H&R Lowering Springs - What Other Changes Needed When You Install Them?
- Thread starter SA Bill
- Start date
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- 23 CX-5 Premium
You need to make acomodations for camber adjustment front and rear. Easiest way to do this is to install adjustable upper control arms rear and camber bolts on the front struts. If you don't do this, you will get some degree of inner shoulder tire wear as you'll end up with slightly too much (and uneven side-to-side) camber with the standard components.
GJ-Molestor
Banned
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- 2011 BMW 528i, 2015 Mazda 6, 1995 Nissan Maxima Manual
do not get lowering springs. they are not designed for the longer compression of your OEM strut. the ride will be bouncy and bad and you will wear out your current struts very quickly. for the same money, you can get front/rear sway bars which will dramatically increase steering feel and virtually eliminate all body roll. for even less money, you can get camber plates to increase the negative camber on your front axle which also increasing handling.
I understand you want to get the lowering springs to just lower the car for cheap, but it's a terrible idea. don't do it.
I understand you want to get the lowering springs to just lower the car for cheap, but it's a terrible idea. don't do it.
GJ-Molestor
Banned
- :
- 2011 BMW 528i, 2015 Mazda 6, 1995 Nissan Maxima Manual
https://corksport.com/2014-up-mazda-3-mazda-6-cx-5-camber-plates.html
note how the same part fits 3 different models.
note how the same part fits 3 different models.
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- San Antonio, Texas
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- '15 CX-5 Miata AWD
Not everyone who has used H&R's ended up with uneven camber. I've seen some members get even numbers out of an alignment, even with 3" drop corksport springs. I went to the same dealer with my coilovers for an alignment twice, and the second time they (or that tech) couldn't get the fronts at the same camber angle... so I ended up doing it myself.
Also GJ is way off base with his comments... Those statements don't reflects the sentiments of any H&R owner I've come across on this website the CX-5 club FB page, and some of it is just flat out WRONG. My own experience was with a set of H&R's used for over 50k with two Cx-5 until I upgraded to adjustable coilovers.
Fib#1 A set of camber plates is cheaper.. hell to the no. In fact, the only set I know of from Corksport are $360! That's over 1/3 the price of a set of (4) fully adjustable coilovers (Which have camber plates built in the front), or almost 1/2 the price of just two front purchased individually! That is more than the lowering springs not to mention they do not actually lower your car.
Fib#2 Front and Rear sway bars are cheaper.. No Front and rear sway bars are going to run you like $500 if you do the labour yourself, if not expect about 5 hours of labour charge. Not to mention they also *reduce* the independence of your suspension (which could actually cause a shittier ride, albeit with better grip) along with the body roll ; an added effect he left out.
Fib#3 Ride will be bouncy and bad... just flat out wrong. Obviously he isn't speaking from first hand experience, nor is he speaking vicariously.
Fib#3.5/4 Wearing out your struts.. Not sure where he got this from; my oem struts on both of my CX-5 were not worn out at all (prior to installing adjustable coilovers), and I don't recall other owners mentioning this issue on the CX-5.
The players with the least practical experience are always the ones with the most bad info..
You will need an alignment after; you may/may not be slightly uneven with your rear camber like Paris2 mentioned, likely depending on who performs your alignment.
Also GJ is way off base with his comments... Those statements don't reflects the sentiments of any H&R owner I've come across on this website the CX-5 club FB page, and some of it is just flat out WRONG. My own experience was with a set of H&R's used for over 50k with two Cx-5 until I upgraded to adjustable coilovers.
Fib#1 A set of camber plates is cheaper.. hell to the no. In fact, the only set I know of from Corksport are $360! That's over 1/3 the price of a set of (4) fully adjustable coilovers (Which have camber plates built in the front), or almost 1/2 the price of just two front purchased individually! That is more than the lowering springs not to mention they do not actually lower your car.
Fib#2 Front and Rear sway bars are cheaper.. No Front and rear sway bars are going to run you like $500 if you do the labour yourself, if not expect about 5 hours of labour charge. Not to mention they also *reduce* the independence of your suspension (which could actually cause a shittier ride, albeit with better grip) along with the body roll ; an added effect he left out.
