How Low Would You Go? - Corolland: the Toyota Corolla Forums

I recently bought a new suspension kit about 3 months ago and had it installed. Its adjustable up to a 4 inch drop (though that would be impossible since I don't think there would be enough space for the wheels). Right now I have it set at about a 1.2 inch drop. I don't want to go too low and make my car look ricey. How low would you go on your suspension drop?

Depending on the wheels and offset - I would not go any lower than 2" - anymore, and you have to start messing with the camber to get the wheels to tuck under the fender lip. Note that whatever you set it on, the suspension will settle slightly in a few weeks. Mine settled about a 1/4" to a 1/2" after a month or so. Doesn't sound like much, but appearance wise, your eyes will pick right up on it.

Bikeman982

It depends on your tire size, as well as your strut clearance. The wheel well will only hold certain size wheels and tires.

My son tried to put some 205/70R 14 tires on his stock rims and they worked well for him - until he put them on his car -

then they contacted the struts and would not turn. He ended up buying some cheaper tires that fit better.

He still has the larger tires, if anyone is interested.

Depending on the wheels and offset - I would not go any lower than 2" - anymore, and you have to start messing with the camber to get the wheels to tuck under the fender lip. Note that whatever you set it on, the suspension will settle slightly in a few weeks. Mine settled about a 1/4" to a 1/2" after a month or so. Doesn't sound like much, but appearance wise, your eyes will pick right up on it.

Fish, What exactly do you mean by "settle" Im familiar with coil over kits, wheel camber and lowering cars in a few different ways. I have 17 inch wheels that i plan on lowering the 7th gen with, just enough so part of the tire is hiding behind the well. Does this mean the camber will adjust itself slightly when lowering is not done? If so, wouldnt that potentially cause my setup to rub?

What did you lower yours to originally fish? Did you lower it 1 inch, and it settled at 1/2? I set it to 1.2 inch originally, it might have raised up a bit, I'm not sure.

Yeah, what I meant by settleing was that the suspension will lose some of its overall travel, due to the static weight of the vehicle and when you exercise the system - the springs will move slightly and move to a favored position. Doesn't matter if you have coil-overs, just springs and struts, or go with an airbag system - after a little while the car will just sink a bit lower. Usually, there is not an appreciable change in camber - though it will go slightly negative just as a function of the suspension geometery. But this "settling" is just factions of an inch in variation - any more, and you probably have something loose down there. On some cars - they actaully raise up a bit, but most will tend to sag down a bit (gravity).

On my setup - the TRD springs lowered the car about 1.25" to 1.5" (these were actually made by Eibach, specs are similar to the Eibach Pro-Kit - mild of the two popular ones from Eibach at that time). After about a month or so - measure the drop again (measured from subframe to floor) and it dropped an additional 1/4" to 1/2". So in the end - it looked like I got a 1.5" to 2" drop all around. Doesn't sound like much, but it is very noticable compared to earlier shots that I had of the car. So far - I like the ride, creamy and light like the OEM in most situations, but once the roads start to get a bit rough, you can start feeling it. But I have not bottomed out the suspension like I did before with the OEM springs - the TRD springs provide enough spring force to keep the car from hitting the bump stops in most of my driving.

Even with a 2" drop - I could clear most obstacles and curbs. Have to really watch parking curbs, as they will slam into my lower lip. Clearance was not an issue with the 14" wheels I have now (195/60R14 tire). When I had my 16" on - I tended to rub them a bit on the rear fender. Changed to a different tire - stopped rubbing (both tires were 205/45R16, same 16x7 wheel - but one had about an 1/8" wider tread face - that was enough to rub). Later - I rolled the rear fender lip and didn't get any rubbing at all - even with a 38mm offset on the wheels (looked nice, pushed the wheels up almost flush with the body).

Thanks for the info man.

Bikeman982

Is it possible to raise the 7th generation up to accomodate 205/60R 14 tires?

Is it possible to raise the 7th generation up to accomodate 205/60R 14 tires?

its not very practcial. he's better off either using the right size tire or getting the correct offset of wheel to use with that tire. he'll want a smaller offset to put the hub flange closer to the center of the wheel, effectively shifting the wheel out. however too far and....

it'll look goofy (like those mexican vans)

cause accelerated bearing wear

also, try a smaller sidewall, use an online tiresize calculator to find the correct ratio tire width to sidewall height to maintain the same rotational diameter as the stock size.

Bikeman982

Is it possible to raise the 7th generation up to accomodate 205/60R 14 tires?
its not very practcial. he's better off either using the right size tire or getting the correct offset of wheel to use with that tire. he'll want a smaller offset to put the hub flange closer to the center of the wheel, effectively shifting the wheel out. however too far and....

it'll look goofy (like those mexican vans)
cause accelerated bearing wear
also, try a smaller sidewall, use an online tiresize calculator to find the correct ratio tire width to sidewall height to maintain the same rotational diameter as the stock size.

That is a good idea. I can use a different rim which moves the tire a little bit further away from the strut.

Is it possible to raise the 7th generation up to accomodate 205/60R 14 tires?
its not very practcial. he's better off either using the right size tire or getting the correct offset of wheel to use with that tire. he'll want a smaller offset to put the hub flange closer to the center of the wheel, effectively shifting the wheel out. however too far and....

it'll look goofy (like those mexican vans)
cause accelerated bearing wear
also, try a smaller sidewall, use an online tiresize calculator to find the correct ratio tire width to sidewall height to maintain the same rotational diameter as the stock size.
That is a good idea. I can use a different rim which moves the tire a little bit further away from the strut.

actually i think picking the correct tire would work better. 205/70 is almost a small truck/suv sized tire!

Bikeman982

Is it possible to raise the 7th generation up to accomodate 205/60R 14 tires?
its not very practcial. he's better off either using the right size tire or getting the correct offset of wheel to use with that tire. he'll want a smaller offset to put the hub flange closer to the center of the wheel, effectively shifting the wheel out. however too far and....

it'll look goofy (like those mexican vans)
cause accelerated bearing wear
also, try a smaller sidewall, use an online tiresize calculator to find the correct ratio tire width to sidewall height to maintain the same rotational diameter as the stock size.
That is a good idea. I can use a different rim which moves the tire a little bit further away from the strut.

actually i think picking the correct tire would work better. 205/70 is almost a small truck/suv sized tire!

If he had a choice (my son) would have preferred a smaller tire, but he had these 205's given to him from a friend and they have never been used (brand new).

so sell them and buy the right size.

Bikeman982

so sell them and buy the right size.

I think I will just buy a car that they can fit on.

so sell them and buy the right size.
I think I will just buy a car that they can fit on.

Wow, most people buy wheels for the car; I never heard of someone buying a car for the wheels default_laugh

Bikeman982

so sell them and buy the right size.
I think I will just buy a car that they can fit on.

Wow, most people buy wheels for the car; I never heard of someone buying a car for the wheels .

I have a few more spare parts in the yard - I will be buying lots of cars this year.