I have got mutliple question involving the LS400 since alot of people have lowered it...

First off... I have KYB on my car right now with stock springs and was thinking of going with H&R instead of Eibach, because I heard its a better combination..

Second, what is the deal with teh wheel camber being off and the tires falling out slightly? I heard I need a camber (sp?) kit to fix this problem, but since I am an everyday driver.. I will need to buy tires every 6 months becasue the whole lowering thing will kill my tire life..

Am I wrong here? I need major help and advice from all those who have lowered their LS's

 

Yeah, I've head from a couple people that H&R's are a 'lil better...they're certainly more expensive than Eibachs.

If you're lowering your car with just springs, it's going to cause a little negative camber, but it shouldn't be anything a wheel alignment won't fix. Actually, the only thing you can do to try to fix negative camber issues is a wheel alignment, since there aren't any camber kits available (that I know of) for the 1st gen LS. A 'lil negative camber won't hurt as much, but should give you some better handling around corners. My LS is lowered on coilovers right now and my wheels are slightly butterflied, I'm thinking about taking it to the shop to get the wheels aligned soon...I'll let you know if there's any change in camber as soon as I get it done.

 

Like B said, there is no camber kit for LS400. The good news is the camber problem can be fix by just doing the alignment(H&R or Eibach only.) My 93 LS is running on H&R with KYB and my cambers are fine except the left rear which I think the suspension is bent and the shop couldn't bring the camber within the specs.

 

so how often are you guys getting your tires? because i heard this camber effect will drastically shorten tire life..

also.. how often is the camber misaligned?

 

With a conservative 1" drop, you should not have much problem with negative camber. The UCF20/21 have camber adjustment, I just don't know how much. On the UCF10/11?

On a past Toyota, I had -1/2 up front and -3 in the rear, best tire lasted me 28K but I typically was in for tires every 10-12K and that was with a remount to swap left to right on directional tires. At about 6K miles, you can see the effects. On a softer compound typical of the hi-po low profiles, it can be gone in a matter of months depending how you drive.

A car that handles begs to be driven though.

 

dosnt the LS400 come stock with a front camber correction kit? i know that sounds odd, but i lowered mine and a friend of mine just worked on it for a little bit and had the camber perfect.

 

well i got one of those 3 year alignment packages with express tire...

so if i go in every month or so and get my tires rotated and suspension aligneed.. I should expect normal tire wear correct?

I just dont want to spend money oin springs and get the shaft every 6 months for tires

 

LS400's camber is adjustable but only to certain degree. If your cambers are off by too many degrees(if you SLAM your ride,) than there is nothing else can bring the cambers back within the specs.

 

I had my last set of NITTO NT555 245-35-20 for 40,000 miles while my LS was lowered the whole time. I don't think the tire wear will be that bad, unless you drop your car very low.
Depends on the way you drive, if you drive very carefully and avoid as mamy potholes as you can,don't hit any curbs then you'll only need to do alignment once every 6 months to a year.

 

well i shouldnt have a problem with that then.. I aint that crazy of a driver.. after all it is a flagship :-)

But Lonely.... how is the KYB and H&R setup? Many people claim with other vehicle who have the same setup, say the car tends to bounce alot and your butt will get numb eventually

 

has anyone tried the KYB and Eibach combo?

 

You might wanna consider Bilstein shocks....haven't heard any negative feedback on them yet.

 

the thing is i already got KYBs installed

 

Just got back from a suspension shop for a second opinion about my suspension:

Problems:
Lower Ball Joints need replacement
Upper Ball Joints need replacement

Parts:
Lower Ball Joints: $ 116.94 x 2
Upper Ball Joints: $ 414.40 x 2

Labor:
Lower Ball Joints: $ 140.00
Upper Ball Joints: $ 294.00

I guess the mechanic suggested not to get Polyurethane bushings because they are way too stiff and tend to squeek no matter what you do to them

Also the upper ball joints he said he has to replace the entire control arm because they dont make seperate upper ball joints, however they do for the lower

Does this estimate seem right?

 

Persian-

Ouch! I guess this is the dues for a multi-link suspension.

How many miles on yours? This way I can plan when I have to change mine.