Lowest Drop?

[SkateForLife86]

Does anyone know which set of springs will drop a 03' Base Vibe the lowest? Drop numbers would be greatly appreciated.thanks every single one of you

[scherry2]

mine dropped 2.25 to 2.50 they are Tein springs

[MadBill]

I don't think there are any spring-only kits that drop more than ~ 2-1/2". For anything more you would need coilovers, which can be adjusted to 3" or more drop and equally important, can be cranked back up to something more practical when the thrill wears off. I had a set of Tein S springs too and it gave a great look, but my fat tires (275/40 x 17") scuffed quite a bit. I could only get away with a 1-1/4" drop, which looks like stock height to anyone not familiar with the Vibe.

[Stang2Vibe]

Well MadBill, let me run this by you. Do you think I could get away with putting on my 245/45/17's with a Ground Control coil-over drop? Like you said, they can be height adjusted so if I lower the car too much with the big tires on and they rub, I can always raise it up a bit to try and correct it. I would have the benefit of dialing in the ride height that will fit and have springs/shocks that are better than stock. Anyone know if the GC coilovers use the stock shocks or are new ones included in the kit? Thanks everyone!

[Sub-Vibe-R]

Quote, originally posted by Stang2Vibe »Anyone know if the GC coilovers use the stock shocks or are new ones included in the kit? Thanks everyone!As far as I know, only Tein make coil over with strut included and they are very expensive ($1300).All other coil over kit does not include strut shock and you can get a kit for arounf $300-$350 on e-bay.

[MadBill]

Hi Stang.I think with my 275/40 x 17s I could get away with 1/4" to 1/2" more drop in the front, say 1-1/2 to 1-3/4" total, and with just a slight trim of the inner edge of the fender lip at the top, likely 2" on the rear; so your 245s should be good for at least 2" front and more rear, as long as the wheel offset is high enough to tuck them in really tight to the struts/inner fender wells (mine clear by only ~ 3/8", and have never touched here, even in hard cornering over bumps.) (Uh oh! I hope coilovers don't eat into this clearance!) As you say, the big plus with the coilovers is that you can fine tune the height as required. Not only could you raise the clearance for the winter (assuming The Big Pencil* gets enough snow to worry about) ,you could even crank it up if you were say, going on a camping trip with three friends and a ton of gear.I'd say spring for the rims of your dreams. pop on your 245s and see what you can do. The worst that can happen is that your drop will be a bit limited and you'll have to burn them off ASAP so's you can replace them with a size smaller and slam the Vibe a bunch further... *(explanation on request)