2008 WRX Lowering Springs
- Thread starter 2008wrx
- Start date
- Status
Hi.
What are you trying to achieve with lowering springs?
What are you trying to achieve with lowering springs?
Something else you should look into is upgrading the anti-roll or sway bars.
Read this link: http://www.clubwrx.net/forums/vendors-forum/134283672-2008-wrx-sway-bars-stock-now.html
Read this link: http://www.clubwrx.net/forums/vendors-forum/134283672-2008-wrx-sway-bars-stock-now.html
gathermewool
Site Donor 2023
I'd keep an eye on the forums - nasioc and iwsti - for a set of STI or '09+ springs. The fit will be perfect and you'll most likely find them for dirt cheap, especially compared to some aftermarket setups. Heck, you may even find a full strut assembly for cheap, which includes the strut, spring and top hat, so all you'll have to do is unbolt the old strut assemblies (and endlinks if there's interference,) remove, and bolt in the new strut assemblies.
An added benefit of staying stock is also that the dealer will most likely not know should you blow a strut and require warranty work. I don't believe the damper was changed from '08 to '09, just the springs and sways.
I just gave away for free my stock springs and sways to an '08 2.5i owner. I didn't want to deal with selling or shipping, so I posted a first-come-first-served thread and it was gone within a month. I thought they'd be gone faster, actually, considering they were FREE!
Anyway, I recommend against lowering springs, unless you're doing it purely for looks. You'll lose travel and may end up riding on the bump stops through heavy cornering loads on bumpy roads, which will be worse than softer springs.
I have Racecomp Engineering Regular Guy springs on my STI, and they only lower 5mm (1/5") Going with too stiff of springs will give you a similar effect as blow struts, though, albeit to a much lesser extent, since you'll be oversprung (or underdampened.) In this case, your spring forces will not be matched properly to your stock dampers, which will make things much bouncier.
Going with too big of sways on the mushy '08 springs will also have consequences. Sways work by trying to compress the opposite-side spring to maintain the loaded side more level. In other words, if you're making a sharp right turn, the left wheel will be the one that compresses. The sway bar will transfer some of that load (based on the torsional/bending rigidity of the sway bar - how much it resists twisting and bending) to the opposite side. The result for a too-big sway bar and puny little springs is that heavy cornering loads (or even something as simple as coming into your driveway at an angle) will still compress your loaded side, but transfer more load to the unloaded side than it can handle, causing it to compress that spring and lift the unloaded tire off the ground.
While having some stiffness for transferring traction to the loaded side is good, having your wheel lift off the ground during a heavy turn never is. For daily driving, however, you'll never notice this, and sway bars alone may be sufficient.
An added benefit of staying stock is also that the dealer will most likely not know should you blow a strut and require warranty work. I don't believe the damper was changed from '08 to '09, just the springs and sways.
I just gave away for free my stock springs and sways to an '08 2.5i owner. I didn't want to deal with selling or shipping, so I posted a first-come-first-served thread and it was gone within a month. I thought they'd be gone faster, actually, considering they were FREE!
Anyway, I recommend against lowering springs, unless you're doing it purely for looks. You'll lose travel and may end up riding on the bump stops through heavy cornering loads on bumpy roads, which will be worse than softer springs.
I have Racecomp Engineering Regular Guy springs on my STI, and they only lower 5mm (1/5") Going with too stiff of springs will give you a similar effect as blow struts, though, albeit to a much lesser extent, since you'll be oversprung (or underdampened.) In this case, your spring forces will not be matched properly to your stock dampers, which will make things much bouncier.
Going with too big of sways on the mushy '08 springs will also have consequences. Sways work by trying to compress the opposite-side spring to maintain the loaded side more level. In other words, if you're making a sharp right turn, the left wheel will be the one that compresses. The sway bar will transfer some of that load (based on the torsional/bending rigidity of the sway bar - how much it resists twisting and bending) to the opposite side. The result for a too-big sway bar and puny little springs is that heavy cornering loads (or even something as simple as coming into your driveway at an angle) will still compress your loaded side, but transfer more load to the unloaded side than it can handle, causing it to compress that spring and lift the unloaded tire off the ground.
