I'm just a young guy in a rural Canadian town where the tuner mentality is pretty much non-existant. I couldn't even find a place that could sell me tuner lugs. Now you've got me thinking of all the possibilities.
My parents left have sold me their gently used '97 base 2.2L Cavy, with about 130K on it. It came with a dealer package that makes it more like the LS, with the 15" wheels and spoiler, and fake vent decals on the sides that don't look too cheesy. Thanks to all the negative influence around here, I just bought a set of second-hand 18" Silver Motegi MR7 wheels. Many thanks to Wild Weasel's guide on aftermarket wheels, without which I wouldn't have known to use hub rings or tuner lugs. That guide might also explain why I gravitated toward the MR7s. The wheels used to be on some dinky Volkswagen, so they came wrapped with slightly-too-small 215/35-18 rubber. (Cheapo Nankang NS-2 tires, but for the price I paid, tires of any kind were a bonus). I can handle my speedo being out a bit until I change to some 225/40-18s. I plan on running the original Goodyear all seasons during the winter.
I've basically decided that I'm not going to ruin this car for daily driving in all seasons, so at the moment I'm just considering an Eibach Prokit for a conservative drop. I'm sort of wondering whether I can get away with using the stock struts with that kit, or whether I should wait until I can afford a complete upgrade. I don't think I would ever bother with a body kit, since it would probably take too much maintenance and initial body work on a Canadian salt-covered winter-driving car with original paint. The roads around here aren't exactly smooth either.
Anyhow, thanks for all the great information. This has been a great community to discover. I welcome comments or suggestions, while keeping in mind that anything expensive probably isn't going to happen.
Hope to see you all around.
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good deal josh!
yea, that drop will be nice, but i would save the money and not use the stock struts. the stocks wont last much longer with a drop.
kick azz using ww's info page. i love reading that thing! LOL
well, keep it up buddy, and ill see ya on the boards.
welcome to the
!!!!!
-Www.IznTrbl.Com-
Whether you are on stock struts or oem replacements, any drop is on borrowed time. Could be a few months could be tomorrow when they blow. For the eibach pro kit, kyb agx's are within the warranty and you can find a relatively cheap set on e-bay ($280-$350).
Besides, if you get lowered on the stock struts you'll have to pay for an alignment then wind up blowing them...then need to take the springs off the old struts put them on the new ones and get another alignment. Thats twice youll have to pay for alignment and giving away $60-80 is a waste of money IMHO and you CANNOT go without an alignment for long (accelerated tire wear & possible handling issues not to mention an overly bouncy ride).
PLEASE drop it. It will look about 97 times better.
As for the suspension, get it all done at once. Save some money.
Alright, so the shock struts need to go. They're probably already getting tired as it is. Sounds like I'll be waiting at least until spring anyways, so I'll have some time to save up.
I'm actually surprised that the fender gap doesn't look worse than it does. I think I can deal with it for a while longer. Thanks again!
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Nice looking car, Josh.
From one newbie to another, welcome aboard.
-2003 Cavalier LS, 4 door.
christ that looks high.
yes drop it on struts designed for lowering. you obviously know how to read stickys well so i advise you to read the suspension sticky on struts and springs. it will help you decide on what to buy
I've changed my screen name and thrown together an signature image, so that you'll be able to pick me out on the boards more easily.
It's sort of funny -- I've gotten used to how my car looks with the fender gap, so that it only bugs me when I see it immediately after seeing some of your cars with a nice drop. It also seems like less of a problem when I think about dropping almost half what the car is worth on just a suspension change. I guess the solution is to stop looking at other member's cars.
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Welcome!! Cavy look clean for a car that have been through canadian winters
Take your time if you want to mod it, because you don't want to spend cash twice on something that you should have done correctly in the first place!! Even if you can't spend much money on your car right now, you will have plenty of time to get better infos on stuff and avoid problems later. Good Luck!!!
From the angle you took the picture of your car, those fake vent decals remind me of the 1st Gen 3000GT's. But like everyone else said, you should drop it, and drop it right... or at least find a set of red z24 side skirts to make it appear closer to the ground (in the meantime). Apart from that, the cav looks nice.
