H&R Spring Install

[tunersteve]

Finished my springs up yesterday, and wanted to let everyone know, if you've got air tools, DO THESE YOURSELF! Springs are not a tough job, just take it slow and you will be fine.

Here's a breakdown of things. I took measurements before and after the install in my garage of the fender height, bumper height, and wheel gap, to give everyone a good idea of what to expect. Here are the results:

Fender Height-
Stock Front: 27"
H&R Front: 25 1/4"
Stock Rear: 27"
H&R Rear: 25 3/4"

Wheel Gap-
Stock Front: 3"
H&R Front: 1 1/4"
Stock Rear: 2 1/2"
H&R Rear: 1 3/4"

Bumper Height-
Stock Front: 6 9/16"
H&R Front: 4 7/8"
Stock Rear: 11 3/4"
H&R Rear: 10"



Wheel Gap Front 3 1 1/4 1 3/4 Rear 2 1/2 1 3/4 3/4



Bumper Height Front 6 9/16 4 7/8 1 2/3 Rear 11 3/4 10 1 3/4

And last, here's a breakdown of before and after in visual form:

Front Stock vs. Front H&R:
http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w208/tunersteve/frontstock.jpg
http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w208/tunersteve/P5120056.jpg

Rear Stock vs. Rear H&R:
http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w208/tunersteve/P5110053.jpg
http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w208/tunersteve/P5120057.jpg

Last, here's the car from the side:
http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w208/tunersteve/P5120055.jpg

Driving impressions are good so far. Body roll/pitch has been reduced greatly, and I don't feel that these springs are bouncy at all. I've driven them about 50 miles since install, and I really like the way the car handles now. I think these with a rear sway bar would be a great investment to the suspension of the MS6.

If anyone has questions on the install, don't hesitate to ask. I didn't have the opportunity to take pics as I went along, but I can guide you through based on memory.

[Drizz-OH!]

H&R's don't "settle", correct? A few of my friends are running these springs and love them! Looks great! And yes, springs are cake to install!

[tunersteve]

H&R's don't "settle", correct? A few of my friends are running these springs and love them! Looks great! And yes, springs are cake to install!

I believe all springs 'settle', as you compress a spring it will give a little once installed. I'm waiting til Friday to get the alignment checked, so we'll see how good I put it back together.

[ms6bb0y]

those are stock spec tires right? 215

[tunersteve]

those are stock spec tires right? 215

No, Pirelli PZero Nero M&S 225/40/18s

[Blendercloud]

The springs look really nice, Steve. That's the route I'm going in about a month. Going to do new tires and springs in one round so I only have to get one alignment.

[OJ Bartley]

Steve, how much of a drop from stock is that?

Edit: Nevermind, just saw your thread, it sounds like you dropped it about 1 3/4" in the front and 1 1/4" in the rear. That's a pretty big drop!

[sunshineFC]

You dont need air tools to do this yourself. Just a well stocked hand tools selection. A breaker bar helps alot.
-a

[redspeed6]

Here's mine after dropping it with H&Rs yesterday:

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w208/tunersteve/P5120055.jpg

Love the drop! Where you get the springs ? How much $$ ?? How much of a drop? Think my red will look sweet with that drop.

[lawben]

Looks good bro. Any rubbing? Did you have to roll your fenders?

[tunersteve]

No rubbing so far, and no, I didn't roll the fenders.

If (or when) I get new rims, I plan on rolling the fenders as a precaution. I'm looking at an 18x8" wheel with 235/40/18 tires.

[Knox Joe]

Hows the ride quality?

Any noticeable stiffness, or harshness?

I'm thinking about doing springs on my MS6, but since I bought it for my wife and kid I don't want it to be too harsh or bumpy.

[chiefmg]

Looks good Steve, with that drop you can probably use it as a snowplow next winter!

Knox Joe, I believe as long as you buy one of the spring sets that are designed for our car (H&R, RPM, AutoEXE) you won't have any problems with a rough ride. I have a set of the RPM preproduction springs myself, drop was about 3/4" which improved handling greatly without putting excessive wear on the struts. I know a lot of people are happy with their Eibachs and other springs meant for the regular 6, but as much as they lower the car I suspect it would ride on the bump stops.

[tunersteve]

Hows the ride quality?

Any noticeable stiffness, or harshness?

