[narayan]

Hellow Bhpians..

I own a 2001 OHC 1.5.
mileage - nearing 69000kms
at around 52000 kms upgraded the tires and wheels to 195/55/15"
the tires were YOKOHAMA AVS SPORT ( the wet weather kind of pattern )
( pics in my garage )

as expected, the ride did take a hit after upgrading to these tires..
but off late ( maybe last 3 months ) i am seing ( or maybe imagining ) deterioration ( relatively ) in the ride quality - low speeds especially where i can fee every pebble on the road !

all though im not sure whether this is the case of just the wheels or is my suspension giving away ?
historically no work has been done so far in the stock suspension..
the tierod ends are the only parts that have been changed which are closest to the suspension.

my questions are

1) what typically is the life of the stock suspension for cars like OHC1.5 - i know it depends on the kind of terrain and driving style - to answer that - i have been driving in fairly good roads in cochin, chennai and now in gurgaon. and driving style has been very cautious - i always slow down to almost 0 for even small speedbreakers or bad roads.. do not corner very hard regularly

2) are there any symptoms or visible aspects to check whether suspension is giving away ? - this is to know whether im imagining things or whether suspension is really up for an overhaul

3) if the suspension indeed requires an overhaul - what are the components that would require change ? - my limited knowledge says, there is a gas canister( shock absorber) , a huge spring, and arms that form a part of the suspension. now which of these would "TYPICALLY" need to be changed ?

4) when im in a workshop how do i know whether the mechanic knows whether my suspension is up for a change ? do i just go by what his gut feel is or are there any testing equipment to check the condition of the suspension ? ( just like balancing/alignment is done )

5) I WANT TO AVOID GOING TO HONDA AUTH SERVICE STATION . in that case what are my options in GURGAON/DELHI

Arushbhai - can your workshop do this work ?

6) what are the options i have in terms of suspension upgrades ? i do not want to go for the high performance ones that give superior handling etc etc.. want something thats sturdy and gives a good ride and decent handling. what do these upgrades cost vis a vis stock HONDA parts ? are they cheaper or more expensive ?

7) how complicated is a suspension overhaul job ? is it just a bolt on job or does it need any fine tuning ?


awaiting your inputs..

[four_tire]

hey narayan,

you are going thru what i been thru last year. Even mine is a 2001 honda vtec.. couple of things i replaced.

- Get the stock replacement shocks - ask for Munjal-Shawa shocks. it should cost 2100 per shock.. and any garage will fit them. Its working fine for me after replacement. and i dont know much on other shocks .. there is koni yellow shocks available.. i didnt giveit a try

- Get the tie-rods, shaft and ball joints for wearing out. any good mechanic will tell about it
- if you are getting lots of noise even after replacing the shocks.. that is huge rumble noise on rough roads then get ur Caliper Pins and bushes checked.. and if the caliper pins are wornout ... get them replaced

- if there is still huge noises then get ur lower arm checked.. usually this doesnot wearout so fast..

[sushrutha]

For full suspension overhaul, One has to change lower arms , ball joints , tierod ends, springs(if they are weak) , struts, bushes.
This will setback you by 25K for Original honda spares

[narayan]

Note from the Team-BHP Support Staff : SMS / Slang is strictly prohibited on Team-BHP. Please type in full and proper english for the benefit of other community users. Thanks.

[manveet]

Originally Posted by narayan

Hellow Bhpians..

I own a 2001 OHC 1.5.
mileage - nearing 69000kms
at around 52000 kms upgraded the tires and wheels to 195/55/15"
the tires were YOKOHAMA AVS SPORT ( the wet weather kind of pattern )
( pics in my garage )

as expected, the ride did take a hit after upgrading to these tires..
but off late ( maybe last 3 months ) i am seing ( or maybe imagining ) deterioration ( relatively ) in the ride quality - low speeds especially where i can fee every pebble on the road !

all though im not sure whether this is the case of just the wheels or is my suspension giving away ?
historically no work has been done so far in the stock suspension..
the tierod ends are the only parts that have been changed which are closest to the suspension.

my questions are

1) what typically is the life of the stock suspension for cars like OHC1.5 - i know it depends on the kind of terrain and driving style - to answer that - i have been driving in fairly good roads in cochin, chennai and now in gurgaon. and driving style has been very cautious - i always slow down to almost 0 for even small speedbreakers or bad roads.. do not corner very hard regularly

2) are there any symptoms or visible aspects to check whether suspension is giving away ? - this is to know whether im imagining things or whether suspension is really up for an overhaul

3) if the suspension indeed requires an overhaul - what are the components that would require change ? - my limited knowledge says, there is a gas canister( shock absorber) , a huge spring, and arms that form a part of the suspension. now which of these would "TYPICALLY" need to be changed ?

