OK, this is a follow-up to my previous Repaint: Electric Blue Pearl thread.
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So I got the paint-job done and left it de-baged as well for a cleaner look. Then I added some more mods...
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.25mm Wheel Spacers:
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And I ordered some color-matched side markers to replace the stock orange ones...
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And I replaced the super-duper-smoked tail lights with stock ones because the previous owner had sprayed about twelve too many layers of tinting onto them and I was sick of getting pulled over by the fuzz every week...
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And finally, I ordered a new set of 18" x 9.5" Konig Lace wheels, and had them powder-coated metallic silver because I hate black rims (except on rougher off-road vehicles like lifted jeeps, trucks, etc. - but on cars I just can't see why someone would pay thousands of dollars for custom rims that are basically invisible and where the lip usually just ends up looking like part of the tire).
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And the wide wheels with their +45mm offset, plus the 25mm wheel-spacers give it a nice stance, although I may have to roll my rear fenders eventually...
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Additionally, although I had not previously realized it, the previous owner had put 235/40/R18 tires on the rear, but 225/40/R18 tires on the front - resulting in an accidental and unforeseen progression into "stretch" territory on the front wheels... :/
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Not near as loud/ricey as it used to be, but much cleaner. Whaddya think?
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Looks a lot better IMO. Need a nice drop now man!

 

Roughly one million times better, but you are right about the front..

 

Yeah I agree on the front tires, and having the lip stick out like that just makes me all the more paranoid about curb-rash :/ Definitely gotta get some new, wider front tires... Looking at the way the rear tires look on these rims (even they have a little bit of "stretch look to them), do you think I could manage to go slightly wider and do 245/40/R18 - for a more "straight-up-and-down," flat side-wall instead of having the "stretch" look? I really don't like that stretch look at all.


I do want to get some lowering springs, and drop it about an inch. I wouldn't dare go any lower than that because of the way I drive: Fast, and reckless enough with dips and speed bumps that if my car were slammed or anywhere close to it I wouldn't have a body kit or an undercarriage left after about a week. I want to lower it slightly, but retain most of my car's agility. Any suggestion on good lowering springs?
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Looks much better, I really like how the Laces look in silver rather than the factory finish as well. A slight drop would look even better, good job!

 

Thanks!

Would these be good lowering springs to get..?

TEIN H. Tech Lowering Springs - 1" drop in front, 0.3" drop in rear
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Most people here go for Tein S. Tech rather than H. Tech. I currently run on Progress Technology springs which are very similar to the S. Tech and so far, the drop is just right for me.

 

I'm only looking for a mild/moderate drop, not anything extreme. What's the difference between S. Tech and H. Tech..?

 

Tein S. Tech has slightly stiffer rates and drops 1.4" front and 0.7" rear while the H. Tech drops 1" front and 0.3" rear along with softer spring rates. If a moderate drop is what you're looking for, you'll be happy with the S. Techs for sure.

Posted From RX8Club.com Android App

 

All that work is for nothing IMO without a properly sorted suspension. It looks horrid as is.

 

Those particular rims are not my cup of tea, however I agree that they look 1000% better than that green crap you had before.

 

Yeah, and the green ones were getting all faded too. I think I'm going to sell them off cheap and just tell the person to powder-coat them gold, silver, etc. I love the Lace rims I have - aside from having a weird Konig fetish, I love the complex, somewhat classy splt-spoke look, and I love silver or platinum juxtaposed against a strong, vivid blue.

Hrm... How much stiffer is S. Tech?

Yesterday I had one person in my back seat and another in the front passenger seat, and my tires rubbed in the back like nobody's business, I mean like I drove over a tiny, slight dip or even turned sharply they would rub. Fortunately it was a short ride, so no damage to tires.

I bought a $10 metal mini-baseball bat at Target, wrapped it in cloth, and rolled my fenders to the point that the the inner lip is almost completely flat against the inner wall and haven't had rubbing since, but now that I'm thinking of dropping it, I'm thinking that if I don't want to end up with more wheel-rub, a stiffer suspension like the S. Tech with less free-play might be better, even if it's slightly lower than the H Tech...

Thoughts on this..?

 

Just a quick update. I finally got rid of the very last of the green on my car, and finished my engine bay for now.
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Before - Dirty, with green crap and stupid cone filter:


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Now - Stock air box restored and customized, tower strut bar sanded and painted, grounding kit installed with matching blue cabling, various black tubing replaced with blue tubing, air-conditioning tubing insulating with 1/2" foam piping insulation and covered with blue corrugated tubing, and I finally replaced the previous owner's crappy little 10-gauge red amp cable with a new blue 4-gauge cable and 120amp fuse to feed my hungry 1,500watt SPL Phantom amp:
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I'm gonna call my engine bay done for the time being... Now it's time to get some S-Tech springs.
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1997 called, it wants it engine bay back.

 

It it the blue wire-protector tubing? I think the air-box looks good personally, and the tower strut bar looks way better silver and blue than it did in neon green, but I can see how the tubing might turn you off - it's a bit brighter than I expected. I do want an overall blue theme though. I saw someone with actual blue tubing installed - not the wire-cover stuff but the kind that actually replaces your stock black tubing with blue tubing... Is that a kit I can buy somewhere, or did they just assemble that from random tubing?

[EDIT] - I think I found some online, not sure what-all it replaces though.