible!

What's the point? So you can get that cool "tight cornering" experience when you park at the supermarket?? Cmon! :-D

I'd take a Civic Sedan over an SL1 any day of the week. Not only does it have a superior suspension, but engine and interior too!

And the point is so you have a car that handles well. Some of us like to have fun when we drive, and enjoy autocrossing on weekends.


Who's right? does a lowered car still bounce about 7-8 times despite the new struts?

You are right, they are wrong. And S3aturnR is correct as well. It is likely that the civic had a set of cheapie Ebay coil overs - typically 450F/350R on stock struts, resulting in a pogo-stick suspension.

[eRic 02sc2]

i have a quick question... I saw a civic *yuck* that went over a bump in the road at about 20 MPH and it just kept bouncing about 7-8 times, and it appeared to be lowered. I was told by a few of my friends that by lowering a car, it bounces and doesnt go back to flat for about a minute. I disagreed and told them the job of a STRUT and yet they still disagreed. Who's right? does a lowered car still bounce about 7-8 times despite the new struts?

bouncing is usually due to inadequate damping of the shocks/struts for the spring rate of the springs. that's how pogo sticks work.

[sl1budgettuner]

Yeah, could be many things. Blown dampers, too stiff springs and to weak of a damper. Or he was an idiot and cut his springs.

[delturcious]

My SC2 is lowered with Eibach springs, and it doesn't bounce. At all. I've learned to be much more careful when going over bumps. Besides that though, the ride (especially cornering) is WAY better.

[eRic 02sc2]

yeah Eibach Pro-Kit springs don't bounce. They actually did their homework so they work with OE dampers :) or even better with KYB GR-2.

[delturcious]

yeah Eibach Pro-Kit springs don't bounce. They actually did their homework so they work with OE dampers :) or even better with KYB GR-2.

Exactly why I picked them instead of the Sprint or eBay crap (dropzone).

[adhhaahok]

ya, i have KYB struts and Sprint springs, that result in a 2 inch drop, and there is no bounce. it is a smoother, yet stiffer, tighter ride. i also have a fully polyeurothane suspension set up.

the reason the honda was bouncing was because it was a honda. it was trying to tell the owner to take it into a tree going 80 miles an hour (honda top speed :) ). that is the only thing hondas are good for...watching them get smashed, totaled, blown up, or, on very special ocassions, go rolling off of a VERY tall cliff. thats my opinion, of course.

[irish56]

So we've established that one should replace the worn-out OE struts when installing lowering springs. Is it a good idea to replace suspension bushings too, or are the factory ones usually OK, even after 100K miles or so?

[adhhaahok]

factory rubber ones will be ok, if they are still in decent shape, but polyeurothane are just SOOOOO much better and dont cost that much. they cost the same as the rubber ones do, for saturns. ones for my girlfriends brothers Lincoln were 4 time more expensive than rubber ones. polyeurothane is cheaper to produce than rubber is, they just like to jack the prices up because they are a "Performance Part". you will notice a HUGE difference in your suspension and handling just with the poly bushings. I asked the guy at the parts store where i bought mine why car companies dont put them on their cars stock if they are cheaper to produce and are better quality, and he said because they are louder. that is to say, you may hear your sway bars not flexing causing a pop occasionally. that makes sence to me.

[RangerRover]

I asked the guy at the parts store where i bought mine why car companies dont put them on their cars stock if they are cheaper to produce and are better quality, and he said because they are louder. that is to say, you may hear your sway bars not flexing causing a pop occasionally. that makes sence to me.

Well they actually have a tendency to squeak, esp. if they are not greased correctly/frequently. If you just dropped 15+ thousand on a car, would you want it to squeak? LOL

[adhhaahok]

If you just dropped 15+ thousand on a car, would you want it to squeak? LOL

I hear ya!

[delturcious]

So we've established that one should replace the worn-out OE struts when installing lowering springs. Is it a good idea to replace suspension bushings too, or are the factory ones usually OK, even after 100K miles or so?

Struts replaced @ 125k, Eibachs installed @ 155k.

