A little background: '03 MCS JCW stock ~100K miles. I had Spax coilovers on it for a while but took them off a few years ago because one of the rear shocks started leaking. Loved the set-up but the springs were just a little too stiff for the kinds of roads I travel.

I re-installed the stock suspension and have been driving it like this for a while. Now that the front CABs are completely shot and the stock shocks are starting to go, I've decided to refresh/upgrade the whole suspension.

I'll be replacing all the bushings with urethane (suggestions appreciated), all the ball joints and rod ends (OEM) and I'll FINALLY get around to installing the adjustable H-sport sway bars I bought 3 years ago.

That leaves me with what to do about shocks and springs. My goal is to maximize adjustability. I have lots of experience tuning suspensions but no experience with all the stuff available for these cars. I've been leaning towards koni's with H&R springs but would kinda like to have adjustable height. Only problem, coil-over kits are generally way too stiff for the roads I'm driving on. What are your thoughts?

Also, I'll probably end up getting adjustable strut mounts on the front. Any suggestions? Also looking at adjustable rear control arms. Again, suggestions?

Thanks in advance.

~The Bean~

 

Reviving an old thread for input - Depending on where you live, here in LA, the roads are rough, but eventually you get over the stiff ride (especially in the twisties). A good coil-over kit will allow you to set the perfect ride height for driving through those tough streets or canyon runs, so that's always helpful.

As for the adjustable rear control arms, after lowering your car, it'd be a good idea to install these arms since normal city driving will wear your inner tires pretty quick.

-Jorge

P.S. If you decide to go the coil-over and adjustable control arms route and would like to tackle this on your own (doable), follow these guides: http://www.pelicanparts.com/techarti...stallation.htm and this Bilstein guide for reference: http://www.pelicanparts.com/techarti...stallation.htm

 

Unless you really need the up/down adjustability of coil-overs, I would just suggest springs and shocks. You might want to go with progressive springs to help the ride. H&R and Konis would be a good choice. There are various good springs that can be selected based on how much you want to lower the car. I like the amount lowered by H&R springs. If you want a little less lowering than something like TSW springs.
Right now WMW has Koni shocks for $600:
http://www.waymotorworks.com/koni-ye...rt-shocks.html

If you lower the car you will want adjustable rear lower control arms to limit the amount of wear on the rear tires. The H-Sport or TSW arms are nice.

I would suggest fixed camber plates for the front to increase the negative camber without adding the harshness of adjustable plates.
http://www.waymotorworks.com/ireland...e-r50-r53.html

The springs, shocks, rear sway bar, and camber plates will be a nice setup.