so Iām looking at lowering my mk3 sport. Iāve looked at 30mm, 35mm and 45mm. I really dont want to ruin the good country road drives so I think Iām sold on 30mm. Has anyone lowered their mk3 and has any advice before hand? Any gremlins? Does this mess up alignment etc?Ā
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Thanks!Ā
We had our 2.0 NC lowered by 30mm last year, and had the geometry done, all at WIM in Chesham. It made an amazing difference to how the car feels, so much tighter in corners, and in my eyes also looks much better.
I would not recommend going any lower than 30mm drop though, unless you really want that stance look. Ā Ours is still comfortable at 30mm and weāve never yet bottomed out.
based on our experience, yes do it!! Ā
Iāve a mk3 as well (non-sport but 2.0L, LSD etc.) and have looked into lowering, and will probably do so later this year. A bit of background info for you, the mk3 is higher than āstandardā for the UK market to meet pedestrian safety laws by about 30mmā¦ Hence, if youāre āloweringā by 30mm, youāre actually taking it to roughly what Mazda reckon is a good height for the vehicle! Iāll probably be going for about 30mm. Iāve heard it makes a substantial difference without any adverse effects! Hope this helps.
I lowered my previous cars by 30mm with Eibach springs, a Ā MK3 and MK3.5, followed by a 4 wheel alignment check / set. It transformed the car without making the ride overly hard.Ā
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Just had my new MK 4 ND 2ltr sport lowered with Mazda springs part No 4100-77-780 -25mm, the results are excellent.
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Its a āmust doā upgrade.
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Iād like this done too. Is the mod required to be mentioned for insurance purposes? Ā If so how does it affect the premium?
Yes, you must notify your insurer.
Iām insured with AVIVA, they logged the modification with no addition to the premium.Ā
Iām aware some insurance companies will not cover lowered suspension. So best to check before having the work carried out.
Not all insurers will charge extra.
The Eibach springs were a Mazda dealer option fit and have a Part No.
410077774A for 2005 to Oct 2008
http://www.mazda.co.uk/buying-owning/accessories/mazda-mx-5/2005-07/wheels-suspension/410077774A/
410077779 for Oct 2008 onwards
http://www.mazda.co.uk/buying-owning/accessories/mazda-mx-5/2008-10/wheels-suspension/410077779/
I would advise declaring the change though.
And donāt forget to have the geometry set properly if you havenāt already, the car should be as it should be after that ;-)
Lowering springs are a good way to go as it makes the car look and feel more sporty. Some people say that the eibach 30 mm lowering springs are the same as the ones you can purchase from Mazda, in which case they are blue as opposed to black direct from eibach. Iām not convinced they are the same and would rather had bought the proper Mazda ones, than the black which I installed.Ā
Anyway, Itās a cheap thill, but maybe you should ask yourself, Ā how long do I want to keep the car?
Because, Ā āwait for it!!ā, Ā Meisterr CRD are definitely an altogether better choice.Ā
Perhaps I should give an alternative viewpoint. My previous 1.8 Mk3.0 had 30mm Eibachs fitted by the previous owner so I inherited the lower suspension. The shock absorbers were the original standard ones (not the Sport version). They were fitted and aligned by WIM in Chesham so the geometry was correctly set.
The handling was great with very precise cornering and negligible roll. However, the ride height was so low that it was forever grounding out on uneven country roads and especially on speed humps (and I donāt mean cushions), particularly in my office car park, causing many comments from my staff from the grinding noises underneath as I tried to shuffle into the site. Even worse than that was my wifeās reaction to the very bouncy and firm ride which gave me severe earache! Something of a mixed bag and your mileage may vary.
Now I put some of the blame on the standard shock absorbers being outside their intended range of operation. Probably a set of Meister or other coilovers would give a more balanced, progressive ride and adjustable height. That might have been a better option.
Since then Iāve sold that car and replaced it with a Mk3.5 (pictured) with standard suspension. No complaints at all from me or her. Sure it could be a little more positive in the handling department with a bit less roll but I understand that the 3.5 has some suspension improvements over the 3.0 and it definitely works for me.
The choice is a very personal one but I donāt see the need to lower the car for road use. Hope this helps
Viv
Yes lower it! 30 mm is what I had and its a different car altogether then. Make sure you get the right set of springs though, in some cases there are different ones for the Folding Hard top from the soft top.
thanks everyone for the help. In response to Harco, I have the 2007 mk3 2.0 sport hardtop. from reading the comments it sounds like a I should really do this. Iām only 20 and not massively into the whole stance thing, but I want to have less roll in the corners.
