How to lower your car the RIGHT way: COMPLETE COILOVER GUIDE
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- čas přidán 7. 06. 2024
- Are you thinking about how to lower your car? Or maybe just want to replace your springs or shocks? Do you go with coilovers? Lowering springs? Air ride? What about just cut springs? Let's talk about it!
This week, the Miata gets a ride height adjustment and a major handling upgrade with a set of coilovers! We replace the soft, squishy, comfy stock suspension with some tight and tidy coilovers geared for grip and handling. Next to tires, this is one of the most value-added DIY car mods out there in terms of handling improvements, especially if your stock suspension is as spongy as our Miata’s was! The car also benefits from a lowered ride height which helps handling and looks so, so good. We’ll show ya how coilovers work, how to choose a set for yourself, and how to install them.
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/ @donutpodcasts
Money Pit is where you get to learn about cars as we work on them. Each ep we’ll breakdown how each component works and then we’ll upgrade it. Join us in our journey to build cool cars, learn about them, and drive the crap out of them!
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#DonutMedia #MoneyPit - Auta a dopravní prostředky
Dude Donut struck gold with this dude and this series. So fun to watch.
It's both incredibly entertaining and hugely informative. It's perfection!
When?...
Struck*
The series is gold. The dude however is not. Imo
@@civoksark Why?
Zach: *has thorough expertise in modifying cars*
Also Zach: *doesn't chock tire, engage parking brake, or park in gear before lifting vehicle on sloped driveway*
TBrownPB Safety third
He had it on a Jack so chocking wouldn’t really have been that possible
That confidence is how you know he has experience
Don't worry, he's a professional idiot
@@jack_tamales could choke the rear wheels?
Dude this is hands down the best series ever since this guy actually explains WHAT each component does scientifically rather than just jumping out and saying "ye boiz we doing coilovers" and then reviewing it by saying "yeuh feels so much better way less body roll". AND sometimes things don't go as planned, which is my favourite part since that's usually how it goes in real life. major appreciation for this series.
Absolutely. It’s too bad they moved away from this
"how to lower your car the right way" *almost gets run over letting the car down*
At least it's realistic, we've all done some stupid stuff while working on our cars lol.
@@joshdewar4998 I sure have. Working under a car with no jack stands just relying on a bumper jack without blocking any wheels. This was back in the 80's. Haven't done something stupid like that sine the late 80's early 90's when a car shifted out of gear and fell on me. Ever since I use multiple stands and jacks when I work. I was taught an important life lesson. I now keep telling my nephew's to use them but they don't because they want to get done quick. Guess they need that lesson, but at least they had been told and why. I didn't have anybody tell me that. My dad never used them. But he did start after than night he found me outside.
@@shawnyoung5960 dam! no injuries I hope!
It was rehearsed!
@@joshdewar4998 facts I almost crushed my head trying to change a tire with a shitty jack
“Let’s go for a drive boys and girls.” Full send Immediately to a speed bump
I saw that a thought he probably forgot it was there😂😂😂
Those kinds of speed bumps are actually engineered so that if you're going the speed limit, there's no need to slow down for them. Incredible engineering really
BlueKj wish we had that in my country😭😭 the point of them here is to drive like 4mph and you’re still gonna rape the bumpers and skirts😭
This guy has a great flow and naturalness to talking and explains things very well. I was just thinking about coilovers.
Watch chrisfix, he's even x10 times better than that guy LOL
This guy is fine, but not nearly as good as Chris :)
Sorta. He shouldn't have matched the coilovers to the stock parts. Length means nothing if the stiffness of the springs are different. I installed my coilovers as they came out of the box. Some manufacturers preset them for a set amount of drop... usually. When done three of my wheels were exactly 1" lower, and one had to be raised 1/8th of an inch.
Also, he never explained why he just started whacking his fenders with a hammer. That's important and you have a nice car and not some pre-banged up Miata.