While having some stiffness for transferring traction to the loaded side is good, having your wheel lift off the ground during a heavy turn never is. For daily driving, however, you'll never notice this, and sway bars alone may be sufficient.
Originally Posted By: gathermewool
I'd keep an eye on the forums - nasioc and iwsti - for a set of STI or '09+ springs. The fit will be perfect and you'll most likely find them for dirt cheap, especially compared to some aftermarket setups. Heck, you may even find a full strut assembly for cheap, which includes the strut, spring and top hat, so all you'll have to do is unbolt the old strut assemblies (and endlinks if there's interference,) remove, and bolt in the new strut assemblies.
An added benefit of staying stock is also that the dealer will most likely not know should you blow a strut and require warranty work. I don't believe the damper was changed from '08 to '09, just the springs and sways.
I just gave away for free my stock springs and sways to an '08 2.5i owner. I didn't want to deal with selling or shipping, so I posted a first-come-first-served thread and it was gone within a month. I thought they'd be gone faster, actually, considering they were FREE!
Anyway, I recommend against lowering springs, unless you're doing it purely for looks. You'll lose travel and may end up riding on the bump stops through heavy cornering loads on bumpy roads, which will be worse than softer springs.
I have Racecomp Engineering Regular Guy springs on my STI, and they only lower 5mm (1/5") Going with too stiff of springs will give you a similar effect as blow struts, though, albeit to a much lesser extent, since you'll be oversprung (or underdampened.) In this case, your spring forces will not be matched properly to your stock dampers, which will make things much bouncier.
Going with too big of sways on the mushy '08 springs will also have consequences. Sways work by trying to compress the opposite-side spring to maintain the loaded side more level. In other words, if you're making a sharp right turn, the left wheel will be the one that compresses. The sway bar will transfer some of that load (based on the torsional/bending rigidity of the sway bar - how much it resists twisting and bending) to the opposite side. The result for a too-big sway bar and puny little springs is that heavy cornering loads (or even something as simple as coming into your driveway at an angle) will still compress your loaded side, but transfer more load to the unloaded side than it can handle, causing it to compress that spring and lift the unloaded tire off the ground.
While having some stiffness for transferring traction to the loaded side is good, having your wheel lift off the ground during a heavy turn never is. For daily driving, however, you'll never notice this, and sway bars alone may be sufficient.
You made a lot of good points. Really appreciate your advice. Thanks a bunch...
I'd keep an eye on the forums - nasioc and iwsti - for a set of STI or '09+ springs. The fit will be perfect and you'll most likely find them for dirt cheap, especially compared to some aftermarket setups. Heck, you may even find a full strut assembly for cheap, which includes the strut, spring and top hat, so all you'll have to do is unbolt the old strut assemblies (and endlinks if there's interference,) remove, and bolt in the new strut assemblies.
An added benefit of staying stock is also that the dealer will most likely not know should you blow a strut and require warranty work. I don't believe the damper was changed from '08 to '09, just the springs and sways.
I just gave away for free my stock springs and sways to an '08 2.5i owner. I didn't want to deal with selling or shipping, so I posted a first-come-first-served thread and it was gone within a month. I thought they'd be gone faster, actually, considering they were FREE!
Anyway, I recommend against lowering springs, unless you're doing it purely for looks. You'll lose travel and may end up riding on the bump stops through heavy cornering loads on bumpy roads, which will be worse than softer springs.
I have Racecomp Engineering Regular Guy springs on my STI, and they only lower 5mm (1/5") Going with too stiff of springs will give you a similar effect as blow struts, though, albeit to a much lesser extent, since you'll be oversprung (or underdampened.) In this case, your spring forces will not be matched properly to your stock dampers, which will make things much bouncier.
