anyone lowered a focus?

[oziwally]

just wonderin how much lower (legal) i can go with a zetec, how much and does it affect new car warranty/insurance, and an average cost of the lowering???

Ta

[eXtremist]

Call the dealer you purchased your car from and ask.

[More revs]

You will need new shorter springs. I did this on a car a couple of years ago and it cost me about $65 per spring. Didn't need to alter damping but did have to check alignment both ends.

I presume you have a LS Zetec? I also have one and reckon it needs 2cm taken off for that menacing look, however it might scrape it's chin so I'm not going to worry.

If you have an issue with insurance leave it standard for peace of mind.

[Uni]

you have two options, the cheap and dodgy way, the moderately expensive and mediocre way, and the expensive and good way.

cheap and dodgy is to go out and get some shorter springs put on. damp and spring rates won't match up, the car will ride like a dog, but on the plus side if you're only doing for cosmetics it's a nice cheap way out.

the all around average option is to go pedders and get them to put a spring and shock pack on there, but they don't really know an awful lot about suspension tune for anything that's european. having said that, at least the damp and spring rates will make more sense and the ride will be slightly better as a result.

the expensive way has two options. the first is to approach Whiteline and get them to put together a nice big custom package that will take car of not only springs and shocks, but also swaybars, bushes and so on. that will be very expensive however as to my knowledge there is no whiteline package for the focus. option b is to purchase all your bits from overseas where people do make these goodies for the focus.. there are several coilover packages for the focus, and i'm sure someone somewhere makes swaybars and bushes etc for it too.

i personally much prefer the last option as it provides a much improved all around handling package, as opposed to the more cosmetic approach purely swapping the springs provide.


Uni/.

[Piotr]

Originally Posted by Uni

you have two options, the cheap and dodgy way, the moderately expensive and mediocre way, and the expensive and good way.

I counted 3 options there.



Why is it you have such expensive taste uni?

Just replacing your springs is hardly dodgy if you don't go with stupidly hard or low springs. If your shocks are in good condition you won't run into problems. Just becuase the Focus is european doesn't mean it run on different principles, if you tell a company what you want they will do it for you its still works exactly like a falcon.

Since when is getting new sway bars and bushes require to lower a car?

[oziwally]

hmmm, cheers guys, i will look into all options and let you know what i decide.

The car is only 12 months old, so i presume the shocks are fine. Also i was looking at going about 2 inches at the back, and maybe 1 inch at the front. I really have NNOOOOOOOO idea how low i should or shouldn't go, so please tell me if this is ridiculous.

[Zetec20]

mine's dropeed about 2 1/2 all round, try kings superlows springs for the back and kings lows for the front, should give it a decent stance and height

[Piotr]

Don't you get camber problems with the superlows on the back?

[oziwally]

ok, got a quote form pedders. Lowered 2 inches, 4 springs fitted with 4 wheel alignment =$700.....

[Zetec20]

Originally Posted by Piotr

Don't you get camber problems with the superlows on the back?

8:00 friday camber kit going in

[orsest170]

Here’s another option:

http://www.european-parts.net/catalo...b23b8cf31e3662

You can get these Eibach springs landed on your door step for about $320. Do you know anyone that can help you fit the springs? I fitted (with help from a friend) Eibach springs to my XR5 in just 2 hours and for the very small cost of buying my mate a bottle of alcohol!

The ride is firmer, but it’s a worthwhile trade off considering the amazingly flat handling and aggressive stance that the car now has. I haven’t had the camber or wheel alignment checked yet, but a couple of other guys have been getting around on Eibachs (without a camber kit) for months now and not had any issues.

The Eibach’s won't lower your car as much as other springs on the market, but will still give your car a much nicer and 'sensible' ride height. These ‘superlow’ type springs look great, but there are too many compromises to be made. I’m not knocking Pedders, but for a few extra bucks, I’d go the Eibachs.

[Uni]

Piotr: It all depends, like i stated from the start, on whether one is looking for an outright improvement in the handling of the car, or whether it is primarily to improve the aesthetics of the car. Unfortunately, to make any large improvement with regards to performance, be it to the engine, stereo or whatever, it is necessary to spend a fair whack of money.

why do i have such expensive taste? allow me to flip that back on you and ask why, given the option, you bought a Fiesta instead of a Daewoo Kalos/Holden Barina?

the answer is because one is inherently better than the other, and you were happy to pay for it. likewise, i see the benefit in modifying the suspension of a car as a whole, rather than doing it bit by bit because it happens to be cheaper.

as for the shocks, it is true that it depends upon how low the car is dropped, and how hard the springs are. the superlows that Isaac has on his car won't be doing the shocks any favours at all, and as far as i'm concerned there's no point driving around with mismatched damp rates. better to do it properly the first time around, invest the money in some coilovers and come out with a car that not only looks better but handles a hell of alot better.

really, at the end of the day, it's a matter of personal choice, and i personally refuse to take advantage of a cheap but inferior modification when there are more comprehensive solutions to the problem.


Uni/.

[Lagom]

Originally Posted by Piotr

Why is it you have such expensive taste uni?

