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Today we took our little Fiesta out for some spirited driving and wanted; to see how it felt cruising around some cones. I have to say, it felt pretty nimble and a blast to drive. But I will say that it felt like it could use some improvement. We looked around for a bit and decided to throw on a set of the Pro Kit springs from Eibach. We have run these on the shop Focus ST for over a year now with nothing but great things to say about them. They perform well on track day, and they are very easy to live with on a day to day basis. They aren't too stiff and doesn't ride like a wagon.
While we were installing these springs, we documented our installation and wanted to share it with you guys for informational purposes. Keep in mind that If you're not familiar with suspension parts, or spring compression, you probably should take your car to a shop and have them install it. Also, as with any suspension change, be sure to take your car to get an alignment shortly after getting your springs installed. No matter how well you think you have them set up, chances are, they are at least a little whacky.
Here's a blurb from Eibach about them:
The Eibach Pro-Kit precisely lowers your car's center of gravity, reducing squat during acceleration, body roll in corners and excessive nose-dive under braking. When combined with Plus-1 or Plus-2 wheels and tires, the Eibach Pro-Kit is the finishing touch to a winning recipe for performance. Pro-Kit also reduces excessive fender-well clearance, making your car look just as hot as it performs.
Here are some technical specifications:
Mfgr. Warranty: Million Mile
Adjustable: No
Drop Height Front: .8 in
Drop Height Rear: .7 in
Drop Height Front Metric: 20mm
Drop Height Rear Metric: 18mm
For more information, click here: http://www.rallysportdirect.com/Eibach-35143-140-Pro-Kit-Lowering-Springs&src=8u25kjc9
Here's a picture of the springs waiting to get installed, you can see this is a very simple, basic kit so you won't have to worry about changing bump stops, or any other suspension parts.
For a quick over view of what we need to take off, here's a shot of the bolts and nuts and clips we need to remove that are behind the tire/wheel. These are all pretty easy to remove. Don't let it intimidate you! We don't have a picture of it, but we marked the top hat and strut tower for reference for re-installing the strut. This is a good time to do this so you know what direction the top hat needs to be when re-installing the struts.
Here are the three strut tower upper nuts that need to come off on the passenger side
And these are the bolts on the driver's side. Note: you have to move the master cylinder reservoir out of the way to get to these bolts. There are 2 10 mm bolts holding it on.
Now we have room to get to the 3 13 mm bolts behind the reservoir.
Now that we have those loose, we can move on to the fender well, we took the end link loose first. We used our impact to break it loose and had to grab our 3/16 allen wrench to hold the stud while using our 15 mm wrench to get it off all the way.
Now there is a rubber grommet holding the abs line in place, as well as a zip tie, just pull the rubber grommet out of the sleeve, and cut the zip tie and it will be free.
Holding the brake line in place is a 10 mm bolt through a bracket on the side of the strut, simply remove the bolt and the brake line will be loose.
Next we'll get the bolts that hold the strut to the spindle on removed. These are a little odd, as the head is a 15 mm and the nut is an 18 mm. We marked the bolts and strut and spindle so we could get the strut as close to factory specs as we could before taking it to get the alignment done. This isn't perfect, we still need to align the car, but this is a way you can get it close enough not to cause too much damage on the way to the alignment shop.
http://rallysportdirect.smugmug.com/Other/Eibach-pro-kit/i-qpbHpvR/0/O/IMG_0883.jpg[/img
[img] http://rallysportdirect.smugmug.com/Other/Eibach-pro-kit/i-8wXs8Pt/0/O/IMG_0880.jpg
Now that we have them marked, we can remove them.
Then we can slide the strut out of the top hat and slide it down and out. The brake like will be in the way slightly, just hold it back as you slide it out.
You will need a spring compressor to perform the next step; you can rent them from your local auto parts store. Place them on opposite side of the spring and try to compress as many as you can. Tighten the bolts down to compress the spring.
Next we will need to remove the top hat nut. It's an 18 mm, we took our impact and zipped it off, it came right off, you can get it off whatever way you find easiest.
Remove the top hat
Slide the dust boot out. (the bump stop will likely come out with it.
Now the spring will come off of the strut.
Here's a look at the stock springs vs. the Eibach spring. They appear close in size, but the secret is in the spring rates that gives you the ride height.
We have to compress the Eibach springs before putting them on the strut, so take your spring compressor and clamp down on the Eibach spring
Once you get the spring on the strut, re-assemble the strut in reverse of the disassembly, and then you can put it back on the car in reverse of the removal.
Moving on to the rear, here's a look at how it's set up, this was the easiest spring installation I have ever done, there are 2 bolts holding the shocks in place, remove them, and the spring will pull right out.
They are a 15 mm bolt, just take them out and the shows will pull out as the rear suspension drops down
You'll have to wiggle the spring just a little bit and it will pull right out.
Now we can slide the Eibach springs in place, making sure that the spring sits in the seats like this
This looks a little odd (like the spring isn't in the right spot) but it is correct, once you jack the suspension back up it will look normal
Jack up the rear axle and replace the bolts in both shocks and you're done! See the rears really were just as simple as can be.