Why not scrounge up a full same-phase Z24 stock bodykit? That paired with your intended drop would completely pump up the appearance of your Cav. I'm sure you can find a Z24 kit on some junked Cav at a local scrapyard. May I also recommend using KYB GR-2s paired with your Eibachs. Most economical gas-charged strut package with handling I havent been able to complain about (with my Eibach Sportlines, Prokit would been even less likely to bounce or bottom out since it's higher then Sportline).
Looks good so far, but it's just not quite finished yet, lol.
Geeky wrote:It also seems like less of a problem when I think about dropping almost half what the car is worth on just a suspension change.
Moding a car isn't about making the car more valueble, rather, it's about doing what you enjoy. In fact most mods will lower the value of your car, if you look over any of the pricing guides. In the specialized markets, if the mods are done correctly, thay may increase the value, but to sell in the specialty markets is very difficult.
If you are satisfied with the car you have as a starting piont, just have fun with it. Do what your capabilities and financial situation allow.
kidduntradishunal wrote: May I also recommend using KYB GR-2s paired with your Eibachs. Most economical gas-charged strut package with handling I havent been able to complain about (with my Eibach Sportlines, Prokit would been even less likely to bounce or bottom out since it's higher then Sportline).
IMO: I wouldn't reccomend the GR-2s with the Prokit, although KYB says it's a sufficiant drop to go with on them. The AGXs are an ideal match to the Prokit. As for the the GR-2s (or the Tokico HPs), I wouldn't reccomend anything more than the TEIN H-Techs (1.1" front, 0.9" rear) or the Suspesion Techniques (1.2"f/r), as the spring rates and drop provieded by these springs are just within the capabilities of these struts. Anything more on these struts and you are pushing the limits of the struts and are on borrowed time. The GR-2s and HPs are considered a stock replacement and aren't designed for the higher spring rates and reduced travel of spring with any more drop than this. Also, if you plan on doing Autocross on a regular basis, don't use these struts, they are fine with normal street driving, but not agressive driving on a regular basis, though they will slightly improve the handling, over the stockers.
As stated abovethough, read the Suspesion FAQ in the Suspension Forum for more information.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edited Sunday, October 08, 2006 8:01 AM
Here's a closer shot of the side dacals. The pitiful thing is that the dealership was selling a false "RS" package, and provided a base model with some visual options and the 4-spd auto. You can see they added "RS" to the Cavalier logo with decals also. I've been under the impression that the RS model wasn't even sold in Canada, and would normally come with charcoal bumpers -- though I could be wrong on this.
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welcome to your new addiction known simply as: THE ORG!
yes, save some additional money and get struts with the springs. as old as the car is prolly the struts are about gone if not already. putting just springs on will have you bouncing over every little crack on the road! it will get old real fast and drive you insane, LOL! there is a set you can get that has springs/struts together.
something to think about and is usually the first mods mentioned for noobs to do is: debadge stickers/side moldings/decals. it gives a nice clean appearance.
MadJack wrote: Moding a car isn't about making the car more valueble, rather, it's about doing what you enjoy. In fact most mods will lower the value of your car, if you look over any of the pricing guides. In the specialized markets, if the mods are done correctly, thay may increase the value, but to sell in the specialty markets is very difficult.
I may not have worded my comment very well. What I meant is that the cost of a proper suspension lowering package is nearly half of what the car is currently worth. Depreciation is yet another concern that I hadn't even considered. If I've got $1000 to spend on suspension for a 10-year-old Cavalier, I've got a good start toward buying a better car.
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a good suspension is going to run you 500 bucks. thats basically the cheapest. car modding is not cheap
[quote=ßãggéÐÇåv98 (Ûñqùðtäߣè Øñé)]car modding is not cheap
I guess it depends on whether a person wants to do it right. Like I mentioned, I was thinking of just changing the springs -- which would have been cheaper, but unsafe. Worse yet, my brother offered to heat the existing springs with a torch until they contract a bit. "The trick", he said, "is getting both sides the same". I declined the offer.
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lol my bros cavy has that bad gap in there to i always used to stuff fruit in that gap cause it looked fruity without a drop he'd come out to goto work and there be apples and bananas sitting on top of his tires. after that we decided to call it the fruity mobile, its also bright yellow.
LOL. If I found fruit stuffed in my fender wells, I'd be able to fix the gap at the back by stuffing the corpse of whoever did in in the trunk.
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