Fib#3 Ride will be bouncy and bad... just flat out wrong. Obviously he isn't speaking from first hand experience, nor is he speaking vicariously.
Fib#3.5/4 Wearing out your struts.. Not sure where he got this from; my oem struts on both of my CX-5 were not worn out at all (prior to installing adjustable coilovers), and I don't recall other owners mentioning this issue on the CX-5.
The players with the least practical experience are always the ones with the most bad info..
You will need an alignment after; you may/may not be slightly uneven with your rear camber like Paris2 mentioned, likely depending on who performs your alignment.
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GJ-Molestor
Banned
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- 2011 BMW 528i, 2015 Mazda 6, 1995 Nissan Maxima Manual
Ive spoken with many, many BMW owners who have done all sorts of modifications to their suspensions to know where Im coming from. Theres probably 1 CX-5 owner modding their car for every 100 BMW owners.... and this was the general consensus when I was over at those forums - you want to lower your car? You do it right the first time with a proper coilover setup such as BC racing.
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- 23 CX-5 Premium
The difference between lowering a BMW (sedan, coupe or roadster) and a CX-5 is in the amount of drop (or percentage of ride height) you eliminate. Dropping a CX-5 1.0"-1.5" with a set of Eibachs or H&Rs is whole lot different than lowering a BMW with much less stock wheel travel by .75"-1". So you're comparing apples and oranges. That said, you will lose ride quality by lowering the CX-5. It's just a question of how much it's worth to give the car a more planted look and tighten up the suspension a bit. It took me about a year to get used to the choppier ride, but I'm OK with it now!
OP: At this point it's unclear whether you're still interested in doing this, but should you want to pursue it, here are links to the components I used to put my lowered CX-5 right camber-wise:
https://www.ebay.com (commissions earned)
http://www.spcalignment.com/compone...l=CX-5&year=2013 - 2017&from=USAFrom&to=USATo
Thx to all for the input! When venturing into new territory it helps to have feedback from those who have been there ahead of me.
Yeah...I'll probably do the springs and see what happens. If an alignment can't get the numbers where they are supposed to be I'll go ahead and get the extra hardware to allow enough adjustment.
I'm okay with a little firmer ride so if the springs will allow a slight drop and a slightly firmer ride I'll be happy with that.
Truth is I only put about 10K miles on my CX-5 per year and I figure in 2-3 years it will be time to replace the current car so maybe this is a "short term" trial.
chris-top-her: I'm in San Antonio too. Any recommendation for a place to have the alignment done after I get new tires? As well as a place to install the springs?
I'm planning to get General Altimax RT43 225/60 R18 tires. Seems like those are a good all purpose tire that everyone likes. Hope they do okay in the San Antonio summer heat. Any other tires I should consider...that aren't $200USD per tire?
Thx again for any input!
Bill
Yeah...I'll probably do the springs and see what happens. If an alignment can't get the numbers where they are supposed to be I'll go ahead and get the extra hardware to allow enough adjustment.
I'm okay with a little firmer ride so if the springs will allow a slight drop and a slightly firmer ride I'll be happy with that.
Truth is I only put about 10K miles on my CX-5 per year and I figure in 2-3 years it will be time to replace the current car so maybe this is a "short term" trial.
chris-top-her: I'm in San Antonio too. Any recommendation for a place to have the alignment done after I get new tires? As well as a place to install the springs?
I'm planning to get General Altimax RT43 225/60 R18 tires. Seems like those are a good all purpose tire that everyone likes. Hope they do okay in the San Antonio summer heat. Any other tires I should consider...that aren't $200USD per tire?
Thx again for any input!
Bill
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- San Antonio, Texas
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- '15 CX-5 Miata AWD
Tbh dealer isn't bad for alignment, but I'm not sure about a gppd place for springs. I had my done originally at gils tire and wheel but I had a bad experience with them breaking the clip on my abs wire which led to it fraying on the axle. I'll ask on the fb page and see what people suggest.
