suspension part advise please - Honda Prelude Forum

sixiao · 04-22-2008, 10:35 PM

hi, i know many of you will probably tell me search more..but i really need someone who help me out just right here. my car problem is i had lower springs, dropped...i dont really know because at the time i just told the guy make it looks good. anyways, after it got lowered the car sounds it's gonna fall apart when i hit a pothole or something while driving even the road is a little imperfection. Some people told me it's the upper control arm hitting the fender. But i dont think my car is THAT low, i've seen cars lower then mine and i dont think their cars even like that. So should I change something or really have to rise it up?? I thought my lower springs are good cause it's not bouncy around like some cars with coilovers at all. I think it's lowered 1.75 inches or something, and wheels are 17's. Any advice would be appreciated.

petern101 · 04-22-2008, 10:46 PM

Instead of telling you to search:

Why don't you just jack up the car and check the condition of the setup itself? The springs couldn't be properly seated, your bumpstops are probably gone.

I don't think you've ever ridden in a proper coilovered car to think your lowering springs are better.

Also, when you do take it apart, you could check if the shock/spring combo was put together properly.

TruNinja619 · 04-22-2008, 11:49 PM

^I agree. Jack up the car and check for everything is seated properly and that every nut/bolt is tighten.

sixiao · 04-23-2008, 01:12 AM

ok, thanks guys. i dont even know what bumpstops' are. I guess i'll check that first.

Meanie5470 · 04-23-2008, 06:24 AM

basically blocks of rubber to keep the control arms from making contact with your chassis. Ive never lowered a Prelude but I had to put smaller bumpstops in my truck when I dropped it. Some people just cut them down.

BBYlude · 04-23-2008, 06:43 AM

Check the upper control arm mounting/bushing units. I had some clunking and knocking going on in the rear of my 5th gen (same rear susp. as 4th gen) and once I swapped those pieces out, the clunking/knocking went away significantly . They weren't visibly worn, but with 160k on them, I figured the rubber was shot; I was right. I guess, when you lower the vehicle, the angle of forces on the old bushing material changes, and it begins to fail. I replaced them with camber adjustable units purchased from rockauto.com.

IIRC, your front and rear suspensions both use the upper control arm mounting/bushing units. If you're getting noise from all corners, this might be your fix.