Tein S-Tech's (Before & After Pics)

[APEXistud]

Tein S-Tech's (UPDATED Before & After Pics)

Here are some before and after shots of the drop that the Tein S-Tech Springs give on my MP3. It's honestly a bit lower than I thought it was going to be, but they shouldn't get any lower than this.....Hopefully
Before Teins

After Teins

Side Shot UPDATED

Another Side Shot (better lighting) UPDATED

I can see how for some people that it might not be enough of a drop, but it is exactly what I wanted. Big thanks to Sean (Wheelguru) of Auto R&D for installing these for me. I felt like I was at LensCrafters (A quality drop in about an hour) which is pretty quick considering he did everything himself. I can't wait to get my wheels now.

 

[tonkabui]

looking VERY sharp. thanks for sharing.

 

[quik]

An hour!

It took the guys that did mine almost 4 hours!

$225

 

[akhilleus]

tonkabui is full of s***...hence his name..so dont take his compliments seriously they are bs

 

[akhilleus]

tonkabui is full of s***...hence his name..so dont take his compliments seriously they are bs

 

[L8R]

nice man! hope you are happy with the ride and look. peace - chris

 

[APEXistud]

OK, bumpty bump...I've updated the pictures at the beginning of the thread. I snapped some really nice shots today that show the drop a little better. I took these up along Calaveras in Milpitas (for all you Bay Area peeps). For those of you who want some of these pics in wallpaper size (1280x960), please follow this link. I know my car is still practically stock, but hey the pictures still turned out pretty cool. Especially that bottom side shot I added.

 

[Allen]

APEXistud, sweet pictures. I just got mine done today (Sunday)!! I have pictures, but my friend did not give me the USB cable to download from the digi-cam. My pictures are not as pretty as yours, but my car is as low as yours. I also have pictures during the install, but may not be precise enough for a good "How-To" for the MP3.

I'll post as soon as I can get that USB cable in my hands.

When we installed the rear, I thought it was no where lower than the stock springs (I have pics to compare) , but after installing the fronts and driving it around.... WOW... major difference.

I love these springs, works well. I agree, not as aggressive as SPOOL springs, but just perfect for me. I go to Houston often and the roads in Houston suck.

Oh, HOW the hell did Sean of Auto R&D install those springs in ONE HOUR?!?!?! I know my friends and I were slacking off a bit under the hot weather.... but even if we had tried .... oh, maybe that's the ticket... he was PAID to do the work... but... one hour by himself? That's truly amazing because I worked with 3 people (started out with FIVE people) and it took us a couple hours.... even if we truly focused on nothing but getting it done... I doubt ONE hour would have been possible for us. Maybe he is experienced enough with the MP3 installation that he knows the quirks to getting things done fast.

Anyways, I'll post my install detail when I get the pics.

These springs surprised me, they really make my MP3 (obviously yours too) look stunning!!!!!

 

[Pro5OnSpeed]

how is the handeling of the teins? are they much better then the MP3 stock setup? i cant decide which springs i should get.

thats beautiful man, looks awesome!

 

[APEXistud]

Oh, HOW the hell did Sean of Auto R&D install those springs in ONE HOUR?!?!?!

He has worked on a whole hell of a lot of Protege Sedans, and who knows how many P5's. Oh, just to note....he didn't use a spring compressor either. You'd be amazed what a spare Hoosier tire and a wooden board can do if you put it to use....hehe

how is the handeling of the teins? are they much better then the MP3 stock setup? .....

I might be trippin, but they feel a tad bit softer than the Racing Beat Springs and the car seems a lot easier to toss out the rear end with it lowered. It could also be that my alignment hasn't been done yet too. Either way, I am completely satisfied with the Teins. Not to forget that the have some special rubber insert placed on the coils to cut down on any noise that might occur.

Thanks for the friendly comments guys. I'm salivating for some wheels though.

 

[ARunto]

Where did you get the Teins at?

 

[APEXistud]

I got them from a shop I found on Groupbuycenter.com, but I think you can get them from Protege5online.

 

[Allen]

I agree with APEXistud, these springs seems to be much softer than the Racing Beat springs on the MP3. If you put them side-by-side, you will see that they are about the same height. The difference is that the Racing Beat springs are less coiled compared to the Tein springs.

The front Tein springs definitely lower for my car at least. I had approximately 25.5" measured from center of the wheel well area prior to the spring installation. 24.2" after the front spring installation.

25.1" measured from center of wheel well prior to install, and approximately 24.5" after the rear spring installation.

The result feels different after the spring swap. I can go through turns faster without feeling heavy body roll. When I launch, I found out that the body roll was minimized as well... it just feels good. The stopping feel was very good too, we did several hard stops (SMELLY!!) and I thought the springs helped improve the stopping performance.

If you stand in front of your car with the hood popped up prior to installing your springs, you would notice a big drop difference after the install... the car just seems a tad bit lower from the front side with the hood up.

I'll have to take it out to compete at the autocross event to see if this can actually help me be a better competitor.... hehe.

I have to remember not to pull up too close to the parking lot bump stops ... but I think this car isn't lowered enough to hit most of them. Not totally sure about that though.

The ride is not as harsh as my friend's Civic Si... who installed the Eibach Pro Kit with Koni (Yellow adjustables). I think my ride is not as low, but it feels good.... but I am not sure if the struts make mine feel a bit better or what??

Another friend just had his SpecV installed with JIC coilovers.... Oh man, talk about low... it is lower than mine, but feels twice as comfortable as my car.... those things are sweet... but just not at a sweet price.

 

[Allen]

Oh yeah... Sean didn't use any spring compressors?!? Sheesh.... that was brave.

Actually, I don't think our springs are THAT compressed in there in the first place though (we did use spring compressors). I didn't know what I was doing and unscrewed the center nut on the right rear OEM spring (yes, very dumb) and the spring did not "shoot" out.... I immediately put back the lug though... haha, talk about scared people running!!

Maybe I got lucky... maybe the springs were stuck or VERY slacked at that point, but I would not dare try that again!!

 

[MP3skaterNC]

the rear end drop looks alot lower than the spools. nice looking drop Apex, now get the seki's and you'll be set.

 

[APEXistud]

I am still thinking about getting the Seki's, but I'm also thinking about getting something a bit more expensive and not seen on a Protege. I just have to be willing to wait a month or so to save.

the rear end drop looks alot lower than the spools. nice looking drop Apex, now get the seki's and you'll be set.

 

[MP3skaterNC]

Yea, as much as I like my rims, I wish I had waited and gotten something better. My wheels are great and all, but volks or ssr's would of been much better to me.

 

[Allen]

Tein S. Tech install photos

Okay, I didn't take excellent photos like APEXistud did. My original intention was to get as many photos as possible to help make a "visual" How-To for MP3 spring install. The end result was not as I had planned, just turned out too warm to focus on photo shots. Either way, here are some shots I took and I'll explain as best as I can about them.

I do notice that the springs are lowered even further today. The heights are now about "even" between front and rear.... just based on simple measurements.

These are the springs:

 

[Allen]

You'll access the top of the rear strut center bolts from INSIDE the car cabin. Not from inside the trunk as is most common for most other car makes.

 

[Allen]

If I remember correctly, I believe you only need 14mm and 17mm sockets to work with the entire installation. Of course you will need the 21mm socket for the wheel lug nuts.