From previous experience lowering cars, at a minimum, upgrade your front strut and rear shock to one that is meant for lowered cars/shorter springs/progressive spring rates.
When you lower your car with springs without changing your OEM struts/shocks, the shorter/harder springs will wear out your OEM struts/shocks faster. Eventually, this will lead to 'hard' and 'loud' suspension, more noticeable over bump and rough roads.
Example check out Bilstein's B6 vs B8 strut/shock options. One is designed for OEM springs, another for springs that lower a car.
When you lower your car with springs without changing your OEM struts/shocks, the shorter/harder springs will wear out your OEM struts/shocks faster. Eventually, this will lead to 'hard' and 'loud' suspension, more noticeable over bump and rough roads.
Example check out Bilstein's B6 vs B8 strut/shock options. One is designed for OEM springs, another for springs that lower a car.
Chris_Top_Her: Thx for the suggestions!
Mondo: That's something I had not thought about. I'll adjust if I lower.
VOtt: I already have a hard/loud suspension. Not sure why...only 38K miles but I have those sounds when I go over speed bumps. Ultimate solution is a new CX-5 in a few years.
All: I'm beginning to wonder if lowering springs are worth the expense and hassle of replacing so many suspension parts to make them work. Any other way to lower just an inch or inch and a half without spending $1K USD?
Thx!
Bill
Mondo: That's something I had not thought about. I'll adjust if I lower.
VOtt: I already have a hard/loud suspension. Not sure why...only 38K miles but I have those sounds when I go over speed bumps. Ultimate solution is a new CX-5 in a few years.
All: I'm beginning to wonder if lowering springs are worth the expense and hassle of replacing so many suspension parts to make them work. Any other way to lower just an inch or inch and a half without spending $1K USD?
Thx!
Bill
GJ-Molestor
Banned
- :
- 2011 BMW 528i, 2015 Mazda 6, 1995 Nissan Maxima Manual
Based on the info you are sharing about your expectations and what you are looking for, I think you will be happy with the H&R's. chris_top_her provided some great info that I echo - I had installed a set of H&R springs on my CX5 and my alignment specs weren't too off at all when I took it to get aligned. The drop was nice and just noticeable enough, and handling/body roll was definitely improved and while the ride was a little stiffer, it was in no way unbearably rough or bad. I ended up swapping them out with Corksport springs for a bigger drop, but I will say that I was extremely happy with the H&R's.
Just FYI the H&Rs if I'm not mistaken, has a lower drop in the rear. I believe it is 1.25" drop front and 1.75" inch drop rear. If you do not have an AWD CX-5, having the rear lower than the front is not ideal.
As far as OEM struts and lowering springs, I am pleasantly surprised to hear Chris not having any issues with lowering springs. Maybe the CX-5 struts are better than most OEM struts. It is common knowledge though that lowering springs almost always decreases the life of OEM struts. This is because lowering springs will have a higher spring rate, which will not be what the OEM struts are tuned for. With a lowered CX-5, the OEM struts will have to deal with decreased suspension travel and having to dampen a higher spring rate on the springs.
Lastly, there are no Bilstein struts/shocks available for the CX-5. Your only option is to get Koni Sport (yellow) shocks.
As far as OEM struts and lowering springs, I am pleasantly surprised to hear Chris not having any issues with lowering springs. Maybe the CX-5 struts are better than most OEM struts. It is common knowledge though that lowering springs almost always decreases the life of OEM struts. This is because lowering springs will have a higher spring rate, which will not be what the OEM struts are tuned for. With a lowered CX-5, the OEM struts will have to deal with decreased suspension travel and having to dampen a higher spring rate on the springs.
Lastly, there are no Bilstein struts/shocks available for the CX-5. Your only option is to get Koni Sport (yellow) shocks.
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- 23 CX-5 Premium
The reason for the extra half inch of drop in the rear with H&Rs is to level the suspension. The rear rides higher from the factory to accommodate cargo and rear seat loads.
I see, thanks for the info.
It would be a no-go for me because I already have a tow-hitch and do transport bikes from time to time and my CX-5 is FWD.