@@gwcrispi rolling fenders seems pretty self explanatory to me when he checked for rubbing and wheel gap
Chris Fix Records videos in first person as if you are actually there. This guy is just as good, but I’ve already established trust w/ chrisfix. I am not necessarily inclined to listen to everything this guy says yet.
NuclearBolton you should definitely give him a shot. He used to work for ECS tuning doing all their install videos and such. He knows his stuff and I’ve always enjoyed his videos.
Zach: "… and improve your smiles per gallon"
Also Zach: -____-
He’s smiling on the inside
Smiles per gallon, cause it’s a gutless Miata.. 🤭😂
That was before the installation lol
He's running Skunk2 Pro-ST coils for all my curious miata boys out there
Are they even good? Lol
@@PixLWeArePixL they’re a very popular choice, and for the price they get the job done
I like those. I thought he has the Foxx ones from flying Miata.
What a guy
Are they suitable for a 5th gen Honda Accord ?
This series is making me seriously realize how under appreciated Zach was.
Zach?
CZcams User yeah the host, Zach Jobe. He says his name right at the start
who said he was under appreciated?
The dude just started like 3 months ago and everyone's already in love with him
"Whatever the hell the kids are hitting on the streets these days"
Proceeds to smoke a speedbump
Would it be smoke or snort?🧐
Snort defenitly
My guy got no chill
🤣🤣🤣
This guy is the full package. Donut scored with him. Personable, knows his stuff, solid explanations. And kudos to the writers and editors who made him shine.
Love how they're actually using torque specs. Don't see many "tutorials" that mention torque specs even when it's very important so as to avoid stripped threads
Torque specs?? You mean ugga dugga isn’t good enough? Lol
Give it the ugga duggas
The previous owner of my miata forced every bolt in with an impact driver, it's so annoying.
I recommend ChrisFix. He always says how to tighten up any screw.
@@jackofall2305 and then hit it with a _"that's not going anywhere"_
Donut: Let's make a new series with a guy who s tuning a car
*Everybody liked that
“Whatever the hell the kids are hitting on the streets these days”
Mostly curbs😞
Kids
Yeah really and especially if they are the sidewalk assassin Mustang driver's 🤣
Humans
😂
My wife 😔
16:18 Driveway test was good. Time to Yeet this speedbump now
2:58
When someone visited a a German owned camp back in the day, unknowing to what was going on there.
shouldnt hsve laughed at that heh
i loled
Jfc 😂😂😂😂😂
They learned how to concentrate.
This guy is a full blown geek in a model's body.
You forgot to say no homo, bro
@@juanhilario4964 Not sure that'll be needed my dear sir.
@@MarloSoBalJr It's just internet etiquette, no big deal lol
Juan Hilario You sound really immature and stupid.
@@elfishcoder7287 That's okay. Everyone can choose how to enjoy themselves. I enjoy saying no homo and being called immature by strangers.
This guy explains things so well along with being entertaining.
Next up: How to wash your hands
You think 1 or 2yrs before he's just his own thing?
How to breathe
You jest, but a ton of people don't actually know the proper way to wash their hands. Some don't wash them at all.
its entertaining because you actually are interested the reason why your so bored in school is because your not interestet in the subject
Wosh ya hand, just in kayse,
sneeze inta ya elbew, don tuchya fayse,
That's woh, we guna duu, sowiwon bee the spanish floo,
I jus wan ta self i-soLAY, withu
Donut gets a lot of credit for the quality of presenters, writers and overall production... but MAN whoever is filming this deserves a LOT of credit. The camera work is very clean
Donut: *shocks*
Me: *a 14yo wannabe Miata owner with an rc car*
“Bro, I think I got this...”
Me: "a 14 yr old wannabe Miata owner with an 8 speed bike* I got this...
i_p_g_ _ lol same 😂
Me: 14 yo that already knew all this stuff bc I work on cars daily but still comes cause I love seeing the humor as in when he smacked the drink
@@jamesstewart3941 a bit conceded, don't you think?
