Lowering and suspension help

[Darq1]

Hello all. i've been lurking for a while now and finally decided to make my first post. I've got a 1991 Corolla SR5 that I've owned now for about three years. I've finnaly decided to start doing to serious work to it and I'm looking for som advice . I've go a set of 16X7 rims on it and after recently putting new struts on the rear noticed that the rims rub in the inside when cornering hard. I plan on adding spacers (1 inch or so) on all four wheels as well as lowering the car (2-2.5 inches), but am at a loss as to how to go about doing it. Coilovers are out of the question at the present time due to the expense. I've heard good and bad about coilover sleeves and am presently unsure about them. I was thinking lowering springs as the least costly option but if using them with spacers, they would need to be pretty stiff and was looking for advise on which ones to go to that would be stiff enough to stop the top of the fenders from rubbing the tire when the spacers are in place. Any advise on which springs and or sleeves would be most helpful. I'm pretty sure the front springs and shocks/struts?? are shot as well. I'm running a set of autozone struts on the rear. can I keep these or do they need replacing as well if lowered with sleeve or springs? Thanks to everyone in advance.

[ayang951]

yeah i was in the same boat as you, minus the years of owning this car, and the big wheels, but you can use 93-02 shocks, but you have to use the top hat and springs as well... stay away from cheap ebay shock brands like DropZone(i made this mistake) but they will all fit and bolt up together, but in order to use the newer lowering springs(they didnt really make anything for our years) you have to use it all in a package like a conversion type. if you have any problems understanding this, click on my link below my name, in my signature, and it will take you to my build page and i have pictures and instructions on how to do this conversion. if not you can spend lots of $$$ just to get lowering springs for your struts...
http://www.ebay.com/itm/B-G-Suspensi...item45efe4c33e
http://www.ebay.com/itm/TEIN-H-TECH-...ht_1704wt_1270
http://www.ebay.com/itm/TEIN-H-TECH-...#ht_1126wt_905
or you can convert to:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/New-DZ-DAD-S...ht_3969wt_1270
but on the dropzone, they dont ride stiff or long, and the life time warranty is BS i was never able to get it registered, the phone operator is a dumb@$$ and so i now have dead struts, and i cant replace them for free anymore, so im going another route and trying to build my own coilovers from coilsprings, and strut inserts which would end up 1/3 the cost of purchasing coilover systems..

[Darq1]

Thanks for the response Yang. If going with the DZ/DAD Struts/shocks+Springs, will it knock to camber off so much that they wont be able to be adjusted without installing camber/caster plates? And is this a stiff setup?I also see that you have the exact same motor as I do. As far as I've seen, there's not much you can do to increase performance on this particular motor. How did the header setup help with your car (any noticable improvement) and could you recommend one.

[ayang951]

on the dropzone, you dont really need camber plates... the suspension can still be aligned right at a alignment shop. but the shocks are crap! only ok thing is the springs... i was just using this as a example, get a different set, maybe kyb or tokico. the shocks were very, i mean very soft more like dead brand new in box. once i had it on, it felt worst than chopped springs, so now im looking into a different setup. but on the headers i never got around to get any for this car, but i have had some pacesetters in the past, and it made some what of a difference... it made the car sound like a subaru impreza and it picked up better at low rpms. but again yeah there is not much you can do to this engine unless you want to save gas. if you want performance go 4age DOHC route. same block just better head. but yeah, the dropzone is a no no i want to tell everyone that on a serious note. but yeah i hope this gave you a better idea on how it works though. in your case since you have a coupe 2 door, id go all GTS on it.

[Darq1]

Would love to do the GTS thing but have had no success finding any in the junkyards in my area.

[ayang951]

ah yeah... i keep forgetting that everywhere else isnt like southern california... i still see ae86 gts out here in the yards as well... well you can source out parts here and there little by little then. everyone starts somewhere. i mean there is alot of guys on this forum that just turbo charges the stock engine here in this forum. ppl like jmaz, eage8 i think and others... i think one guy was named pinky or something, i cant remember but ppl do run turbos on the stock motor daily driven though.

[Darq1]

As far as the suspension goes I'm beginning to think a set of sleeves and and inserts will be the better way to go. After doing a little research it seems the most economical route at this point in time. Fount some info on the conversion process to inserts, and its definately in my skill level. It helps to work on a military installation and have access to an auto craft shop as well

[simple monkey]

get a set of ground control coilover sleeves. they are very cheap and they use high quality eibach springs. I honestly wouldn't trust dropzone stuff based on the price, and the fact that many ebay products like this are not very well made.

[ayang951]

yupp i couldnt agree with you all more on that... that is why im going with some sleeves this time around.

[simple monkey]

what struts do you plan on using with these coilover sleeves? It would be a good idea to get better valved struts, as the lowered car will have the struts partially loaded all the time.

[ayang951]

im planning on doing this. thanks eage8
http://www.koni-na.com/pdf/boltstrut.pdf