Black SE 2002 in Europe

[Mirecxl]

Hello
Am new to forum and few months ago I bough Camry SE 2,4l 5-Speed manual. It has only 26K miles.
Am not very happy with handling, would like to make the car stiffer. Since we have pretty bad roads here, I want to avoid lowering it.
Please recommend which springs, coilovers or struts/sway bars would be the right one for me.

[LE05]

Originally Posted by Mirecxl

Hello
Am new to forum and few months ago I bough Camry SE 2,4l 5-Speed manual. It has only 26K miles.
Am not very happy with handling, would like to make the car stiffer. Since we have pretty bad roads here, I want to avoid lowering it.
Please recommend which springs, coilovers or struts/sway bars would be the right one for me.

welcome to the forums!

if you want to avoid lowering it, why bother getting springs or coilovers?

start with the rear sway bar, it will make a world of difference right away. TRD, Whiteline, and Ultraracing make the rear sway bar. if that's not enough of a difference, get the front strut tower bar (TRD, Ultraracing), then move on to the struts (KYB).

[Mirecxl]

Am not sure if I can get TRD sway bar in Europe,and shipping from US is about $300-400 :-(
Just found Whiteline sway bars , but there are two of them :
BTR85 and BTR39
So, witch one?
Is aligment needed after instalation ?

SE version already have the front strut tower bar from factory, is TRD stiffer or different ?

[Punks_Not_Dead5]

Your links didn't work.

When you install the rear sway bar, no alignment is needed. The tower bar as you mentioned is already on the SE, the TRD one won't be any different really.

Ultra racing makes a 4 point brace for the front and rear, that would tighten things up as well. (i plan on installing them in the spring).

I would recommend H&R or Eibach springs, they will lower your car, but nothing overly dramatic. 1.2-1.4 inches at most. And they make a world of difference.

The struts are KYB GR2's from factory, there is no aftermarket struts available.

[Mirecxl]

So first thing i have to do is install sawy bar + 4 point brace, than lower springs and than shocks ?

BILSTEIN makes aftermarket struts for EU Camry (V30) not sure if it fits on USA Camry (ACV30).

[Punks_Not_Dead5]

You can install any part in any order, at any given time. You will need and alignment after you install the springs.

Since you car doesn't have very many miles, i would leave the factory struts in..they're great struts, no use spending money on something else until these ones are shot.

[BlackG5]

Originally Posted by Mirecxl

Hello
Am new to forum and few months ago I bough Camry SE 2,4l 5-Speed manual. It has only 26K miles.
Am not very happy with handling, would like to make the car stiffer. Since we have pretty bad roads here, I want to avoid lowering it.
Please recommend which springs, coilovers or struts/sway bars would be the right one for me.

You have a baby on your hands

Mine is an 04 5-speed SE, but its got almost 200k miles, still runs like a champ!


You're absolutely right about the handling from the factory, even though it is the SE model, it still isn't anywhere close to "sporty" feeling..

You said you want to avoid lowering it, so if you want it to be stiffer, then I'd recommend a set of BC coilovers with a 6k front/3k rear spring rate, and also a whiteline or TRD rear sway bar. The 4-point brace that Punks mentioned would also make a noticeable difference.

With the coilovers instead of springs, you can keep it at stock height but gain a huge amount of stiffness and feel for the road, and with those spring rates, it wouldn't be annoying or bumpy. You also won't have to worry about tearing up your factory struts.. I'd also recommend a nice set of tires and if the budget allows, a set of lightweight 17's to really make it handle well.

Have fun with it!

[Mirecxl]

So i decided to try TRD sway bar at first, than 4-point brace and if still soft i´ll try lowering springs (with factory struts) or BC-Racing...

Just wondering, is there a part number or something like that for BC-Racing coilovers ?
Becouse i found coilover kit for 2003+ and 2006+ camry, will one of them fit to 2002 ?

I already have 17´s alloy summer wheels, but i dont like to call them "lightweight" cause these are much more heavier then steel 16´s

[Punks_Not_Dead5]

2002-2006 are basically all the same. 2002-03 are the same. Only difference between 02-04 and 05-06 is appearance and the V6 has VVTi . 04's look the same as 02-03 but it has the VVTi V6,

But suspension components are all the same.