[98greenSC2]

I had blown-out stock struts with the Eibach Pro Kit spring and still I noticed no bouncing. After I installed some fresh KYB GR-2 struts, it felt tighter and less jarring. I also swear that it rode about 1/4" higher with the new struts.

I've seen cars lowered so much, it appears to be riding on the bump stops. A seemingly smooth road causes it to bounce like crazy. It doubt it'd handle worth a damn either.

[PACT Man]

ya, i have KYB struts and Sprint springs, that result in a 2 inch drop, and there is no bounce. it is a smoother, yet stiffer, tighter ride. i also have a fully polyeurothane suspension set up.

the reason the honda was bouncing was because it was a honda. it was trying to tell the owner to take it into a tree going 80 miles an hour (honda top speed :) ). that is the only thing hondas are good for...watching them get smashed, totaled, blown up, or, on very special ocassions, go rolling off of a VERY tall cliff. thats my opinion, of course.

umm... just a little insight(no pun intended) were talking about some stupid kid in some particular honda, otherwise keep ur lame "jokes" to urself cuz sorry to let u know but my stock 93 civic hatch with the 1.5l SOHC Non-Vtec 108 bhp automatic hit 110 and i would frequently drive 90 on the highway no problem and then still be able to downshift into 3rd and keep going, and other little note for u, i want u to name one time that a honda motor has broken because of its own error(in other words without someone tampering with it)
and then u can talk crap all u want about a honda ENGINE, and yes sorry to say but i work for Honda and u dont have to replace pistons or rods or anything in a honda at all, u just dont they just dont go bad and 300,000 miles is normal to see and not even considered high miles on a honda, now when u can find another car that does that too ten let me know so i can buy it, now i do have my disagreements about hondas but never in my life would i ever question a Honda ENGINE, and yea i will say that a honda engine is superior to all others, they just dont break

oh yea, forgot, yea i love even the little of torque that my SOHC saturn has, the civic had a better top end with better gas mileage not to mention that it was more fun to drive even as an auto compared to my manual now, i loved that little hatch just for the fact that its like a fun little car that u just cant beat when it comes to screwing around beating on it all day

[KatWoman]

My guess is the Honda was bouncing around because the owner used an improper spring/strut combo or he hacked his springs all to $**t! Sadly too many Honda's fall into the hands of complete hacks. In my experience in the car scene when I used to be more involved, Honda's were the least picky about suspension. You could lower them with almot any spring/factory struts, or if you were careful, and cut the springs right they could still ride nice while laying low...I do NOT recommend cutting your springs. I'm just saying the Honda's seemed to be more forgiving. My Neon had Eibach Pro Kit springs which lowered it a bit and stiffened the ride. Then I switched to Eibacy Sportline springs. The car looked fantastic but my back/internal organs to this day still scold me...it's been 2 years since I got rid of the car.

[andy_95sl2]

i want u to name one time that a honda motor has broken because of its own error(in other words without someone tampering with it)

oh how i can tell you SO many stories about broken hondas... on a normal day, theres 2 hondas in the shop at once, maybe even 5 *we did have 5 one day* that needed all the same stuff, they all snapped the timing belt, the speedo didnt work on one from a HONDA MOTOR SWAP into another honda... water pump jobs, tensioners breaking, puffing smoke, blown rings, cracked heads, you name it and a honda needed repair for it. Just my $.02

hondas are nice ricers, but they get out of hand sometimes.

When people ask me "why? its just a saturn", i remind them that their honda and toyota werent meant for high performance, just like my saturn. Nobody walked around with plans for a Civic to be all riced out, same with corollas.. so why do people mess with me and my saturn!? Also, i'm widely known for having a "pink" saturn.. even though its light purple.. so what!? its called the "pimp-mobile" now

[ProDarwin]

Honda makes some damn fine automobiles, but they suffer from reliability issues over time just like all other makes.

If I werent so cheap I'd probably have bought a honda last time around.

