me neither, but I guess I'll find out hehehehe.

 

I've got the Eibach Sportline spring (2.0"drop frt&rr) and the ride is way better than stock!

 

How so? Do you mean better handing? I don't understand how the ride quality can improve with stiffer springs and less suspension travel.

 

Within a few weeks of taking my xA home from the dealership, I had installed TRD Springs on it. That gave me a chance to compare the stock ride to the lowered ride: it is rough either way. I suppose the handling is better with the 1" drop, but it's the short wheelbase rather than the springs that makes this little car a bucker.

The look of the 1" TRD drop suits me just fine. It sits down off the stock stilts but doesn't look slammed, and for sure isn't ever going to scrape. I didn't bother with the alignment after installation. My mechanic told me to just watch the tire wear and worry about it if I started to see anything out of the ordinary. So far, nothing unusual.

All in all, the spring switch is probably the mod I'm happiest with so far.

 

I've got the TRD lowering springs installed and my ride is nice and smooth. Even with the OEM springs, the suspension didn't feel super-tight and I caouldn't feel every crack in the road.

 

I did the same thing. . . about 8,000miles later my tires were completely bald on the insides, and brand new on the outsides. I couldn't even get traction accelerating in the dry, let alone the wet. The car was babied, and never hit a pothole. Get an alignment.

 

^^^^ *nods in agreement*

40 bucks now will save you 300 in tires later.

 

yeah. . . I speak from experience too, and that should count for something. I was so ____ed, because the outside of my tires were in mint condition too. If they had been aligned, I'd still be driving on them.

 

I wish I could give you a more technical explanation, but I'm not an engineer or mathematician. All I know is that I've driven my car with stock springs, Hotchkis springs, and the Eibachs. Of the three, the Eibachs are far superior in ride quality. In my humble opinion, the stock springs ARE harsh, and jack the Xa up far higher than neccessary (bumper height requirements?), so, I don't I believe suspension travel is an issue. Scion advertises a "sporty" ride and maybe the result was their best compromise, I don't know. But, if you read through these forums, you will find instance after instance where ride quailty has been unequivocally improved through after-market springs! You will also find a few instances where it has worsened.

As I said, I've driven this car with 3 different spring set-ups and the Eibachs are the best of the three - BY FAR! - in both ride quality and handling. As a side note, sway bars, or anti-roll bars, and shock choice will improve cornering power more than springs, so don't expect miracles in handling from springs alone.

I hope this helps to a degree,

David -