Tein SuperStreet Damper, possible missing part? Options

[celicarus]

Hi all


I just received my package today and was wondering whether there should be 4 top hats for the springs. 2 front and 2 back - cause i only found 2 --

those who have purchased and installed this - the part i'm questioning is shiny gold spring top hat or called spring seat within the manual --

for stand alone coilovers - its refered to as the spring top hat --

those that have installed this - did you receive 4 gold spring seat / top hat that goes on top of the spring

[Silver94CelicaOw...]

Hmm, funny you mention this.

I just got my set off of drdos tonight and mine only came with two spring perches also. My guess is that we can use the factory perch on one of the ends, be it front or back....but if its and indication mine came that way too.

However I'd like to know if somebody knows for sure, since I'm just guessing that it might be a solution.

[jgreening]

I would appreciate if you guys will review these for us when you get them installed. Thanks.

- Jay

[Silver94CelicaOw...]

Oh absolutely. I cant wait until I get a day to put them on with Jeff, it should make an amazing difference over my stock crappiness. I'll post pics and whatnot, but in the meantime I can get down to the bottom of the perch situation along with celicarus.

[purplegt4]

only comes with 2...

plus there's a manual that comes in the box that describes what its supposed to come with. read directions carefully...real simple to install. make sure you install with STOCK SETTINGS for now and do tuning later! measure before you install set.

[Silver94CelicaOw...]

Yea I read the manual the minute I got home from picking them up.

Which end did you put the 2 perches on? For the other end did you just use stock ones or arent they neccessary?

[purplegt4]

OMG yea they are necessary!!!!!!!

i misread that! lol omg come back to the computer and re-read this!

there's stars on the bottom of the last page (front/back of the manual) that refer to using oem parts and parts that are included.

they go in the front


This post has been edited by purplegt4: Oct 5, 2005 - 1:12 AM

[Silver94CelicaOw...]

EDIT- oops, double post by me. You were posting that pic up as soon as I read the manual myself.... Alright, thanks for all the help purplegt4, I appreciate it.

This post has been edited by Silver94CelicaOwner: Oct 5, 2005 - 1:24 AM

[purplegt4]

[celicarus]

-- ok now after carefully looking at the diagram again - i just realized that the rear spring seat in the diagram was refering to the bottom for the spring --

overall - nothings missing -- it kinda threw me off because reading the contents part - did not mentioned anything about the top spring seat or how many there should be -- sorry all

the top hat fits perfectly for the front shocks - but a little to small for the rear

i will also take digital pictures and post them up and write a review on them -- i should be done installing them tomorrow morning -- probably it'll take about 1-2 weeks for them to settle in then i'll start tunning them to my liking

the set cost $1235 including s/h
4 wheel realignment - about $70
2 new front tires (worn) about $80 (15)
total cost will run about $1385 --

before this i had KYB's with dropzone coilovers - in my opinion they were horrible - did not like them at all - wasted about $300 for them - which taught me a big lesson - not to be cheap, just save up and get the good stuff (no offense to anyone who has dropzone coilovers)



This post has been edited by celicarus: Oct 5, 2005 - 4:24 PM

[Silver94CelicaOw...]

Yea man, thats wierd that I did the exact same thing as you....thought the rear spring seat was actually supposed to be an aluminum perch for the rear. Good timing I guess.

[CelicaZR]

Could you please do a how to article and like jgreening said a review.
I'm looking at getting these in the near future, so any advice will be
useful for me and the community

Cheers

[purplegt4]

mmm......how-to? is there really need for one? it's a cut & dry install.

[Silver94CelicaOw...]

Well regardless of difficulty, I'm probably going to snap a bunch of pics while defgeph is over for the install. So we'll take pics and give everybody on here a full road evaluation after I get them in.

[celicarus]

I installed the set today, but forgot to put the collar on first then screw in the nut. The rear shocks are making jittering clanking noises from he back -- Sound like its loose . Didn't know what was causing the problem until i looked at the diagram and realized i had forgotten to put that in.

Do you guys think that is whats causing the racket noise -- i'll find out tomorrow

I ran out of time to get alignment and tires replaced -- had a hard time getting three nuts out - 2 where from one of the wheels - spent like 15 minutes and one of the nuts holding in the bolt to the shock did not budge for 30 minutes - had sprayed WD-40 on it and nothing -- so I tried spraying and using the air gun at the same time - then finally came off - i was about to give up

was late to work 1 hr -- so far the fronts are working great - and real smooth -
after tomorrow i should get the full experience

This post has been edited by celicarus: Oct 6, 2005 - 7:51 PM

[purplegt4]

hell yea have fun

[Silver94CelicaOw...]

Mine should be going in sometime today, Jeff should be stopping by at some point to help out and I'll be sure to you let you all know how it turns out too.

