DC5 Lowering issues

[BRACETDC]

Hi everyone

I've been lucky enough to just land myself an '03 Black DC5. I love the car except for the enormous gap between the tyres and guards. I was hoping to just get some lowered springs to remedy this as I drive an hour to work each day and still want a comfortable ride, however it seems that the DC5's are an absolute pain to lower.

Ideally I'd just like to get some king springs which state that they will lower the car approx 30mm, from what I've read I may be able to get away with lowering the car to some point with factory shocks, camber settings etc. but after which all manner of problems will occur.

So my questions are:

1) Will the factory shocks support the king springs? If not it seems that there is nowhere to get new ones?

2) Will the 30mm drop throw the camber settings right out? Which some people have suggested will begin chewing tyres or is this only at lower heights?

3) Most people suggest getting coilovers but I believe these will ride too rough for a daily driven car and wouldn't this still result in the same camber issues as the springs?

4) Would it just be easier to get a lip/bodykit to achieve the "lower" look and just deal with the tyre/guard space whilst enjoying the better comfort/drivability/sustainability of the factory height?

Sheesh, I never thought there would be so many issues with lowering a car, any assistance would be most appreciatted.

Kind Regards

[BRACETDC]

Also I've found a set of JDM Type R springs and shocks, are these any different to the base model setup?

[Hau]

Personally i would go springs only because it will shorten your shocks life. coilovers would be your best bet. Im running coilovers as a daily and its not bad. i live in sydney and our roads are horrible. if you can afford coilovers i would recommend coilovers but if you cant springs will do the job. if you want to achieve the lower look there will always be a massive wheel gap betweem the wheel arch. you will probably have to have a wheel alignment even if you lowered it with springs. Hope that helps

[fr4n]

Hi everyone

I've been lucky enough to just land myself an '03 Black DC5. I love the car except for the enormous gap between the tyres and guards. I was hoping to just get some lowered springs to remedy this as I drive an hour to work each day and still want a comfortable ride, however it seems that the DC5's are an absolute pain to lower.

Ideally I'd just like to get some king springs which state that they will lower the car approx 30mm, from what I've read I may be able to get away with lowering the car to some point with factory shocks, camber settings etc. but after which all manner of problems will occur.

So my questions are:

1) Will the factory shocks support the king springs? If not it seems that there is nowhere to get new ones?

2) Will the 30mm drop throw the camber settings right out? Which some people have suggested will begin chewing tyres or is this only at lower heights?

3) Most people suggest getting coilovers but I believe these will ride too rough for a daily driven car and wouldn't this still result in the same camber issues as the springs?

4) Would it just be easier to get a lip/bodykit to achieve the "lower" look and just deal with the tyre/guard space whilst enjoying the better comfort/drivability/sustainability of the factory height?

Sheesh, I never thought there would be so many issues with lowering a car, any assistance would be most appreciatted.

Kind Regards

1) yes they will

2) lowering in any form or way will induce negative camber. get a wheel alignment after the springs settle

on a side note, some negative camber actually makes the wheel gap less and will look lower, even when the physical height of the car is the same

3) you can adjust damper settings but no they arent too stiff, only if youve been pampered by soft, wallowy sedans all your life would you find it unbearable.

4) up to you. personally i prefer a combination of both, with OEM type R kits only. Mugen is good too. all other kits look rice and horrible.

[aRze]

Depending on the coilover, they aren't as back breaking as people think they are ^_^
BC Racing BR are a good example. I've heard from people who daily it that it feels great.

Eibach, Tein and Spoon also make springs for the DC5 and personally I would prefer those brands over Kings

Camber issues can be fixed to some degree with front camber bolts and rear camber arms.

[Hau]

Im running buddy club n+ on the hardest setting so its rough for sydney rounds but will adjust them when i have time. What fr4n has said is spot on. But depends on your budget. But one thing you should never do is cut the springs

[Kin]

Camber issues can be fixed to some degree with front camber bolts and rear camber arms.

By fixing camber issues, do you mean you can reduce the amount of negative camber?

I want to drop my DC5 a fair bit but it is my daily and I dont want to run much negative camber (as little as possible).

[mrntegra]

Congrats on the purchase.!

