4000 Miles on Prodrives - a Short Review

Canonshooter · 05-05-2006, 08:13 AM

I installed Prodrive springs on my '06 WRX about 4k miles ago and have had ample opportunity to get some impressions. I thought I would share them with you.

The springs were installed at 1500 miles on the car (on the stock struts) and aligned. They have most definitely settled over the months - I started at about 14-1/4" inches (fender to wheel center) in the front right after the install. They now measure 14 inches. Rear has remained at about 13-1/2 inches. The low front end looks bad ass, especially with the V-Limited lip, but that lip now rides just under 5 inches off the pavement. Because of the long overhang on the WRX, it gets scraped quite regularly on even modest aprons. If I didn't love the look of the lip so much, I would remove it so I wouldn't have to slow to a crawl to enter many parking lots - or my own driveway.

Ride comfort on smooth pavement is as good as stock. The expansion strips on a smooth highway cannot be felt. But anything more than an expansion strip becomes very evident. The ride is jarring on the typical "bumpy road", and the uncut bump stops get hit regulary on this kind of surface. On stock struts, they "bounce" more than the stock springs.

Handling on smooth surfaces is excellent! Even with stock struts and sway bars, the springs have made the car handle much better. And of course from an appearance point of view, they give the WRX (in IMO) the perfect stance!

All things considered, I will probably end up changing my springs again. I enjoy driving my WRX, and I'm tired of having to slow to a crawl over railroad tracks, going into parking lots, etc. to avoid hitting the lip or the bumpstops. Based on my experience with the Prodrives, I think I will give a set of USDM Pinks a try, which should give me a ride height midway between stock and the Prodrives, and have enough spring rate to make encounters with the bump stops far less frequent. If the car didn't look so "SUVish" with them, I would probably reinstall the stock springs, install some heavier sway bars and call it a day.

So my conlusion on Prodrive springs;

Pros - great looks, great handling, good ride on relatively smooth surfaces

Cons - Ends up lowering front of car more than advertised (1-1/2 inches or slightly more), frequent bottoming on bump stops (Prodrive recommends leaving stops uncut), harsher ride compared to stock (expected) and makes use of even a modest front lip impractical for typical daily driving.

A few pics below of my current set up;

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gslben · 05-05-2006, 10:20 AM

Maybe the STi is different but mine came with bumpstops from Prodrive. They are shorter and there is a market for these on here now. A couple months ago they were selling for 28 on their own but now vendors caught on and are up to 60 in some places.

Love your car though.

Canonshooter · 05-05-2006, 10:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gslben

Maybe the STi is different but mine came with bumpstops from Prodrive. Love your car though.

Yes, and I don't know why new stops are not included with the WRX springs. Seems if it had another inch of travel (or if the springs gave a little less drop in the front), it would be OK. I had considering just cutting the stops, but it is not recommended. And if I'm going to take the struts apart to do so, I may as well go with different springs anyway.

BTW, this is not a knock of the Prodrive product - I think the springs work well for what they are intended to do. It's simply a matter that they don't fit my driving style as well as I hoped they would.

Thanks for the compliments on my car!

BIGSKYWRX · 05-05-2006, 11:54 AM

Maybe not the solution your looking for, but adding camber plates to the front will add ~ 8-10mm to the front ride height- obviously other advantages to that as well- increased camber (and even caster if you go camber/caster plates).

This would give you very close to a even 30mm drop front/rear- your at ~ 40/30 currently- 40 is definitely on the lowish side.

Ofcourse the STi WRX pink springs would rasie your front/rear- drop is ~ 10-12mm f/r (and firmer rates).

chrisarella · 05-05-2006, 12:01 PM

Wirelessly posted (Treo 600: Mozilla/4.0 (compatible; MSIE 6.0; Windows 95; PalmSource; Blazer 3.0) 16;160x160)

Good write up. See you around the island

Canonshooter · 05-05-2006, 12:02 PM

BIGSKYWRX, thanks for your input - I had hoped you'd chime in on this one!

Plates were a consideration, but if I understand them correctly, I will still have the same suspension travel with them, yes? If so, I'd still be hitting the stops, even with the slightly higher ride height. Please correct me if I'm wrong on this.

Thanks!

