Ride height and comfort: will lowering make the ride harsher?

This guide explains how ride height, spring preload and travel affect comfort.

• Ride height — how high the body sits above the ground
• Spring preload — how much the spring is already compressed when the shock is fully extended
• Compression (bump) travel — how far the shock can still compress before it reaches the bump stop

1. Less compression travel — the shock reaches the bump stop sooner, so bumps and potholes hit harder
2. Often stiffer springs — very low cars need to avoid bottoming out, so they usually run higher spring rates
3. Bigger wheels, lower-profile tyres — if you change them at the same time, the tyres absorb less
4. Changed wheel angles — without a new alignment, the car feels unsettled and the tyres wear unevenly

• Adding or removing preload doesn’t change the rate of a linear spring
• What changes is the ride height, and the force the spring still exerts when the shock is fully extended
• With too little preload, the spring can go loose when the wheel drops to full extension
• Set preload according to the manual, and let your installer do it

• Start with a small drop, then go lower — a little at a time, with a test drive each time
• Keep some travel in reserve — especially if your usual roads have speed bumps or potholes
• Check tyre clearance — at full steering lock and with a full load of passengers
• Align the wheels every time — after every ride height change
• Headlamp height — headlamps must be at least 40 cm above the ground; have your installer measure them after setting the height (DLT notice B.E. 2552 and amendment No. 2, B.E. 2555)
• Spring rates — ask our team for rates that suit your ride height and use

Not recommended without the right tools and experience. Left and right must match, preload must be set correctly, and the wheels need realigning every time. Let your installer do it.

Tell us your car, wheels, tyres and target height. We will suggest a series and spring rates, free of charge.