I'm thinking about doing springs on my MS6, but since I bought it for my wife and kid I don't want it to be too harsh or bumpy.

No, overall the ride is very good. It's stiffer, but not kidney bruising, and the freeway isn't bouncy at all.


Looks good Steve, with that drop you can probably use it as a snowplow next winter!

Knox Joe, I believe as long as you buy one of the spring sets that are designed for our car (H&R, RPM, AutoEXE) you won't have any problems with a rough ride. I have a set of the RPM preproduction springs myself, drop was about 3/4" which improved handling greatly without putting excessive wear on the struts. I know a lot of people are happy with their Eibachs and other springs meant for the regular 6, but as much as they lower the car I suspect it would ride on the bump stops.

Yeah, I might be plowing roads in the winter time, but it'll still be fun.

I agree, you need to really make sure you're getting a MS6 specific set. I've been pretty adamant about mentioning that to people to read up before going out and buying Eibachs. I didn't bother to cut the bump stops on these either, and haven't hit them yet. They give you a detailed sheet that explains if there is any additional work needed to perform while installing the springs.

[Knox Joe]

I was thinking about the RPM's and the H&R's, but I am still undecided.

[tunersteve]

I was thinking about the RPM's and the H&R's, but I am still undecided.

I've heard good things about both, I don't think you'll be disappointed with either.

[Knox Joe]

I may go with the RPMs because this drop is a little lower, and the way my wife drives I'd be buying a new front lip.

I'll probably do it at the end of the month, and do the HD lip, to help protect it from scraping.

Has anyone else noticed how easy it is to scrape the lip on the MS6? My MSP is way lower than my 6, but I've only scraped the lip once in the MSP, and like 5 times in the 6. I can only imagine what my wife does when she's driving. :(

[chiefmg]

Think it has to do with the front overhang that reduces the distance you have to play with. My wife is continually scraping both the Speed and the Protege (you should see all the paint scraped off the bottom of the lip on the ES). We have a pretty good curb coming into the driveway. When I mention it, she shrugs it off. As long as we come in/out at the right angle it isn't a problem.

[Vicspeed6_AZ]

Here's mine after dropping it with H&Rs yesterday:

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w208/tunersteve/P5120055.jpg

Looking good, now get some SPC Ball joints to save wear on your tires!

[Myriad]

Finally got my springs installed today and I can't believe what a difference it made. Only problem I ran into was when the front end links put up a fight. I also jumped on the opportunity to install my rear MM since the car was jacked up. Can't wait until I buy a house this year so I don't have to feel like a beggar trying to get some garage time at my buddies places.

[tunersteve]

Finally got my springs installed today and I can't believe what a difference it made. Only problem I ran into was when the front end links put up a fight. I also jumped on the opportunity to install my rear MM since the car was jacked up. Can't wait until I buy a house this year so I don't have to feel like a beggar trying to get some garage time at my buddies places.

Let me know when you get your alignment what your specs were. I need to post mine, I seem to be having issues with the shop doing the alignment and getting some things adjusted. My car is pulling to the right now after the alignment was completed.

[ms6bb0y]

oh yeah, forgot to ask in my earlier post..

did you cut any partitions off the bumpstops?

[tunersteve]

oh yeah, forgot to ask in my earlier post..

did you cut any partitions off the bumpstops?

No, the instructions don't recommend that you cut bump stops on the car.

[Msicks28]

Wow the car looks great with H & R springs! Its a much more aggresive look...I'm going to order some for my Black Mica Sicks in another week, what site has the best deal on these springs and SPC Ball Joints?

[Myriad]

Let me know when you get your alignment what your specs were. I need to post mine, I seem to be having issues with the shop doing the alignment and getting some things adjusted. My car is pulling to the right now after the alignment was completed.

I need to take it back to the shop since mine now pulls to the left. Maybe we should set it in the middle and we'll both have a balanced alignment hehe.

[tunersteve]

I'm going to rotate the tires tomorrow and see if that makes a difference. If not, I'm taking it back to the shop and basically telling them if they can't set it within the specs I want I want my money back and I'll go somewhere that will.

[Moof]

I would love to drop my ms6 like this as well, looks great steve. Only problem is I live a half mile down a dirt road, and I forsee issues with having so little clearance in even making it to the road.

[tunersteve]

Moof, you may want to look into the RPM springs then. They offer a set that will increase spring rates and only lower the car about .75", which sounds like it would be more up your alley.