4) when im in a workshop how do i know whether the mechanic knows whether my suspension is up for a change ? do i just go by what his gut feel is or are there any testing equipment to check the condition of the suspension ? ( just like balancing/alignment is done )

5) I WANT TO AVOID GOING TO HONDA AUTH SERVICE STATION . in that case what are my options in GURGAON/DELHI

Arushbhai - can your workshop do this work ?

6) what are the options i have in terms of suspension upgrades ? i do not want to go for the high performance ones that give superior handling etc etc.. want something thats sturdy and gives a good ride and decent handling. what do these upgrades cost vis a vis stock HONDA parts ? are they cheaper or more expensive ?

7) how complicated is a suspension overhaul job ? is it just a bolt on job or does it need any fine tuning ?


awaiting your inputs..

Hey Guys,

I have almost the same issue as Narayan above has, so this thread will really help us both ..

Even I'm facing similar problem on my OHC. Am not sure if it actually exists or if all OHC's are like this. I don't have too much experience on a new OHC, so my frame of reference is mom's Getz which has done just close to 5,000 kms.

My OHC is a Mar '99 model done close to 78,000 kms been running on a 50 profile for the past 20,000 kms or so.

Symptoms:

Suspension seems to be a bit soft i.e. too much body-roll at the slightest flick of the steering wheel, even at wide flowing turns like that on the DND. Also, at every speed-breaker the car goes puchuk-puchuk !!

Is this normal?

What are my options? I'd like to go in for lowering springs and have a budget of 10k for this. For the rest of the work, can probably spend another 8-10k.

[GTO]

An OHC suspension will work efficiently only until 50,000 kms, after which an overhaul is imminent. This thread has some interesting answers.

Narayans ride would have gotten stiffer not only due to the suspension wearing out, but also the tyre compound becoming harder.

[narayan]

GTO - that thread gives some information on when various members went for suspension change for their cars..

while that gives me an idea that maybe my suspension could be up for a change..
i would like to know how to verify this..

and also one step further is to know which parts to change and recommendations for replacement parts...

hope suspension gurus can chip in..

[narayan]

also - how exactly does typre compound become harder ? with usage does the composition change ?

[Shan2nu]

My vtec's done about 65K kms and the suspension has gone a bit soft. Ride quality is pretty good but the handling has bcom a bit lazy.

I don't intend to get it replaced. A simple stiffening job should do the trick for now.

Shan2nu

[narayan]

Originally Posted by Shan2nu

My vtec's done about 65K kms and the suspension has gone a bit soft. Ride quality is pretty good but the handling has bcom a bit lazy.

I don't intend to get it replaced. A simple stiffening job should do the trick for now.

Shan2nu

how is that done ? are u referring to stiffening the spring ?

[Shan2nu]

how is that done ? are u referring to stiffening the spring ?

No, i'l prob get the shocks stiffened. There are few vtecs running this setup and it works really well. Only drawback is that there's a chance it could get soft again (but i guess that can also happen with the springs).

But it's a very cost effective way of doing it. Not sure about the exact procedure, but i think it's done by increasing the fluid pressure inside.

Shan2nu

[manveet]

Originally Posted by Shan2nu

No, i'l prob get the shocks stiffened. There are few vtecs running this setup and it works really well. Only drawback is that there's a chance it could get soft again (but i guess that can also happen with the springs).

But it's a very cost effective way of doing it. Not sure about the exact procedure, but i think it's done by increasing the fluid pressure inside.

How much does this shock stiffening cost? I'll probably find someone here in Delhi to do them for me.


Also, do you guys know if H&R/Eibach lowering springs are available for the OHC?

[Shan2nu]

The stiffening can cost anywhere between 800-1200 bucks per suspension. The degree of stiffness can be decided, based on your "ride vs handling" requirements.

I've seen vtecs ranging from a mild setup for street use, to a rock hard setup for drags.

Shan2nu

[narayan]

Originally Posted by manveet

I'll probably find someone here in Delhi to do them for me.

keep me posted on that

all though im still not clear how exactly to figure out whats wrong..

broadly it looks like the springs and the shocks are the ones that CAN go wrong..

[ankitahuja]

If anything helps..

I had my remaining suspension done completely 2 weeks ago. There was a lot of thud sounds from the front at all speeds, was a lot more on slow speeds though. The axles on both sides were cluttering like hell. Steering was tilted towards the right (Alignment was not out but the tie-rods were not holding up straight)

I got the shockers, axles, arms (also called (Patti arm in local lingo), and a whole new set of tie-rod and ball joints with all suspension bushes changed. The ride is SILENT now and works wonders.

Estimate of prices:
Axles x 2 - 4k
Ball Joints+Tie Rods+Arms+Bushes - 3.6k
Munjal-Shawa Shocks - umm.. about 3-4k?
Fitting costs+tit bits - 1.1k

Balancing and Alignment - Rs. 530

EDIT: The car is 1998 OHC Type 1, done almost 110k, running 13" XM1's on stock rims.