Lowering Springs

[Donnie]

Tried the search but all I could find was pics of finished projects. I need Tech advice.

I want to level the S out by lowering the back so I need some advice on a few questions. Thanks

1. What all will I need other than the springs to do the project? (not counting tools, parts only)

2. How does this effect the ride? Good & Bad experiences.

3. What brand or brands are recommend, including the springs? Keeping in mind that I want to do this right the first time but I'm not one for spending fortunes just for bragging rights saying I have so & so's stuff on my car. Just looking for Quality.

[ThatVietGuy]

1) You may need new strut mounts, just because the ones on the car may be worn out, though I think this is rare. The only other part I can think of is aftermarket struts (Tokico, KYB), though this is optional to some, I think it should be necessary.

2) Lowering will make the ride a little harsher, but you get much improved handling. I've never had a bad experience with lowered cars, but I'm positive you only get a bad experience if you have a bad installation.

3) The most popular combination on the board is probably Tokico struts paired with Tein S-Tech springs. There's also TRD (which is the same as Eibach) springs, TRD struts, and KYB GR-2 struts.

The best combination, IMO, is TRD Struts with TRD springs if you can find it.

[Solorange]

Just to add to what Viet said, you might also want to purchase the rear sway bar links as a lot of members myself included ended up having to cut them off because the nuts holding them in place become naturally welded to them link. You end up stripping the hex key area out first making it impossible to get them off. I also agree it should be a must to replace your struts with tokico or kyb as many members have blown their stock struts after lowering. I have tein s-tech springs with tokico struts. I personally think it has the same ride as the stock setup except it drops your car down 1.5''-2''. Coilovers is the route to go if you are looking for performance. In a lot of cases people don't go that route because of cost. Last time I checked it was $1600 for a set of tein coilovers and that was the show stopper for me.

[akora12]

If you want to do it right the first time go with some struts and mounts. Most setups for the solara don't compromise ride quality too much unless they are cheap. Nonetheless, the comfort and quietness will never compare to stock.

Spend careful time on the endlinks when removing the nuts so that they don't strip out. I had to replace both of my rears, and they aren't exactly cheap.

[SleeperSolara]

I would suggest doin' it right the first time.
Buy struts and springs at the same time.

[Donnie]

Seems like this is going to be more than I want to get into right now, and I know I don't want to loose the factory smooth ride. But thanks for the tips and advice. Saved me a lot of time and money. All I had to do to lower my truck rear 2" was replace the shackles. Don't think I'm in Kansas anymore with The S.

[SleeperSolara]

Seems like this is going to be more than I want to get into right now, and I know I don't want to loose the factory smooth ride. But thanks for the tips and advice. Saved me a lot of time and money. All I had to do to lower my truck rear 2" was replace the shackles. Don't think I'm in Kansas anymore with The S.

The TIEN lowerin' springs and TOKICO blue struts ride better than my OEM suspension, IMO.