[chiefmg]

I can vouch for the RPMs, I have a set and they are great.

[Blendercloud]

I ordered my H&R's from Tire Rack. They'll be here Thursday. No waiting. :)

[Coldspeed]

Moof, you may want to look into the RPM springs then. They offer a set that will increase spring rates and only lower the car about .75", which sounds like it would be more up your alley.

I have the RPM Sports on my MS6 and it was exactly a 3/4" drop all around. Because of the salty Minnesota winter roads, I frequently go through the auto car wash. As it sits right now, I barely clear the wheel track with the front valance.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v215/dpluhm/MS6/rpm3.jpg

[Blendercloud]

Installed the H&R springs last night. I had the luxury of using a lift. Afterward we did not align it. The car tracks perfectly fine. I'm wondering if that was just luck though. By the way, these springs lower the car a lot. It's a very discrete drop until you really kneel down in front of the car and look at how little clearance you have because of the amount of front overhang this car has.

Thanks for the write-up, Steve!

[TXspeed6]

Ya I have the springs on order, I'm going to put the Home Depot lip on to protect my front bumper a little haha

[TXspeed6]

Wasn't there a write-up on how-to install this? I can't find it anymore :/

[ms6dj]

Wasn't there a write-up on how-to install this? I can't find it anymore :/


yep!

http://www.msprotege.com/forum/showthread.php?p=4537067

or if you were looking for the hd lip it's right there in the main ms6 how-to subfourm.

[tunersteve]

Looking into the SPC ball joints and Whiteline RSB, so I'll be going back for an alignment after this. Also, trying to find a shop that will work with me on dialing the suspension in a bit tighter than the Firestone shop I went to before. Updates are coming.

[amilliems6]

Steve, is the ride much better with the springs or does it bounce on the highway? and did it come with a full install instructions?

[tunersteve]

Steve, is the ride much better with the springs or does it bounce on the highway? and did it come with a full install instructions?

The ride is much tighter and with a huge reduction in body roll. I just ran our fun run course this past weekend and the handling was a big improvement over stock, and much more predictable through the turns.

As for instructions, I found some on M6C, which I used to guide me. It's a really simple install overall.

Rears - 2 bolts and lower the control arm down and remove/install the spring. Make sure the perch is tight against the stop on the lower side and you'll be set.

Fronts - remove brake line holder, control arm, mounting knuckle, and bolts off top of strut tower. Remove spring with compressor, realign, and reinstall.

Overall, a 3 hour install taking my time and double checking things. Only thing that was out was my toe on each wheel.

[Alladin]

Any updates on alignment issues, uneven tire wear or anything else? I'm considering buying these springs but want to know if there's and problems.

[Neofolis]

Can you give me an idea of how long this takes, because my installer are saying that they are going to charge 5 hours labour.

[tunersteve]

Can you give me an idea of how long this takes, because my installer are saying that they are going to charge 5 hours labour.


3 hours not including alignment. Why don't you do them yourself? Do you not have tools?

[Blendercloud]

Making friends with a mechanic or just a regular Joe with tools helps out quite a bit. I would be in a rough spot being 5 hours from my hometown (where all my tools are) if it weren't for my girlfriend's father and his shop.

[McflysMS6]

After some 'controversy' I went with Eibach Pro Kit Springs, and Bilstein HD's.
The drop is advertised as 1.5" front / 1.4" rear. It's more like 1.6" rear, and with RX-8 rims and 225's I can get away with two in the car w/o rubbing. Put two in the back seat........NOT good. Definitely requires a roll. I had about 3/8"
between the tire and wheel opening. One bump, and thump! I have an Amp Board, and 2 10" Subs w/fiberglass enclosures in the back so there's one issue (added weight).
I'm going to try to bring the rear up about 3/8" to even out the wheel gap,
and offer some suspension travel room with back seat guests.

http://i435.photobucket.com/albums/qq76/Mcfly013/IMG_0546.jpg

[tunersteve]

Bringing this back...

After a second alignment and my RSB install, everything is good. Rear camber is set at -1.25 right now, front camber isn't adjustable (yet), and the car tracks true and handles great. With my new tires on here as well (Parada Spec 2's) the car is driving great. My toe on all the wheels was out again though, and that was dialed back to nearly zero.