so.. in my search for coilovers, i bought

[uk525td]

these:
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=250651377177&ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT
ebay uk number 250651377177

spax 14 way adjustable shocks, they look to be about 1.5" shorter than stock, and looking on spax website at the latest version of these (i believe they are csk equivalent) they look like they should work, there is no different rates or adjustments for them, so as long as the approximate dims are right i should be good to go

Obviously i may have to make some bushes/spacers but not to worry too much about that

hopefully ill order some springs in a few weeks and ill get the conversion tubes for the front :)

Hoping to have a complete coilover set complete for £200 :) assuming i dont need to buy any solid top mounts :)

[RWDBandwagonder]

Good catch, I remember my coils for my maxima cost me 2.5k for the cheapest setup. Not going to lie I am very envious.

[uk525td]

yer i just hope i can make em work, the equivalent items are around £200 so made quite a saving so far..

[uk525td]

ok guys need a little help please
got the shocks they are fantastic, however...
the bottom eyelet is a 22mm bore with a spherical bearing in it 1/2" through hole
the stock e34 shock is a 22mm bush which fixes into the trailing arm through hte shock body and is then tightened up with an m14 bolt

so my dilemma was how to make the lower mount work o nthe e34
im thinking about pullign hte bearing nad fitting a pair of top hat, with a 16mm through hole once fitted, and purchasing a High tensile (10.2) m14 shoudler bolt (15mm shoulder), the shoulder will fit through hte bushes and slip inside the modified stock bush.

Now, i have had a lot of stress over if this setup will be strong enough....
and i looked at e30's and e36's, these cars do not have the spring on the shock, so the lower mounting is subject to a lot less stress than on our cars. Bearing in mind im thinking of running 500lb springs, essentially that bolt sees 500lb side load every inch of suspension travel, so possibly anywhere up to 1500lb of side loads
However, heres the pincher, some people convert to real coilovers on the rear of their e30/e36 and i have seen no mention of upgrading the mounting arrangement, so they have similar loads being pushed on htat tiny little bolt.

Anyone care to give me some constructive criticism on the best way of achieving htis, or if im unduly panickign about the arrangement? i was seriously thinking baout putting htem back on ebay..

Oh yer, also on full stiffness they are stupidly firm, possibly firmer than my bilsteins.

[janders211]

pics of your problem?

[sfgearhead]

pics would definitely help.

in the end if you aren't sure you can make it work safely sell em.

[uk525td]

ok heres the spax next to the "sport" assembly. its some 2.5 inches shorter BUT remember the stock springs will be much softer than what im fitting and therefore will sag a lot more than the stiffer item, so the shock wont really be 2.5 inches shorter if you get me!
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v327/alanthecelt/IMG00092-20100625-1745.jpg
i compared stiffness on softest to an e30 uprated shock and id say they are similar, however rebound is about 3 times as stiff as compression, on stiffest setting its nigh on impossible to move :) (14 settings)
the top mount from the e34 looks like a direct fit but not 100%
heres the end im talking about
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v327/alanthecelt/IMG00093-20100625-1745.jpg
the bush sticking out of the stock item is the same bore of the spax shock with the bearing removed
my plan is to remove said bearing and fit 2 top hat bushes out of a har d yet flexible plastic, havent got the link around but i found em from a good bearing manufacturer, that will make the centre bore 16mm
i have found hi tensile bolts, 20% stronger than standard which are m14 with a 15mm shoulder, ill make a bush similar to what is sticking out of the stock item with a 15 and a bit hole, and the shock will be clamped in place by the bolt and a couple of large washers

now i looked at an e30 shock, and all they rely on is the actual m12 bolt its elf, no bush. and reading around people perform full coilover conversions on this setup. i know an e30 is 75% the weight but my setup will be substantiallsy stronger

the only other thing is the spring seat will be much lower than stock, not sure if there will be any wheel/spring clearrance issues :S

any thoughts?