PARANOID56 · 05-05-2006, 01:01 PM

not sure why prodrive says not to cut the bump stops, as all other springs say to cut them like an inch shorter. I just installed mine the other day, and cut 1" of the bump stops. I love the ride, and havent hit the bumpstops yet.

Shane

PARANOID56 · 05-05-2006, 01:57 PM

errr, double post

Wade-O · 05-05-2006, 06:14 PM

I cut the bumpstops on my prodrives, about an inch. Everyone I talked to before the install said to cut them.

I'd ditch the front lip before going back to monster truck ride height.

jmc9809 · 05-06-2006, 01:07 AM

Man, that second pic is outstanding

daprez · 05-06-2006, 01:21 AM

I cut my bumpstops down a bit when I installed my prodrives; while I don't drive up and down curbs anymore with impunity, it hasn't caused me to fear railroad crossings or speedbumps any.

Canonshooter · 05-06-2006, 08:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jmc9809

Man, that second pic is outstanding

Thanks for the compliment! If you'd like, I have a 1280 X 1024 .png file that you can feel free to use as a desktop background (right click and save);

http://www.carshots.net/backgrounds/WRX-3.png

I too had thought of cutting the bumpstops, and if I was the only one ever to get in the car, that would be a reasonable course of action. But what I have also found (at least in my case) is when I have a passenger in the car the problems described above get worse.

The upside of all of this is that changing out a set of springs is a relatively easy job. I have all of the tools, been turning wrenches since I was 16 (I'm now 52) and can do the job at a leisurely pace in an afternoon. A set of springs are not terribly expensive either, so I have decided to roll the dice on a set of USDM Pinks. If I don't like them, I'll put the Prodrives back in - or try something else. That, in a nutshell, is the joy of modding!

jmc9809 · 05-06-2006, 12:40 PM

Hey, Thanks man. I thought about asking you for a wallpaper size pic, but didn't want to be "that guy".

Also, let us know what you find with different springs. I'd been planning on prodrives for my car (02 WRX), so I'm very interested in what you find with other springs.

BIGSKYWRX · 05-06-2006, 12:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Canonshooter

BIGSKYWRX, thanks for your input - I had hoped you'd chime in on this one!

Plates were a consideration, but if I understand them correctly, I will still have the same suspension travel with them, yes? If so, I'd still be hitting the stops, even with the slightly higher ride height. Please correct me if I'm wrong on this.

Thanks!

No that is correct- it will "cure" your ride height issues, but not your suspension travel issues.

You'll find the STi springs "sportier", but may find the oe struts slightly underdamped- ofcourse there is a solution for that too

Canonshooter · 05-06-2006, 12:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BIGSKYWRX

- ofcourse there is a solution for that too

Ah, the joy of modding...there are always very legitimate reasons to not stop!

Yes, the Tokico D-specs sure look nice. Once the OEM struts give out, that will be my next "afternoon project." Keeps my alignment guy happy too!

Canonshooter · 05-06-2006, 01:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jmc9809

Also, let us know what you find with different springs. I'd been planning on prodrives for my car (02 WRX), so I'm very interested in what you find with other springs.

I have ordered the USDM Pinks and hope to get them this week. If the weather cooperates next weekend, I'll do the install. I will most certainly post in the forum with some pics and initial impressions!

EnterTheDragon · 05-15-2006, 10:49 PM

I love my prodrives, the gf and I both agree that it feels very similiar to stock. If you're ever looking to part with the lip for a modest price, please look me up.

Canonshooter · 05-16-2006, 09:02 AM

The SPT Pink springs arrived last night. They are nicely finished in a reddish-pink color and came in a separate "Genuine Subaru Parts" boxes with Japanese writing and "Country of origin: Japan." Each box contains a bag of hardware including new top strut mount nuts, strut shaft nut and new lower mount bolt nuts, something I didn't receive with the more expensive Prodrive springs. The SPT springs also came with the plastic insulator on the bottom coil, again something that was not included with the Prodrives.

Comparing the front SPT spring to the stock spring side-by-side, the SPT spring is about 3/4 inch shorter in free-standing height - about the same as the Prodrive spring. Pushing down on the spring, the SPT is obviously progressive, but not quite as soft as the Prodrive on initial compression. The rear SPT spring is about the same (free standing) height as the stock spring.

The original front spring that came with the car is made of stock that measures .548 inch in diameter, the SPT spring measures .560. The rear stock spring measures .520, the SPT .524.

