Just Bought shocks/springs

01NeonR/T · Post by **01NeonR/T** » Wed Mar 22, 2006 7:43 pm

Wel I just bought some Shocks and springs from ebay seller Jdmwerks13. I local picked up from southern california for $285 TOTAL. The guy is very professional and has a HUGE stock of shocks and springs for virtually every car. If you go to Ebay he can sell it for about 300 shipped. But they are brand new KYB GR-2 shocks and Brand new Vogtland springs. A friend of mine has Vogtlands to replace his H&R's and he likes them. Good lowering stance, not too much either, about 1.4". The guy does a lot of suspension work and ONLY does suspension. He told me this combination is very good for the money. A lot of bang for your buck so to speak. I'm about to go install them along with my sways, I'll take pictures and update my profile so everyone can see. This post really has no point, I'm just excited.

Nick Drake · Post by **Nick Drake** » Wed Mar 22, 2006 10:43 pm

1.) I don't blame you for being excited.

2.) That thing in your sig is hilarious, reminds me of family guy in some way, but I can't remember anything in particular.

Frizbe · Post by **Frizbe** » Wed Mar 22, 2006 11:15 pm

Nick Drake wrote:1.) I don't blame you for being excited.

+1 we all do it.

Nick Drake wrote:2.) That thing in your sig is hilarious, reminds me of family guy in some way, but I can't remember anything in particular.

It is from Family Guy, when Peter and Louis decide they need another car.

MyNeonSaysHi · Post by **MyNeonSaysHi** » Wed Mar 22, 2006 11:35 pm

Aren't KYB GR-2 struts basically OEM replacements? I hear bad things about KYB when put with lwoering springs. I don't know about the "GR-2" though so they must be high performance. Great buy!

Nick Drake · Post by **Nick Drake** » Wed Mar 22, 2006 11:37 pm

Damn linkin, it's like you're inside my head.

01NeonR/T · Post by **01NeonR/T** » Thu Mar 23, 2006 3:16 am

Little bit of bad news: When I tried removing the two bolts for the front sway bar that hold it up, both the bolts on both sides toward the front of the car broke off. I am going to finish on thursday since I ran out of time today. Looks like the 2 bolts I broke got rusted into place. I have a screw-out set for broken bolts, hopefully that will work tomorrow. Probably let the broken bolts settle in some penetrating oil while I work on the back. Get some heavier duty bolts from local Home Depot and replace all 4 bolts under there. Maybe the rears too. Looks like the rail that the bolts bolt into is hollow and condensed water from the A/C drains out through there so the bolts probably just got rusted from that. So far front looks good, ride is not that bad. Wheels don't rub anymore, but the rear tires might.. We'll see when I tackle that tomorrow. I don't know anything about KYB being stock replacements, but they DO look exactly like the stock shocks. However, KYB offers a limited lifetime warranty on GR-2's so no big deal. They certainly ride stiffer and absorb bumps better than my stockers (at least in the front for now).

Family Guy Rapes Anything. Yeah I watch it to the point where it's not funny, but it still is...

Frizbe · Post by **Frizbe** » Thu Mar 23, 2006 12:12 pm

01NeonR/T wrote:Little bit of bad news: When I tried removing the two bolts for the front sway bar that hold it up, both the bolts on both sides toward the front of the car broke off. I am going to finish on thursday since I ran out of time today. Looks like the 2 bolts I broke got rusted into place. I have a screw-out set for broken bolts, hopefully that will work tomorrow. Probably let the broken bolts settle in some penetrating oil while I work on the back. Get some heavier duty bolts from local Home Depot and replace all 4 bolts under there. Maybe the rears too. Looks like the rail that the bolts bolt into is hollow and condensed water from the A/C drains out through there so the bolts probably just got rusted from that. So far front looks good, ride is not that bad. Wheels don't rub anymore, but the rear tires might.. We'll see when I tackle that tomorrow. I don't know anything about KYB being stock replacements, but they DO look exactly like the stock shocks. However, KYB offers a limited lifetime warranty on GR-2's so no big deal. They certainly ride stiffer and absorb bumps better than my stockers (at least in the front for now).

