Project Civic: Suspension System Replacement

One of my recond circuit-spec coilovers had succumbed to the daily grind of travelling on the awful pot-hole filled roads of Miri; after only over a year of service *includes just less than 2 months here in Miri*; though it has lived up to my expectations, performance wise.

From Rides

I suspect one of the oil seals in the front-left damping chamber has failed, causing it to make unsettlingly annoying sounds when travelling over undulations on the road. I’m optimistic about getting it fixed& refurbished, but I can’t exactly live without a set of suspension, so I had to shop for replacement shocks; & they only come in a set of 4s; break any one, have to change all four *Ouch! *$-pricey-$*

From Rides

For the ailing coilovers, salvation came in a red box of goodies...

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A set of GAB HA height adjustable suspension

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Adjustable damping no longer an option, but it’s got something called AVCS – Auto Valve Control Stability which, automatically adjusts the stiffness of the suspension according to the road condition and driving style; so it’s not that bad, but I have to be realistic not to expect it to better the performance of my previous set of CST Zero-1 fully adjustable coilovers.

From Rides

One thing for sure, it’s going to be a much more comfortable ride with these new red stuff installed. A more practical option for everyday ride, but i’m sure i’ll be missing my stiff kick-ass road hugging handling my ride used to have =(

From Rides

It’s now also got a slightly elevated stance by 5 – 10mm.

From Rides

*the height adjustment tool; i doubt i'll be using it often at all... *
That’s as low as she can go, coz the spring rates on this system is considerably softer *stiffer than stock, still*. I’d expect it to perform better than stock suspension + low springs though ~ it’s marketed as a semi-adjustable sports suspension, so it better be. Just had it installed for about 2 days only, so far, so good.

Come to think of it, would it be an upgrade? Or down grade? Geared for reasonably good handling, and for comfort, but surely performance on the higher end would be compromised a little. That’s 2K++ blown, for me *no more budget to upgrade the ECU.. =( *... still waiting for my Ultra Racing rear anti-roll bar to arrive. That should alleviate the understeering problem a bit. Stay tuned for more updates!