I plan on doing the install today (weather permitting) and will give my initial impressions.

PS - No plans on getting rid of the V-Limited lip, though I may remove it for winter/snow driving.

MyRuRex · 05-16-2006, 10:22 AM

Hey Canon, I'm in a similar boat. I have an 02 w/Crucials w/AGX's. Progressive but stiffer than the Prodrives @ 257/217. I feel everything in the road that is less than perfect. Long Island isn't as bad I think compared to the NYC streets...OUCH!! I'm looking into the pinks as well. I'm anxious to see your reviews!!!
I am not knocking Crucials at all...if your streets permit, these are awesome. I take turns like it's on rails. On my a/s tires...I take an on ramp which is basically a circle (LIE east to Clearview north) at around 50 mph with little tire scrub. Normally my tires screaming and the car pushing a bit at around 45 mph.

BIGSKYWRX · 05-16-2006, 10:28 AM

Subaru is good about including new hardware w their suspension stuff- nice touch IMO

You'll have a little more clearance w/ the pinks, so the lip should be less "trouble"- I wouldn't get rid of it either- looks great!

Daedalus · 05-16-2006, 10:46 AM

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I've read that using sporty gas shocks (like Bilsteins) will not cause your car to settle as much. Perhaps if you had replaced your stock shocks and struts with more aggressive ones, your car wouldn't have settled as much as it did.

What are the ride height differences between stock, the Prodrives, and the SPT springs? I would love to see a ride height comparison between the Prodrives and the SPT ones.

BIGSKYWRX · 05-16-2006, 11:05 AM

Uprated struts have no bearing on ride height- they may offer better matched damping to a particular spring, but no effect on ride height.

The "SPT" pink ones lower ~ 10-15mm front/rear, Prodrives seem to be in the 30mmish front/20mmish rear.

Siper2 · 05-16-2006, 11:33 AM

Ought to move this to the reviews forum. Nice review!

=S2=

humara · 05-16-2006, 12:44 PM

problems or not, that stance is 1000 times better than the stock setup.
looks so nice.

Canonshooter · 05-16-2006, 06:03 PM

Update - the SPT Pinks are in and I've driven on them enough to make some initial observations.

First the "aesthetic issue" of front wheel gap. As expected, the SPT pinks fall exactly half way between the stock springs which measured 15-1/2 inches from the fender lip to the center of the wheel; the SPT Pinks measure 14-3/4 inches; the Prodrives measured 14 inches. Rear height remains exactly the same as the Prodrives at 13-1/2 inches.

With the stock springs, the wheel gap was greater at the top than in the front and back of the wheel well, which I agree is not very attractive; with the Prodrives, the gap was less at the top; with the SPT Pinks, the gap is even all the way around. Visually, this looks just fine to me. I will post pics of stock, SPT and Prodrive in this thread as soon as I take some pics of the SPTs.

Now on the the "functional" aspects - ride and handling. I will need to keep this short for right now and please excuse some of the wording used - it is not intented to offend anyone, but it was what came to mind as I drove on the SPT Pinks for the first time.

WOW! My car doesn't ride like a "boy racer" anymore! The "chop and bounce" that was really starting to get to me is gone. In terms of ride comfort, these springs just blow away the Prodrives on less-than-smooth surfaces.

Another thing I noticed immediately is that the steering feels less "twitchy." I had my alignment guy try different toe settings with the Prodrives, but the steering always felt "over sensitive" for lack of a better phrase. After doing some reading about the suspension/steering geometry of the Impreza front end, I now believe that dropping the front 1-1/2 inches isn't ideal without doing other modifications. The car definitely feels "better" at this height. I wish I could be more descriptive, but that's the best I can offer right now.

Handling is very similiar to the Prodrives, but the car feels more stable with the SPTs. Again, it may be a "geometry thing."

The stock '06 struts feel good with these springs and give a smooth ride, but I agree they may be a just a touch underdamped, but certainly nothing significant.

I'm glad I made the swap. I'll be back with pics soon!

