Ive been thinking about lowering my xA. However, I have a few questions:

1. If youve lowered your xA, how far did you lower it and what is the best brand to use in terms of price/quality?

2. After being lowered, whats the ground clearance like? Has anyone had problems with speedbumps/terrain and scraping the bottom of your xA? I want to avoid impacting anything if at all possible. What about snow/high water?

3. Does it impact the warranty negatively if you use a system that isnt Toyota made?

4. (For those of you who work at Scion dealerships or have had it done) How much does it cost to have a system (whether toyota or aftermarket) installed, in terms of labor?

5. What are the negatives of having a vehicle lowered? Does the lower center of gravity affect the acceleration in terms of wind resistance? (Is it at all noticeable?)

 

I lowered my xA 1.5" with Eibach springs. I have Eibachs on one of my BMWs, and the family mini van, I like them a lot. I did it myself in about 1.5 hours including a dinner break, it's an easy task.

I have bottomed on a speed bump, I do scrape the front nose on some driveways. Deep snow would be a problem for sure. Never had a problem with rain or standing water but I don't drive through lakes.

Lowering only affects your warranty if your springs caused the failure.

Lowering does not affect your acceleration in any fashion, good or bad.

ken

 

1. I lowered my car with TanabeDF210s.. i believe its approx 2.5 inches in front and 2 inches in the back (These are the lowest springs on the market thus far). My brother's xA is also lowered.. but with Tein S.Techs, 1.7 in the front and 1.5 in the rear. Both brands are good. So yah.. if yer worried if Tanabe or Tein are good... theyR both! :D Just find a good price and a good drop that you can be comfortable with.

2. In my xA.. being lowered 2+ in the front runs me into some trouble scraping-wise when i drive around... driveways, speedbumps, dips... whatever. But i can live with it.. lets just hope my front bumper stays on! hahaha.. its really not THAT bad, but scraping happens on occasion.

3. Like K-man said... Scion and Toyota can only blame the springs if THEY caused the problem. So far.. i havnt heard of any xAs having any big suspension problems worth Scion to look at after installin lowering springs.

4. I think only TRD springs can be installed at the dealer. Their labor is ridiculously priced as i'm sure you know

5. Negatives include scraping... having to drive over speed bumps at 45 degrees and err... sometime down the line, i'll prolly hafta replace my shocks. Hopefully not for another few years Just look out for the dangers on the road with a sharp eye. Oh.. and if any of youR friends or family want to drive it around or borrow the car, make sure they know its lowered so they dont drive the front bumper into those parking stoppers in parking lots! LIke K-man said.. acceleration isnt affected; but handling is improved by alot!!

my $0.02, CHeers and happy lowering! :D