No I've replaced everything in my dad's jeep with all aftermarket stuff i.e shocks suspension etc
Dear donut media
during this time of coronavirus, we need amazing videos like this.
thank you
By all your fans
P.S: mo powa baby....
Yes
p.s. MO POWER BABY
Talk about preaching to the choir.
Unfortunatly its probably rather difficult with all of California's restrictions right now
MO POWER BABYYYY
LIGHTNINGLIGHTNINGLIGHTNINGLIGHTNINGLIGHTNINGLIGHTNING
ok that's enough
Smacking the donut soda off the desk earned my like...
Well done.
Bruh I was crying
Spit my drink
Watch it again at 3:38
"encase you haven't talked to your neighbors in a while... do this and trust me... you'll talk to em." xD
I got my first car back in December, a pretty mint 2010 Chrysler 300c that has only 95,000km at the moment and is completely stock. I’ve watched a decent amount of videos on suspension and tires and I think this one is definitely the best I’ve seen for a new car owner. It covered everything I was wondering about that was left out in other videos and on forums.
I really like this series. Its like HighLow but more chill and “normal” as in how it would be irl
In real life I think ppl would not buy wheels more expensive than the car itself... And then coilovers probably more expensive than the car with those wheels on... And then "roll" fenders with a hammer
@@panvomacka9079 Then you're very mistaken.
13:31 lmao last week I was hitting my wheel with a sledgehammer in my garage to get the tire bead unsealed, and police drove up walked into my garage because my neighbor called them saying there were gunshots.
Sounds like a great way to make friends.
I started watching Donut like 3 years ago when James was only doing Up To Speed videos and wow I’m so impressed at the progress they have made. All these different series are fun and I love the new people too!
I grew up in the 80s but I may never read a car manual ever again!
The biggest thorn in my previous coilover endeavours was compressing the spring/coil to mount over the dampener. You chose the easy way by already having assembled coilovers, that made the work so smooth. There are dozens of spring compressing tools out there, most of them are an absolute health hazard. Every car has different shaped plates so good luck finding one for your car - LPT: The ones that say: UNIVERSAL are the ones to steer totally clear of. I had one car (BMW Z4 E86) where the front springs only had 3 or 4 coils and i had to search numerous shops to find one with one of these really expensive hydraulic mounts.
So - depending on the car and if you need to assemble/disassemble the coilover this can turn into a mighty nightmare.
I love this channel btw., you rock Zach!
I crashed my beloved Miata just a couple of months before this series started and its giving me quite the melancholic heartache. Maybe I should buy another one.
The engine and trans good?
It’s not like it’s a rare car...
I understand the feeling, I had to give to a junkyard my golf mk2 at the beginning of this year..
I think I speak for the majority of the community when i say dont show your face around here until you have another Miata.
Παυλος Χαραλαμπους hits home man, my clutch blew and it had more problems than i had money. Ended up selling it to somebody who knew what he was doing with it:(
16:14 the way he rode over that speed bump “let’s go on a ride”😂😂
After easing the car into the street to pass the driveway test...FULL SEND OVER THE SPEED BUMP 🏆
Thank you for noticing 😂
😂😂😂I thought the same thing! But what's up with that Kouki s14? 😱
I gotta say your explanations are some of the most in-depth and easiest to understand explanations i’ve ever heard. Love this channel
Love how he just cleared his driveway then full sent it over the speedbumb
Does anyone remember donuts segments? Ex : miracle whips , science garage
That's what introduced me to Donut
I really miss Bart.
I miss miracle whips
yeah Bart had that baby and never came that was one of the best segments besides this right here
i thought they were going to do another season of miracle whips but i guess not
This was uploaded on my birthday, and I'm in the middle of the process of buying a Miata. The timing couldn't have been more perfect, thank you Donut Media!
