Just bought 06 WRX tr

[A1337STI]

Prodrives springs for the STI are progressive, same with the WRX.

http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/arch.../t-598390.html (look for the post by Stephen.Ramm@aerosim-research.com)

[ddub]

Whats up Dan, this is Dave. I had springs on my car and the ride was not bouncey, about an inch of drop all around. It did not like big bumps very much and you could hear the suspension more because of the camber plates. I still have them all together from when i switched to coilovers. There were still gaps between the wheels in the front, which is one of the reasons i went to coilovers. The spring rates of my coilovers are 8kg/mm and 6kg/mm. If you want, i could take you for a ride so you can see how it feels. It will not feel like the springs you want though. The main thing is, if you go to low with to high of a spring rate, your struts specs will not match the springs, giving you a harder ride. This will make your struts wear out faster, but they wouldn't make aftermarket springs if they weren't ment to be compatible with you car. Some sights you could check for springs and stuff are jscspeed.com, grupp-s.com, subydude.com, scoobytuner.com. you could probably find these all on google. Gimme a ring if you wanna chat.

Dave

[cody]

Originally Posted by Mr. Xevious

what happens when the car hits gravel on the road? Can it react fast enough or will you be in the ditch?

how do you feel about Nitrogen in the tires?

Those questions are odd.

When the car hits gravel in the road, you can spin out and crash regarless of what springs you have. Installing performance springs wouldn't make gravel more dangerous unless it was super deep or somthing.

The car will react fast enough if you react fast enough. Installing performance springs will make your car more nimble.

I feel nitrogen in the tires is a good punchline to any joke about people crashing their Subarus. Just kidding. Nitrogen in the tires is fine. Theoretically Nitrogen filled tires will hold a constant pressure better than air filled tires. It's really overkill to worry about that though.

[Kevin M]

[DanmanWRX]

dave ya i should go for a ride whenever u get some time. i dont really mind the bumpiness, its the bounciness. ive seen cars that are way to low and they look like there hopping around on the road, this is defnitly what i dont want. the bumpiness is ok. also im trying to get rid of the wheel gap, i just dont know if the prodrives are enough to get rid ofthe gap.

[sperry]

Originally Posted by DanmanWRX

dave ya i should go for a ride whenever u get some time. i dont really mind the bumpiness, its the bounciness. ive seen cars that are way to low and they look like there hopping around on the road, this is defnitly what i dont want. the bumpiness is ok. also im trying to get rid of the wheel gap, i just dont know if the prodrives are enough to get rid ofthe gap.

The reason the gap is so noticable on Subaru's is because the front wheel well is actually bigger than the rear... so when the car's level, there's more front gap. Finding a -1"/-0.5" set of springs seems to really level things out, without screwing the handling.

Bounce comes from under-damped springs. i.e. springs that are too stiff for the struts. This is terrible for handling, terrible for ride quality, and terrible for the life of the struts, and gets even worse if the car's lowered too much. What you really want is a spring as close to OEM rates as possible... something that is only stiffer so it makes up for the lower ride height and doesn't bottom out. Even then, going lower and stiffer will reduce the life of the struts no matter what, which is why going to something like some KYB AGX adjustable struts is a great solution for lowering springs.

[DanmanWRX]

any idea on the stock spring rates? i thought they were around like 170?

[Nick Koan]

Originally Posted by DanmanWRX

any idea on the stock spring rates? i thought they were around like 170?

Yeah, they are around 180 lb/in front and 170 lb/in which is about 3.2 kg/mm front and 3 kg/mm rear.

[DanmanWRX]

so is that why the 229 and 196 spring rates of the htechs arent recommended? there to much for the strut and would cause bounce? if i found something around the stock 170 i would be ok?

[sperry]

Originally Posted by DanmanWRX

so is that why the 229 and 196 spring rates of the htechs arent recommended? there to much for the strut and would cause bounce? if i found something around the stock 170 i would be ok?

Just off the cuff, I'd say a -1" 200lb/in front and -0.5" 190lb/in rear setup would be a pretty nice looking, yet stock handling setup. I'm not sure what's out there like that though.

[DanmanWRX]

well i have heard great things about the prodrives, i have searched around though and have found no information on there drop other than "about 25 mm" and there are no published springg rates, why are these considered such a "good" spring?

[sperry]

Originally Posted by DanmanWRX

well i have heard great things about the prodrives, i have searched around though and have found no information on there drop other than "about 25 mm" and there are no published springg rates, why are these considered such a "good" spring?

Prodrive has been secretive about their rates because they seem to work so well and they don't want people to copy them. However, I think the prodrive springs are progressive, which may allow them to run a higher rate w/o the associated bounce over smaller bumps and on the freeway. Figure, less bounce and more handling out of a well designed progressive spring on stock struts. But you can't lower the car quite as much, which IMO is a good thing.

[cody]

Originally Posted by BAN SUVS

Better?

[DanmanWRX]

i just ordered the prodrive springs, i was going to get the htechs but i was afraid of getting bounce. should have them by this weekend, any tips when putting these on? my biggest question is people say to mark the bottom strut bolts or something to keep alignment. can anyone explain what exactly this means.

[sperry]

Originally Posted by DanmanWRX

i just ordered the prodrive springs, i was going to get the htechs but i was afraid of getting bounce. should have them by this weekend, any tips when putting these on? my biggest question is people say to mark the bottom strut bolts or something to keep alignment. can anyone explain what exactly this means.

The top of the two bolts that attach the strut to the knuckle is an eccentric bolt... if you twist it the camber changes. Usually when you take the the strut off, you mark the bolt so you can put it back w/o changing the alighnment.

However, since you're installing springs, you'll need to get the car realigned anyway after you're done, so I wouldn't worry about it too much. Just do the install, and "eyeball" the camber when you put it back together. Then take it to a shop and have them align it. Considering the limited range of adjustment w/ the stock struts, it's not a big deal to drive on an unaligned car for a day or two until you get it taken care of, just don't drive it hard.

[DanmanWRX]

i have heard to allow a week for the springs to settle, do u think this is necessary or too much time? also where in reno would u recommend getting an alignment done at?

[sperry]

Originally Posted by DanmanWRX

i have heard to allow a week for the springs to settle, do u think this is necessary or too much time? also where in reno would u recommend getting an alignment done at?

As has been discussed on the forums prevously, quality springs should need much time to "settle". Once you've driven a few miles, all the slack in them should be taken up. Hell, just backing down the driveway should do it IMO. The prodrive springs are about as quality as they come. I would think installing 'em then driving straight to the alignment folks for an alignment would be fine.

I'd recommend C&C for a race alignment, but they're expensive and always busy as hell... and since you're not going to need anything exceptionally special done, you could go just about anywhere. I've used Big-O on Mae Ann in the past, there's a badass old-school JDM racer guy there named Pat (IIRC)... he knows what's up and will get you as good of a performance alignment as you'll be able to get on the car.

[Nick Koan]

Originally Posted by DanmanWRX

i have heard to allow a week for the springs to settle, do u think this is necessary or too much time? also where in reno would u recommend getting an alignment done at?

Well, having the springs settle is necessary. But, its not like you have a choice, it's not something active you have to 'do.' Once you put them on your car, it'll take a week or so before they reach their specified height. Until then, they will ride a little high.