confused by my coilovers....

[not yellow]

i'm new to this, so pardon the basic question!
just bought a 2003 MSP. it's all stock except for the previous owner put adjustable coilovers on it that are lowered as far as they will go. i just had it in the shop getting looked at, and i asked the guy about raising the car a bit. he put it up on the lift and showed me the coilovers and how i could adjust them. fine, looked easy enough. here's the thing: when he had it on the lift the wheels were hanging free and the shocks where fully extended. there was plenty of room around the springs and you could move them up and down. when i brought it home and jacked up one of the wheels the shock did not extend, with tension in the spring it's impossible for me to make the adjustment i was just shown. so, how do i get the shock to extend? why did they extend on the lift at the shop and not on the jack at home?

 

[amair001]

Get four jack stands, and put the entire car up in the air, making sure the jacks are on the frame rails and dont interfere with any suspension parts. This way you will be able to get exact measurement on the front and rears.

 

[not yellow]

good tip!

but doesn't explain why the shock does/doesn't extend?

 

[xDJ DUBx]

Just use a floor jack to raise both fronts or both rears, you don't have to have all 4 off at the sametime.

I'm not too sure why but I just know you can't do it one by one, you have to do front together and back together.

 

[not yellow]

so, you think if i have both fronts or both rears off the ground that the shocks will extend? that might actually make sense...
any recommendations for jack points under the nose and/or tail so i can raise both wheels at once?

 

[MSP2k3]

it sounds like you are jacking the car up with a part that is connected to the suspension. Jack the car up on a frame rail so that the wheel will hang free.

If you put the jack under the drivers door and jack it up on the frame there, it should raise both the front and rear wheels on that side off the ground.

 

[rooster]

reason why they don't extend:

the sway bars try to keep the shocks level, so when you raise it up by one side the weight of the car compresses the other side,

the sway bars in turn try to compress the side that you've raised up.

if you only have two jackstands raise the car up by only the front or rear wheels as oppose to one side.

 

[not yellow]

right, i raised only one front wheel by the standard jack point below the driver door on the frame rail. the rear wheel on the same side actually came of the ground a bit as well, but neither shock extended. is there a jack point under the nose and/or tail?

 

[CnoTataymo]

Yellow MSP huh? Did you happen to get it at the Honda on Stevens Creek? I remember seeing it a few times and adds online.

 

[not yellow]

haha... you called it!
has about 49k miles on it. it's in pretty nice shape except it was misfiring when i test drove it. the dealership agreed to fix what ever was wrong with it. turns out there was a leak in one of the intercooler hoses which was causing it to run way too lean... hence the misfires. it's running strong now!
i've added a few details to it since i got it, but just hoping to adjust the suspension now...

 

[xDJ DUBx]

Jack stands are safer but really, the car should only be raised for a matter of 2 mins or so to adjust the suspension. It doesn't take long at all.

Just remember, front together, back together and you'll be golden.

 

[not yellow]

cool.... i actually just found a "jack point" thread.

http://www.msprotege.com/forum/showthread.php?t=80909

sounds legit, huh?

 

[CnoTataymo]

haha... you called it!
has about 49k miles on it. it's in pretty nice shape except it was misfiring when i test drove it. the dealership agreed to fix what ever was wrong with it. turns out there was a leak in one of the intercooler hoses which was causing it to run way too lean... hence the misfires. it's running strong now!
i've added a few details to it since i got it, but just hoping to adjust the suspension now...

Nice! I used to have an MSP, it was a fun, light, handling car. Congrats with it!

You should get the AWR Rear Sway Bar for it. You won't be disappointed either.

 

[not yellow]

thanks, guys. that was the trick!
must have both fronts and/both backs off the ground for the shocks to extend.
one side or one wheel off the ground and the shock stays compressed.

anyway, just raised my car an inch. it's definitely a more palatable ride for san francisco driving, although it is a bit softer in the corners. so, now do i need a camber adjustment or realign?

 

[justinlansdale]

how low did your car sit prior to you raising it? can you post a picture?

 

[not yellow]

don't know exactly how low it was to begin with. but it has ground control coilovers with eibach springs that were adjusted to be as low as they would go. i raised it up almost 1.25" but think i might bring it back down .25". so it will be about an inch above the lowest setting.

here's the only photo i have before i raised it. not exactly a profile, but you can get an idea of how low it was.

 

[Rogue]

you will have to get a 4 wheel alignment because changing the ride height affects both camber and toe.

 

[BurnoutX]

all i can say is: get a height you are happy with, then take that to get aligned. no good to go around wearing our your tires unevenly.

 

[not yellow]

do you think there is any small amount of raising/lowering i could do with out getting a realign, or does any variation from the original height require a realign?

 

[BurnoutX]

i always use the creedo of -- the more you change it, the more will change. therefore that applies to the alignment question.

more experienced guys might tell you otherwise, but that's just my take.