I just put these on today. (spring spacers)

[obrother]

http://www.aliexpress.com/snapshot/6569662793.html?orderId=66473483927918

I didn't get a chance to go on the highway with them. But I already notice that the front is stiffer. Much less nose dive on braking and less dipping into the front corners of the car on turning. I already have the sway bar on the rear but it still isn't enough on the highway with a side wind. I think it raised the front a little put I didn't measure before i put them on. Tomorrow I will let you guys know more how they were on the highway. I'm going on a 6 hour trip each way on Friday so after that for sure I will give a better review. They are easy to install. 10 minutes. Not sure how durable they are and if there are any negatives. The car still needs stiffer struts for sure but I will try anything now until someone makes a reasonable priced set of stiffer struts for our car.

[obrother]

Ok today I got to see if they work on the highway. In a short answer for me they are worth it. It was like the way it felt when I first put on my rear sway bar. Not a total fix which I blame Mitsubishi for not having provided a solution to it. Another way I will sum it up is that my stress level driving in a crosswind was reduced by more than half. My test was driving westbound below Pearson Airport for those of you in the GTA that know it. Normally driving by there when you pass or get passed by another vehicle even a small one you have to quickly correct for switching from being in a crosswind and the crosswind being blocked by the other vehicle. The body roll is much less and happens much slower allowing you ample time to make any correction like a normal car. The crosswind steers the car much less. I have greater confidence to drive quicker in turns at a faster speed. It doesn't feel like the car will flip right over. It now feels like the weak point is the rear suspension even with the swaybar because now the front is stiffer. So I will be getting spacers for the back as soon as I measure them. I won't tell you that you must get them.. but hopefully someone else on here will get them and confirm that they are worth it. These red ones are the best. Don't get the cheaper clear ones as they are softer and probably less durable. If someone gets them get the exact same ones. They need to be ziptied to the spring to keep them in place and for durability.

[Ares]

For 30$ more, you could get a set of 4 springs. I've installed the rear so far, with plans to install fronts.

[obrother]

Shipping to Toronto its say $350 and its sold out. Anyone can do the spacers no tools required. Zips ties and a sharp knife or scissors and the car jack under the seat. If u are leasing spacers are a good option.

[tlstreak]

supersprings make nice units also. i was thinking about the same thing. have not taken the time to do the research yet

[obrother]

Back from my trip. Overall it was a pleasant ride. I've reduced body roll to an acceptable level minus the still soft rear. I just ordered spacers for the back size 'c'. It was alot less stressful. I've also found out that we are not alone. Read up on the pruis.

http://priuschat.com/threads/why-is-...ditions.44569/

We already know about the springs and stuts/shocks. The lack of toe-in on fuel efficient cars makes them difficult to drive in the wind. The problem with the rear toe-in as reported in another thread means i will be getting an alignment check next oil change because that will add the problem with wind. Also our rims are small and narrow and tires non sport. Upgrading tires and or rims will help. Prius owners are getting a rear chassis brace to solve the problem but for some it doesn't work.

http://www.sigmaautomotive.com/jdm/prius/nhw20_per.php

[debburyl]

Obrother,,,, that's very true about the Tires, and Rims. When I had my steel wheels taken off and my sport Edision wheels put on and thier a little bit wider it Really made a Diffrence . It Handels better, on the freeway and in the wind

[obrother]

debburyl, thanks for the conformation about wider wheels. Getting new wheels is something i would like to do but at this time i dont want to sink more money into this car. Some people with other cars have claimed that it's about the size of contact patch. Getting a larger patch can be done in different ways. One way is to play with air pressure. Dropping the air pressure on a windy day may be the cheapest solution with the only cost being extra fuel. Actually any improvement made to treat the wind problem will reduce fuel economy. Eco tires are skinny for the reason of improving fuel economy. These tires are made soft and flexible to decrease friction. Despite what manufacturers say about stiffer sidewalls our eco tires are flimsy, the total opposite of a performance tire. Also some people or putting wider tires on their stock rims and claim an improvement in lateral stability. That's probably the next cheapest option with the additional cost of lower fuel economy and premature replacement of the tires if not worn. I bought a better 12v air pump for my car and I will try different air pressures for now. Maybe I can get an improvement with lowering the pressure on just the fronts. One thing I have noticed is that with my now reduced body roll I feel more confident to take turns faster and I now feel the tires starting to lose traction. Our skinny tires have a small contact patch and poor traction. So my theory is that Mitsubishi purposely gave us a soft suspension to scare us well before we reach the limits of our tires, and not just to give a softer ride over bad roads.

[Ares]

It's not just the contact patch that's the problem with our cars, it is also the soft sidewalls.

After my rear spring+swaybar install, the 195-50's are now more effective - so much so that I'm actually now feeling understeer.

I'm sure the limits of these tires will be pushed once I install the front springs as well.

These $50 springs, minus the slight increase in ride height, feel more like the sport setting on adjustable suspension cars.

[debburyl]

Obrother, I understand about cost, on wheels, but I figured since I couldn't get the ES , that I would Fix Up my DE . And I got these wheels for a Good Price and I bought one at a time from the Dealer. And I'm glad I did. It really makes the car look a lot nicer. You might as well fix it up as nice as you whant it and enjoy it