05-05-2006, 08:13 AM	#1
Canonshooter Scooby Specialist Member#: 103479 Join Date: Dec 2005 Chapter/Region: NESIC Location: Bedford, NH Vehicle: '07 Forester XT Newport Pearl Blue	4000 Miles on Prodrives - Switched to SPT Pinks I installed Prodrive springs on my '06 WRX about 4k miles ago and have had ample opportunity to get some impressions. I thought I would share them with you. The springs were installed at 1500 miles on the car (on the stock struts) and aligned. They have most definitely settled over the months - I started at about 14-1/4" inches (fender to wheel center) in the front right after the install. They now measure 14 inches. Rear has remained at about 13-1/2 inches. The low front end looks bad ass, especially with the V-Limited lip, but that lip now rides just under 5 inches off the pavement. Because of the long overhang on the WRX, it gets scraped quite regularly on even modest aprons. If I didn't love the look of the lip so much, I would remove it so I wouldn't have to slow to a crawl to enter many parking lots - or my own driveway. Ride comfort on smooth pavement is as good as stock. The expansion strips on a smooth highway cannot be felt. But anything more than an expansion strip becomes very evident. The ride is jarring on the typical "bumpy road", and the uncut bump stops get hit regulary on this kind of surface. On stock struts, they "bounce" more than the stock springs. Handling on smooth surfaces is excellent! Even with stock struts and sway bars, the springs have made the car handle much better. And of course from an appearance point of view, they give the WRX (in IMO) the perfect stance! All things considered, I will probably end up changing my springs again. I enjoy driving my WRX, and I'm tired of having to slow to a crawl over railroad tracks, going into parking lots, etc. to avoid hitting the lip or the bumpstops. Based on my experience with the Prodrives, I think I will give a set of USDM Pinks a try, which should give me a ride height midway between stock and the Prodrives, and have enough spring rate to make encounters with the bump stops far less frequent. If the car didn't look so "SUVish" with them, I would probably reinstall the stock springs, install some heavier sway bars and call it a day. So my conlusion on Prodrive springs; Pros - great looks, great handling, good ride on relatively smooth surfaces Cons - Ends up lowering front of car more than advertised (1-1/2 inches or slightly more), frequent bottoming on bump stops (Prodrive recommends leaving stops uncut), harsher ride compared to stock (expected) and makes use of even a modest front lip impractical for typical daily driving. A few pics below of my current set up; * Registered users of the site do not see these ads. Last edited by Canonshooter; 07-01-2006 at 09:23 AM.

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05-05-2006, 10:20 AM	#2
gslben Scooby Specialist Member#: 106753 Join Date: Feb 2006 Chapter/Region: NESIC Vehicle: 2005 STi OBP	Maybe the STi is different but mine came with bumpstops from Prodrive. They are shorter and there is a market for these on here now. A couple months ago they were selling for 28 on their own but now vendors caught on and are up to 60 in some places. Love your car though.

05-05-2006, 11:54 AM	#4
BIGSKYWRX Scooby Guru Member#: 7958 Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: Plains of Eastern Montana Vehicle: 09 GH B+	Maybe not the solution your looking for, but adding camber plates to the front will add ~ 8-10mm to the front ride height- obviously other advantages to that as well- increased camber (and even caster if you go camber/caster plates). This would give you very close to a even 30mm drop front/rear- your at ~ 40/30 currently- 40 is definitely on the lowish side. Ofcourse the STi WRX pink springs would rasie your front/rear- drop is ~ 10-12mm f/r (and firmer rates).

05-05-2006, 12:01 PM	#5
chrisarella NASIOC Supporter Member#: 35584 Join Date: Apr 2003 Chapter/Region: Tri-State Location: www.chrisarella.com Vehicle: 2003 SonicYellow Wgn RAW ej257+gt3076+6spd	Wirelessly posted (Treo 600: Mozilla/4.0 (compatible; MSIE 6.0; Windows 95; PalmSource; Blazer 3.0) 16;160x160) Good write up. See you around the island

05-05-2006, 12:02 PM	#6
Canonshooter Scooby Specialist Member#: 103479 Join Date: Dec 2005 Chapter/Region: NESIC Location: Bedford, NH Vehicle: '07 Forester XT Newport Pearl Blue	BIGSKYWRX, thanks for your input - I had hoped you'd chime in on this one! Plates were a consideration, but if I understand them correctly, I will still have the same suspension travel with them, yes? If so, I'd still be hitting the stops, even with the slightly higher ride height. Please correct me if I'm wrong on this. Thanks!

