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Well richk just posted some pics of when we installed the coilovers yesterday... check them out in his post below. BTW, thanks to Rodel (rodelb), Christopher, Rich (richk) and Colin (Jefe) for their help in the install. We first installed the coilovers at their lowest setting, mainly because I had assembled them that way so I could compress the springs by hand... had not realized that it would drop that low! Rich and Rodel were laughing hysterically when the wheels nearly went into the wheelwell when we lowered the jack :) Everyone got to drive the car while it was nearly slammed to the ground... it was fun, there was nearly no roll (and I don't have sway bars yet)... it would really kick ass at a track. We forgot to measure the drop, but it was lower than the 2" intrax drop... I think the estimate was about 3"... We didn't try to see how high it would go, but the Type-RA can be set to raise the ride height :) I finally settled at a ,75" drop because I don't have a camber kit yet... besides, Austin streets would tear up my bumper if I went any lower. Street driving impressions: the Tein Type-RA shocks are really softer than stock when set at their softest setting... they are noticeably more refined, more responsive and better damped than stock or tokico shocks, and I believe they are better than the Type-HA shocks as well. Well worth the little extra outlay over the Type-HAs IMHO... On the other hand, the springs are also noticeably stiffer than stock...the combination feels a little weird... at first its like "wow... this is plusher and softer than stock"... then you start thinking... "hmmm... there seem to be more bumps on this stretch of highway than I remembered". Basically, on the highway, you will notice the bumps more, but they are all very well damped by the shocks. On rough streets, the Type-RAs don't feel any harsher than stock... Overall, the Type-RAs are VERY streetable... I'm not going to buy a set of softer springs now... but if I had to choose again, I may be hard pressed to decide between these springs and softer springs. The stiffer springs are still very streetable and would be better at a track, but softer springs will make highway driving a little smoother. As Rich pointed out in his post earlier, one unexpected (for me at least) benefit was how the car brakes... no dive whatsoever. I took a turn fast and braked while cornering (not a good idea normally), and the car felt very well controlled throughout unlike with the stock suspension. One last thing... the solid upper mounts do squeek a little over bumps... sounds a little like little mice having sex in the back of the car... anyway I'll try to make some thin teflon washers for the upper mounts and see how that works. It might also save some wear and tear on the upper mounts from rubbing agains the frame... if it works well, I can make them available for purchase...
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