Wow, you did a little research! Now that you understand the difference between the springs, do you know the significance, or what the difference is? Answer: Progressive is like having a helper spring, it helps make the ride smoother.

The reason why most coilovers don't handle as well as a 2 piece strut and spring combo is not because of the type of springs they have, it's because of the struts. To have an optimal ride feel and handling, you want the struts to be matched to the springs. And while most coilovers claim to offer adjustable struts, they really don't adjust well enough to match the stiffness of the springs. In fact, to have good handling, you need the springs and struts to give enough.

And back to my point: while coilovers offer ride height adjustability, a standard strut and spring combo will offer better performance than any of the cheap $1000 coilovers. An example of this: I've had a few suspensions on my sedan, none of the coilovers I've had cost under $2000, and quite honestly, while it's been fun being slammed on coilovers, 350Z S-Techs and Tokico D-Specs seem to offer a smoother ride feel while offering much better handling. Response is up and so is traction, even with cheaper tires.

 

You will almost always lose comfort with coilovers. You just need to pick the right setup for what you are looking for. I have a friend that purchased stance LX with a 7k/7k spring setup and it actually feels like he is on stock suspension.

 

We're just scratching the surface. So what you are saying is that an "off the self" spring/strut combo is better for performance and comfort? I can agree with you on comfort but not performance. I have tested KYB GR2's with Eibach sportline, and koni yellow's valved for tanabe GF's (horrible choice btw). They were awesome around town but lacked at the track. They didn't offer the response and feel you would expect from a performance setup. Don't get me wrong, they did the job but nothing compared to the first set of "cheap" coilovers.

 

TOOO EXPENSIVE, ITs a Rip Off, Shop around some more, or ask a friend to refer you to a local shop or mechanic that is a friend. Guud Luck

 

Thanks. That's the consensus I've been hearing. But I've been asking for some recos here TOO and so far no one has offered any, other than equipment, no one has offered a shop I can go to. I'd love to get a reco on that.

 

So in other words, a cheap coilover set-up is the best you can do... ok.

 

No, it is definitely not the best you can do. Most people on this this site will never get to feel how their car will react on a road course or doing some skidpad drifting. Almost any setup they decide to go with will be an upgrade. I'm arguing performance. From my experience, a decent coilover setup (Parts Shop Max, Stance GR+, Megan Track's) will satisfy what I am looking for as far as performance is concerned. There is also a void of adjustability with spring/shock setups.

 

To the OP I am not sure how much rear oem struts cost but to the labor amount, I had my whole Tien CS coilover system installed for $250 so I would shop around for a cheaper labor rate and I would also shop either on ebay or on here for a good strut price.

 

ok, my schedule has finally opened up, so i'm going to have my struts replaced next week. now some of you have offered to help me with it and also offered some "lightly used" struts for a great price; however I've decided to get new ones and get it over with.

some of you have knocked the factory ones and recommended aftermarket struts. i do a LOT of highway driving from SJ to Concord daily and some stop and go traffic as part of my daily regimen. it's heavy daily driving. what specific brand and model do you recommend? thnx.