http://www.ebay.com/itm/90-93-94-99-TOYOTA...r#ht_4134wt_952


How/why can you make something that works for so cheap? Discuss e-Bay springs!

Why cheap out when you can get a set of known to perform, brand name springs, for less than 100 bucks more?

I'm not considering to cheap out, but really think about it. If these are simply a different design and offer the same looks/performance as a spring worth $100 more, why would you buy x-brand spring? The only reason I could think of is brand loyalty.

I mean, back a couple of years ago they used to piss on Megan Racing, and they've proven themselves good.

love the mexican flag and the tacos tacos

Superior materials, craftsmanship, and design with the name brands. The eBay springs might be ok, but why risk it? Get what is known to be good and save the trouble.

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He is actually a well-renown person in the MR2 scene. Being a Mexican seller proud of his country says nothing about it.

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There isn't a rocket science to making springs. Even the "top brand" manufacturers have different ways of making each of theirs. If there was a sure-way of making the same thing, all manufacturers would sell the same product. These springs just have a different design to what is commonly used.

I was just initially asking if there is a risk in the design of those springs I linked to. What I mean is, what are the benefits and/or downsides of so many dead coils. I've read their purpose is to act as a spacer of some kind, similar to what a helper spring does in, for example, a coilover setup.

As far as craftsmanship, all spring-making processes are basically fully mechanical. Little human labor is involved.

I don't mean to come off as anything else than a person with questions.

They don't have the stiffness of the springs listed, probably will have to send an e-mail to find out. Yes there's little human labour involved, but I'm sure the machinery used by Tein and Tanabe is better. Better quality control and testing, that and they've been making springs for some time now. If there are two places not to go cheap with on a car it's suspension and brakes, don't want to compromise the safety of the vehicle. eBay springs should be fine, but I personally wouldn't use them. I'm just leery of the no name brands on eBay.

Because no one knows for sure how cheap springs perform and even if they were from the same parts bin as quality known springs how do we know that, are you willing to test, and risk your money, i guess the final answer relies on you getting it and trying it for yourself, thats what I do if no one has tried it. sometimes we dont know if they even fit correctly or live up to expectations. Do i recommend unknown stuff, no on behalf of most people, personally i like to try anything depending on good research review and reputation. its Your call buying unknown vs Buying whats known to work because times are tuff and times are waste, LOL.

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they are made with ****ty materials that are likely to deform over time. they're also known to be too soft which can be led back to poor design (crappy material selection & manufacturing processes as already mentioned). also, ebay springs aren't likely put into any endurance testing and product failure sampling since that requires expensive machinery and extra company resources. this is all just speculation, not sure what exactly goes on in those spring factories in china. springs hold up the static weight of the car and also allow suspension travel when going over bumps but if they sag over time or compress beyond allowable suspension travel tolerances, then it could lead to blown struts, tire rubbing, body bottoming out, and poor ride quality.


How Eibach Springs Are Made >>(9:23)>>

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That's the thing. All that is said against them is really speculation.

They're also not forthcoming with how the springs are made like Tein etc... You can go to Tein's site now and read how they go about making and testing their products. If you're willing to risk buying eBay springs, then do it. If they work for you, then great. For all we know the eBay springs and Megan, or other Chinese made springs, could be the same thing.

This post has been edited by Box: Jun 27, 2012 - 2:29 PM

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I have not heard of him - he is not big in the MR2 scene.

not sure if you're considering buying these springs or not, but if you are, then go for it. be sure to let us know how these work out for you and give us a detailed comparison between these and a well-known lowering spring manufacturer like tein, eibach, tanabe, etc.
if we can't get any concrete info on how ebay springs are made, everything is just speculation, therefore there is nothing to discuss.
/thread

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And all that's said for them is speculation.

You might get value for money. You might not. People pay more for a brand name because the name is an assurance of some level of quality. They're not paying for the name -- well, the smart people aren't -- they're paying for the risk avoidance.

Given we're talking about something that would likely cause an accident if it fails, and will cause great discomfort if it's crap, people pay more to be sure they'll get a product that is up to the specification.

This kind of thing happens on eBay all the time:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/90-99-Toyota-Celic...=item3f129abc80

If you do a search, you'll know what I mean. Their MKI MR2 springs are quite interesting.

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IMO, cold-wound, SAE-grade steel is the same, eBay spring or not. My OP has a type of spring I've never seen used for our cars before, with a ton of dead coils acting as a spacer. I'm interested in more information as to why they chose to use that design rather than a design like Tein/Eibach which have much less/no dead coils.




This post has been edited by Syaoran: Jun 27, 2012 - 10:52 PM

normally, you would go for certain products if it were the ONLY option but in this case, 6gcs have no problem with aftermarket lowering support between coilovers and springs.

To answer your question, that many dead springs = annoying noise that happens after about 2000 miles when the "coating" on the outside starts to wear down and the spring starts rattling together. That spring will also most likely sag more because it seems that they are using less tension than say, Eibach's.

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If coilovers weren't so expensive, I'd consider it. But a full set of coilovers right now would cost me more than the car itself.


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Thanks. Is there any particular reason that design would be chosen over most other springs who use the same design? I imagine price wouldn't be the reason as a lot more material would be needed to manufacture them.

