We bet that when you were younger, all you really cared about was having your vehicle lower than the next guy's ride and lowering was the first thing you did to your ride. Although your vehicle seemed to bounce over every single bump in the road, it didn't matter, because all you really cared about was acquiring that lowered stance.
Of course, everybody wants to drop their ride the proper way; however, we all know what happens with limited budgets and resources. Back then, the cheapest way to drop a vehicle's center of gravity was to chop the stock springs in half. The ride quality definitely sucked, but who really cared? As long as it was slammed to the ground, you were cool.
Nowadays, we're much older and wiser, so we consider the performance and safety factors that coincide with the aesthetics of suspension tuning. Why, that's the whole idea behind Import Tuner. Look good, dust the competition and spread the knowledge. Some things--such as lowering your vehicle before doing anything else--may never change, but the manner in which you do so will forever evolve as long as technology keeps advancing.
Long Ly of Import-Trader.com wanted to drop his 2000 Toyota Celica the proper way, so he contacted Endless USA and copped a set of race-bred Zeal Function-B6 coil-overs. Although a suspension coil-over system is much more expensive than replacing his stock springs with engineered progressive lowering springs, Long felt it was worth the investment in the long run.
In any case, lowering the center of gravity is the key to increased handling and performance. Many high-end suspension coil-over dampers feature an adjustable cup or bracket on the bottom of the threaded shock body that you can spin up or down to lower or raise your vehicle to the desired height. This enables you to adjust the ride height of your vehicle without affecting the length of the damper stroke, which translates to good ride quality no matter what height you set the coilovers at. Many high-end coil-over dampers also include some type of click-dial setting that enables the driver to adjust the expansion and contraction damper rate. Companies such as APEX'i, HKS, Tein and Zeal all manufacture race-bred suspension components based on their own racing experiences, such as on-the-track professional driver feedback. By doing so, the consumer gets the highest quality coilover system available to the public.
Long Ly decided to have Non Fujita at Enonvativ Force in Torrance, Calif. install his newly purchased Zeal coilover dampers. Follow along as Fujita guides us through the step-by-step process for all you "do-it-yourselfers."
Here we see Zeal Function-B6 coil-overs compared with the stock Celica front and rear strut assemblies. |  |
FrontRaise the vehicle and remove the wheels. | 
Remove the three 12mm bolts on the shock tower. Also remove the ABS line (10 mm bolt), the brake line (14 mm bolt) and the stabilizing bar (14mm bolt) from the strut assembly. |
Remove both the 19mm bolts that attach the strut to the hub assembly. | 
Unbolt the stabilizer bar and brake line that is attached to the MacPherson strut. The strut assembly can now be removed and the Zeal unit positioned in its place. |
Tighten the three 12mm bolts to secure the new damper to the shock tower. | 
Affix the hub assembly by bolting in the 19mm bolts. |
Attach the stabilizing rod to the connector collar that rests on the damper just above the adjustable bracket with the 14mm bolt. It is recommended to first spin this collar up or down to ensure a proper fit. | 
Reattach the brake line and ABS line to the smaller bracket on the adjustable cup of the new damper. Note: You will need to purchase two 10mm and two 14mm nuts. |
You're done! Here's a photo of the newly installed front damper. | 
RearRemove the rear paneling to access the shock tower and remove the three 17mm bolts. Then remove the 12mm bolt that attaches the ABS line to the rear strut. Remove the 14mm bolt on the sway bar end link. |
Remove the 19mm bolt that connects the strut to the lower control arm. In order to remove the rear strut assembly push down on the lower control arm with a screwdriver. | 
After removing the factory shock, install the coilover damper in the reverse order of removal. |
You can adjust the height of the vehicle by spinning the collar on the threaded shock body. Lock the collar in place by tightening it with the supplied hex wrench. Adjust the dampening attributes by turning the dial located on the top of the shock. Zeal recommends leaving the dial in the middle setting, level 3, for normal street driving. After getting a feel for the vehicle, click to lower or higher levels for your preferred driving needs. | |