[cyphik]

ALL CARS BREAK! It happens, accept it. When it happens, you fix it or lose it, that's all there is to it. No specific manufacturer builds better cars than any other. Keep yer brand preference to yerself, 'cept for Saturns:p

[sps SOHC]

... Or he was an idiot and cut his springs.

That's what I'd bet on.

[PACT Man]

""Also, i'm widely known for having a "pink" saturn.. even though its light purple.. so what!? its called the "pimp-mobile" now""

lol my civic when i had it become known as the "HOMOMOBILE" after someone decided to come by at night and write it across my blue back bumper with some white shoe polish or something and i didnt have time at first and i was too lazy and i ust thought it was kinda funny myself and everyone saw it at school since it took a day or to for me to take it off and then it still never all fully came off

[kirkm76]

I don't know in the long run if Hondas are any cheaper to own. My SW1 got 220,000 on its original motor. It still ran when I replaced it...Just got sick of buying oil. My friends wife has a civic. It has way fewer miles and will probably go the same 220,000 as my saturn. But he's had to replace the timing belt a couple of times and he's always setting the valve lash (they have solid lifters). Not difficult stuff, but costly if you don't do it (he doesn't) yourself and it's more than was done to the saturn.

What I am sick of is car mags testing cars for 36,000 miles and then deeming them to be the pinnacle of reliability. Yes my saturn had a noisy interior when new compared to other cars, however 200,000 miles later it has not gotten any more noisy. It has held up remarkably well....Better than pretty much any car I can think of that I know of with comparable mileage. Real reliability tests should start at 100-120,000 miles. I expect nothing but oil changes and brake pads during that period. My Saturn gave me that for about 175,000. At that point I had to put an alternator and water pump on it and it was good up to 215,000. Nothing else but oil changes and 2 sets of brake pads. (sometimes like 10,000 miles between the oil changes). Heck it had the original clutch when I pulled the motor. It got struts at that point as well as the fresh motor. I can think of plenty of Hondas with that kind of mileage, but none with so little maintenance. Any honda with so little maintenance would be in the junk yard with a snapped timing belt or something.

And all of you guys saying they make no parts for Saturns....Well, I come from working on Ford and Chevy Small blocks, so I look at the collection of Honda parts as pathetic. There is more out there for LS1 generation motors than Hondas, possibly even the LT1's.

And Civic suspensions haven't been worth a darn since the model changed in the early 90's. Current ones are resting on past laurels.

I really have no problems with Hondas though, I just don't see them as a great value for what they cost is all and I hate the snooty owners who seem to think every other make is garbage. I have a 68 Cougar that is mostly original and will spank most hondas at the strip (there are some fast hondas out there....someone is always faster than you). That is a 38 year old car still on the road. Raise your hand if you drive a 38 year old Honda.

[ProDarwin]

I have trouble believing that there are more parts for a specific generation small block than there are for Hondas in general. I think of the SBC and Honda aftermarket as about equally sized.

I would hardly say a civic suspension is not worth a darn. Its an econo car. Their suspension are on par, if not above average for the category. I would rate them far better than single cam saturns. Would you say an Ion or a J body has a good suspension (haha!).

I completely agree that reliability tests should start at 100 - 120K miles. Maybe even more. Lets face it, by testing to 40k, you are just touching on some of the cars possible problems... yes you may find cars that have excessive issues by this time, but 99% of cars are going to be fine, ESPECIALLY when the magazines put these 40K miles on in a 1 year period. Hell, I doubt you'd have problems with 99% of cars out there if you drove them 200K miles in the first year. Its not that hard on it.

I think of anything less than 100k as low miles. I think that when it gets to 125K+ I start questioning the reliability of a vehcile that I may consider buying.

[eRic 02sc2]

the "old" Civic/Integra with the double wishbone suspension kicks Saturn strut boot ;)

[Tuanies]

The bouncing is caused by cutting the springs. He was probably a retard, cheaped out, and resorted to cutting his springs instead of going with a proper suspension, its pretty typical among ricers.

[DTDSasquatch]

Ooh! Ooh! Can I beat the dead horse too?!?