The Dude Abides Posted July 8, 2007 Share Posted July 8, 2007 Was just wondering what type of suspension you guys run as far as springs and shocks. Also when you upgrade to 6 bolt wheels whats the widest you can go for street tires. Off road is nice but for money i could just like something fairly wide to handle better. Any tips or websight advise would help also thanks dude Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Beast I Drive Posted July 14, 2007 Share Posted July 14, 2007 I did a 6 inch lift and am running the stock springs. As for tires, I am running 31x10.50/ R15 on Toyota 6 lug rims, but I had to cut the front fenders and bash in a little of the undercarriage to clear when turning. I was able to keep my stock turning radius too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crazy D Posted July 14, 2007 Share Posted July 14, 2007 I did a 6 inch lift and am running the stock springs. As for tires, I am running 31x10.50/ R15 on Toyota 6 lug rims, but I had to cut the front fenders and bash in a little of the undercarriage to clear when turning. I was able to keep my stock turning radius too. wow very nice.....but to answer his question, six lug swaps are basicallly just drilling the hubs so you can have different wheels...thats it...if your looking for better handling theres always the 5 lug swap(xt6' and everything up) then you will have way improved handling.....but if you want to do something cheaper and easier you can always upgrade to air ride suspension. kybs are a good brand too.if your looking for shocks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
86BRATMAN Posted July 14, 2007 Share Posted July 14, 2007 Like D said, xt6 5 lug is a great way to got. You can use legacy/ impreza fronts, but on the ea series cars the xt6 is the only way to go without spending bug bucks or custom fabbing a bunch of stuff. XT6 will still retain the front ebrake setup, but with either xt6 or ej front stuff, you will have to swap out front strut combo and axles to match. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Beast I Drive Posted July 14, 2007 Share Posted July 14, 2007 Like D said, xt6 5 lug is a great way to got. You can use legacy/ impreza fronts, but on the ea series cars the xt6 is the only way to go without spending bug bucks or custom fabbing a bunch of stuff. XT6 will still retain the front ebrake setup, but with either xt6 or ej front stuff, you will have to swap out front strut combo and axles to match. I never thought of doin the 5 lug conversion, but I think I will try that on one of my Brats Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
86BRATMAN Posted July 14, 2007 Share Posted July 14, 2007 I never thought of doin the 5 lug conversion, but I think I will try that on one of my Brats The biggest hang up on them is going to be the mounting of the front struts, the top hats on ea81 brat and others are a 2 bolt, xt6 and ej are 3 bolt. It can be done though Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crazy D Posted July 14, 2007 Share Posted July 14, 2007 The biggest hang up on them is going to be the mounting of the front struts, the top hats on ea81 brat and others are a 2 bolt, xt6 and ej are 3 bolt. It can be done though you could make some sort of strut block(like on a lift) that just converts it to 3 on bottom 2 on top Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
86BRATMAN Posted July 14, 2007 Share Posted July 14, 2007 Yea, that is a good possiblility, however stock impreza springs, which are the only ej series ones that will remotely fit in an ea81 strut tower, give about a 1.5-2 inch lift over stock. I've got one fabbed up on a wagon shell by drilling new holes to mount it. An they still bub some up top and the camber is horid with stock lca's/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phizinza Posted July 14, 2007 Share Posted July 14, 2007 Suspension travel on original shockers is shocking, excuse the pun. If you want good front shocks go for something like Monroe, KYB or Gabriel. Rear in the EA81's is easy, go get some shocks out of a 4WD with eye attachments on both ends. For rear of EA82's is harder... haven't figured that one out yet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dude Abides Posted July 14, 2007 Author Share Posted July 14, 2007 youll half to forgive me. Im new at subarus. im pretty sure mine is a ea82 i have a 1988 subaru dl wagon with 4wd. when you talk about switching to 5 lug are u talking the entire fromt suspension and rear axle. how is that cheep guys lol. i was looking for something more like rally raceing set up. no huge lift just something i can run taller and wider tires for better grip. But yea looking for spring - shock ideas. maybe (maybe) in the future do an impreza drive train swap but for now just tryin to kep it simple and cheep. i wouldnt even knwo where to get impreza or legacy parts. ben Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
calebz Posted July 14, 2007 Share Posted July 14, 2007 Depends on whats cheap for you. My 5 lug swap was about $300 with the adjustable coilovers and WRX Wheels. BTW - going taller/wider tires is a pain without a lift kit. When I was going up instead of down, the largest I could squeeze was a set of 14 inch pugs with 185/75/15s on them. About a 25 inch diameter as opposed to the stock 23 inch diameter. That was on 4wd wagon suspension (the tallest stock EA82 suspension) These days, I have gone the opposite direction. Trying to see how low and well handling I can get it. some 2002 LGT struts up front, fat sway bars, and looks like it will be getting some 2005 LGT struts in the rear soon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dude Abides Posted July 14, 2007 Author Share Posted July 14, 2007 I knew i was gonna regret that typeo. I ment just a taller rim with a wider tire and a wider rim. now those struts that you got were they off a used subaru. i was thinking like a spring strut kit like monroe makes. where did you get the items for ur 5 lug swap. and what all do you need. also what size tire and rim are the wrx wheels. ben Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caboobaroo Posted July 14, 2007 Share Posted July 14, 2007 http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=50400 for 5-lug list and tips... WRX rims are 16" diameter by 7" width. If you decide to go with EJ fornt suspension and brakes, there are many more upgrades you can do later down the road (Tien coilovers, Big Brake kits, so on and so forth) On my 5-lug, since I had to get some of the parts shipped from Washington to Wyoming at the time, ran me about $850 total for everything I needed. But of course, the yard I got my EJ front brakes and suspension from, charged me up the wazoo for it since they were the only yard in the area with the parts I needed:eek: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gloyale Posted July 14, 2007 Share Posted July 14, 2007 I knew i was gonna regret that typeo. I ment just a taller rim with a wider tire and a wider rim. now those struts that you got were they off a used subaru. i was thinking like a spring strut kit like monroe makes. where did you get the items for ur 5 lug swap. and what all do you need. also what size tire and rim are the wrx wheels. ben What about using 15x6, 6 lug Toyota, Nissan, etc. rims redrilled to 4 lug(or redrill you're hubs to 6). Then get some 50 series tires. Like a 205/50/15? 215/50/15? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
