rosader

iTrader: (1)

I'd like to save $150 over the illuminas and go for the blues. i might be lowering in a few months so i'm just curious, will the blues work with stock springs now then 1"-1.5" drop later on? how do the blues ride? better than stock i hope.

rroderiques77

iTrader: (45)

Blues = stock
Not adviseable to drop with Blues.

MROTH

iTrader: (9)

im dropped with an eibach pro kit (1.5") on the blues. dont get me wrong, the car rides nice, but if i were to do it over again id go with illuminas. would not recommend blues............

FlipCpt45

iTrader: (6)

some say the stock SE shocks are a little stiffer than the Blues.. lol

rosader

iTrader: (1)

Well i just found an ebay store thats selling the illuminas for $445 shipped which isnt bad so i'll probably go that route

boondoxmax

iTrader: (1)

Wrong. I had blues with stock springs on my 03 for 1 year and couldn't stand how soft they were. OE shocks are way stiffer then blues especially in the rear. They will work better with a drop cause they have a much better rebound then OE. I sold them to an org member who was dropped and he totally agreed that blues are softer but rebounded and dampening is way better then stock............

VANGtastic97

iTrader: (8)

If you order from performancepeddler.com, it's going to be ~475 shipped for the illuminas. (with code: MAXIMA) I'd pay the extra $30 for an authorized Tociko supplier. I just blew a rear illumina strut, and Francisco has been a great help in ensuring my warranty. Their shipping times may not be the best, but they have to order most of the Tokicos, which adds some extra time.

ghostrider17

iTrader: (6)

Boondox et all:

I'd like to hear more about how the blues ride vs. OEM -- particularly the SMOOTHNESS and if they REALLY dampen better than OEM SE's?!

I'm running OEM Struts all around now, with H&R's up front - and it's back to the same old thing: NOT SMOOTH.

I'm totally willing to trade-off sharp handling in favor of a more PLUSH ride these days. I'd like to know what springs you guys are/were running with the blues??

I'm not really interested in going BACK to Illuminas....those days for this car are OVER.

gr

BTW: Who's found a good deal on Blue's and where from??

M1RAG3

I have had Blues on my '00 SE since July 2008. I have been running Tein S-Techs since 2006. Here is my opinion:

Blues vs. OEM shocks: I cannot concede that the Blues are actually softer than OEM. If anything I would say they are a bit (+5-10%) harder/stiffer than OEM since I experience a bit less body roll and it feels like the car bites harder in turns and hugs the road better during spirited driving.

At "higher" speeds (+40 mph) the Blues seem to be stiffer than OEM. At low speeds (e.g. driving over a speedbump) the Blues seem at least 25% softer than stock and it feels like they allow the car to travel more vertically...this is a bad thing because I'm pretty f'n low.

The Blues DEFINITELY run SMOOTHER than the OEM SE shocks. By smoother I mean that they dont clunk around as much going over road irregularities. They seem to absorb irregularities MUCH better than OEM shocks which were IMHO pretty crap. In a nutshell I would say that the ride quality from the Blues is much better than OEM (straight line, going over bumps) while providing notably better handing when cornering at speeds over 40mph.

I got my blues from www.nextmod.com (shop located 10 mins from my house). If you are going to buy from them PM me first I can probably get you a "better" price.

MROTH

iTrader: (9)

M1RAG3 - good way to sum it up... i would agree with you on that

ghostrider17

iTrader: (6)

Thanks for the feedback. It IS appreciated.
I've been here long enough to REALLY get sick of new Suspension threads...but wading thru all of the threads, opinions, and spring/strut combos is just exhausting. and I have DONE my fair share....

I gotta say tho - I THINK your review is a bit tainted due to YOUR springs.
From what I remember, the S-Techs are HELLA low, and waay stiffer than the H-Techs....correct me if I'm wrong.
It seems like the stiffness in cornering that you're feeling is from the springs, and probably NOT the Struts???

I don't want to sound incredulous, but it's highly likely the springs could be totally throwing-off the perceived performance of the struts based on this combo alone....
I'm hoping that more will give feedback on spring that are a bit less aggressive, and more along the lines of what I'm looking for...and that's a smoother more CONTROLLED setup.
I can't get a good sense of whether or not the BLues are ACTUALLY more loose or more controlled than the OEM's!?!?

thks again for you input tho.

gr

Rochester

iTrader: (3)

That's exactly the kind of analysis I've been wanting to read about Blues vs. Stock. Nice opinion write-up, M1RAG3!

For a daily driver, I imagine improved handling on the roll would be more advantageous than bone-jarring on the bump. I mean, at the end of the day, the Maxima is still a sedan.

ghostrider17

iTrader: (6)

...btw: sorry for the post-***** Rosader! I think we're on the same PATH however!

gr

rroderiques77

iTrader: (45)

I meant that the Blues are OEM replacements, much like the GR2s. I wasn't talking about ride quality.

rroderiques77

iTrader: (45)

http://www.shiftice.com/spring_strut_decision.html

SEmy2K2go

iTrader: (10)

I've had both sets.

Save for the Illuminas.

That's my advice.

M1RAG3

My opinion of Blues vs. OEM is based on two combinations that I have driven with OEM Shocks + S-Techs and Blues + S-Techs.

From August 2006 to July 2008 I drove with OEM Shocks + S-Techs. This gives me about 2 years of driving on this combination to compare with about 1 year of driving on combination #2. The control factor was that the springs stayed the same, while the shocks changed -which allows me to compare the two set-ups.

