Eibach springs?
 

If I have Eibach springs installed on my 01 Boxster non S, that are stated to lower 1.2" will I need any other aftermarket parts to get my alignment back to factory specs?

thanks for any help, I just got this car and don't know much about it yet and I am new to this forum. I did see lots of suggestions about camber plates, control arms but I do not know if they apply to just lowering 1.2" or not?

I have eibach/bilsteins on mine. I currently have -2.5 and -2.8 rear camber, which is too much. Front camber close enuf @ -0.5. A few aftermarket suppliers sell adjustable toe links which although referred to as "toe links" actually tend to alter camber at the same time. You may be able to get your camber back to oe with these from what I've read here.

There is another problem though. When the car is lowered, the relative angle between the lower control arm and the toe link is not optimum and can cause bump steer. I don't notice the effect on the boxster nearly as much as on a different porsche I had before, probably because the the eibach/bils are firm and there is little travel in the suspension. For this, Tarett sells adjustable toe links with bump steer correction. But, they cost twice as much. And what if you can't get your camber back in spec? That's my current dilemma.

Camber plates and adjustable (GT3) control arms are designed to give you MORE negative camber in the front. This is for racing and is not what you want if you're trying to get to stock specs. You should be able to get to stock specs in the front without too much trouble. The camber in the rear is the main problem. You'll have too much negative camber in the rear and can't really get it adjusted in without the adjustable toe control arm. It's not a huge deal. You'll just have a more aggressive setup in the rear, which will wear out the inside of your tires quicker. If you don't care much about tire wear, then don't worry. If you're worried, then get the adjustable toe arms. The ones from Tarett with bumper steer control are actually cheaper, not more expensive than standard. But be cautious, the bumper steer toe arms won't fit (I suspect) with some wheels - at least that was the experience with one board member and another manufacturer's toe arm with a similar design.

http://www.tarett.com/items/boxster~cayman-products/list.htm

Kirk

Maybe it is my confusion, but the pic for the bump steer toe link shows 1 link, but for the regular toe link it shows both links. It would be nice to get more for less, but I kinda doubt it.

Thanks for all the advise I did not think that 1 1/4 inches lower would cause the need for so many extra parts.

Wow, good catch. You are absolutely right! The text says you need 2 of the bump steer links per car, so that lower price is PER toe arm, not for a pair. The other price for the regular arms is for a pair.


You don't really "NEED" the toe arms. Again, that's only if you're really worried about tire wear. Remember this is just a suggestion if you want things perfect. I think ~95% of the guys lowering their Boxsters are not buying these toe arms. I didn't have them with lowering springs and I don't have them now with coil overs. Mostly if you race a lot, really lower the car with coil overs, and want to get the alignment perfect is when you'd want to have the toe arms.

The one thing you do NEED after you install lowering springs is a four wheel alignment.

Kirk

Lowering a boxster makes it look much better and handle better under hard cornering, but it's far more expensive than the springs and labor to swap them out.

You really do have to install adjustable control arms to correct the misalignment it creates or watch your rear tires wear out every four or five months with daily use of the car.

I must say though, since I lowered my car an inch all the way around and put on the adjustable coilovers and adjustable control arms, I feel like superman behind the wheel. I can fly around corners twice as fast as before with very little body roll.

... and my car looks great too.

eibachs
 

I put the eibachs on my 98 box it seems like it lowered it a lot more then I thought it would ,it was a big change ,I did not use the adjustable toe arms,tires seem okay after 1200 miles ,I do also get a slight bounce now in the front end when hitting bumps ,that I do not like ,the car looks awsome , but if I did it again I think I would leave the stock springs' on it

Randall, you are confusing me. Our cars already have adjustable control arms and toe arms, both of which are adjusted with eccentric bolts. When lowering a car it's hard to adjust the camber because of limited adjustment of the toe. So.... people then buy these Tarett (other brands are available) adjustable toe arms which simply give you a greater range of adjustment. That way you can dial in toe AND get less negative camber.

I assume that when you say you're installing adjustable "control arms" you mean "toe arms", right? I'm asking because there are adjustable control arms for the GT3 which use a shim along with the eccentric bolt to give you MORE negative camber. I guess maybe you could use the GT3 control arms in the rear (I thought they're mostly/only used in the front, but maybe you can use them in the rear on the Box) with minimal shim to get the camber in spec, but this would be a pretty pricey option compared to just using the adjustable toe arms.

Kirk

my car has M030 factory installed. I wonder how aggressive this setup is compared to the various aftermaket suspension options out there?

my car corners very flat and feels amazing - and I test drove a few boxster w/out M030 and I could tell a definite difference. but never drove a car with high quality aftermarket setups..so maybe that is even better....

if/when my stock suspension needs replacing, wonder if i shoudl replace with the same thing I have or go aftermarket......

my setup seems to ride firm, corner great, but not beat me up too bad in normal driving. anyone here have lots of experience with various setups that can offere comparisons from first hand experience/seat time?