05-05-2006, 01:01 PM	#7
PARANOID56 Scooby Specialist Member#: 22035 Join Date: Jul 2002 Chapter/Region: SCIC Location: San Diego, CA Vehicle: 2008 STI White	not sure why prodrive says not to cut the bump stops, as all other springs say to cut them like an inch shorter. I just installed mine the other day, and cut 1" of the bump stops. I love the ride, and havent hit the bumpstops yet. Shane

05-05-2006, 01:57 PM	#8
PARANOID56 Scooby Specialist Member#: 22035 Join Date: Jul 2002 Chapter/Region: SCIC Location: San Diego, CA Vehicle: 2008 STI White	errr, double post

05-05-2006, 06:14 PM	#9
Wade-O Scooby Newbie Member#: 31190 Join Date: Dec 2002 Chapter/Region: NWIC Location: Southern Orygun Vehicle: 2002 WRX Sportwagon Alpine White	I cut the bumpstops on my prodrives, about an inch. Everyone I talked to before the install said to cut them. I'd ditch the front lip before going back to monster truck ride height.

05-06-2006, 01:07 AM	#10
jmc9809 Scooby Newbie Member#: 33344 Join Date: Feb 2003 Chapter/Region: RMIC Location: Denver Vehicle: 2002 WRX PSM	Man, that second pic is outstanding

05-06-2006, 01:21 AM	#11
daprez Visiting NASIOC Timeout Member#: 105645 Join Date: Jan 2006 Chapter/Region: MAIC Location: Columbia, MD Vehicle: 2002 WRX Sedan WRBP	I cut my bumpstops down a bit when I installed my prodrives; while I don't drive up and down curbs anymore with impunity, it hasn't caused me to fear railroad crossings or speedbumps any.

05-06-2006, 12:40 PM	#13
jmc9809 Scooby Newbie Member#: 33344 Join Date: Feb 2003 Chapter/Region: RMIC Location: Denver Vehicle: 2002 WRX PSM	Hey, Thanks man. I thought about asking you for a wallpaper size pic, but didn't want to be "that guy". Also, let us know what you find with different springs. I'd been planning on prodrives for my car (02 WRX), so I'm very interested in what you find with other springs.

05-15-2006, 10:49 PM	#17
EnterTheDragon Scooby Guru Member#: 6511 Join Date: May 2001 Chapter/Region: NWIC Location: 360	I love my prodrives, the gf and I both agree that it feels very similiar to stock. If you're ever looking to part with the lip for a modest price, please look me up.

05-16-2006, 09:02 AM	#18
Canonshooter Scooby Specialist Member#: 103479 Join Date: Dec 2005 Chapter/Region: NESIC Location: Bedford, NH Vehicle: '07 Forester XT Newport Pearl Blue	The SPT Pink springs arrived last night. They are nicely finished in a reddish-pink color and came in a separate "Genuine Subaru Parts" boxes with Japanese writing and "Country of origin: Japan." Each box contains a bag of hardware including new top strut mount nuts, strut shaft nut and new lower mount bolt nuts, something I didn't receive with the more expensive Prodrive springs. The SPT springs also came with the plastic insulator on the bottom coil, again something that was not included with the Prodrives. Comparing the front SPT spring to the stock spring side-by-side, the SPT spring is about 3/4 inch shorter in free-standing height - about the same as the Prodrive spring. Pushing down on the spring, the SPT is obviously progressive, but not quite as soft as the Prodrive on initial compression. The rear SPT spring is about the same (free standing) height as the stock spring. The original front spring that came with the car is made of stock that measures .548 inch in diameter, the SPT spring measures .560. The rear stock spring measures .520, the SPT .524. I plan on doing the install today (weather permitting) and will give my initial impressions. PS - No plans on getting rid of the V-Limited lip, though I may remove it for winter/snow driving.

05-16-2006, 10:22 AM	#19
MyRuRex Scooby Specialist Member#: 21349 Join Date: Jul 2002 Chapter/Region: Tri-State Location: New York Vehicle: 2002 WRX Wagon PSM	Hey Canon, I'm in a similar boat. I have an 02 w/Crucials w/AGX's. Progressive but stiffer than the Prodrives @ 257/217. I feel everything in the road that is less than perfect. Long Island isn't as bad I think compared to the NYC streets...OUCH!! I'm looking into the pinks as well. I'm anxious to see your reviews!!! I am not knocking Crucials at all...if your streets permit, these are awesome. I take turns like it's on rails. On my a/s tires...I take an on ramp which is basically a circle (LIE east to Clearview north) at around 50 mph with little tire scrub. Normally my tires screaming and the car pushing a bit at around 45 mph.