-Corey

[celicarus]

yep that collar before the nut made the difference - never knew something that small would cause all that noise -- finallly got all 4 tires replaced - did not have enough time for an alignment because of work - hopefully sunday or monday i'll have time to get an alignment --

man even though not 100% complete - ride quality is awesome - love it - settings are currently on 10 front and rear according to manual preferred settings - after 1-2 wks - i'll play with the settings to set ride comfort -

i even went cruising around townn just for no reason thats how great it feels - corners are easily handled -- once you get Tein's you'll never go back --

I'll post pictures when i get a chance

[lagos]

good to know you like them .. how do they feel going over bumps and stuff?

[celicarus]

no more problems with bumps, except that the rear - due to its little weight - has a bumpy feeling like its too stiff causing the rear to jump up too much - but since more weight is in the front - it handles bumps - pot holes with no issues - better than I expected though -- i use to have to avoid bumps and pot holes alot - i've been driving straight through them just to test

maybe it has to settle or i'll just have to soften the dampening settings for rear to some where under 10 --

car was also lowered - about 2 inch's -- looks wonderful too - i feel like i'm advertising the product -

[Silver94CelicaOw...]

Dude these things kick serious ass.

Took several long hard hours of work but after alot of help from Jeff and some broken bolts later, they were on. The stance is awesome (AND adjustable....very awesome), and all thats left is to torque down the top of the struts tommorrow morning before I go to work. I didn't have a dep enough socket but now I got one from a good friend of mine tonight.

I'll post tommorrow with pics and maybe some road evaluation if it decides to stop pouring outside.

[Silver94CelicaOw...]

And now for pics-





Sorry no full car shot, my camera batteries went dead tonight.

Overall its a very straightfoward install, however since my car is 11 years old it took ALOT of torque to get some of the bolts loose from rust. Also worth mentioning is that the rears are harder to install than the fronts.

I highlighted the rear sway bar end link in the picture because they presented the biggest challenge. If yours are old like mine then they may break easily or strip the allen wrench you use to hold it still because you can only put it in so far with all the rust. You may have to cut them off and get new ones instead, which fortunately I only needed one and I happened to locate one at a local parts store before they closed that night.

Other than that, a very sucessful installation which I owe a lot of credit to defgeph who came over in the pouring rain Sat. to give me a hand. After driving it for the first time this morning its definately changed the dynamics of the car 110%...much more stable and precise but the ride quality is still suprisingly forgiving when you hit bumps. I wont take on anything too fast or sharp until I check everything over again in a day or two, but definately an awesome upgrade so far.

-Corey

[Silver94CelicaOw...]

Sorry, I just need to say again how much these things rock....I know i'm probably the only person who really cares but its a totally different car now and I reccomend it highly. I love it.

[Defgeph]

Look awesome dude, I'm going to have to buy myself a set now.

DEF

[jgreening]

I am really curious about how these things do over pot holes and other similar road problems. Are they stiffer and more jarring than performance springs and stock shocks? I would buy a set if I knew they weren't going to make my ride punishing on the softest setting.

This post has been edited by jgreening: Oct 10, 2005 - 9:01 PM

[Silver94CelicaOw...]

So far I have to say that they take bumps very well....certainly not punishing but then again I've tried to avoid most potholes and big ruts so far.

The great part is the adjustability. I have the shocks set to 10 clicks from most firm setting and they are definately very livable the way they are, but if I get tired of it theres still at least 10 clicks to go until the softest setting which im sure would be plenty soft for rougher roads. Definately worth it just for the ability to dial in the way you want it to ride in just seconds.

[jgreening]

So far I have to say that they take bumps very well....certainly not punishing but then again I've tried to avoid most potholes and big ruts so far.

The great part is the adjustability.  I have the shocks set to 10 clicks from most firm setting and they are definately very livable the way they are, but if I get tired of it theres still at least 10 clicks to go until the softest setting which im sure would be plenty soft for rougher roads.  Definately worth it just for the ability to dial in the way you want it to ride in just seconds.
[right][snapback]343178[/snapback][/right]

Sounds good. What did you have on for springs and struts before you installed these? How did your old set-up compare in terms of ride comfort with the teins?

[Silver94CelicaOw...]

My old setup was stock springs and shocks, so the difference was immense. However I've ridden in Jeffs car with the KYB's and Tein springs and the ride is very similar. So really what you have with the coilovers is the ability to go even softer than that configuration, or more firm if the mood strikes you right.

[afroman]

i have a close friend that has these on his turbo integra and its lowered 3 inches and his Tc is at the recommended setting and they both ride amazing. if i had the money i would have a set.
-Aaron-

[celicarus]

Hey Silver

your not the only one that cares man --

dude these things are worth the money - i'm starting to get into the habit of taking corners faster than I should -- because that would catch too much attention for a ticket.