Now you can go out and drive it around a little bit to get the springs to settle, they will settle just slightly over time, but here's what it looks like fresh off the lift.
Next we will be taking it to the alignment shop, then take it to the track for some fun! Stay tuned, as we are just getting started with this project! Thanks for reading.
Hope this helps
Corby
While we were installing these springs, we documented our installation and wanted to share it with you guys for informational purposes. Keep in mind that If you're not familiar with suspension parts, or spring compression, you probably should take your car to a shop and have them install it. Also, as with any suspension change, be sure to take your car to get an alignment shortly after getting your springs installed. No matter how well you think you have them set up, chances are, they are at least a little whacky.
Here's a blurb from Eibach about them:
The Eibach Pro-Kit precisely lowers your car's center of gravity, reducing squat during acceleration, body roll in corners and excessive nose-dive under braking. When combined with Plus-1 or Plus-2 wheels and tires, the Eibach Pro-Kit is the finishing touch to a winning recipe for performance. Pro-Kit also reduces excessive fender-well clearance, making your car look just as hot as it performs.
Here are some technical specifications:
Mfgr. Warranty: Million Mile
Adjustable: No
Drop Height Front: .8 in
Drop Height Rear: .7 in
Drop Height Front Metric: 20mm
Drop Height Rear Metric: 18mm
For more information, click here: http://www.rallysportdirect.com/Eibach-35143-140-Pro-Kit-Lowering-Springs&src=8u25kjc9
Here's a picture of the springs waiting to get installed, you can see this is a very simple, basic kit so you won't have to worry about changing bump stops, or any other suspension parts.
For a quick over view of what we need to take off, here's a shot of the bolts and nuts and clips we need to remove that are behind the tire/wheel. These are all pretty easy to remove. Don't let it intimidate you! We don't have a picture of it, but we marked the top hat and strut tower for reference for re-installing the strut. This is a good time to do this so you know what direction the top hat needs to be when re-installing the struts.
Here are the three strut tower upper nuts that need to come off on the passenger side
And these are the bolts on the driver's side. Note: you have to move the master cylinder reservoir out of the way to get to these bolts. There are 2 10 mm bolts holding it on.
Now we have room to get to the 3 13 mm bolts behind the reservoir.
Now that we have those loose, we can move on to the fender well, we took the end link loose first. We used our impact to break it loose and had to grab our 3/16 allen wrench to hold the stud while using our 15 mm wrench to get it off all the way.
Now there is a rubber grommet holding the abs line in place, as well as a zip tie, just pull the rubber grommet out of the sleeve, and cut the zip tie and it will be free.
Holding the brake line in place is a 10 mm bolt through a bracket on the side of the strut, simply remove the bolt and the brake line will be loose.
Next we'll get the bolts that hold the strut to the spindle on removed. These are a little odd, as the head is a 15 mm and the nut is an 18 mm. We marked the bolts and strut and spindle so we could get the strut as close to factory specs as we could before taking it to get the alignment done. This isn't perfect, we still need to align the car, but this is a way you can get it close enough not to cause too much damage on the way to the alignment shop.
http://rallysportdirect.smugmug.com/Other/Eibach-pro-kit/i-qpbHpvR/0/O/IMG_0883.jpg[/img
[img] http://rallysportdirect.smugmug.com/Other/Eibach-pro-kit/i-8wXs8Pt/0/O/IMG_0880.jpg
Now that we have them marked, we can remove them.
Then we can slide the strut out of the top hat and slide it down and out. The brake like will be in the way slightly, just hold it back as you slide it out.
You will need a spring compressor to perform the next step; you can rent them from your local auto parts store. Place them on opposite side of the spring and try to compress as many as you can. Tighten the bolts down to compress the spring.
Next we will need to remove the top hat nut. It's an 18 mm, we took our impact and zipped it off, it came right off, you can get it off whatever way you find easiest.
Remove the top hat
Slide the dust boot out. (the bump stop will likely come out with it.
Now the spring will come off of the strut.
Here's a look at the stock springs vs. the Eibach spring. They appear close in size, but the secret is in the spring rates that gives you the ride height.
We have to compress the Eibach springs before putting them on the strut, so take your spring compressor and clamp down on the Eibach spring
Once you get the spring on the strut, re-assemble the strut in reverse of the disassembly, and then you can put it back on the car in reverse of the removal.
Moving on to the rear, here's a look at how it's set up, this was the easiest spring installation I have ever done, there are 2 bolts holding the shocks in place, remove them, and the spring will pull right out.
They are a 15 mm bolt, just take them out and the shows will pull out as the rear suspension drops down
You'll have to wiggle the spring just a little bit and it will pull right out.
Now we can slide the Eibach springs in place, making sure that the spring sits in the seats like this
This looks a little odd (like the spring isn't in the right spot) but it is correct, once you jack the suspension back up it will look normal
Jack up the rear axle and replace the bolts in both shocks and you're done! See the rears really were just as simple as can be.
Now you can go out and drive it around a little bit to get the springs to settle, they will settle just slightly over time, but here's what it looks like fresh off the lift.
Next we will be taking it to the alignment shop, then take it to the track for some fun! Stay tuned, as we are just getting started with this project! Thanks for reading.
Hope this helps
Corby
