I know there’s a million of these but I’m just awful at maneuvering on forums, currently my coupe is at stock height (08 coupe sport) , I just ordered some rims 19in just like the stock, need my car lower but not too low as my driveway is awful, I wanted to lower the car an inch or so so I have room for splitters etc without scraping every 5 seconds, not sure if I get Coilovers or lowering springs? Which brand? Performance is great but mostly doing it for looks, not going to be street racing or tracking the car at all. What’s the best bang for the buck for what I need? Thanks so much for the help!!

 

There is a quick and easy answer and a long complicated answer. You can peruse the suspension forum for the various long answers. Based on your post, springs are likely all you're looking for. Cheap and an easy install. Two favorites around here are Swift and Eibach both around $300. Depending on how many miles are on your current dampers you may consider replacing/upgrading them. OE dampers weren't designed for the extra strain of a lowering spring and can/will cause them to wear out faster making for a less fun ride.

 

great answer, thanks for simplifying, much appreciated

 

Definitely new struts, mines failed the next day after I installed my springs lol

 

For anyone who's gonna do oem shocks and lowering springs u might as well go tein basis z. Comes out to about the same . With springs ur always gonna itch for a little lower.

 

Jfc that sucks, any recommendations on struts?

 

I would go with some kybs, I'm ordering a set today from rockauto today. Comes to about 155 shipped for the fronts.

 

I would say coilovers are easier to isntall.

Don't have to mess with removing the springs from the strut on the front.

If you can afford it, spend a little more on coilovers like BC Racing (I got them and I really like em) and you can adjust them to whatever height you want.

Installation costs are the same whether you do new struts/springs or coilovers.

 

how much did you end up paying for installation? If you don’t mind

 

No idea. Did it myself.

I figured maybe around $500-700.


FYI, if you lower it more than an inch, you really should get front adjustable upper control arms and rear camber arms. That's another $500 at least.

 

I went with Tanabe NF210. My car is a made in Japan, 2012 G37xS Coupe (Red) and my car was the first application of this on an X. Only 5% stiffer and perfect with 19" wheels. I have H & R spacers 15mm front and20mm rear. I like coilovers too though. Looking for coilovers with auto adjustable dampers..

 

Just ordered some 19” wheels to replace the 19” oem, doing the same 20mm front and 15mm rear, I really only think I’ll have about an inch to lower since I don’t want to camber, perfectly fine for me, I suppose lowering springs would be the cheapest option but since my car has 124k miles on it I don’t want to risk it with the current struts etc, not sure when the previous owner did the maintenance and somewhere down the line I’ll probably want Coilovers, that seems to be the case with everyone who starts out with just springs, currently deciding between Megan racing, truhart, and Tein, since I don’t need to drop 2k one them

 

There is no doubt that suspension upgrades require a lot of consideration and if you're going to do it right it can be fairly costly even if you're doing the work yourself. Take your time and think about your ultimate goal and budget. If you try and cut corners it will cost you. For instance if you don't watch your alignment closely after you lower your suspension you could eat through tires quickly. If you lower your suspension too far (anything over an 1"-1.25") you're likely going to want/need adjustable front upper control arms, rear amber arms, and toe bolts. Depending on brand and quality you can add another $600-$1000 in addition the cost of whatever spring or coilover setup you choose. Other things to consider is that if you go with a bigger rear sway bar (i.e. Hotchkis) not all aftermarket rear camber arms are compatible. Then remember your wheel size/width/offset can play into things as you want to make sure everything fits w/o issue. FWIW with my OEM Sport wheels I found 20mm front and 25mm rear to be the sweet spot (I am actually selling my spacers in the classified section and there is a pic on my car if you want to reference it).

You're not wrong that there are plenty who start with springs and then go to coilovers later on. I am one of those. Springs were a good, inexpensive way to lower my suspension slightly and pick up some improvements in handling. Now that my dampers are starting to go I am moving to coilovers, but realistically I paid about $300 for the springs and I do the labor myself. I've had the springs on for about 2.5 years and for the first 1.5 years it was a daily driver. All the other things I am doing or have done to my suspension (i.e. sway bars, camber arms, upper control arms, etc.) will remain and I'll be able to sell the springs, so there's really now downside to this approach for me. I didnt go straight to coilovers because I didn't know enough about them, especially since I have AWD so my options are limited in comparison to the RWD application, I couldn't yet justify the costs, and wasn't sure how long I'd hold onto the car.

And there is the the slightly more complicated answer... I'd really encourage you to spend a lot of time in the suspension forums as well as the review forums to learn as much as you can, so you can make the most educated decision on how to modify your car. If you have questions along the way there are a lot of knowledgable people here.

 

Thank you man , very much appreciated 🙏

 

Sorry to bother, still a newbie, do you know where I can buy new dampers for the lowering springs?