Advice for Suspension Upgrade on 19 inch wheels
 

Hi there,

I just got my car and it has 19 inch HRE 541R... Love the car, but right now it sits too high and front looks much higher than back. It's got about 4 finger gap between wheel and fender up front.

Was wondering if anyone out there with 19 inch wheels has changed suspension and what they have gone with. I'm afraid of the wheels rubbing the fenders.

So far it seems like Euro M030 (doesn't lower enough), X74 (seems to be too low) and H&R coilover (too stiff).

Has anyone experimented with the different systems, your advice would be greatly appreciated, thanks....


I'll try to post a picture later, 100K limit and i don't have program now to reduce picture size...

here are the pictures, love my car :)

pic of wheels

oops put wrong pic :)

c2blk - the car looks good with those wheels.
First what size tires are on the car? I suspect that the hieght issue has nothing to do with the wheels. It appears the car is stock hieght.
Adjustable height coilovers will give you the most flexibility in getting the height where you want it and will improve handling.
Lowering springs are a possibility although many will advise against this as they are not matched to the standard shocks and rumor has it that the shocks wear out prematurely.
Rubbing will depend on the tire brand / size and the particular wheel offset, and the specific height
For a bit more definiative answers I think everyone would need all the wheel and tire data to start.

Hi Doug,

Yeah its riding on stock suspension right now. The specs for the wheels are:

Front:

Wheel - 19 x 8.5
Tires - 245/35/19

Rear:

Wheel - 19 x 10.5
Tires - 285/30/19

Thanks for you help,


Oscar

Oh forgot, the tires are Bridgestone S-03. thanks

Oscar,
the offsets info would also help. Then perhaps one of the wheel expert guys might be able to help you out.

Oscar.. Very Nice!! I love black!! Also you should consider adding the GT3 Front spoiler that will even out the car since you have the sideskirts.. I think Erik (ESK) is going to pull is off before he sells his cab.. check with him.. he'll give you a good deal!

Thanks very much Kevin, I'll check with Eric. My car does look like something is missing with front spoiler :D

thats a great looking wheel setup - i would say a set of H&R coilovers would certainly do the trick.

However, if those are too stiff, try the TechArt coilovers...i have those on mine, and the ride is great.

Oscar,

Great looking car. It's hard to beat the black on black combo. I especially like your choice of wheels. I went with the M030 suspension on my car, and am so glad I did. No tire rubbing, no need to roll my fenders (even with 315's in the rear) and no major scraping with my turbo chin spoiler. Plus the ride is not much harsher than stock, even with the 19" wheels.

Something else that I'd recommend for those wheels is a good wheel brush to clean around the connecting bolts and an air compressor to blow off excess water after washing - the last thing you want is hard water stains on those wheels.

Also for polishing I found that nothing works better than Mothers Incredible Billet Polish. Doug gave me a can of this stuff (Thanks again Doug!) and I swear by it!

Enjoy Il Monstro!

If you are looking to lower the car to lose that gap without a too stiff or too low ride height then you should consider the ROW M0303, it a nice compromise from what I understand.

Coil-overs are not too stiff (H&R, Eibach, Techart, etc).

If you go springs alone, H&Rs product is good...progressive rate, made specifically for a Targa, a C4 whatever, and... made to compliment OE shocks.....get em from Roock or who-ever.

More expensive route is the adjustable coilovers. This gives you full control of ride height. You can research springs on all the boards....and find people who can quote 1 1/2 inch drops or what ever w/ this spring or that. Point is, may turn out great, but you are not 100% sure til they are on your car.

Adjustable coilovers mean you are 100% satisfied w/your ride height (cause you tell your tuner where you want em...take a look, and ask for them up or down a little).

Other bennys of coil-overs is you can dial in a slightly raked profile (911s always look best w/slight nose down IMHO)...lastly, the car can be corner balanced before re-alignment, to assure no compromise in the handling.

Good luck bud!

Ride height
 

Nice car
I would put the H&R springs on, they will not prematurely wear out your shocks, but they will lower the car so it doesn’t look like a rally car. Make sure you buy Progressive shocks to match your model (C2/C4/C4S/TT). They will lower your car with minimal change in ride comfort. They will only improve the handling slightly due to lower center of gravity and if you’re not tracking the car then you will get what you want a nicer look and you will have not ruined the ride and saved a bunch of money.