Anyone used Eibach Pro Kit?

[madmax032]

Good Morning!
I am considering getting an Eibach Pro Kit lowering spring set (E10-23-030-01-22) for my (leaking) z85-equipped 16 Tahoe but I haven't found any examples of people using it on their 15-20 truck. I have had good luck with Pro Kits on other vehicles and I like the 2"F 3.5"R drop the springs offer but I am just concerned about alignment, etc. if I went that direction.
I like this over cast iron drop spindles (in the front) since it doesn't increase unsprung suspension mass and it seems like a fairly safe drop amount in the rear. I realize that lowering control arms are a better option from a technical standpoint but they cost more than the whole Eibach front and rear kit so that is likely out of the question.

 

[madmax032]

Well...I pulled the trigger on the Eibachs so I'll report back with my impressions of them once I can get them installed

 

[89Suburban]

Well...I pulled the trigger on the Eibachs so I'll report back with my impressions of them once I can get them installed

Cool. Post some pics up too if you can.

 

[89Suburban]

Also if you decide to do the drop you can use this link to find custom sway bar links depending on your measurements for the front sway bar. I did a 4” front drop. With the truck sitting loaded weight on the ground I positioned the sway bar level to the ground and took my measurements from that to the lower control arm.

Energy Suspension Sway Bar End Links

www.energysuspensionparts.com

 

[madmax032]

Well...I pulled the trigger on the Eibachs so I'll report back with my impressions of them once I can get them installed

Got them installed yesterday, so far, so good. I was pretty nervous that putting in lowering springs in the front (vs. drop spindles or lowering control arms) would really screw up the ability to align the front end but a local shop was able to align it pretty close to spec. The only sacrifice in alignment was I lost about .5 degrees of caster. Overall impressions are good-the ride feels much more "sporty" and both brake dive and body lean are greatly reduced over stock. The front now sits about 1/4" lower than the back vs. the 1 1/2" difference before. My only complaint is that the front end ride is a little stiff now though it may settle a bit.

As a part of the spring install, I replaced my blown rear air shocks with shorter 02-07 Avalanche monotube shocks (GABRIEL MaxControl 77953) so I wouldn't risk bottoming out the shocks. Eibach doesn't call for shock extensions but I figured it would be safer to get shorter shocks to be sure.

I capped the air lines and zip tied them out of the way and to (hopefully) prevent any air leveling codes/messages/etc. and I "adjusted" the level sensor levers to make it think it's sitting higher than it actually is.

 

[madmax032]

Also if you decide to do the drop you can use this link to find custom sway bar links depending on your measurements for the front sway bar. I did a 4” front drop. With the truck sitting loaded weight on the ground I positioned the sway bar level to the ground and took my measurements from that to the lower control arm.

Energy Suspension Sway Bar End Links

www.energysuspensionparts.com

That 4/5 drop looks great (in your sig)! Looks like I have lots of options for front endlink sizes so once I get there, I should be set. As for the rear though...not so much. I have seen the z shaped super short aftermarket ones but I honestly just need slightly shorter standard ones-kind of a tall order for the ball joint on 1 end, bushing on the other end club :/

 

[madmax032]

Update: I really like the "tuning" of the variable rate rear springs that Eibach uses but as I mentioned before, the front is a bit harsh. The front harshness makes more sense to me now though-despite the very hefty hard springs that the front uses, it still hits the shortened front bump stops that Eibach supplies when going over speed bumps. The rear will hit the stock (non-trimmed) bump stops over speed bumps too but I kind of expected that considering no "free travel" mod was recommended by Eibach.
I think I'll try trimming the rear bump stops and eventually go with 2" lowering control arms in the front with stock springs. I kind of wish Eibach sold the rear springs alone since I really like them and will eventually not need the fronts.
I know this will never be a sports car but I just want to find a happy medium (on a budget) between the jiggly, rolly polly tall stock suspension and the harshness of those front lowering springs. I don't think I will be helping myself by putting heavy cast iron drop spindles on to replace the factory aluminum ones either, thus the lowering control arms seem to be my best bet...though pricey.

All that being said, I can't dish on Eibach too hard. The ride is definitely more responsive and controlled so if harshness doesn't bother you and you don't encounter many speed bumps, this is a solid budget lowering option.

 

[89Suburban]

I got Ebay rear drop springs they ride fine.

 

[madmax032]

Update 2: I put some 1.5" shorter end links on the front and that got the swaybar pretty level at ride height. The rear swaybar absolutely needs a link change/modification with this kit despite the instructions not mentioning anything about doing so.

It's a little hard to tell from the picture but the swaybar is hanging way down in relation to the axle and it is somewhat straining the parking brake cables and causing them to wear through their ribbed protectors. Eibach really should have done something about that in this kit so just be aware if you decide to go with this kit or go with any other 3+inch lowering springs that don't recommend a swaybar position change.

 

[pronstar]

Drop spindles retain your factory suspension travel and spring rate.

Lowering springs/struts use-up your factory suspension up-travel. This requires a higher spring rate, but you’re still close to the bump stop, which you will hit more often. Trim the bump stop too much, and you’ll bottom-out the shock.

Drop spindles ride better.