Coilover adjustment... any advice

[mark_ma]

finally got my car some coilovers
i thought the install would be the hardest
but turns out adjusting to my desired ride height isn't as easy as i thought it would be...haha
i quickly found out that if i change one side, the other three are affected to
my desired ride height i want is 25" to 25 1/4" for all four

two days of mounting and dismounting wheels can get tiring... get it... TIRING...
if its of any concern... here's my specs
-full tank of fuel
-h&r coilovers
-18x8.5 et35
-Front 37psi / Rear 34psi
-elevation 5251 ft. who knows... maybe elevation has a role in this

my question is
do any of you guys have any cool advice/technique on how you guys got to your ride height?

also is there a huge problem if say, all four are at different height but with in the 25" to 25 1/4" zone?
or is it recommended for all for to be as close to possible?


and i have not done an alignment yet, waiting until i get my ride height where i want it

[Audibot]

I set my driver's side slightly higher than passenger side because I was always driving it. Have you allowed adequate time for the springs to settle?

[mark_ma]

- - - Updated - - -

I set my driver's side slightly higher than passenger side because I was always driving it. Have you allowed adequate time for the springs to settle?

on the first day i did so many adjustment and i didn't really at all let it settle
once i thought i got it to what i like, then i drove it around the block.

the following day did a few adjustments with more driving and swerving on the road (around 15mph)

so do you just recommend adjust once side, drive around, let it settle for an hour...
then adjust another side and repeat the process?

[Audibot]

The suspension needs to be driven on and settled for 1 week minimum, 2 weeks is usually a good estimate. It's going to keep settling on you a bit more.

So no adjusting until RIGHT before you are heading to alignment. That way you're not wasting your time.

[Aok303]

Yeah normally you set them all to same height(alot count ring turns from the bottom) and then wait a week or two for them to settle to level out, unless you are rubbing or afraid of damage they need to break in to the weight normally it will go like at-least an 8th of an inch lower when they settle. then you measure distance from center of wheel up to fender you want to be and then adjust coils. since each wheel could be a lil bit different this will level you how you want. and if you are worried about weight of gas tank and driver usually you leave it 2 to 3 full thread turns higher. I never do the rear but i will do driver if i am going to track the car or do alot of left hand turns. and alignment day after you feel the height is right if you can or if you know your within a 1/4 of an inch. the difference wont cause much difference in tire wear unless you go up 1/4 in all but one tire and go down 1/4 in that one you will see that tire wear just a hare faster depending where it is to how many turns you take

[koolade9]

The "settling" most people refer to is actually the bushing stretching to their new position. This is also how you shorten the life of your bushings. Loosen/tighten all of your control arms at the new ride height, then push the car forward/back to let the tires settle out, then take your new measurements.

Notes:
-I generally set the rear 3/16"-1/4" higher than the front. I also set the driver's side 3/16" higher than the desired height, and the passenger side 1/16" higher to account for driver weight...granted that figure is purely based on my spring rates, your height change (based on driver weight) will be different than mine. Just something to be cognizant of.
-For every 1" of wheel change, it's roughly .7" of spring adjustment in the front, and .55" of spring adjustment in the rear. That should help you approximate how much you need to adjust.
-Your swaybars will preload your suspension, making it difficult to dial in too much height difference on any certain corner. I do my height adjustments with the bars disconnected. Several companies make adjustable end links to overcome this.
-Align at 0 toe if you don't like frequent tire replacement.

[mark_ma]

The suspension needs to be driven on and settled for 1 week minimum, 2 weeks is usually a good estimate. It's going to keep settling on you a bit more.

So no adjusting until RIGHT before you are heading to alignment. That way you're not wasting your time.

and i did forget to mention that the coilover are not brand new
i got them from the classifieds
so they have been driven on by the previous owner
does the 1 week - 2 week rule still apply?

from the measurements i took last night to this morning it did drop 1/16"

[QIKRNU]

The settling has to do with the rubber suspension bushings, not the coil overs.

The "settling" most people refer to is actually the bushing stretching to their new position. This is also how you shorten the life of your bushings. Loosen/tighten all of your control arms at the new ride height, then push the car forward/back to let the tires settle out, then take your new measurements.

[mark_ma]

The "settling" most people refer to is actually the bushing stretching to their new position. This is also how you shorten the life of your bushings. Loosen/tighten all of your control arms at the new ride height, then push the car forward/back to let the tires settle out, then take your new measurements.

