lifting car 1" for winter

mexicanzero · Post by **mexicanzero** » Fri Sep 25, 2009 11:32 pm

so i did my suspension this summer and lost an inch of ground clearance
the way it snows here that could make all the difference and plus i like to play in un plowed parking lots... soo whats the easiest way to lift the car and inch?
i'd prefer to not have to remove springs from the struts and stuff, i thought of making a spacer between the top hat and strut tower but the rears are pretty annoying to get to and i'm not exactly a machinist.

then i saw these
and these

what do you guys think? i just want an easy way of getting an inch handling isnt prority in the winter.

thanks
-Alex

93forestpearl · Post by **93forestpearl** » Sat Sep 26, 2009 8:17 am

I had zero issue in the winter with my car being significantly lower than stock. Spend some money on quality winter tires and you're golden.

Keep in mind, any change in ride height neccessitates an alignment.

kbeefy · Post by **kbeefy** » Sat Sep 26, 2009 9:58 am

go for it.... if your only going back to stock hieght then there can't be any problem. I was thinking of going +2" but it seems like theres some camber, wheelbase, and CV issues. Maybe I'll only go +1"

I doubt if the coil spacers you linked will work on a strut setup... MAYBE the full round ones, definatly don't mess with the square inserts. Especially if you already have performance coils.

I was thinking of going with a spacer between the strut and body. If your coils dropped you 1" and you put in a 1" spacer, your alignment should be abck to stock.

mexicanzero · Post by **mexicanzero** » Sat Sep 26, 2009 12:33 pm

i got stuck once last winter but almost got stuck like 3000 times i like being stupid and going out when the weather is intensely horrible and even lifted pickups stay home, its just fun!
my winter tires are off a vw and are almost an inch bigger in diameter than my summers and are on vw rims with slightly different ofset, so with the car lowered i'm sure they will rub the fenders. and i cant afford another set of winters so to run them i need stock height back.

i think i'll go measure the coils and get the round rubber spacers and see how they work they're only 5$ each so its no big loss if they are garbage. if they are no good i'll make up some spacers or something.

-Alex

93forestpearl · Post by **93forestpearl** » Sat Sep 26, 2009 3:45 pm

kbeefy wrote: if your only going back to stock hieght then there can't be any problem.

Whatever ride height the car was aligned for is the only ride height where the car will be in alignment. Changing the static height of the car will ALWAYS mess with camber and toe. Its just a fact of life.

mexicanzero · Post by **mexicanzero** » Sat Sep 26, 2009 4:10 pm

i never actually got the car aligned after lowering it i just adjusted the toe a bit but thats a 5 minuite thing so i'm not worried about it

i knew this would be the last summer on these tires and i figured that the change in camber might even help the handling so i didnt care much. that being said the tires are still wearing completely evenly and there are no visual differences in alignment other than the toe which i adjusted so i'd say it really isnt that big of an issue

that and i know a guy that does alignments so i would get it dirt cheap if the need were to arise.

thanks guys i'll post back once i get the spacers and give input on how shitty they are

-Alex

kbeefy · Post by **kbeefy** » Sun Sep 27, 2009 5:59 am

93forestpearl wrote:
kbeefy wrote: if your only going back to stock hieght then there can't be any problem.
Whatever ride height the car was aligned for is the only ride height where the car will be in alignment. Changing the static height of the car will ALWAYS mess with camber and toe. Its just a fact of life.

Changing height 1" either way is pretty insignificant, I was thinking more of control arm geometry and CV angles.

206er · Post by **206er** » Wed Sep 30, 2009 12:44 am

maybe you could weld another set of tophats to your existing tophats.
nah, just get some forester struts.

mexicanzero · Post by **mexicanzero** » Wed Sep 30, 2009 2:27 am

the whole point is i want an easy way to gain the 1" i lost that can be done when i put my snow tires on and undone when i take them off.

i have my stock springs (i'm using H&R lowering springs now with gr2 struts) but my lunch hour isnt enough to do 4 springs...or struts... and 4 tires. and i didnt have enough fun doing my springs and struts to want to do it 2 times a year.

i ordered the spacers, came out to slightly over 40$ for 4 including shipping to canada. i did some extensive measuring beforehand and i dont see why they wouldnt fit... but i'll let yas know

-Alex

sqc151 · Post by **sqc151** » Wed Sep 30, 2009 10:06 pm

pick up a set of outback struts and springs and just swap it out. 2-300 bucks and ull have a winter setup and a summer setup. u can swap all 4 corners in less than an hr.

mexicanzero · Post by **mexicanzero** » Thu Oct 01, 2009 1:23 am

well used subaru stuff is a no go cause the second a subaru appears at a junk yard they're usually bought complete before they even get fully processed. and shipping would be alot for 4 assembled struts n springs...

however i guess that does sound appealing since the outback stuff will give a bit higher than stock ride height right? that could be fun.... although considering the money i spent on my struts and springs i was really hoping to run them all year round since i'm pretty sure they'll out last the car.

i'm gonna do some more thinking

-Alex

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lifting car 1" for winter

lifting car 1" for winter