OK, now I gotta ask, why go to front coil overs? Is it just ease of changing ride height and adjustability? Does going to front coil overs improve handling or ride in any way? I've already been convinced to keep my plastic rear spring, a $1000 saving, and I just saved $1300 on rack and pinion steering by simply adjusting my steering gear. Maybe I can save another grand by keeping my standard shock and coil spring setup.
Bee Jay
Well, just a couple opinions of mine. First, the downside: Cost.
The upsides are ease of adjustability. It's pretty darn easy to change the springs, and a wider selection of rates are available. With the stock system, all I've ever seen was 280, 460, and 550 pound rates. Corner weighting is possible with coilovers, whereas the standard setup doesn't really allow that very efficiently.
The major difference I see with coilovers is the location of the shock. It should be possible to put the coilover (with custom lower A-arms) closer to the wheel. This allows more shock travel for the same amount of wheel travel. The stock setup has the spring and shock at about the center of the lower arm, while a custom setup will ideally put the coilover closer to the wheel.