Slam the front, or drop the back and cut the springs

[Makdaddymac]

after driving my new to me civic which is lowered, besides hitting parking stops, i see the benefits of a lowered car, i mean that thing sticks to the road like glue......... no sway feels smooth on the pavement and it just has lowering springs and new struts/shocks aka. a budget drop.
well i was wondering (requesting pics) if anyone has just dropped the front of there cars, or something to give it an aggresive stance rather than a dropped stance. i know mustang people only lower like 1-1.5 inches to help with fender space aka. 4x4 look. and thats what i want since im not into lowriders my civic is was bought like that and is still respectably high off the ground,
on my 5.0 i think i want to just lower the rear a lil and slam the front.. dont flame me just seriously gives the car a mean stance........im not talking like a fender scrape drop just a lil advice, also will be getting some 17x8 03 cobra 4 lugs so i guess i have to keep that in mind........so yeah requesting pics and advice,opinions on stock rear height with lowered front?

 

[allballsmustang]

im running 17x9 03 cobras in a 4 lug with motorsport b springs hotchkis cc plates and strange engineering 10 way adjustables...

hope that may help

Jim

 

[MAC'n89Blckstng]

Don't just slam the front. That looks just silly. Get a nice full set of springs and you'll be set. Slamming the front and giving it a "mean rake" is strictly for 60's and 70's muscle cars, not a fox body.

 

[foxmustangman]

I'm wanting to do the same for my car, I just don't have the money, and MAC'n89Blckstng is right, slamming is only for 70's Muscle cars, not for foxes.

I personally am going to keep the rear where its at, and then lower the front .5 to 1 inch.

 

[Juggalo95]

I know what you mean...I went from driving b swapped,lowered Civic Hatch,CRX, 94 Civic Coupe then to my 95 gts and im this handles like crap and is slow...I hate the 4x4 look but a smooth ride is nice after 8 years riding in lowered cars(all my cars were lowered "right") I just like being able to go over speed bumps at normal speeds.

As for the "raked" look been there twice with my 79 camaros I had...I had the rears about 1/2higher...on anything from the 80's up the "raked" look reminds me of something Joe Dirt would wanna drive or david hasslehoff lmao

Go with a even drop all around...youll benifit from better handling and better launches over the "dated" raked look trust me

 

[Darkwriter77]

For Pete's sake, don't cut the springs! Just ask Frankenstang how much she loooooooves the springs her ex chopped on her Capri.

If you're gonna do it, do it right and buy a matched set of four all-new springs ... or at least score a set of 4 four-banger Fox springs which will lower the front end a bit due to the difference in engine weight.

 

[25thmustang]

Heres mine, kind of sounds like what you want. Very slight fender gap out front, more out back... All I did was LCAs, and Saleen Springs. The car BADLY needs shocks/struts at a minimum, but has the right look.

 

[Makdaddymac]

allballs looks good

and "25th" thats just what im looking/talking about, more details, im not familiar with the term LCA?

 

[25thmustang]

Lower Control Arms... I used them just to dump the quad shocks (no wheel hop either, LOL). That and the Saleen Springs, everything else is 148K mile factory junk.

 

[SVT32VDOHC]

I have Steeda Sport Springs, P/N 8200 all the way around. Mega Bite Jr LCA's on the top mounting hole and two of their hard springs spacers between the springs and the spring perch. I also have stock shocks and struts.

My nephew driving...hehe

 

[25thmustang]

I LOVE the way your rims sit flush with the fender... every rim in the world should sit like that!!!

 

[1990Coupe]

25th and SVT......

 

[SVT32VDOHC]

I LOVE the way your rims sit flush with the fender... every rim in the world should sit like that!!!

Thank you! I like it too, and I actually have quiet a bit of room left in the well. I could widen the wheels about 1/2 or 3/4" to get more rim and tire under the car and maintaining the flush look on the outside. But our local guy is like 220 each to do that....

25th---Those newer pics that you had during the photoshoot are amazing! I've seen regular pics and the car looks good, but those photoshoot pics are just unbelievable! I wonder if you listed that car on Ebay with those pics how much money it would bring? I know you are not selling, but a lot of cars on Ebay bring big money from good looking pics.

25th and SVT......

Thanks bro!

 

[25thmustang]

Im sure it would, but then again I think it would be a false representation of the car. After all it doesnt really look like that in real life. I mean they are untouched pics, but my friend works miracles with a camera. The car would fetch money by its looks, but then again theres too much sentimental in it.

Yeah some 315s on yours would look killer . I just LOVE having wheels sit perfect it makes or breaks the car. Yours actually sit better than mine, in my opinion... I need like 1/8-1/4 spacer in the back...

Thanks 1990, yours will be there...

 

[Mustang5L5]

Don't cut springs. That's the hack way of doing it and changes the spring rate dramatically.


Just lowering a car doesn't automatically make it handle better. Suspension geometry plays a huge role in how a car handles..not just how low to the ground it is. WIth mustangs, you typically want the a-arms parrallel to the ground. Any lower hurts performance.

Also you typically want a matched spring and shock combo...or adjustable shocks. You can put nice stiff springs on a car and have it handle like it's on rails....on flat pavement. I've been in cars that handle well...until you hit a bump. Then the car skips over 3 feet in a curve because the suspension is not setup up well.


I love cars that can handle well at stock ride height. The only car able to do this that i've driven is my sister's '08 Lexus IS250. I've driven a TON of cars and autocross frequently and this car is the best stock suspension car i've ever driven. It rides smooth as butter, but there is ZERO body roll in a turn and if you hit a bump in a turn, the car still tracks the way it was turning. I wanna take it autocrossing...but she'd kill me. I want to buy one of my own just because of how well it handles.