Happy birthday!
Hey I HAVE THE SAME BIRTHDAY AS YOU!
after years of watching videos like this, I finally got the confidence (and money) to redo the suspension on my miata and I can't believe the difference. thank you for being a being a big influence!!
Thanks Zach and Donut, I finished my nb today. Did the "longbolt method" aka take out the upper control arm. This series has helped me a lot, it was my first major mod to my car.
2:53 science garage vibes
0:03 buying parts off ebay be like.
Honestly yeah
I love how this stuff rarely ever looks easy for them. Too often see guys on youtube do a whole engine swap with some smart video editing and nothing goes wrong. NAH, that ain't the real world.
I love this series more than anything. I have three cars and basically I'm doing the same thing on all of them as this dude does. I'm doing it on my own, didn't research really what build pattern to follow. Ofc I needed to look up how to do specific jobs but damn. This is awsome for beginner car guys and hopefully we have more of these oldie but goodie cars stay on the road
Watching Zach explain the shock absorber makes me miss Science Garage
Sadly, it isn't ever coming back. Bart got fired after a drug test when they found blood in his cocaine system.
Edit: How did no one get the joke?
@@themadkraken1912 oh boii...That was bad news. But, how could you know?
@@themadkraken1912 Is that real?
@@themadkraken1912 Beware spreading bad news about others. Soon people would be spreading bad news about your son, yourself and your family. Hide others mistake and your mistake would stay hidden
@@vigossvirus666 Read it closer. _Blood_ in his _Cocaine System._ this was a lighthearted joke and people are taking it too seriously.
0:06 I trust his advice completely.
Edit: Thanks for all the likes! Didnt expect my first comment on this channel to be so popular!
I did the same thing and ran over my foot, i completely understand. Lol
What kind of coil does Zach have in this vid
I really like videos like this. No bullcrap, just work & explain. Nice.
The lowered ride height really shows how well those wheels fit the Miata.
This is my grandmas dream car. I gotta get her one now that I know how to work on it.
16:17. Completely forgets about that huge speed bump 🤣 nice work!
I'm loving this series so much! Huge motivation to start working on my car, not just think about it!
I love this channel, a guide for nearly everything, btw I really liked Zach's cut, just to realize 15 seconds after that I also have the regular cap
At this pace Im going to own the world
Imagine Zach and Bart teaching you science and engineering at your school. Wouldn't miss any lectures. You're the best, blue-eyed demon.
@@arinb.756 That would be the perfect video
In case someone was wondering what coilovers are these, it's Pro-ST Coilovers ( Skunk2 Racing model )
0nt0n , Skunk2 ...right?
Was considering buying this set but I went with feal 441 they are fantastic too
@@_FireHeart yeah, looks like Skunk2 Racing.
Justin Johnson t
This is the best informational and instructional series of videos I have found so far! Thank You!
I love this new series! A little bit of everything! Every episode is intriguing and easy to follow
This guy is great. Love the series, makes me wanna have my own project car.
ikr, he explains everything amazingly well.
"There is so much to choose from"
Me: Owning a 2000 Saab 9-3 with no coilover options
There are plenty of Saab coilovers I've seen.
I feel that, I love cars and would love to work on mine. But I own an ‘02 Grand Am GT. Not really much of an aftermarket for it performance parts wise.
Same for the 98 Camry V6 I don't have
Bilstein has some I believe
Same with an F250, unless you go full custom 4 link, and then your options go from none to a few.
This video was made on my birthday! Thanks guys
I'm 2 years into my Skunk 2s on my VVT swapped 90' and I'm still loving them every day! Speaking of upgrades, that has to be one of your next upgrades for this Miata!!! Megasquirt into VVT swap.
when kids are playing in the street
oh boy now I can test my new suspension
Mobile chicane
@@filmandfirearms this is comedy gold
This series is incredible, everyone working on this thank you 🙏
hella useful! I just put coilovers in my miata last weekend and i felt like i had no idea what any of the parts were. Thanks dude
11:13 “We got glue” something I’d say to my friends too
Last time I was this early, I was on the wrong shift.
i swear this series is so informative. the visuals really make things a lot easier to understand. thanks man
This series it’s so educational, I’m learning the logistics to everything, so dope!
