Installed my Eibach Springs: photos and initial notes

I finally had time to install my springs yesterday. Like the others, the rear is a breeze, but the front is a bit more time consuming. Eibach states a 1.2" drop in the front and 0.8" in the rear. Based upon my before and after measurements, I dropped 1.0" in the front and 1.0" in the rear. It has a slight rake to the front. It definitely changed the stance of the car and the tires really fit well now into the fenders. Thus far I am loving it!

Before the Eibach kit:




After Eibach kit install:

 

Glad to see you could pick that up...attention to detail! Needed to flip the photo so the before/after shots were similar.

 

thank you sir...would like to but honestly I have spent enough already, lol.

 

lol...great minds think alike!

 

I added a strip of black vinyl across the windshield. The guys did a good job...it actually looks like it came from the factory that way.



Then I had the decal shop also stretch out and print a vinyl Eibach logo which was placed on the inside opposite to the black strip. I like the logos...but do not want to give up a clean exterior look.

 

Finally found all of my measurements. By adding the wheels and tires...the car was raised approximately one quarter inch. With the Eibach kit...it was lowered down one inch so the overall lowering of the car was about three quarters of an inch. Today was the first true test as I have to drive over 8 speed bumps just getting into work. All of varying heights and I did not have any issues on any of them. However I am taking it quite easy and not allowing the car to drop and bounce. Only actual place I have scrapped was the parking blocks found in any parking lot...but it was just enough to graze the black portion of the front bumper which is fine with me.

The ride is awesome...still quite a bit of body roll, lets see how long I can hold out on additional mods. No signs of any fender rubs with the 45mm offset rims. The MPG is still holding in the 46 arena...which is fine for me. I am a bit of a hypermiler...but I have also noticed that this car "appears" to respond quite well to tucking behind another car.

 

Sorry...posting error. They are 45mm offset. What signs are you getting of the rubbing? Vibration in the wheel? Audible feedback? marks on the tires? I have not experienced any...yet. Are you seeing it under normal driving conditions or...let´s call it "advanced" driving?

 

Gotcha. My rims have the same appearance. Very tucked in the rear but nearly sticking out in the front. I was entertaining the idea of a spacer in the rear...but to be honest I think the appearance gain is minimal and I do not want the rears to stick out any more potentially creating drag.

As of right now when I take a corner aggressively which by the way I do on purpose to save speed..haha , the car hooks as I would expect...but I feel there is not enough rubber on the road. Of course then we go back to the "this is a Prius you dummy...not a Porsche" mental thought process. Point is I would lean towards a 7.5" rim/45mm offset with 225 tires vs a 7" rim/40mm with 205 tires. I am sure there is some measurement difference in long term MPG...but to be honest the more I drive my car, the more I love the sports car like handling with hybrid level mileage. I am a fan of a bit more rubber on the road.

 

Good information! When you talk about handling...are you talking about ride quality or performance handling or both? For me, I guess I will never know unless I friend up with a local with a 205 set and do a swap. I had 225/40's on my MR2...well I guess there is no comparing the MR2 to the Pri as you know I guess I will just have to compensate with some bars...I think that will help a lot. I think the only thing stopping me from cornering faster now is myself. I am still not feeling 100% comfortable behind the wheel with only about 800 miles under my belt (and the blind spots bother me still). I know exactly what my truck can and cannot do...got to figure that out in the Pri. By the way, I have discovered another reason not to put a spacer on the rears. I have to drive through some poorly setup lawn sprinklers every morning. I think the rears being a little tucked may keep down on the water up on the side of the car. Well, those are my excuses...lol.

Either way, this car is a joy to drive with the rims/tires/springs combo!