05-16-2006, 10:28 AM	#20
BIGSKYWRX Scooby Guru Member#: 7958 Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: Plains of Eastern Montana Vehicle: 09 GH B+	Subaru is good about including new hardware w their suspension stuff- nice touch IMO You'll have a little more clearance w/ the pinks, so the lip should be less "trouble"- I wouldn't get rid of it either- looks great!

05-16-2006, 10:46 AM	#21
Daedalus Scooby Newbie Member#: 29049 Join Date: Nov 2002 Chapter/Region: MAIC Location: Fairfax, VA Vehicle: 2007 WRX Wagon SWP	Correct me if I'm wrong, but I've read that using sporty gas shocks (like Bilsteins) will not cause your car to settle as much. Perhaps if you had replaced your stock shocks and struts with more aggressive ones, your car wouldn't have settled as much as it did. What are the ride height differences between stock, the Prodrives, and the SPT springs? I would love to see a ride height comparison between the Prodrives and the SPT ones.

05-16-2006, 11:05 AM	#22
BIGSKYWRX Scooby Guru Member#: 7958 Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: Plains of Eastern Montana Vehicle: 09 GH B+	Uprated struts have no bearing on ride height- they may offer better matched damping to a particular spring, but no effect on ride height. The "SPT" pink ones lower ~ 10-15mm front/rear, Prodrives seem to be in the 30mmish front/20mmish rear.

05-16-2006, 11:33 AM	#23
Siper2 Scooby Guru Member#: 1134 Join Date: Mar 2000 Chapter/Region: MAIC Location: Dillsburg, PA Vehicle: 2005 Legacy GT Ltd. 2001 Outback LL Bean	Ought to move this to the reviews forum. Nice review! =S2=

05-16-2006, 12:44 PM	#24
humara Scooby Specialist Member#: 53289 Join Date: Jan 2004 Chapter/Region: SCIC Vehicle: 04 wrx waggin' wrb	problems or not, that stance is 1000 times better than the stock setup. looks so nice.

05-16-2006, 06:03 PM	#25
Canonshooter Scooby Specialist Member#: 103479 Join Date: Dec 2005 Chapter/Region: NESIC Location: Bedford, NH Vehicle: '07 Forester XT Newport Pearl Blue	Update - the SPT Pinks are in and I've driven on them enough to make some initial observations. First the "aesthetic issue" of front wheel gap. As expected, the SPT pinks fall exactly half way between the stock springs which measured 15-1/2 inches from the fender lip to the center of the wheel; the SPT Pinks measure 14-3/4 inches; the Prodrives measured 14 inches. Rear height remains exactly the same as the Prodrives at 13-1/2 inches. With the stock springs, the wheel gap was greater at the top than in the front and back of the wheel well, which I agree is not very attractive; with the Prodrives, the gap was less at the top; with the SPT Pinks, the gap is even all the way around. Visually, this looks just fine to me. I will post pics of stock, SPT and Prodrive in this thread as soon as I take some pics of the SPTs. Now on the the "functional" aspects - ride and handling. I will need to keep this short for right now and please excuse some of the wording used - it is not intented to offend anyone, but it was what came to mind as I drove on the SPT Pinks for the first time. WOW! My car doesn't ride like a "boy racer" anymore! The "chop and bounce" that was really starting to get to me is gone. In terms of ride comfort, these springs just blow away the Prodrives on less-than-smooth surfaces. Another thing I noticed immediately is that the steering feels less "twitchy." I had my alignment guy try different toe settings with the Prodrives, but the steering always felt "over sensitive" for lack of a better phrase. After doing some reading about the suspension/steering geometry of the Impreza front end, I now believe that dropping the front 1-1/2 inches isn't ideal without doing other modifications. The car definitely feels "better" at this height. I wish I could be more descriptive, but that's the best I can offer right now. Handling is very similiar to the Prodrives, but the car feels more stable with the SPTs. Again, it may be a "geometry thing." The stock '06 struts feel good with these springs and give a smooth ride, but I agree they may be a just a touch underdamped, but certainly nothing significant. I'm glad I made the swap. I'll be back with pics soon!