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Ride Height and lowering an R/T AWD

28K views 18 replies 9 participants last post by  Hermen R/T 
#1 ·
Does the R/T AWD have a higher ride height than the rear wheel drive R/T. How about compared to the SRT8?

What parts need to be purchased to lower the ride height, aprrox. cost and where did you buy the parts?

How many hours of labor is involved with lowering the car?

How did lowering the car change the quality of the ride as far as handling and going over bumps.

Thanks, Rob
 
#2 ·
Anyone out there? Can anyone at least answer these two questions below:

Does the R/T AWD have a higher ride height than the rear wheel drive R/T?

How did lowering the car change the quality of the ride as far as handling and going over bumps?
 
#3 ·
I had Eibach springs (part # 2879.140 - a set for sale currently in the Active Threads :) ) installed when the car was about 3 months old .... they made the ride a little firmer, made the cornering a lot flatter, and gave me the look I was after :)


Yes, the AWD sits about 1" higher than a corresponding RWD model ... the extra fender gap looked horrible in my eyes and I had to do something about it as soon as I could :)

The SRT8 model sits another 1" lower than regular RWD models.


There's a member, on lxforums I think, that is using SRT8 springs on his AWD and it looks awesome.


There is also a coil-over kit available from KW, and another coil-over kit coming from Circuit Motorsports - a vendor on that other site :)

Hope I helped - I just saw this thread.

Also, click on the "my mods" link in my sig and you'll see all kinds of pics before and after the lowering :)
 
#4 ·
Yes that helps alot Gabe!

If I put 255/45R20 Goodyear RSA tires all the way around that will close up 1/2" of the space in the wheel well correct? Will I have any rubbing or clearance issues with that size tire?

Secondly, is there anything that can be done when lowering the car to keep the ride comfort there. This is my wife's car and I do not want driving over the bumps to be more harsh or noticeable. Any advice there?

Thanks, Rob
 
#5 ·
Well, the rear springs on the AWD are the same springs normally used on the RWD, they're even labeled "RWD" and they use a spacer to bring the ride up.

In the front there are different springs altogether, but using the stock RWD springs could probably work ... this should bring the ride height to stock-RWD height ...

The 255/45R20 tire size is 29" tall and the OEM 225/60R18 size calculates to 28.6" tall, but only half that difference would be added to veh height or fender gap ... so 0.2" would be hardly noticeable ... the 255/45R20 is the size I was using on my summer 20's .... 20x8 rims with 50mm offset ... no rubbing, no problems :)

Here's some pics of that fitment ;) :






And a pic showing my ride height before and after the Eibach spring install :) :

 
#6 ·
Hi Gabe,

What if I also change the Charger R/T AWD shocks to the SRT8 Bilstein Front and Rear Shocks along with the Eibach springs? What will that do for me versus just changing the springs?

Secondly, do you know if the Challenger SRT8 Bilstein Front and Rear Shocks will work on the Charger R/T AWD?

Thanks for your help! Rob
 
#8 ·
The front struts are different on the AWD ... the lower part has a fork that the axle shaft goes through ...


So you may be able to use the RWD stuff for the rear, but in the front, you've got limited strut options (KW and the upcoming Circuit Motorsports stuff)


Pedders teased us a while back but decided to flip-off the AWD owners and leave us hanging ...
 
#9 · (Edited)
EiBach Springs

Just did the lower job on my AWD R/T using the EiBach 300 sprint kit #2879.140. All went well. Not install issues and dropped the ride around 1.5 in which I would say is plenty for this car. Love the looks... Even more sporty. Have not even taken it out yet to see how it rides, gonna take a break and enjoy the looks for a bit.

I would say that AWDGabe was right on about the springs. Other full kits can run up to $1000 but if you looking to do an upgrade on the cheap. EiBack spring kit did the trick... Oh, fyi. I called Eibach to see if they had a specif spring kit for the AWD R/T... Reply... No... And no reason given. I asked about using the 300 springs and they said it was up to me, but they will not say it will work. For those of you who worry as much as I do, don't the 300 spring work fine...

Here is a pict of the rear done and the front not... You can really see the difference in this pict.



Az
 
#11 ·
The 20's and the current 18's I got from The Tire Rack ... both packages came with tires pre-installed/balanced, and with TPMS sensors pre-installed too.

Both sets have also had to be re-balanced locally, and both times The Tire Rack reimbursed me.
 
#14 ·
Hey Gabe.........I'm waiting for my BC Racing coil-overs, any day now I expect. I hope that I'm making the right move. I hope you've had good luck since your installation.
At any rate, the factory AWD has a forward leaning, downward look, that I'd like to retain and simply lower the body proportionately. It's higher at the rear, I assume, due to the spacer that you refer to. I assume that there is no spacer in the front. Is that true?
I'm having the kit professionally installed, but I want to be quite specific as to it's final appearance. What happens to the rear spacer, and front spacer if there is one? Do they remain as part of the new installation?
Also, did you notice any additional settling of the springs after having them on for a while? And, can you guess at how much?
Anything else that you can think of would be appreciated.
Thanks.............Dave
 
#15 ·
Did you every worry about hitting a curb? Or road kill or anything? Because I am really cautious about that kind of stuff ever since i got my danko chin spoiler. Like today, I was going down the highway and there was this huge dead raccoon in the middle of the street, I couldn't swerve to avoid it and I was sure that it would hit my chin spoiler, i prepared for the worst and I didn't even touch it. I am concerned that if I lower my AWD charger im gonna scrape on EVERYTHING
 
#17 ·
Yep, BC Racing coil overs did the job for me. I put them on this spring, the dealer installed them and told not to worry the car will be fine. Yes you have to be careful approaching a curb but you'll get used to that fairly quickly. I'm running 255/40/20 Toyos and love the ride and the look.
 
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