Back again, but I drove here this time. [Somewhat pic heavy]

[bondo]

so you mean to tell me that the wheels in the first pic aren't factory even though there's a big ol' Z on the centercap?
i could take you to a freinds yard and show you atleast 6 zed sleds with those rims on em.

the reason i don't care about what you do to your car is because a focus is what it is.
ever heard the expression "you can polish a turd"? well,same thing in reverse.
you can put a hat and shoes on it and it's still a turd.
a 30+ year old datsun is special and shouldn't be trusted in the hands of toy boys and ricer teens who do everything they can to get other toy boys and ricer teens to notice them.

[Action B]

Found this a couple years back in a Wal Mart parking lot. I think some of you have forgotten what true rice is! :



Notice that it is parked in the very edge of the large parking lot.

And yes, it is absolutely a Non-turbo Eclipse with the Dodge Neon motor stock.


Now, I want to tell the truth about myself. I used to be a ricer too.....

[XMDrifter]

that rice isn't as bad as the rice above it

[firebird999]

That's right, those are stock. My bad. He had some sort of similar custom ones before that, but he got in a wreck and one got destroyed, so he just put the stock ones back on so they'd at least match.


And yeah, I agree. Those Eclipses are rice. The 280ZX is not.

But really, this is a bit off topic now. I only posted his car so you could get a feel for his taste and as an example of how low I want mine.

But actually, looking at it from about 100 feet away today, I realized that if I lowered it about 4 inches, it would not only look very close to the ground, but it would still be able to handle [most] speed bumps and leave enough space to keep a smooth ride. So that's my goal as of now.

[Action B]

Its not worth lowering a car in my opinion.

If you do it right it will cost quite a bit. If you don't do it right it will cause terrible tire wear due to camber, make your car handle worse and probably cost you some money in repairs.

That being said, either way a lowered car is a hassle. Lots of shops don't want to put it on lifts due to the potential damage. Even if you think your going to do all your own work I've found that you have to bring the car in for inspections/tires/alignments.

Some tow trucks will refuse to put it on or it will get damaged during the process.

Jacking up your own car is difficult with some jacks.

Your car will likely not have that nice of a ride afterwards and will more than likely be pretty bumpy.

Your about 10 times more likely to damage your "baby" on a speed bump or some road debris accidentally. My eclipse in that above picture got its front bumper broken because I did not see a dip, it was stock height. My Talon got two wheels bent badly due to some small boulders on the highway that were unavoidable due to nighttime and traffic. These things that damaged my car would have done WAY more damage to a lowered car.

So I have to think to myself, is it worth lowering your car? What do you get out of it? Oh yeah you may look cool or whatever but you'd look cooler if you invested your money into a turbo car or kit and had a fat intercooler sitting up in front of your ride. Plus it would be more practical and respectable to me and anyone who finds that performance takes precedence over looks.

This is the car I got to replace that ricey white eclipse I posted above. It cost me a difference of $500 bucks to sell my car and buy this one. Unlike the eclipse, this Talon came with turbo, AWD, power windows and doors. That was 5 years ago and I'm still driving it today @ 175,000 miles.

[GearHeadV8]

^^^ thats sick! are those headlights fogged up?

[Blade.]

Originally Posted by firebird999

I realized that if I lowered it about 4 inches, it would not only look very close to the ground

wtf? Umm.... What do you think lowering is? You lower the chassis, in your case, uni-body to the ground. In both perspectives yes, it makes it look lower to the ground, so does a rice bumper kit.

@ Action-B, that is only when a noob tries and lowers a vehicle. When you do it properly, and are able to do it properly, then you won't get any of those problems with toe, camber, and caster.

However, you are right with the jack part, I had to lift my truck as high as I could to roll the jack under the frame rail.

Here is the ol' girl(I do not own this vehicle anymore, I had given her to my father on fathers day, for a fathers day present.)



Personally, I believe vehicles look good lowered, but that is my own opinion.

However Firebird, cause we all know where this is going, that Z is a ricer, a true non-riced Z would not have that exhaust, and there would be no rust!

Here, I found some items for your Focus though,

http://www.steedafocus.com/

Rice in style with Steeda!





There you go!

Blade.

[firebird999]

Yes, but you're forgetting a few bits about it... The Focus is waaaayy taller than necessary. I admit 4" was a bit exagerrated, but I'm sure 2 or even 3 would cause NO problems of the sort. It would make it about the stock height of an RX7 or Miata.

EDIT: Blade, really? Enough going off topic people. This is not the "Point out why every car in this thread is ricey" thread.

[texan_idiot25]

Originally Posted by firebird999

Yes, but you're forgetting a few bits about it... The Focus is waaaayy taller than necessary. I admit 4" was a bit exagerrated, but I'm sure 2 or even 3 would cause NO problems of the sort. It would make it about the stock height of an RX7 or Miata.

You can't compare different models like that. The RX7 and Miata were designed to be at that ride height, and have fairly sufficient travel at that ride height. However, your Focus was designed to have enough travel at a different ride height, a few inches higher because it's a family sedan. 4 inches is A LOT of drop for a car. Period. It's going to ride stiff, because stiff springs are going to be required to keep the car from bottoming out, which will happen because at that height, the shock has less room to travel, along with all the suspension components as well.

[GearHeadV8]

Just rally it then you dont have to worry about looks cause its gonna be covered with mud!

[XMDrifter]

lol. it's fwd...
4 inches is way too much. 1.5-2 inches lower should be the most you should even go for if you want to keep it intact

[firebird999]

Guys, I've already admitted 4" was exagerrating it. I'm sure I'll only put it down about 2, and certainly no more than 2.5.

[Action B]

Originally Posted by GearHeadV8

^^^ thats sick! are those headlights fogged up?

Yeah, actually I just cleared them about a week ago after seeing how noticeable it was in those photos

Anyhow, its your choice but since its on subject I wouldn't ever lower my car BUT if I did I would do it right which costs quite a lot. Since I can see that your going to do it no matter what we say, which makes me question the thread in general and what significance our input has here, just lower it the right way and don't be surprised when its well over 1000 dollars. You'll need camber correction, new struts, quality drop springs (not coilovers) and probably some other stuff that I don't even know about.

[suicide_star]

1000 dollars? Naw...struts, springs, and an alignment...no more than 600, buying quality stuff. You can get cheaper drop springs and struts for probably around 350.

[Action B]

What about camber correction kits they are like $130 for front only I think back is the same. If you list all the parts needed I think it will cost around a thousand.

[suicide_star]

The Eibach camber kits for my car are 21 for the back and 18 for the front...

[firebird999]

Haha, well alright then. I guess I know which way to approach this now, I think.

[XMDrifter]

drop springs aren't optimal even with camber correction though.
but then again, an optimal setup might not be required for a daily driver. reliable would be a req. though...

[firebird999]

Yes, of course. But yeah, I don't need anything high-end performance wise, as the longest trip I'll likely take this on is just a 150 mile drive into the mountains with my family. On average, it'll only be around town and occasionally to school, which is about 1000 feet from my house.

[2jack3jack]

TBH i'd leave it stock. I got my first 2001 prism lsi the only think I did was put a sticker on the back, I drained all my money in to my good car. Thats what I think you should do