2000 Honda Civic Si lowered with 17" wheels rides rough?

I bought a 2003 Civic Si that had been lowered with 17" wheels. There are two main reasons to lower a car.

1. It makes it more aerodynamic. Less air can get under the car which gives you a slight advantage.

2. It gives you a lower center of gravity. This helps in high speed cornering.

As far as fixes to that horrible ride you're getting, first check and make sure that they actually bought lowering springs. A lot of kids can't afford new springs so they just cut factory ones. If they bought new springs you can look into buying a strut bar and similar items to try to keep your frame more rigid and from tilting. I personally got on eBay and found springs from someone who had lowered their car to put mine back to factory. The factory has very smart engineers who take into consideration everything. They make springs for a ride that's perfect for everyday but able to handle corners fairly quickly. So unless you're planning on racing I'd put it back to stock height.

And if you have some shake in your steering wheel, it's from the aftermarket wheels.

Civic Si Lowering Springs

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2000 Honda Civic Si lowered with 17" wheels rides rough?

I just bought a used 2000 Civic Si. It has been lowered in the front with what my mechanic called "coil over" suspension. It also had the factory wheels replaced with 17" wheels. This car is nice but rides really rough (bumpy, hard hitting on holes in the road). I suppose the...

2000 Civic Lowering Springs

The rough ride is due to the lower profile tires, but mostly due to the higher spring rate (stiffer spings and shocks) of the new suspension. Stiffer suspension is necessary when a car is lowered to avoid "bottoming out" the vehicle over bumps and causing damage. The higher spring rate also improves handling. Check with the mechanic to see if the coil overs that were installed are adjustable. If so, you may be able you improve the ride quality some without giving up too much handling or the look of the lower ride height. So, if you like the look of the lower ride height and enjoy the improved handling, then the rougher ride may be worth it.

In regards to the hit of your car, it DOES matter. Think of your center of gravity, the lower your stance the more agile you are. The ride roughness could be a various few things. The comment from earlier is correct about the profile of your tire but, you could also have bad shocks on the suspension. If they are really coilovers then you can lift them for a better ride. Hope this works out. If its your suspension an your going to change it check out this brand called function forum, honestly it rides just right to my likings. Not to stiff but just enough to feel sporty. Good luck.

There really isn't any advantage of having low profile tires and lowered suspension other then looks, of which I don't even see. It's the same as fart can mufflers- all they do is sound stupid.

Like they say, put the right size wheels and tires on, raise it to spec and it'll ride smoother.

its for looks and performance. being lowered gives it a lower center of gravity and the suspension is tighter, so you get better handling and because its lowered, it probably has a bit of camber that would affect the ride quality. you could soften the suspension if you wanted to or take it into a shop and have them do it if you don't like the sporty suspension

small cars ride rough , the lowering makes it worse and so do the tires. this is why kids drive cars like this (stupid) old people drive larger cars and do not change the wheels.

when i stopped buying cars based on "cool" looks , and bought a comfortable main stream "boring" sedan , i did myself a huge favor.

my boring car is 100 times better than a stupid pimped civic

Unlower it, and put factory spec wheels on. It will ride like a dream then. If you want a good handling car, buy a "sports" car.