Im looking at the above springs, seem to be the popular ones that most people go for. Has anyone got any opinions of how they perform with the bilstein shocks??
thanks!
thats great to know, I always knew they sat high but wasnāt aware of this. 30mm seems reasonable drop, I live in Northern Ireland, most of our roads are similar to a plowed field so Iām keen not on grounding out every 10 seconds. I think Iām sold on the idea of lowering it, just have to wait now as sheās currently in getting a full dent removal and respray! These mx5ās certainly eat up the money!
Thanks for your help!
Drop of 30mm will be fine. Make sure you get an alignment done also. Get all this done at a place who know the cars, get it done properly once rather than a half-hearted attempt and need it done again.
Be warned though that care is needed over some obstacles, speed bumps and in my case Ā nearly (well did slightly) bottom out last week trying to park along a road that had a soft grass verge, the road was around 3ins higher that the soft verge, the front wheel dropped into the verge then crunch any further and i would have been grounded.
Donāt let it put you off, you just need to take care.
Having spoken to Blink at length lowering actually increases roll. It does make sense though as the loads will be higher in a bend so there is more to control, and therefore beefing up other components needed.
If going down the lowering route then do think of upgrading the ARBās as well and consider replacing the droplinks as the loads will be higher.
I did my lowering first and it did feel better, but doing the ARBās tightened the experience even further and the car feels very planted.
Granted my most recent change to AD08Rās has helped with that planted feeling as well!
On the topic of lowering, Iām presently fitting a second hand set of GAZ springs/shockers to my Mk 3. The general consensus is that itās a good thing to do. Iāve read somewhere that the UK/US versions of the MX5 were jacked up by 30mm for US safety regs., so lowering by 30mm merely puts the car where Mazda intended it to be.
My real hope, in desperation, is that there is some genius out there who can offer me fitting instructions, which were not supplied, and you tube is about yanks, so not much help, particularly the top end.
The shocks are off the car.
Apologies if this should have been a new post, but it seemed relevant.
Ninja59 - that may be the technical explanation but myself and others would probably challenge that based on reality. Mine is so noticeably better going into corners compared to the original set up and Iād put good money on that being real and not just me trying to convince myself itās better to justify what Iāve done (and spent). The car feels much more stable and responsive. Iām no boy racer but I can turn the car into corners at speeds I would not have dared to before putting the lower springs on.
As for the ride, itās marginally harsher but not uncomfortably so and Iāve had no problems negotiating speed bumps and kerbs etc without having to specifically take extra care. I have noticed that if I inadvertently hit a pot hole the suspension does hit the bump stop but I understand you can get replacements for use with lower springs. That said, I do my best to avoid potholes so thatās not such an issue.
vhs - I didnāt understand your comment about the ride being āvery bouncy and firmā. That seems a contradiction to me.Ā
To the OP, Iād say go for it and have the lower springs fitted. Of course itās not for everyone but Iād guess the vast majority of people whoāve done it have not regretted it. FYI, I put the Eibach 30mm springs on my NC3.5.
Oh at no point am I denying the lowering will improve the turn in (it is just the actual forces involved will be greater). I went through all stages from just getting it aligned on standard black Hitachi shocks as mine is a 1.8 to swapping them out for the B12 kit with Eibach springs eventually doing the upgraded ARBās.
From experience it is worth doing the ARBās if you really want to maximise that planted feeling with the lowering (or go down the route of Meisters or Ohlins (the Ohlins DFV would be my preferred choice). But cost wise it is much much cheaper to do the lowering and ARBās.
Heck around bends my NC feels a lot better than my daily drive 640D (taking size and weight etc. out of it for a moment), and that is reflected in the fact that some of the bends I used to take at say 50-55 around here when the NC was just lowered felt just a little uneasy, now the same 55 with the ARBās is more like 60 and the AD08Rās have pushed those speeds a little higher in comfort and the car breezes through them.
Ultimately the choice is yours, but to really make the best of it find a set of used RX8 yellow or orange dots from memory tidy them up and fit some upgraded bushes and retainers to the car - they are cheap as well to do (I think RX8 ARb=Bās can be had for Ā£60-80 from memory). If you want to go more fancy you always have the Eibach ones which are about Ā£200, the droplinks are only another Ā£60-Ā£80 and it seems silly to take the ARB out and not do the droplinks. Either way you put it the final bill will still be about a 1/3 of going down the Ohlins route (flipside I know deep down the Ohlins is one of the best solutions for the NC).
Hi, I have a 2008 2.0 sport PRHT. I would like to lower but this is an all year around car andĀ our local roads are bad. I fitted RX8 yellow dot ARBās, this transformed the car in terms of handling and roll. The ARBās cost Ā£60 second hand and very easy to fit.Ā A very cheap option!
Cheers
Derek