Family Guy Rapes Anything. Yeah I watch it to the point where it's not funny, but it still is...

All shocks look the same on the outside, its whats inside that counts

MyNeonSaysHi · Post by **MyNeonSaysHi** » Thu Mar 23, 2006 1:13 pm

Now buy a camber kit or slot the struts so you can ge tit properly alligned. This is a must.. Unless youw ant your tires to burn out fast.

01rtgurl · Post by **01rtgurl** » Thu Mar 23, 2006 5:54 pm

do u have CLEAR taillights? i havent seen those in forever!! sweet. i always liked them... i had a pair in my possession for about a day once....

grambo · Post by **grambo** » Thu Mar 23, 2006 6:28 pm

Uh, KYB GR-2 struts are oem replacements. I've had them and I had poor luck with them. Your springs will end up doing ALL the work in about 10K miles depending on how you drive.
I've heard good things about Volgtland (spelling?) from my redneck pals that watch NASCAR. They are supposed to be a really goood spring. Let us all know dude!
Congrats on your new toys. Thats always cool....

01NeonR/T · Post by **01NeonR/T** » Fri Mar 24, 2006 4:49 am

Well I couldn't extract the bolts so I'm taking the car to a shop tomorrow to get the broken bolts re-threaded. Yes my taillights are full clear, with really nice LED bulbs in them. After perusing around google for awhile, I did find KYB GR-2's are stock replacements, but mixed reviews on how long they hold up, what their ride is like, etc. So far I like the ride. I bought this kit basically because I wanted the Vogtland springs. A friend had a tokico kit in his Camaro, and said the tokico springs sucked. He changed to Eibach and it rode better. My other friend replaced his H&R's with Vogtland and attributes a smoother, less bouncy ride to his springs. It seems like Jury is still out on the roadworthiness of GR-2's. but what's this about camber? Do they make correction plates for the car? How do I go about fixing the alignment, camber, toe, etc on this particular car?

p8ntballah413 · Post by **p8ntballah413** » Fri Mar 24, 2006 12:25 pm

i had the same problem when i installed my hotchkis sways, cept i broke a bolt in the rear. This is what you do. Put the entire sway bar on as much as u can without the broken bolts, front and rear. Then take it to a welder and have him tack weld the bracket to the frame. When I went to have mine tapped the guy made a lot of sense......U wanna pay for the labor for him to play around getthing the bolt out for 4 hours, or do u wanna pay him for the 3 mins of welding he has to do? Dont waste your time taking the bolt out, just weld it.

01NeonR/T · Post by **01NeonR/T** » Fri Mar 24, 2006 2:13 pm

Yeah I just might weld it. I am about to go the shop right now. It's not like I'm going to remove the sways, and even if I do, a simple weld can be removed via a good 30 minutes angle grinding tops. If I get an obscene quote for re-threading, I'll weld it. I mean, I still have 2 good bolts. Either way, sig updated, now you can see all the dirt on my car from canyon runs

. Looks nice, ride isn't too bad. Worried a bit about the roadworthiness of GR-2's still....

01rtgurl · Post by **01rtgurl** » Fri Mar 24, 2006 10:43 pm

01NeonR/T wrote: A friend had a tokico kit in his Camaro, and said the tokico springs sucked. He changed to Eibach and it rode better. My other friend replaced his H&R's with Vogtland and attributes a smoother, less bouncy ride to his springs.

Funny you should mention that... my co-worker who is the parts manager where I work... doesn't normally recommend the Eibach springs for sport compacts. He says they are AWESOME for the older cars that have a ton of weight... but for neons and such, they are way too bouncy. His girlfriend got them for her Celica and he said the ride was horrible... just thought I'd add that. I've never had the Eibachs, only Mopar SII CO's.

01NeonR/T · Post by **01NeonR/T** » Sat Mar 25, 2006 5:23 am

Bolt re-threaded for $80. I got quoted $50 for the welding, so i just went with rethreading all four holes and using bolt/nut assemblies. I just bought some awesome HID driving lights too in a different post.