General Lowering the uno

[distortionrockets]

ok im not sure whether to lower my car by 40mm with just new springs or 60mm with springs and shocks.
40mm springs = £80ish
60mm springs and shocks = £220ish

i know fitting for the 40mm springs will cost about £100.
IS this a good price?

whereas i do not know the price for fitting the springs and shocks.
i was thinking it would be less as there is less work involved? (is there?)
how much should i pay to have the springs and shocks fitted?

not bothered about harsh ride etc and i know its not wise to fit 60mm on strandard shocks. just wondering about prices.

thanks

 

[Hellcat]

There will be almost the same amount of work required. Are you sure you could not do the work yourself?

 

[chrisunoman]

Youve got to go for 60mm lowering. Anything less would just look standard. The only kit that seems to make the uno level (ie not higher at the front) is the 60mm gmax kit.

 

[distortionrockets]

dont worry about what kit to get. the Gmax kit IS the only one. unless theres something my Jamex, which i am not a fan of. I know the 60mm will look better but the 40mm will not look standard. its just wondered if it costs alot extra?
i could not fit it i have no experience and couldnt trust myself to do it. unless there is anything in the haynes manual i have on order from ebay. even then it would be a tall order. setting it up would be bad too.
im guessing the kit doesnt exactly "bolt straight on"!
so you think it would cost the same to fit either?
lowering it by 60mm is going to cost just over £100 more. am i really going to feel where that extra cost has gone to? handling etc?

 

[bulldog5046]

i dont have any personal experience on these but i hear just changing the springs can feel 'bouncy'

i have the money to finally lower my car but i just lost my job going to try my hardest to to do it anyway, i'm buying the Gmax -60mm springs and shocks at £222.49 delivered.

Cheers,
Ryan Edge

 

[F R O S T Y]

Personally I'd go for KONI adjustibles or Spax suspension both do kits for the UNO, i've had my car lowered both -35mm and -60mm with the G-Max kit and i couldnt stand the ride, the -35mm drop looked too high and the -60mm drop was far too bumpy but looked quite good.
With my current spax suspension the car is lowered -40mm all round and feels so much nicer to drive and handles much better than it did before. I would change the shocks and springs together cos the chances are your standard shocks are probably knackered as it is. So might as well do it all at once rather than change just the springs and have to end up getting the shocks done later on down the line.
If you wana go all out get a set of AVO coilovers mate. But the best advice i can give to you on improving the handling of your car would be to add a strut brace. It will make it ssssssso much more driveable around tight bends and corners. I'm sure my fellow UT buddy Dunc would agree with me on that one

F R O $ T Y

 

[chrisunoman]

the Gmax kit IS the only one.

Not quite...

Gmax do -35mm and -60mm
Jamex do -40mm and -60mm
Apex do -35mm and -60mm
Spax do -40mm and -60mm
Avo do -40mm and coilovers
H & R do -35mm
PI do -35mm and -60mm
Ventura do -40mm and -60mm
Vogtland do -35mm
OMP do -40mm
Novitec do -50/40mm and -70/60mm
Powertech do -60mm
And theres a German brand that i cant think of that do -80/60mm!

 

[bulldog5046]

Personally I'd go for KONI adjustibles or Spax suspension

wheres the best place to get them? how much?

 

[Dunc Uno Turbo]

i have a Jamex 60mm kit on my UT. Gmax took over from Jamex a few years ago now and personally feel theyre not as good as when they were jamex. i'll soon be ditching my kit tho in favor of coilovers from AVO as i can set it up for eactly the stance, look and feel i want (basicly, like a go kart lol)

koni's and spax are much better than gmax, but then again they are a few hundred more. looking about the 350 mark for them.

as frosty said, front strut brace and a lower turbo anti-roll bar will also help alot!

Dunc

 

[distortionrockets]

yes coilovers are the best obviously but they would be worth more than the car. and its not even an uno turbo so theres no point.
how much are the spax and apex kits? ive never heard a bad word about them. im building my car on a budget but at the same time i do not want to do it half assed.
i think lowering it by 60mm is best, as you said that the original shocks arnt going to last, especially with my driving!
SO, how much is the spax kit? if it is a lot extra i will get the gmax. my mate has a gmax kit on his nova and the ride isnt that bad.

and for all you people who have had 60mm shocks and springs fitted, How Much Does It Cost?
thanks

 

[chrisunoman]

I had the Apex -35mm springs on my Uno at one point and they were good. And Apex now make a kit specifically for the 1.0l so you wont get the 'higher front' look.

You could get the Gmax kit off ebay for about £160ish.

When i had springs fitted the garage wanted £60, for a kit they wanted £80.

 

[Trav 1.1uno]

I know this is gonna sound really stupid but what exactly is a strut brace? whts it do and where does it go?

 

[bulldog5046]

a 'strut brace' is mounted under the bonnet across the the two suspension struts, its a a solid metal bar.

it stops the car from 'bending' or 'leaning' when cornering this then keeps the wheels on the ground better and thus better grip.