Daily I used buddy club RSD's for well over 60k km's. It's rough sometimes but not that bad. Running tein type ha's now and they are much nicer for everyday.

Well alignments will be necessary no matter what u do when lowering. Don't stress to much about camberwear, unless your running -2.5 or more.

[aRze]

By fixing camber issues, do you mean you can reduce the amount of negative camber?

I want to drop my DC5 a fair bit but it is my daily and I dont want to run much negative camber (as little as possible).

Yeah if you drop it with stock camber bolts and arms you'll get more negative camber than you'd want for a daily

[Hau]

Im running -3 at the front and -2 in the rears but its not necessary for me but ill be planning on getting wider wheels so thats why mine are lile that but will get another alignment once the new wheels are on

[BRACETDC]

Hmmm, starting to think it might be best to just leave the suspension as is and spend my money on other aspects of the car.

What about the JDM Type R springs and struts, are these lower then the Aussie base model?

[gunpoons]

welcome mate,
my dcr5 was used as a daily for 3 years while running buddyclub n+ lowered about 35mm and to be honest i wouldn't recommend it,
i laugh so hard when someone says "sydney has shit roads" trust me, you guys have no idea what shit roads are,
thing is coilovers aren't a set and forget mod,the locking rings will work loose no matter how tight you do them up, and the fuckers will make noises,
if you are spending that amount of time on the road each day i'd say you not gunna feel like jacking the car up and tightning locking rings when you get home from work in the middle of july,
if i was you i'd look into some springs, but as said before, i'd steer clear of king's and maybe look at eibach,
maybe keep an eye out for some second hand shocks like you mentioned or even look into thesehttp://www.kseriesparts.com/cr/KYB1-331601-331602.html
at the end of the day its really up to you, how much you want to spend and what you want your car to be, but please before you buy anything,
research, research ask some questions and do some more research

[fr4n]

welcome mate,
my dcr5 was used as a daily for 3 years while running buddyclub n+ lowered about 35mm and to be honest i wouldn't recommend it,
i laugh so hard when someone says "sydney has shit roads" trust me, you guys have no idea what shit roads are,
thing is coilovers aren't a set and forget mod,the locking rings will work loose no matter how tight you do them up, and the fuckers will make noises,
if you are spending that amount of time on the road each day i'd say you not gunna feel like jacking the car up and tightning locking rings when you get home from work in the middle of july,
if i was you i'd look into some springs, but as said before, i'd steer clear of king's and maybe look at eibach,
maybe keep an eye out for some second hand shocks like you mentioned or even look into thesehttp://www.kseriesparts.com/cr/KYB1-331601-331602.html
at the end of the day its really up to you, how much you want to spend and what you want your car to be, but please before you buy anything,
research, research ask some questions and do some more research

I've never had this problem

i agree with the shit roads bit. they got no idea, and those that drive wallow soft sedans complaining about my erratic swerving around potholes and the minute long speed hump rawls in parking lots will never understand

[T-BaGGeR]

The eibachs are made to match the stock shocks so no need to worry about shock life being shortened.

The extra camber gained when lowering won't cause that much extra wear on the tyres. It's the toe that kills tyres. Make sure your toe is within spec and you will be fine.

[T-BaGGeR]

welcome mate,
my dcr5 was used as a daily for 3 years while running buddyclub n+ lowered about 35mm and to be honest i wouldn't recommend it,
i laugh so hard when someone says "sydney has shit roads" trust me, you guys have no idea what shit roads are,
thing is coilovers aren't a set and forget mod,the locking rings will work loose no matter how tight you do them up, and the fuckers will make noises,
if you are spending that amount of time on the road each day i'd say you not gunna feel like jacking the car up and tightning locking rings when you get home from work in the middle of july,
if i was you i'd look into some springs, but as said before, i'd steer clear of king's and maybe look at eibach,
maybe keep an eye out for some second hand shocks like you mentioned or even look into thesehttp://www.kseriesparts.com/cr/KYB1-331601-331602.html
at the end of the day its really up to you, how much you want to spend and what you want your car to be, but please before you buy anything,
research, research ask some questions and do some more research

Never had a problem either with my N+

If you used the C spanners then yeh, they will come loose. Best thing to use is a BFH and screwdriver.

You could always use some loctite on the locking rings