Hi,

I have a 07 model of the 1st gen. I recently noticed, that my rear is much lower then my front. It looks like at the rear are lowering springs and at the front oem springs.

I put some photos about :

front suspension :



distance to the fender at rear


distance to the fender at front


front distance from bottom


rear distance


rear below the exhaust tube


wheel rear


wheel front


the 'measuring tool' is about 4 1/2 inch high (11cm)

is this normal ?? or will i need new springs in the back ?
Or is it just enough to loosen the front suspension a bit and then tighten again ?

thanks in advance

 

what year is your car? Have you had it since 07, and just noticing??

The stock suspension has the fronts raised higher than the rear.

 

Hi its a 2007 i bought it new. But is it really that much lower in the back ?? I wonder because most rx8 i've seen don't have it

 

The distance in the front is a minimum of 0.3" higher than the rear and it can be more. However, don't assume that the front and rear fender lips are at the same height on the body.

You can see the height range in the alignment section at the end of this service manual section link, but they measure from the center of the wheel hub to the fender lip.

http://www.williamperrine.com/RX_8_M...Suspension.pdf


The RX-8 also has high gas pressure monotube shocks from the factory. If your rear shocks lost their gas pressure this will lower the ride height a bit. If you have more than 50,000 miles on them they should all be replaced, but I personally would replace OE shocks at 30,000 miles. Most people never bother to change shocks and fail to realize how bad they get because the change is gradual.

 

Ps: extra weight in the rear/trunk; stereo equipment/speakers etc will also affect rear ride height because the OE springs have a very soft rate

 

thanks team,

the car has 35 418 miles on (approximatly). The audio equipment is ligh a small 10 inch woofer an an amp - finished. the tunk is always empty.

Whats about the front rubber bearing ? its a little bit twisted (as some cars with springs have).
Is it possible, that the front is 'too high' ?

I also plan to replace the oem shocks by the bilstein B6 sport shocks.

br,
EdFred

 

Ok i found out, that these are the upper control arm bolts. I'll loosing them a bit, so that the car can settle in the front. ( I think the springs settle during time)

Hope that will fix it.

Other : did anyone have experience in the Bilstein B6 Shocks ? will they 'raise' the car a little bit due to a higher spring plate ?

 

They are also high gas pressure monotube shocks so the car will sit up. This is why most people report a slight drop with the Koni low pressure shocks. Taking the control arm bolts loose likely won't do anything unless your front end was taken apart some time in the past.

Did you make any measurements using the Mazda method from the center hub?

 

ok, i have to measure the way you told. I haven't found time to do, due to some business stress.

br,
EdFred

 

ok, i measured today :

from floor to fender lip :
rear : 25,79 inches
front : 27,24 inches

from wheel center to fender lip :
rear : 13,97 inches
front : 15,35 inches

so this is a 1,4 inches difference ! I think something is wrong in the rear, either the springs are worn out or the shocks are down.

 

Nope that sounds about right... I'll take a look at my measurements when I get home I took of mine before I lowered it.

 

as i browsed the suspension info from mazda about the ride height, the numbers for the rear are out of scope. So there exist no setting for this height and this leads me to the fact, that this is not ok.

but i'm waiting for your numbers too

br,
EdFred

 

I seem to have misplaced that piece of paper in my garage somewhere so maybe someone else can help you out. But I do know my rear sat lower than my front. I'll keep looking.

 

Found it! Front 15" rear 14.5" so maybe you are off in the rear a bit could be your subs though

 

yes, my rear is far too low. its about 0,6'' inch lower then yours and my front is 0,4'' higher then yours.

so the difference is noticalbe (1,4 compared to 0,5 inches).
Can the new rear shocks cause the rear to go up an inch maybe ? is that possible ? normally, shocks with higher pressure should support the springs better, so the new balance point should move upwards.

 

What I'm saying is depending on how much your system in the trunk weighs and how close to or how far behind the rear axel it is it will push the rear down and lift the front. That doesn't seem odd to me at all.

Its all about the RATIO lol. Where are you located? If your close by me I could let you test fit my stock rears but I don't want to get rid of them.

Or if it really bugs you that much take them to get them Dynoed that will give you your answer.

 

the system in the trunk is not very heavy, also the trunk is normally empty (i use a small 10'' woofer and an 2-channel amp, finished).

The ratio is it what it makes so strange to look at. Unortunatly, I'm Austria, so a drive-by seems to take a longer trip

I have already bought new shocks, but haven't found time to build in them.
Also i thought about new springs with a decent 0,8'' to 1 '' drop.
Not more due to the laws here in austria, we need 4.5'' distane from the bottom of the car to the street (lowest point).
Also, every damnd part on the car needs a security certificate, that it is safe to use the part on this car type.

So I looked to keep the stock spring and a possibility to getrid of the updriving look.

br,
EdFred

 

oh ok I was under the impression that you measured it with the sub in the car..

Yea I don't think a test fit would work haha.
Good luck with the install! Its not too bad at all but another set of hands on the rear helps.

 

Thanks, i will install them in spring next year. During winter, the car stands in my garage place, waiting for the sun comes out.