crossfire with new h&r 12mm spacers...the car has also been lowered about 2 inches.

 

12mm front and back?

 

12mm front and back in photo...switching to 12mm rear and 10mm front.

 

Are the spacers behind the wheel?

 

yes...they are between the back of the rim and the hub/disc. the lug bolts hold the spacers in place as well as the hub (they are hub centric).

 

What lowering kit did you use and did it affect the handling?

What did it cost?

 

i used eibach springs (pro kit) and koni adjustable shocks. the ride is near factory with tighter steering response...much less sway in the corners and crisp rebound over the bumps. no more excessive well wheel gap between the tires and the fenders. i love it

cost: springs...$250 (tire rack)
shocks....$525 (tire rack)
install.....$200-$250
alignment....$125

the parts are...03' m/b slk 320

 

Andrew, where did you get the spacers?

 

tc kline racing.com or 614.771.7744 (ask for pete)

10mm front & 12mm rear with 2" lug bolts.

cheers!

 

Hey Andrew ... I want the Eibach Springs and I would like to order them ASAP.. but I'm confused with where you had them installed at... I called my local Belletire and they won't install customer products... and they can't give my car an alignment... and then I called my dealership and they do not installed aftermarket lowering springs...

What sort of shop should I look into? and did you just have your wheels aligned at the dealership? is it okay to drive the car to the dealership after getting the springs put on?

any help would be huge!

 

Bobafettm,
Call Shuman Chrysler in Walled Lake. I know they would install lowering springs and things...

www.shumanjeep.com

 

Boba:

Take this as Derek's suggestion only:

If you are going to put Eibach springs in the car, take it to a shop that specializes in aftermarket suspension work. My mechanic and I did it in his shop together and it was a major pain-in-the-***... He is just a general mech. and told me he would never do that again...

Neither he, nor I had worked on that car before and it took us a good 5 hours... But he and I have worked together for years and my payment to him is minimal...

The A-frames on the front are a pain to put back in after you dump them from the frame... The rear end is a little bit easier, but not much.

Also, if you are just going to replace the springs, you won't notice much of a drop. And the car will handle nearly exactly the same if you keep the OEM shocks/struts. They are very soft and have a slow rebound compared to the Koni's..

After JUST the Eibach spring install, I scratched my head and thought "Oh this was a waste of time and money"... There was no noticable difference in the ride at all with the OEM shocks/dampers, so I purchased Koni Sport dampers and installed them a week later...

Now the install of the Koni's made the BIG difference... The car dropped to where I expected originally and it is SO MUCH more like a sports car. Tighter response, stiffer ride, quicker rebound, less body roll...

My suggestion would be to do the springs and shocks at the same time since your mech. will have it up on the lift... The shocks/dampers will only take a few minutes per wheel...

As far as the spacers, I would shy away from them if you race the car on the track... But, if you're just driving in the street it wiil be OK.

The alignment after the spring/damper upgrade was perfect for my use. The upgrade gave me -.5 camber on the front and -.75 camber on the rear... The caster was perfect... But this is what I would have set it for anyway...

You may want to set camber at 0 if you only drive on straight roads and do not race the car, as it will save some wear on your tires...

Best of luck

 

Hum... from what I heard HDDP is the fact that the lowering springs would increase its handling performance... much like adding them to my family's PT cruiser... it handles MUCH better in the turns now then before... lowering the center of gravity...

I would have this installed by a pro... I know the Xfire isnt like an old muscle car where things just snap in

Anyone have any info on weither the fact that HDDP said is true... the lowering springs harming track use... because this car will be used for SCCA racing starting this weekend!

 

Boba: I think you misundestood my previous post... there is no harm with just the Eibach Springs... I was just saying that you would be hard pressed to notice any difference in handling and lowering unless you upgrade dampers as well..

During the week after installing JUST the Eibach Springs, maintaining the OEM shocks/dampers, I noticed NO drop or tighter handling like I expected. Then when I installed the Koni Sport dampers, the car handled exactly as I hoped... Now I 'm happy with the upgrade...

Be that as it may... feel free to just put the Eibach springs on without upgrading the OEM shocks/dampers and I believe you will agree... No difference...

 

with only the eibach lowering springs...my car dropped 2" from stock height. imo the car "did" handle better due to a lower center of gravity. but the suspension still felt soft to me...mainly on the rebound. this is why i added the koni adjustable shocks to my crossfire 2 months later. the shocks are expensive but truly compliment the over all suspension package on the crossfire. i think the eibach (pro-kit) has been revised since i purchased my kit (one of the 1st kits released/slk 10/04). with the newer kits...the ride height now seems to be less than a 2" drop...more like 1". i have seen 2 local crossfire's lowered with the eibach lowering springs and the car now seems to sit higher than mine. with the addition of the koni's to the existing lowering springs...my crossfire's height did "not" change whatsoever.

hope this helps.

 

Andrew:
Thank you for sharing your experience...
I agree... with just the Eibach springs I didn't feel the EXPECTED performance enhancement until I installed the Koni's... Now it feels like my original expectation of a tight sports car...

Mine only dropped 50% from the original springs ... Which is fine by me, I was only looking to tighten the car and reduce the body roll and reduce the rebound of the OEM suspension... But mine have only been installed for a month and I would expect them to settle a bit more in the next month...

I'm still not happy with the front body roll when I dip into a turn with slight braking... I think a heavier front tortion bar might make me happier...

The ***-end is fine now with the current mods. and current HP... It is a little stiff just driving to work, but performs beautifully on the track...

Best, Derek

 

Hey Land thanks for the info on where to get it done! I'm gonna check a few pro shops around my house! But if it comes down too it... its the drive to Walled Lake!

Thanks for the info guys about the springs! I'm gonna go with the Eibach's for now... and then the Koni's later! But I dont have the money for both... really this is my B-day present lol... so its either these or Brembo Slotted Cryo Rotors!

I think the springs will come to more use...

thanks again

 

i adjusted my front shocks 1/2 turn and the rear 3/4 turn...much more than that...and you will beat yourself to death. :wink:

 

andrew, thanks for the recommendation. I needed the spacer to have the correct offset for rear aftermarket wheels.

 

hey land I'm gonna give them a call tomorrow about the aftermarket springs... have you heard they have done it before? ...

also can they do a wheel alignment there do you think? or will i have to take it to my dealer?