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Thanks otter!!! The most important part for me was to see what those bump stops looked like and how you would go about cutting them though... and with the pictures gone I'm left with no real reference about that.


If anyone has a picture of this bump stop and the cut that has to made to it, please post it so everybody can see how it's supposed to be done... that's the only thing I'm really nervous about for this install.


Then again, I'm also told that the strut tower bolts are a pain to get off... but I guess my impact gun will do the trick, right?



[ EDIT : OMG! I'm so lucky!!! The print version has the pictures!!! This is so freakin' great! There's no pic of the bump stop though... but hey, one can only be so lucky. ]

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Impact wrench will get that upper strut bolt off no problem. I'm actually glad you brought this up. I'm going to be installing coilovers on a friend's OZ this weekend, then we'll install his lowering springs on my car. I can't imagine all that much needs to be cut from the bump stops. Do the instructions give a measurement? You would just cut it with a hacksaw or something similar.

 

See, that's the step I'm most concerned about... the instructions don't give any details and I can't see it on the photos...

Altough, I remember there was another thread on here, one specifically for the RA, that showed these bump stops... but I could never find it in the last weeks. Maybe my search skills are not that great though...

Anyway, as I said, if anyone has pictures of those bump stops (better if pics are from cutting them to fit), please post them.


Now... it looks like I've got to get some 14mm and 17mm deep sockets. My short sockets won't do the trick for sure... and I don't want to be caught off guard by a lack of tools in the middle of the install.

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I've just realized that the tutorial does not mention having your wheels aligned after you've installed the new springs. Since I remember one member telling me that he ruined his tires over the course of a single summer because he didn't have his car ligned after installing his springs, I thought I'd mention it...

Or can knowledgeable people pitch on on the importance of the alignment??? Maybe it's not really necessary (altough I'd rather be safe than sorry - I'm gettin new rubber on next month)...

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An alignment is absolutely necessary when doing a spring or coil-over install.

 

It kinda makes sense too... installing springs that will change the ride height should change the camber on the car, even if only by a small ammount. Also, maybe my job won't be that precise putting everything back together...


I was thinking of letting the car rest on them for at least a full day, even two, before taking it to be aligned... I'm thinking the springs may have to settle in before the alignment can be accurate. What do you guys think? Would this make a difference?

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I don't know about springs settling, but I would definitely get the alignment done. From what I've read on here, you shouldn't need camber bolts if the drop is less than 2.5 inches. However, regardless of the drop, as with a strut replacement, you would want to get an alignment to set everything back to normal. If what people are posting is true, tire wear shouldn't be an issue with a drop of less than 2.5 inches as long as they are rotated every 5-6,000 miles.

 

Yeah... but it sucks to have to rotate your tires a lot because with the new tires you can't just swap your wheels from one side of the car to the other. Since the tires have to rotate in a specific direction, you have to take the car to the tire shop each time so they can put the tires on the other way on the wheels... it sucks big time!

Anyway, there's nothing to be done about this... so I should just shut up and make sure I do my rotations.

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Eh, just do what I do with rotations. Only have a tire shop flip them on the rim every other rotation. First rotation just flip the front and back tires. Next rotation have the tire shop flip 'em.

 

Actually that's what I did on the Integra... but on the RA, I did two front to back flips with the Pirellis. They ended up very damaged on the inside at the back because of an alignment problem anyway, so it didn't change much in the end anyway. But on the Kuhmos I plan on doing a proper rotation... and I hope the alignment problem will not show up again either.


Now, about the bump stops, a buddy who works at a Mitsubishi dealership says he's installed aftermarket springs from Tein, Eibach and Progress and he says he did not cut these bump stops. He says you don't have to cut anything... which goes contrary to what can be read on the RRM tutorial. So I'm just more confused than I was on the whole bump stops thing...


Rob, do you guys install them from time to time? And if so, do you cut the bump stops for the Progress springs installs???

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When I do my springs this weekend I'll take a look at the bump stops of the car they're coming off of. If they're cut, I'll measure and post it up here.

 

Oh, please take pictures in either case! I want to see what the hell these damn things look like!

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You are supposed to rotate your tires at 7500 miles for normal driving and 6000 miles for extreme driving according to the manual. I don't see 6000 miles as unreasonably frequent. Of course, I usually only get 8 or 10,000 miles out of a set of summer tires.

 

Maybe they put that there for me... Oh well, I never do much more than 10,000 - 11,000 Km (that's about 6000-7000 miles) on my tires before the winter and the next spring I rotate them when I put them back on. So I guess I'm okay in that respect...



Uh, got any pics of your bump stops?

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I put Tein S-techs on my car last night and didn't cut any bump stops. I really don't think there's a need to.