As the title and sub title states, What are the consequences of going lower than KW's recommended ride height?

Many people get these coil overs for the performance aspect but at the same time we all would like aesthetics to be optimal to our liking. Personally, I want to know how low I can go without sacrificing performance. With that said, I may be pleased with KW's lowest recommended setting but I have no way to know other than inquiring here for pictures and information.

My understanding is that by going below their recommended height specifications, it may not have the necessary shock travel and it can cause a lack of performance or a shorter life span or both. Please correct me.

To make this thread more purposeful for myself and others who will search for this, it would be ideal if we can have the following contributions:

Pictures of S2000s with KW V3s installed the way they came from the factory(lower than stock but not the lowest recommended)

Pictures of S2000s with KW V3s installed with the ride height adjusted to the LOWEST KW recommended height(optimal performance per KW's research)

Pictures of S2000s with KW V3s installed with the ride height adjusted to the bottom of the threads(Slammed, Lowest height attainable)

Additionally, I would like people to post their opinion on whether performance sacrificed by going below the recommended is actually noticeable and what measures(rebound and compression settings) can one take to prevent loss of performance and/or shock life.

Providing miscellaneous specs of your setup(wheel and tire specs) can also be very useful.

Thanks

 

since KW doesn;t have separate adjustment fro preload and height - when you lower them you increase spring preload = stiffer spring and bumpier ride.
how significant/bad is it - i can't say.

but if you're not after performancew and look for low ride - why not to choose other coilovers wich are more suitable for that?

 

To clarify, I am not inquiring about the effect of lowering the kw suspension with regards to ride comfort. I am also not inquiring whether these coilovers are good for slamming the car or not.

I already have these coils, I want to know the downside of lowering the height past kw's recommended range... which I believe is .9 inches - 2 inches front and .9 - 2.1 rear. The threads allow the user to go past the range so I am wondering the downside of going past the range.

 

Hopefully someone can chime in on this, I had my KWv3 on the lowest rec setting when I first installed them but, too low for my liking raised it up just a tad bit.

 

Why do you need photos of KW (stock,lowest rec, and lowest?) Something tells me you do not have these coils. You may but, you can just adjust them yourself to get a first hand look.

I do have a photo I will take of the lowest rec setting got to find it.

I'm on ap2v1 wheels and uk spec alignment.

 

#1, what croc wrote about spring pre-load is backwards.

#2, going lower than recommended dramatically increases the probability that you will not have enough bump clearance and that means you will be riding your bump stops, if you use them. The worst case is you bottom out your shock, and you cause permanent damage. The only way to get around this is to use stiffer springs, but then you would need a revalve to increase the rebound to deal with the new stiffer springs.

 

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#1, what croc wrote about spring pre-load is backwards.

#2, going lower than recommended dramatically increases the probability that you will not have enough bump clearance and that means you will be riding your bump stops, if you use them. The worst case is you bottom out your shock, and you cause permanent damage. The only way to get around this is to use stiffer springs, but then you would need a revalve to increase the rebound to deal with the new stiffer springs.
[/quote]


This is correct. I have my car setup with a set of KWV3's and have previously had 3 different aftermarket setups. Everything from slammed to my current set up, which is a couple mm lower than KW recommends for initial setup yet still within their specs (roughly 2 finger gap now). I have found when you start going lower than KW recommends you will find that the struts will not be able to rebound as well due to the spring compression. Thus resulting in poor handling which will also shorten the lifespan of your struts. These coilovers are a great track/ road setup. If you really want a lower or slammed look, look to a different coilover setup. If performance is more important than looks, stick to this system.

 

Why do you need photos of KW (stock,lowest rec, and lowest?) Something tells me you do not have these coils. You may but, you can just adjust them yourself to get a first hand look.

I do have a photo I will take of the lowest rec setting got to find it.

I'm on ap2v1 wheels and uk spec alignment.
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I have them installed the way they came from kw. I believe I have 1 more inch that i can go low and still stay within the range. I am planning on staying with in the recommended range, but it is difficult to measure precisely without the proper tools.

With that said, If I lower it... say 1/10 inch past its recommended range(hypothetically speaking while trying to lower it only 1 inch), I wanted to know the consequences.

The pictures would illustrate whether I would need to go 1 inch lower or maybe I can just lower it 3/4 inch and be happy with the way the car sits(this is where the pictures would help).

Also, I dont have time to adjust them, test, feel, and observe them and then re-adjust. I am not saying that I will go with my first setting and live with it forever. I just want to try to do it right the first time, if that means going on here and asking for some help. I definitely will have to live with the setting until my next alignment though.

I did find a thread with IIGQ4u's red s2000. On that thread, it was reported that his ride height was at the lowest recommended height. But to me it looked too good and to low for me to accept that it was within the range. The funny thing is that someone else took his picture and posted on the thread and the owner himself never attested to the opinion.



This is how my car sits on 17x9 +45 245s all around. More than "2 finger gap" and less than 3.

If you can show me a picture of your car, I would appreciate it.

 

Here's a pic of how my car currently sits, just a hair less than a 2 finger gap. Not the greatest pic, but you should get an idea. Take your time and set it up the way you want it. The last time I really dialed it in and went to the mm for a setup, then the shop fine tuned it with an alignment/ weighted for track duty.

 

Would you say that this is pretty much the lowest kw wants you to go?