Notes:
-I generally set the rear 3/16"-1/4" higher than the front. I also set the driver's side 3/16" higher than the desired height, and the passenger side 1/16" higher to account for driver weight...granted that figure is purely based on my spring rates, your height change (based on driver weight) will be different than mine. Just something to be cognizant of.
-For every 1" of wheel change, it's roughly .7" of spring adjustment in the front, and .55" of spring adjustment in the rear. That should help you approximate how much you need to adjust.
-Your swaybars will preload your suspension, making it difficult to dial in too much height difference on any certain corner. I do my height adjustments with the bars disconnected. Several companies make adjustable end links to overcome this.
-Align at 0 toe if you don't like frequent tire replacement.

by setting the rear higher is that just to future proof your self for when you have people in the back seat or junk in the trunk?
because that is what i was thinking and that confirms my thinking that someone else did this too

since at first i was thinking of going all fours to be the same height
there is a thread in the b6a4 of peoples wheel/height/ etc. i was looking at
and a few did mention that they had there to be the same for all fours

[mark_ma]

The settling has to do with the rubber suspension bushings, not the coil overs.

The "settling" most people refer to is actually the bushing stretching to their new position. This is also how you shorten the life of your bushings. Loosen/tighten all of your control arms at the new ride height, then push the car forward/back to let the tires settle out, then take your new measurements.

learned something new

[QIKRNU]

learned something new

Give thanks to Koolade9.

[Audibot]

The settling has to do with the rubber suspension bushings, not the coil overs.

The "settling" most people refer to is actually the bushing stretching to their new position. This is also how you shorten the life of your bushings. Loosen/tighten all of your control arms at the new ride height, then push the car forward/back to let the tires settle out, then take your new measurements.

Idk...

The last time set I changed to, I was told to drive on them for 2 weeks first, and I know for a fact the shop tightened everything up at the proper ride height I specified. And sure enough, came back 2 weeks later, and they had to readjust them and then head to alignment.

...but none of that matters anymore for my car, so sure, whatever works.

[Silver Streakin]

25" seems too low. I'm around 25 1/4 and 25 1/2. Tiny tiny toe in. -2 camber.

I too keep the rear just slightly higher than front. I think the forward rake looks good, and it seems to help keep the front from pogo'ing.

Put someone in the driver's seat when adjusting.

Rears are a pain. I need to remove the sub frame bolt per side to get the spring to loosen tension to allow the collar to move. There's just no room in the rear to get a good pull on the wrench.

[Aok303]

alot leave the back a bit higher due to when you gas the car the front rises and the rear goes down a bit, when you stop the brakes are at the front they go down first then force bounce to the rear more suddenly so alot do it so it wont bottom out on the back when a hard stop.

the drive around and let it settle is the shocks will loosen up a tad now it is pushing back on pressure, the springs fully compress to where they will be with the normal full weight of the vehicle and the bushing settle to where they will due to the added stress of the new ride adjustment angle. even if the parts are used when they are not installed they go back to a non load position, so when you install a new load position will settle. it maybe the same it maybe a little different due to weight and age of the rest of your suspension but to be truthful your talking less then a 1/8 of an inch at that point so minimal unless there is a leak.

[breal]

I almost sent you this info when I shipped them, but I thought you may have asked once you were installing. My bad on that.

At the end, I ended up running higher because I got tired of changing heights from summer to winter, but here's what I've got written down on my toolbox from when I first installed them.

Front @ 25gtf

Driver ------ Passenger
37 threads ------ 35 threads


Rear @ 25.25gtf

10 threads

Rear should definitely be higher. With people and stuff in the trunk I rubbed like crazy on rough roads.

Make sure you lube the threads like crazy before adjusting. Fronts are straight forward. Rears, not so much. I actually flipped the perches to the top and I thought that made it easier to adjust. Like previously mentioned, disconnect the sway and even lower the subframe if you want.

Hopefully that helps you.

[mark_ma]

I almost sent you this info when I shipped them, but I thought you may have asked once you were installing. My bad on that.

At the end, I ended up running higher because I got tired of changing heights from summer to winter, but here's what I've got written down on my toolbox from when I first installed them.

Front @ 25gtf

Driver ------ Passenger
37 threads ------ 35 threads


Rear @ 25.25gtf

10 threads

Rear should definitely be higher. With people and stuff in the trunk I rubbed like crazy on rough roads.

Make sure you lube the threads like crazy before adjusting. Fronts are straight forward. Rears, not so much. I actually flipped the perches to the top and I thought that made it easier to adjust. Like previously mentioned, disconnect the sway and even lower the subframe if you want.

Hopefully that helps you.

no worries at all
i was a lil curious when i was installing the rear, but as you said it does make a it a lot easier to adjust
thank you for the info on the threads!