Just replacing your springs is hardly dodgy if you don't go with stupidly hard or low springs. If your shocks are in good condition you won't run into problems. Just becuase the Focus is european doesn't mean it run on different principles, if you tell a company what you want they will do it for you its still works exactly like a falcon.

Since when is getting new sway bars and bushes require to lower a car?

Ford spends millions of Euros calibrating the suspension based on tuning spring, damper, bush, anti roll bar rates and matching changes in suspension geometry dependent on wheel travel/cornering loads.

If you artificially change your ride height at the rear, you potentially artificially force changes in geometry not suited to the cornering load of the car at a given point in time, eg. toe/steering angle.

At a given cornering load, the car will have a given level of body roll, leading to some level of wheel travel. For that given cornering load, that wheel travel will provide a corresponding amount of passive rear wheel steer.

Lowering cars doesn't always improve handling. I know a few people that lowered their cars and then put them back to factory spec. If the car has crap suspension calibration to begin with, it could well improve it. But we're talking about the Focus

If you just want to do it for looks, then you don't need to worry about this. But near perfectly matched spring, damper, [insert element of suspension here] rates is something that makes a Focus different from a Corolla.

[More revs]

Another choice is to take it to a rally / race preperation workshop. I use one here in Melbourne and find them very cost effective.

I'm not sure what state you're in but look here for some pointers.

http://www.kingsprings.com/king_spri...stribution.htm

[oziwally]

Ok, i have decided to go with orest 170, i realise some of this stuff needs to be done properly, but i aint tryin to break rally records or anything, so i think the look of the car will be fine, 90% of the time i am the only one in it, and really ride comfort for a 22 year old doesn't matter, so that is my decision, any advise or help is much appreciated so is all of the feedback you guys have given me, if you guys think i am making a huge mistake you are allowed to try convince me not too. By the way, i thought $700 fitted was steep, was looking around the 450 mark.

Cheers guys, Wally

[melbzetec]

If you're getting the Eibachs, then you've made the A1 choice. Well done and have fun!!

[oziwally]

hmmm just realised they are only a 35mm drop, was after about 60mm
Do they have different height springs?

[orsest170]

Originally Posted by oziwally

hmmm just realised they are only a 35mm drop, was after about 60mm
Do they have different height springs?

They do a sportline range (about 50mm drop), but I’m pretty certain they don’t make them for the MkII Focus. If you want to retain any semblance of ride quality and not have to worry about scraping every time you go near a speed hump (or even the lip on most driveways for that matter), then don’t go 60 mm lower.

As Uni has also mentioned, it will seriously upset the suspension geometry of the car. At 60 mm lower, the ride will be very ‘choppy’, the car will very likely ‘tram track’ badly, the suspension will continually run out of travel and hit the bump stops. It’s also likely to cause premature wear of tyres and other suspension components.

The Eibachs are a good compromise because they will improve the look and handling of your car without compromising the ride quality too much, and you will still be able to drive through carparks and into people’s driveways without losing your exhaust system in the process!

Still, if it’s purely aesthetics you are chasing, then you probably won’t be happy with just a 35mm drop, so I’d give the Eibachs a miss.

[oziwally]

i have decided, needs vs wants, i will go the eibachs because currently i scrape getting into my driveway, cheers everyone for all your help and talking sense into me.

Will get pics up when i have done it.

[FOCUSonTHIS]

Good choice, I want Eibachs, and they will come in time. I always like to do things properly so you don't pay for it after with other bits. Can't wait for the pictures.

[Zetec20]

Hi, i'm a bad influence, i'm here to convince you to get that 60mm drop coz you know your car would look hot, kings superlows do the trick, worry about the camber later :P

[melbzetec]

What was that cartoon with the Devil on one shoulder and an Angel on the other? mmmmm don't know what made me think of that!!!

(pssst. Go the eibach, go the eibach)

[oziwally]

i am going the eibachs, zetec 20, i would go 60 mm if i had the same size rims as you, as the larger the rims, the higher the car is, so you lowering yours, after 20's put on looks SWEET, but i think mine would look like some tool driving around with too much weight in the car LOL

[kenny21]

yea it depends what u want whether u want the car to look low to the groud or the gap between wheel and arch to smaller as u said ozi. Eibachs are great springs there spring rates are spot on and they dont lose tention and stuff that some others might. Im only saying this from the racing cause we use the eibachs for the racing car but for a road car im sure they wouldnt be any different. Get some double adjustable konis while ya at it :P nah jk unless u doin track stuff thats pointless haha

[0xyg3n]

The eibach kit is an option in the uk and its covered by the factory warrenty over there

[Sov]

Anyone know what spring rate the Eibachs are? Would be interesting to know how they compare to the stock parts. I have a mag article here that lists spring rates for the standard and Zetec suspension:
Front standard = 19-22N/mm
Rear standard = 23N/mm
Front Zetec = 21-25N/mm
Rear Zetec = 25N/mm

I reckon you could probably go 10% firmer easily without any dramas with the stock Zetec damping rates.

Not too sure if the front figures are a tolerance range or if there are different levels of base model front suspension in Europe for the different engine options.

[oziwally]

lol not more confusion......................
;)