Going with too big of sways on the mushy '08 springs will also have consequences. Sways work by trying to compress the opposite-side spring to maintain the loaded side more level. In other words, if you're making a sharp right turn, the left wheel will be the one that compresses. The sway bar will transfer some of that load (based on the torsional/bending rigidity of the sway bar - how much it resists twisting and bending) to the opposite side. The result for a too-big sway bar and puny little springs is that heavy cornering loads (or even something as simple as coming into your driveway at an angle) will still compress your loaded side, but transfer more load to the unloaded side than it can handle, causing it to compress that spring and lift the unloaded tire off the ground.
While having some stiffness for transferring traction to the loaded side is good, having your wheel lift off the ground during a heavy turn never is. For daily driving, however, you'll never notice this, and sway bars alone may be sufficient.
You made a lot of good points. Really appreciate your advice. Thanks a bunch...
Have you ever considered just getting rid of the car and buying a 2009-present.
The great thing about Subaru unlike other car makers is they can adapt very quickly and change a lot of design in one year. 2008 was a bad year for the newly redesigned WRX(aka Corolla) in looks and performance. 2009 was a complete morph.
The great thing about Subaru unlike other car makers is they can adapt very quickly and change a lot of design in one year. 2008 was a bad year for the newly redesigned WRX(aka Corolla) in looks and performance. 2009 was a complete morph.
gathermewool
Site Donor 2023
Originally Posted By: rjundi
Have you ever considered just getting rid of the car and buying a 2009-present.
The great thing about Subaru unlike other car makers is they can adapt very quickly and change a lot of design in one year. 2008 was a bad year for the newly redesigned WRX(aka Corolla) in looks and performance. 2009 was a complete morph.
They may have slapped on a bigger turbo, bigger sways and stiffer springs, but not much else was changed. If the OP is happy with the power level, why lose money on the trade when all he has to do is find a set of gently used '09+ strut assemblies and sways for maybe as little as $300.
While you're right about Subaru changing things quickly, the thing to note about WRX and STI drivers is our proclivity for modifying our cars. That fact alone has a lot of stock parts constantly being sold for dirt cheap on the forums. In any other car, having to replace a faulty downpipe, muffler or suspension component might cost an arm and a leg. For some model Subarus, all it takes is a couple of hundred dollars and some patience with the forums and you'll have a used replacement in no time.
Have you ever considered just getting rid of the car and buying a 2009-present.
The great thing about Subaru unlike other car makers is they can adapt very quickly and change a lot of design in one year. 2008 was a bad year for the newly redesigned WRX(aka Corolla) in looks and performance. 2009 was a complete morph.
They may have slapped on a bigger turbo, bigger sways and stiffer springs, but not much else was changed. If the OP is happy with the power level, why lose money on the trade when all he has to do is find a set of gently used '09+ strut assemblies and sways for maybe as little as $300.
While you're right about Subaru changing things quickly, the thing to note about WRX and STI drivers is our proclivity for modifying our cars. That fact alone has a lot of stock parts constantly being sold for dirt cheap on the forums. In any other car, having to replace a faulty downpipe, muffler or suspension component might cost an arm and a leg. For some model Subarus, all it takes is a couple of hundred dollars and some patience with the forums and you'll have a used replacement in no time.
Originally Posted By: gathermewool
Originally Posted By: rjundi
Have you ever considered just getting rid of the car and buying a 2009-present.
The great thing about Subaru unlike other car makers is they can adapt very quickly and change a lot of design in one year. 2008 was a bad year for the newly redesigned WRX(aka Corolla) in looks and performance. 2009 was a complete morph.
They may have slapped on a bigger turbo, bigger sways and stiffer springs, but not much else was changed. If the OP is happy with the power level, why lose money on the trade when all he has to do is find a set of gently used '09+ strut assemblies and sways for maybe as little as $300.
The power curve is dreadful in the 2008 WRX stock beyond the ho hum looks, no insult to OP compared to 2009 WRX. Also the gap is very narrow between 2008+ STI vs 2009 WRX in terms of performance. I amazed Subaru actually let the 2009+ WRX have a quicker 0-60 figure than STI.