Even when you brake hard - the nose / front does not dive down like regular setup -

my plans were to drive out of town this weekend so been busy lately getting ready for the 12 hr trip / haven't had time to take pictures or anything - but Silvers pictures would look similar to mine since we both have same kind of rotors --

This post has been edited by celicarus: Oct 10, 2005 - 9:59 PM

[Silver94CelicaOw...]

Good to hear man, I was wondering how your installation went. It definately feels like a different car, and doesnt "dig" into corners like before. Even the design and size of the struts and springs are drasticly different. I wish I took pictures of the front ones side by side, but it was almost comical how much larger the stock ones are compared to the Teins.

[lagos]

awesome to hear some feedback on these. ive wanted those for a long time now. i like the fact that you can tune in your ride height and stiffness it your liking.

btw, how do you like your Kumho ASX tires?

This post has been edited by lagos: Oct 11, 2005 - 12:43 PM

[jgreening]

awesome to hear some feedback on these. ive wanted those for a long time now. i like the fact that you can tune in your ride height and stiffness it your liking.

btw, how do you like your Kumho ASX tires?
[right][snapback]343378[/snapback][/right]

Are these height adjustable? I thought only the Tein flex (which they don't make for our car) was height adjustable....

[lagos]

unless i over looked something... its a full coilover setup
TEIN SS DAMPER SUSPENSION COILOVER TOYOTA CELICA 94-99

you can even tell in the piscs he posted where you turn the bottom of the springs to change the height



edit: whats the deal with 6gc not being able to handle ebay links?

This post has been edited by lagos: Oct 13, 2005 - 11:58 AM

[Silver94CelicaOw...]

Yeah they're fully height adjustable, and the top of the gas shocks have little metal knobs that you turn clockwise to firm up the dampening and couterclockwise to soften things up a little.
Right now since weathers bad I have them set about two clicks softer than the standard setting (10 clicks counterclockwise from the most firm setting.)and ride quality is pretty forgiving considering how low it is and how bad roads are in Jersey. They tell you to only use settings 1-16 otherwise you may damage the struts, so I'm assuming that this means only 16 clicks up from the softest. This would leave you with 3-4 more settings stiffer from the standard settings, and about 10 or so softer settings which is great if you're concerned with daily driving comfort. As for the ride height, on mine its set about an inch up from the bottom of the threads on the strut and its really low. However you have about 3-4 inches of thread above my settings to raise it up if you want.

Art, the Kumho ASX's that I have are great...I got them on sale at Tirerack for something like $63 per tire which is a total steal for what you get. Now that my suspension is up to par I've realized how good the tires actually are....they handle the recent wet weather very well and were good in snow last season. They seemed to be very responsive and grippy in dry weather too so I recommend them highly.

-Corey

[playr158]

oh and since you guys are reviewing them......if this option is still available and coomer has not removed it...
please go to the parts database and insert the review and cost ect... there

[CelicaZR]

I'm just curious, how low can you set the height adjustable?

[Silver94CelicaOw...]

You could set it lower than you would ever need to...my stock alloys have almost no gap between the top of the tire and the fender, and theres still at least another inch and a half or so until its at its lowest setting.

Whatever height requirements you may have you can adjust it to....unless youre rolling on some hot 12's and want it scraping the ground or something rediculous.

[CelicaZR]

Cool thanks Silver

[celicarus]

when one gets an alignment done, is the shop mechanic suppose to also align the steering wheel to center it with the front wheels -- or is that a separte job in itself

because my steering wheel is shifted towards the left -- and after 2 alignments at the same shop, the car steers towards the right -- if i control the steering wheel like normal and drive straight the steering wheel is not centered, but points towards the left.

[Silver94CelicaOw...]

That should be fixed in an alignment as far as I know. I would think that it could be caused by improper toe in/out, where one wheel may be angled in more than the other causing you, the driver, to have to compensate for it with the steering wheel.

If you describe it to your shop first before an alignment and they still dont fix it, I would go someplace else.

[playr158]

your alignment is wat makes your wheels stay straight in relation to the phsyical car (not the wheel)

so if you steering wheel has no been centered on the steering rack you could have perfect alignment at steering rack center, but you wheel could be turned to the right a quarter turn.....(make sense?)

the steering wheel is attached to the steering rack at a joint, the wheels must be centered aka 0* and your steering wheel must be at center aka 0* then the wheel and rack must be attached insuring both are at 0*

[celicarus]

thanks for your replies - i will have it looked at next week - as it posses no problem for me - other than looking weird .

[nik]

hey you know how the 7th gens have a pillow mount can you use that on ours?

[playr158]

are you asking if we can use the exact same part from the 7th gen onto our cars?

[nik]

yep i want to know if any has actess to 7gen to take a pic and some measurements