For what its worth, the combination of OEM + S-Techs provided an ABSOLUTELY bone-jarring ride. Some people would simply not be able to put up with this. The ride was so bad that the "cheaper" but still brand-new CD/DVD HU that I had would rountinely skip on both CDs/DVDs. After about 1 month I couldnt take it and I had to go out and buy a JVC HU (which solved the skipping problem). When I put the S-Techs on my maxima had about 70k on it and the OEM shocks were still in working condition as I had my mechanic (a good friend) check them out in entirety before putting on my new springs).

In a straight line you would feel every irregularity in the road, no matter how small. I think the real test of springs is during cornering. There is a night/day difference in cornering ability between OEM SE springs and S-Techs. Front-end body roll is almost COMPLETELY eliminated and I found my cornering ability no longer being limited by the roll of the car but by the roadholding from the tires. The real problem is the rear end - guys who have also AUTO-X'd their 5th gens w/ S-techs all around may agree that it is almost dangerous because the front bites so hard that the single-beam rear suspension just cant handle it and the rear always seems off-balance during really tight cornering which provides a pretty scary experience. It feels almost like oversteer but it is not, its just the rear of the car rolling to the outside of the turning direction while the tires stay planted on the pavement.

Now against that combination of OEM shocks + S-Techs I provide the following opinion of Blues + S-Techs:

The ride is night/day better. The shocks just plain absorb bumps much better. The ride is NOT bone-jarring anymore. For a car that is dropped 2.2in in the front and 1.6in in the rear I dont really think I could expect a better ride than what the Blues provide. I actually wish I had switched to the Blues sooner but I'm still a poor student trying to pay for university+insurance+maintenance and that influenced my decision to wait a bit before finally buying them.

It seems to me that the Blues are able to negate the majority of the inherent stiffness of the S-Techs while not negating the aggressive drop that they provide.

I am not going to say that the Blues are "cushy" shocks though. During very hard cornering (90 degree direction change at about 40-50+ km/h) most (at least 50%) of the softness I complained about in the rear end was gone when I switched to the Blues. The rear especially feels more in control and the rear DEFINITELY does not roll as much in turns. This, in of iteself, provides some evidence that the Blues are at certainly a stiffer shock than OEM since the OEM shocks with the same springs provided almost scary rear end body roll during almost identical cornering.

IMHO guys who get Blues coming from OEM shocks or stiffer shocks (Illuminas) wont be disappointed if their purpose in buying them was to make their overall ride quality better while not sacrificing much overall performance.

ghostrider17

iTrader: (6)

Thanks man!
Good rebuttal...and I acctually DID re-read your previous post B4 your last response, and decided that i kind of ignored the fact that you rode on OEM's for that 2 yrs....my bad.

AGain - for me, i DO want a more controlled ride, without the harshness of the OEM's or the Illuminas.
That's right - I called the Illuminas HARSH!

Hey man - I'm gonna be 38 this summer....it's time to give my old bones a break, and act my age!! ;-)
I'll leave the hooliganism for my motorcycle!

gr

321VQ35MAX

iTrader: (6)

IMO the $150.00 is worth the difference. I looked at the same idea of saving the money as well, but was quickly talked out of it.

Rochester

iTrader: (3)

Love your write up, and your conclusions speaks to my priorities. I want better-than-stock handling, but I don't want to shake the fillings out of my teeth on side roads. So I'm installing a RSB next week, and if I'm wanting more (probably), I'll be looking for a set of Blues.

I appreciate the time you took to put those thoughts down. It's so much better than just saying, "IMO this is better. Get it."


Kids these days...

ghostrider17

iTrader: (6)

Agreed -- I get sick of the responses of: Just BUY IT, they're AWESOME!!

no thought - no info...just hyberbole. (go look up that word, Jr.!)

Good write-up, hope we get some more on this thread.
Personally - I'm leaning towards the Blues Meself when I finally give-up on the OEM's....AGAIN!

gr

d-schist

good info
The tokico blues with a drop sound like a decent option for me. My car is a commuter car with no aspirations to be a race car lol. I just want something that is more controlled over expansion joints and bumpy curvy exit ramps. I also want something to reduce the general unsettled nature of the stock suspension on less than smooth highways. Don't get me wrong the adjustable struts are extremely tempting but at the cost im afraid ill never get around to upgrading the suspension.

ghostrider17

iTrader: (6)

I don't think COST should be the precursor for choosing the Blues over the Illuminas.
I'm here to tell you -- the Illuminas are NOT Smooth, nor are they designed to be so, even on lower settings.

They're desgined to be more aggressive for those who want the ability to ADJUST the firmness of their struts -- and not for daily drivers who simply want a comfortable, compliant ride.

Don't believe me?! Go-ahead...buy some! Find out for yourself!!

gr

Rochester

iTrader: (3)

The thing that I'm getting out of this thread is that Blues are the right upgrade over stock for the daily driver. That's me. Most of my miles are driving back and forth to the office.

You know, for all the talk about performance parts in this forum, I'm guessing most people here use their Maxima as a daily driver. You know... kids, groceries, snow tires in the winter. Maybe I'm wrong. It would make an interesting poll, (if I knew how to make a poll.)

1. mostly track
2. both track & street
3. street-only secondary car (toy)
4. street-only primary car (groceries)

I know... pointless. But it would provide some perspective.

d-schist

im curious how the blues + springs combo kits off ebay perform
those seem to be a pretty good deal