Originally Posted By: rjundi
Have you ever considered just getting rid of the car and buying a 2009-present.
The great thing about Subaru unlike other car makers is they can adapt very quickly and change a lot of design in one year. 2008 was a bad year for the newly redesigned WRX(aka Corolla) in looks and performance. 2009 was a complete morph.
They may have slapped on a bigger turbo, bigger sways and stiffer springs, but not much else was changed. If the OP is happy with the power level, why lose money on the trade when all he has to do is find a set of gently used '09+ strut assemblies and sways for maybe as little as $300.
The power curve is dreadful in the 2008 WRX stock beyond the ho hum looks, no insult to OP compared to 2009 WRX. Also the gap is very narrow between 2008+ STI vs 2009 WRX in terms of performance. I amazed Subaru actually let the 2009+ WRX have a quicker 0-60 figure than STI.
gathermewool
Site Donor 2023
Originally Posted By: rjundi
Originally Posted By: gathermewool
Originally Posted By: rjundi
Have you ever considered just getting rid of the car and buying a 2009-present.
The great thing about Subaru unlike other car makers is they can adapt very quickly and change a lot of design in one year. 2008 was a bad year for the newly redesigned WRX(aka Corolla) in looks and performance. 2009 was a complete morph.
They may have slapped on a bigger turbo, bigger sways and stiffer springs, but not much else was changed. If the OP is happy with the power level, why lose money on the trade when all he has to do is find a set of gently used '09+ strut assemblies and sways for maybe as little as $300.
The power curve is dreadful in the 2008 WRX stock beyond the ho hum looks, no insult to OP compared to 2009 WRX. Also the gap is very narrow between 2008+ STI vs 2009 WRX in terms of performance. I amazed Subaru actually let the 2009+ WRX have a quicker 0-60 figure than STI.
The 2009 did come with a few more body updates, but they were minor, IMO. What makes the 2011 so different and closer in styling to the STI is the widebody fenders.
As far as performance, not many people buy an STI for the 1/4 mile, but to auto-x and wind'er through the twisties. In this regard, the added punch the 2009+ WRX has won't do much if you can't put it down through the open diffs - the VDC braking to simulate a limited slip may work well in the snow, but not during performance cornering. The STI also allows for manual operation of the center diff to compliment driving style/suspension setup and road conditions.
While I'll admit the STI is probably more car than I'll ever need, to say the WRX is essentially equivalent is missing the point.
Originally Posted By: gathermewool
Originally Posted By: rjundi
Have you ever considered just getting rid of the car and buying a 2009-present.
The great thing about Subaru unlike other car makers is they can adapt very quickly and change a lot of design in one year. 2008 was a bad year for the newly redesigned WRX(aka Corolla) in looks and performance. 2009 was a complete morph.
They may have slapped on a bigger turbo, bigger sways and stiffer springs, but not much else was changed. If the OP is happy with the power level, why lose money on the trade when all he has to do is find a set of gently used '09+ strut assemblies and sways for maybe as little as $300.
The power curve is dreadful in the 2008 WRX stock beyond the ho hum looks, no insult to OP compared to 2009 WRX. Also the gap is very narrow between 2008+ STI vs 2009 WRX in terms of performance. I amazed Subaru actually let the 2009+ WRX have a quicker 0-60 figure than STI.
The 2009 did come with a few more body updates, but they were minor, IMO. What makes the 2011 so different and closer in styling to the STI is the widebody fenders.
As far as performance, not many people buy an STI for the 1/4 mile, but to auto-x and wind'er through the twisties. In this regard, the added punch the 2009+ WRX has won't do much if you can't put it down through the open diffs - the VDC braking to simulate a limited slip may work well in the snow, but not during performance cornering. The STI also allows for manual operation of the center diff to compliment driving style/suspension setup and road conditions.
While I'll admit the STI is probably more car than I'll ever need, to say the WRX is essentially equivalent is missing the point.
- Status
Similar threads