This channel makes me wanna start modifications on my opel Kadett c, even if im 14
Dream in dude !!
Nice
@@jayrsoltero5710 i am saving up for bbs wheels. The classic ones, with the chrome and the gold. They were always my favourites. Would it look good? The car is bright green
@@nleloggineverbrokeagain9922 the Audi on your profile picture is really good
When you pulled out the roller, I knew exactly what was coming from my own Miata modding experience. Always roll while its stock lol. Definitely learned way more than I already learned about the mechanics of shock absorbers, which alone was worth the watch!
Pro tip on rolling after you've already changed shocks on a double wishbone car: Unbolt the bottom of the shock, and let the control arm drop down. Put your floor jack and whatever wood blocks you need as spacers under the control arm to provide a travel stop, and you should have enough spacer to roll!
You my good sir are a life saver!
You can use a baseball bat too. If you take your time it works just as well. Ive done it before. Plus if you need a tiny bit more room for a wide wheel you can actually pull the fender outwards as you roll it. I would only attempt that being super conservative with how much you do it. Im talking a tiny bit. Time and patience is key. I didnt have to use a heatgun either and i thought i would.
Props to whoever the hell edits these videos for donut. Every little piece of editing was given so much thought, all the way to the water drop sound when a drop of water passed in front of the camera near 4:07
16:46 the guy in the mirror be like peekaboo
I miss SCIENCE GARAGE
Hussein Marey I miss Bart yelling at me
@Gabriel Gontijo He left for good to raise his family
Not fired, his own choice
Just watching you go through the process is giving me great insight into how I'm going to approach my B5 a4
I have nothing to do with Coilovers but I can't help my stop learning from him after watching his video on tires. He is really good. Hope he comes out with more and more videos.
Nice, I just got my coils and air shocks in the mail today for my 1979 Triumph Spitfire that I'm working on, and I just noticed this video!
Great job, can't wait for the tire alignment tutorial.
I’m close to buying my Miata this is such a good series to learn from
Do it, you won't regret it
KaLo I have two miatas. They’re insanely good cars. Not overhyped. You’ll love it
manual trans, light flywheel, 2-way diff... do it
LOL, you wont learn nothing special here.
@@mc1996 engineering explained
What a legend!! Loving this series so good!!
Damn I love this guy’s videos. Best installation and guides. Fun and easy informative.
Absolutely loving this Money Pit series with Zach. Not trying to start anything, but feel like this takes the place of Science Garage with the amount of useful knowledge in this series, while working on and modifying a project car thoroughly. Also, I find it most applicable, as I too recently acquired a NA Miata, Classic Red '94 R Package.
Dude, you single handedly got me into regularly watching Donut videos again. Anything that's hosted by you gets an insta-click from me. Keep it up!
fr, im even thinking of buying one to
Keep it coming guys. Doughnut has made learning about cars fun again 👍🏻
Everytime I watch this series it makes me miss my miata
I had a 97 1.8 touring edition that I absolutely loved
Had to sell it when my wife got pregnant
So now I live vicariously through you
Awesome show
Just based on the opening clip, I would like to petition to change the title to be "How To Properly Jack Your Car"
Use wheel blocks or at the very very least keep use the handbrake/keep it in gear.
Preferably all of the above.
@@mathieulevasseur4082 indeed, usually I just keep it in gear and have the handbrake on tight
I really love this show, it's just something great, but i wish you could include ChrisFix in all of this somehow, after all, he is the king of the car releated DIY stuff!
I like this dude, the way he explains things and editing of all the vids on this channel. Killer stuff, gents!
