My thoughts for upgrading my ride. Need everyone's opinion

[SecretStyle]

Hello!

Alright straight to the facts. This is my plans for my 2003 White Protege5 with about 70k miles on it.
I am going to get:
- 16" Rota D-2's rims (they're black with a gun-metal lip)
- tokico illumina struts
- H&R springs
- tinted windows (for looks)

Reasons for these are:
Heard that Rota D-2's are nice, and presumingly will look good on my car.
Did a *CRAP ton of research online and found that tokico illumina struts are the way to go; tokico HP and KYB struts are just like OEM.
And H&R springs just because I saw a lot of people online using this combination of springs with the tokico illumina.

So I was wondering before I get any farther, that I may recieve any comments/replies to my judgement. Thanks and feel free to speak what's on your mind. (rei)

 

[MazdaSpeeder]

My understanding is that HPs are not "like OEM." Illuminas are adjustable and HPs are not, but unless you're going to be constantly adjusting them, why pay a lot extra for Illuminas? Many guys on here run HPs on aftermarket springs with great results. I would save the money and get the HPs if I were you.

Also, have you considered getting 17 inch rims instead of 16? It fills the wheel well much better.

 

[tweety2300]

Tockico hps are a lot stiffer than oem they are considered oem for the msp and mp3 which rated at 8 for top 20 worlds best handleing cars a few years ago. Kyb are a little better than oem. The illuminas highest setting iss close to the same as the tockico blues I think. So unless you want a comfy ride on your way to work and then autocross on the weekends go with the tockico hp. As for 17" rims it depends on what he's goin for 17s look better 16s will perform better. Some people are runing tein stecs and eibach pros have you looked into those?

 

[canadian357]

S-techs are really popular, but you have to watch out for fakes on ebay. I think what you have planned sounds great. My friend just got his car tinted (btw picking tint shades is damn hard) but he went with 35% front and 15% rear, and I think its a great combo. As for the wheels, personally I'm not a fan of wheels with those rivet/bolt things on the inside of the wheels where the spoke meets the drum, but each to his own. Rota Grids are mega sexy if you wanna look into more options. Also, 16's look great with a drop. Plus its a wee bit of a softer ride with the bigger sidewall.

 

[SecretStyle]

Well like I said, I did a lot of research (numerous hours of looking online and talking with people) on the Tokico HP's and illumina. *You could go compare these 2 for yourself too.* Out of all the ratings, this is what I compared the Tokico HP's and Tokico Illumina: HP's-7.5/10, Illumina-10/10. There, the obvious choice is the illumina because even though HP are cheaper, the quality of the illumina makes up for the exchange of price between the HP's and illumina. But if you guys are saying the HP's over the illumina, could I get more reasons as to why?
As for 17" rims, I was thinking about it too. But I just don't know if 17" tires are going to be cheaper to replace than the 16". Is 17's going to be cheaper than the 16's?
The Tein's Stec are nice and I was looking at it. Just wasn't too sure on it. Should I get the Tein's Stec over the H&R?
And as for the Rota Grids, I also agree that those are sweet. I kinda didn't like the rivet/bolt things inside the D-2's also but since I like the gunmetal with the silver out-lining, I don't mind it too much. Since the trend nowadays is leaning towards Hellaflush and big-lips, I figured that the D-2's are a great way to go. But I'm willing to listen to any more comments if there is any.

 

[tweety2300]

Hps are better if your looking for a good ride and handleing illuminas just allow you to adjust the stiffness so you can make the perfect ride for yourself. 16s are more common and there for cheaper there aren't a whole lot of options for 215 45 17 and you will never be able to find used tires for them. As for rims go for what you want not what the "trend" is I personally like the split 5 spoke style rims but that's me. And as far as colors you can always paint/ powder coat them if you find a style you really like but in an ugly color

 

[joka1]

Welcome to the forum, Where in WA are you from?

As far as the suspension goes I have no comment since I have not used any of them, I have JIC A2 coilovers

Rob

 

[MazdaSpeeder]

Definitely get the rims you want...don't go with what everyone else thinks is cool. As for cost of tire, Tirerack returns 80 results for 215/45/17s, 12 of them are $100 or under...the difference in tire cost is going to be negligible, I wouldn't make the decision based solely on that. Consider that larger rims will add weight, so that will affect performance unless you spring for lightweight (expensive) rims. I have 215/40s on stockers, and the extra contact patch has done wonders for my handling...wider tire is better, but you need to make sure you do your homework with offsets and such to make sure you're going to clear. (Here's a fitment recipe and there is a lot of info in the protege rims and tires section).