The major thing I would be worried about is the 1.4" drop.

Just get some new endlinks for your car haha
I replaced the rears in mine with the miata ones. It use to be a 4 finger gap, now it's about a 2 finger gap, and I hardly rub as much anymore too

I think he was referring to not be low enough haha

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Actually coilovers arent that bad, they range between 800-1000 shipped.

Given the fact if you plan to drop with good springs that would run you roughly 200 dollars plus up to 400-600 dollars worth of decent to good shocks, that would put you in or near the coilover range. not only that you may need to change your top mounts as well x 4. plus you gotta pay for shipping somewhere in there. and with spring drop, you still never get that full remove and replace deal, you gotta disassemble/reassemble and never get full adjustability. Trust me, i went through two lowering spring setups, TRD and Intrax, and ended up going coilovers, imagine if i just spent the money in the first place, I wouldn't have spent on shocks and springs in the first place, cus they lacked the adjustability, i was never satisfied.

A car is not about making sure parts are always less than the car, #1 its always impractical to put aftermarket parts on your car, period. if that is the case, you should not plan on putting any more parts on your car cus it will just add up and be more than the cost of the car anyway. it does not help at all that our cars are old too. if you are into the car and fixing it up, that should not be your mindset, it should be because you want to fix it up, plus you gotta pay to play anyway.

This post has been edited by trdproven: Jun 29, 2012 - 10:16 PM

^ I can vouch for this Coilovers>Springs statement.
I wish I would have gotten coilovers.

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The car cost me ~$1300, so $1000 in just suspension would be cutting it. I don't plan on tracking the car, just daily driving it. I don't need performance shocks, just OEM replacements with some springs (TRD, Tein, Megan Racing, Eibach etc.) that will work with OE Replacement shocks, like KYB and Monroe, both of which I can get locally for decent prices.

Right now the car needs a whole suspension overhaul, and ~$150 in springs, ~$200 in struts, ~$50 in endlinks won't run more than $600. I'd rather spend more in the car in mods than fixes. (e.g. turbo setup, than suspension work) It's not like the stock suspension setup is bad. I'm just looking for stock + mild drop. The streets here don't let me go down past 1.5" anyways.

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your logic is flawed everywhere. you dont need anything at all other than to put gas in your car and enjoy it as it is. springs wont give you anything positive handling wise, and if you cant afford a set of coilovers then you cant afford a turbo, or an ecu and even if you did, you'll only serve to increase your power and decrease your handling. well done.

I can see where your coming from, but in my opinion, adding coiloevers would be modding and fixing.
Don't forget with lowering speings you will mos tlikely need new top mounts as well.

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See, that's the problem. You think that if I don't want to buy coilovers it is because I can't afford them. I haven't said I can't buy them, I just said I'd rather not. I'm not looking to IMPROVE anything, I'm looking to fix what's broken. All my struts are bad, my endlinks are bad and my front springs were heated by the previous owner. My car is already plugged to an EMS (MS-II) and I already have a wideband, too.

For daily driving, most coilovers will rattle my teeth out, so I'd rather an oem-like ride, with a sporty drop. It's not like BMWs come with a 3" drop, they come with a low-enough ride height to be sporty and comfortable at the same time. That's what I want, not a track setup on the ****ty streets of Puerto Rico.



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Adding coilovers is too expensive ATM, for what my needs are. While one might think that I will end up paying about the same for a well-done spring setup as a Coilover setup, in reality the long term fact is that when coilovers go bad (and they WILL in my roads) I'll have to buy a brand new set because most are not serviceable. The ones that are, are way too expensive to do so. I would rather spend money on Bilstein/Koni struts/Ground Control coils than any cheaper coilover set.

sounds like you still want to mod not so much fix given that the stuff you want to put on are not all repairs. who said coilovers dont have OEM ride quality, you need to wake up or take a ride in both my 6th gen and 7th gen celicas who have different brands and see how far coilovers have come. Coilover sleeves are all in the past, its full coilovers now.

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In relation to suspension, I only want to fix. I don't know where you are getting from that I want to "mod". Coilovers really are not for me. They're really cool while they're not broken.

i thought you just mentioned: I'd rather spend more in the car in mods than fixes. (e.g. turbo setup, than suspension work)

if you want to get your suspension over and done with with no price in mind, just get KYB shocks, get TRD, TEIN, Or INTRAX Springs, bump stops, and possibly top mounts/bearings, and just do it. thats all.

I really don't think you get the idea about how coilovers are today, there are no cons to getting coilovers. They are fully rebuildable, custom, and can utilize some parts from other brands. the spring/shock combo is hell, like many people here, get install problems, parts wearing, disassemble reassemble, no adjustability, etc. I went through two lowering spring set ups already, TRD and Intrax, which are not bad, but ultimately I wished I should've gotten coilovers the first time. I was thinking i don't need coilovers, I think the lowering springs is okay, i'd rather spend my money on other mods, but I was wrong, I ended up getting coilovers, i wish I could've save me the install times, the parts bought, the time wasted, the money wasted.

but again like i said, if you want lowering springs just get the setup i mentioned, might cost 500-600 dollar range total for all those parts (which is close to coilovers) but at least its a simple decision.

This post has been edited by trdproven: Jul 1, 2012 - 5:45 PM