I’m also starting to want a miata project car. Damn you guys.
I own a modern GTI and it is basically flawless, but this series makes me so nostalgic for when I owned a little beater Subie I could wrench on a few hours and then go for a spin and feel like a wizard for how much I improved it.
I JUST STARTED WATCHING YOUR PODCAST YESTERDAY ITS LIT!!!
Just came back from the store. Loaded up this video got to 10:29 and got up to wash my hands. Thanks Zach!
Yea Zach makes this seriers so worth it, so informative and entertaining.
OMG.....Zach jobe. I literally wanna buy everything you buy and follow up the things you do.
One of the best series but could've been your own channel. So detailed man. Wish you for a wonderful life. The explanation you give shows how well you understand each and everything that works on a car. Sadly I'm from India and so project cars are a luxury here. Wish one day I too do project cars.
As much as I love this, it makes me miss Bart and Science Garage
I like this more, especially now that the explanation graphics have improved.
Yeah, it does have some throwback elements to science garage. I miss that guy.
Love both series though :)
Balraj Kullar what happened did he quit or something
Great video! Chock full of good info and very entertaining. Don’t forget to loosen and retighten the upper and lower control arm bushing bolts too after changing ride height!
It looks like you could have rolled your fenders with the roller tool before swapping the suspension, or lengthened the coilovers to get the tool to reach.
Subscribed!
Most top-notch filming/editing. Keep it up!
I love this series. Please make it go on forever!!!
"speaking in American units..."
*immediately gives to metric *
Nice intro to shock/spring mods.
Couple things though:
1. When putting new coilovers on your car, its not a terrible idea to put an appropriate anti-seize compound on the adjuster and lockrings. they may be aluminum, but coilover threads and lock rings are still known to corrode and seize up. it happens on all quality of coilovers too, whether high end or not, and once they're seized they're nigh impossible to adjust again. more often than not if you need your adjustability back, you're sending them in for warranty, or buying a new assembly/set. anti-seize is a really cheap, easy preventative measure to make sure your coilovers are always easy to adjust.
2. don't adjust height from the middle ring. that's the preload lock-ring. set preload with the top ring and then lock it in place with the lock-ring.
3. there are some amazing shock and lowering spring combos out there that outperform most base level coilovers at half the price. H&R race springs with Koni Yellow adjustables or Bilstein performance shocks will beat the piss out of most coilovers around the $1000 mark, and you can get into a full set for $500-700 USD for most common applications. they may not go as low, but the shock damping and spring rates are superior to just about anything below $1100 in the coilover market, aside from a good deal on budget coilovers from one of the companies that offers custom spring rates and valving on their shocks. if you care more about performance than ride height, are looking to set-it-and-forget-it, and you're trying to do things on a budget, quality adjustable/performance struts/shocks and quality springs (or Ground Control kits for a bit more) will offer better performance than most coilovers 2-3 times the price.
Love the content, I’ve always loved everything about cars and I finally have a job that provided me with opportunity to get a weekend warrior, a fun project car so I chose a 2000 Mx-5 Miata, manual no issues, like the car in the video I can’t wait to find out where mine takes me, and the all the do’s and don’t are wonderful
I love how this channel makes things easy to understand.
I fricking love miatas espesially the na and when i saw it lowered i was so happy because thw miata looks like a super sprty car now
Day 93 of asking James to do an Up to speed on his Dad
I love when videos like this actually give you information about the subject. I can’t stand when they give you a history lesson for ten minutes without actually addressing the topic.
This is perfect, I’m trying to figure out what I need to buy to lower my forester. Thanks for the video!! Perfect timing
Interesting on the fender roller. That looks like an Eastwood, same one I have. I was able to use it on my Miata. I think you can adjust a few bolts to get it to fit right.
To prevent damage you should always start the ride height high. Especially at the engine also known as the heaviest part of the car