As for the HP vs Illuminas debate, you're really doing more of an apples to oranges comparison that you realize. Illuminas are adjustable, so they cost more and are great for guys who need the adjustability (like daily drivers who also autoX). HPs are not adjustable, but they're tuned to be a good mix of ride and performance. If you bought the illuminas and never did anything more than drive around with them, you'd probably fool with the settings until you got a happy medium, then never touch them again. That happy medium would most likely be somewhere near what HPs are tuned to deliver in the first place. So, if you don't really need the adjustability, save the money and get the HPs. If you're going to get a serious suspension setup one day and plan on autoX and daily driving, the illuminas may be worth it.

 

[tweety2300]

Yes there are cheap tires for that size but you get what you pay for I have riken raptors 112 a piece including mount and balance. Traction is horrible in rain and snow and they last about 15k miles and that's taking very good care of them without being hard on them. When you pay the extra money for good tires it will make up for it in the long run

 

[digitalslacker]

I have the blues (hp) and they are much much better then the OEM stuff. Had a friend ride in the car who has a speed protege and he said it was a better ride. The roads around here are bad enough that, for me, buying the adjustable ones would be a waste. I'd need to run them at their highest setting.

 

[canadian357]

Edit - I made a dumb dumb. 215/40's are the way to go. You'll be going ~0.4% slower than your speedo says I think.

 

[joe944]

Most people here seem to disagree with me, but imo, if you are going to put out that kind of money, and if you are going to get such a quality set up, then why not just go the small extra step to get the illuminas. Then the extra stiffness, as well as the adjustability will be there if you need it/want it, and you will not regret it later on. My two cents.

 

[digitalslacker]

Most people here seem to disagree with me, but imo, if you are going to put out that kind of money, and if you are going to get such a quality set up, then why not just go the small extra step to get the illuminas. Then the extra stiffness, as well as the adjustability will be there if you need it/want it, and you will not regret it later on. My two cents.

The Illumina's are an extra 200$, so its essentially a third more. The HP's are about 100 each whereas the illumina's are 145 for fronts, 156 for backs.

 

[MazdaSpeeder]

Tweety, I don't mean to be a jerk, but there are plenty of good tires for cheap ($100ish) out there in that size...and several choices in 215/40, including Yokohama S Drives. I have never even heard of Rikens; perhaps your problems with them stem from the fact that they're basically a generic tire. There are a lot of Kumhos, a Sumitomo, even a highly rated General or two in those sizes for $100 or under. The key is to do the research before buying.

OP, good tires can be had for 17s at a decent price. Check out tirerack.com or discounttiredirect.com and see for yourself.

 

[SecretStyle]

Yes, I think I'm going to get the rims that I want. Thanks guys! As for HP's vs. illumina...I don't know. It's going to be a toss-up until the time to come and buy it.

 

[99ProtegeKV]

trying to decide. i think since i do drive my car in the winter.. the Illumina's may be the way to go. my car is daily driven.. but in the summer i have 17'' STI BBS rims that i will be putting on.. how nice of a fitment will the illumina's allow me to go? I want a nice. low fitment but not slammed.. but i do want to be able to raise it up in the winter for the NY and Long Island Snow.. what would i need if.. as of now.. i have all stock suspension.. n i went with Illumina's. will i need adjustable endlinks or will the stock endlinks work.. i have Ford escape Moog Endlinks on the fron right now. stock in the back. Anything else i will need. I plan to buy these in the next few weeks and i dont have the time to have my car off the road for a week if i get halfway through the install and need something else.

and what kind of springs do u recommend.. eibach? or are there cheaper/ better options..

Thanks.

 

[tweety2300]

Umm the illuminas won't alter ride height...

 

[99ProtegeKV]

so i would need to buy the illuminas and get springs? recommendation on springs? or should i jsut go with the 80k mileage tokico blues with stock springs and put nice springs on those instead? recommendation on best springs for what im trying to do??

 

[tweety2300]

If you want to adjust it all the time save the hassle and get coil overs

 

[Tamn]

The adjustable Tokiko Illumina's are ungodly awesome. Best single mod I've done to my car. Paired with Eibach pro springs. Lot of people don't like them because they don't think it "lowers" your car enough. But that's just a looks opinion. Eibach knows their stuff and these things handle simply ungodly with as near zero body roll as I can imagine. You can also set up your tokikos for the track or street use within 60 seconds. Super duper nice.

I would never even consider trying something else after having them for 2 years.