chezgk

​​​Hi @nxnewbie ! Glad you like what you've read so far. The FWD and AWD NXs do indeed use the same suspension system. This system is identical with the XA40 2013-2018 RAV4s and the XU60 2013-2018 Toyota Harriers.

Unsprung weight wasn't really an issue when I decided to move from 9.5 to 8.5 width wheels. I do not think I am skilled enough to sense a ~1.5 kg difference on each corner. I decided to make the change since 9.5 width wheels are half an inch over the maximum wheel width prescribed by tire manufacturers for the 255/55R18 size. I just couldn't shake the feeling of risk whenever I send the vehicle around corners - kind of like having a knife hanging over my bed. With front camber set to -1.5* and steering axis inclination increased by the Hardrace parts discussed here, the new +25 offset wheels also yielded a scrub radius closer to that of the factory's 0-0.25* camber and +35 offset setup.

If I were chasing aesthetics, I totally would have gone the coilover route. Overlowering sacrifices the camber curve, steering response, and roll center geometries, unfortunately. I also live in a third world country where our nicer city roads are equivalent to what's deemed horrible in developed countries like the US and yours. Coilovers sacrifice the stroke length of the suspension, deeming it rather impractical for our roads.

By going the aftermarket strut route, travel length of my suspension was preserved. Sitting at a stock-ish ride height and at -1.5* camber also yields a camber curve that keeps the tire contact patch as flat to the road as possible during aggressive cornering and allows the vehicle to corner harder than an overlowered one could.

The only con I could think of with regards to the monotube Bilstein B6s is the rather harsh ride (though probably still better than that of monotube coilovers') over roads like ours. The high internal gas pressure that allows fade-free performance results in dampers that need 40-ish lbs of force to start moving. If I would redo this, I'd use the more civil twin-tube Bilstein B4s instead, maybe even stick with the factory front AVS struts (the rear AVS dampers are hopeless). Heck, maybe I'd do the latter soon.

That said, the B6s' cornering performance over uneven pavement is unmatched by the factory AVS struts. Where the factory suspension would wallow and cause momentary slips, the B6 setup just invites you to corner harder. It's all a matter of balancing comfort with performance and knowing where you draw the line. The older I get, the more I lean to the former.

I hope I was able to answer your question well. Please feel free to ask should you have anything else in mind. Cheers

chezgk

Worth adding that this active bump stop system is an easy, low-cost fix for the handling. There are some 3 or 4 of us in this site running this setup now, maybe even more. I'd recommend it over a rear sway bar, since it stays "floating" when you're not cornering and won't influence vehicle response over asymmetric bumps.