86BRATMAN Posted July 14, 2007 Share Posted July 14, 2007 That still ultimately limits his upgrade possibilities. But may be better for him in the short term depending on money and skill level. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
calebz Posted July 15, 2007 Share Posted July 15, 2007 I knew i was gonna regret that typeo. I ment just a taller rim with a wider tire and a wider rim. now those struts that you got were they off a used subaru. i was thinking like a spring strut kit like monroe makes. where did you get the items for ur 5 lug swap. and what all do you need. also what size tire and rim are the wrx wheels. ben Yes, the struts are off a used subaru. Front: 2002 LGT - Legacy GT Rear: 2005 LGT - Legacy GT Swaybars - 20mm - 89 XT6 The wrx wheels are 16x7. Tires (RE92 -blech) are 205/55/16 I got the front 5 lug parts locally from a blown up XT6 Had the rear parts shipped from WA. Add some adjustable coilovers for height control and increased spring rate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
calebz Posted July 16, 2007 Share Posted July 16, 2007 Add some adjustable coilovers for height control and increased spring rate. Here are the coilovers on the stock rear and XT6 front suspension Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dude Abides Posted July 16, 2007 Author Share Posted July 16, 2007 Front: 2002 LGT - Legacy GT Rear: 2005 LGT - Legacy GT Swaybars - 20mm - 89 XT6 so i can buy new coilovers for a xt6 and it would work without any modifications or i would need the coilovers from a 2002 legacy gt for the front and 2005 legacy gt for the rear and thats the only way it would work thanks ben Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
calebz Posted July 16, 2007 Share Posted July 16, 2007 Front: 2002 LGT - Legacy GTRear: 2005 LGT - Legacy GT Swaybars - 20mm - 89 XT6 so i can buy new coilovers for a xt6 and it would work without any modifications or i would need the coilovers from a 2002 legacy gt for the front and 2005 legacy gt for the rear and thats the only way it would work thanks ben Sorry - forgot to mention what the actual springs were from. I have gone through so many different parts on that car, I have trouble remembering what half of it is sometimes. Shown in those pics: Front struts - 1988 XT6 Rear Struts - Stock L-series struts Springs - Adjustable coilovers for a 2002-2003 WRX (eBay special lol ) Those coilovers are pretty generic in size (3 inch springs?) will fit all sorts of things. They look like they were made for the rear struts - fit the 05 rears the same way - like a glove. In order for them to be installed on the front, theres a little grinding that has to be done on the body of the strut. This applies to the XT6 and LGT struts, probably the stockers as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dude Abides Posted July 16, 2007 Author Share Posted July 16, 2007 and all that lowers the car about a inch or so could i do that witout the 5 lug conversion ben Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
calebz Posted July 16, 2007 Share Posted July 16, 2007 Right now, the car is about 2 - 2 1/2 inches lower than stock. Not sure how it would work out with stock sized wheels and tires. The WRX wheels actually raised the car about an inch. The springs have approximately 4 inches of adjustment on them. I would like to go just a touch lower, but when I do, the front tires rub on the plastic inner fender-wells. Its kind of a juggling act figuring out how much drop to use with various sized wheel/tire combos. But yes, you could use those springs on a stock setup. Just not sure what the end result would be for height. If I was just trying to get a little bit of a drop on a stock ride. I would use the XT front struts/springs and probably cut 1/2 - 1 coil off the rear springs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dude Abides Posted July 16, 2007 Author Share Posted July 16, 2007 ok 2 questions y is that on these cars you can never seem to buy anything for the rear. and the other is i read in a thread somewhere that when u knock a coil down on these cars the rear becomes extremely squirly ben Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
86BRATMAN Posted July 16, 2007 Share Posted July 16, 2007 In the us market nothing was ever made for these cars. I've rode on cut springs for a while now, i've never had them go squirely with me on any of the cars I've had them one. Heating them would be more likely to do that to you. The good thing about the ea82 rear springs is that pretty much any universal aftermarket coilover kit will fit it. No matter what its made for. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
calebz Posted July 16, 2007 Share Posted July 16, 2007 ok 2 questions y is that on these cars you can never seem to buy anything for the rear. and the other is i read in a thread somewhere that when u knock a coil down on these cars the rear becomes extremely squirly ben 1 - There is just no aftermarket for these cars. The only reason upgrades for the front are so easy is because you can mod it to accept the newer generation of stuff. 2 - Cutting the springs effectively increases spring rate. But honestly, the spring rate on my coilovers is so much higher than stock, cut springs would feel like a cadillac by comparison. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dude Abides Posted July 17, 2007 Author Share Posted July 17, 2007 well again i was just looking to purchace new stuff only because i know the struts are blown. I do the uncle buck down the road. im really just looking for new stuff not extremely expensive but if i could lower it a bit in the process improve the handling then ill do it ben Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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