Like I said I'm pretty sure he bought the car and already had some ready for it, but it had some on there... so he went with whatever he had on there, I take it "junk" parts is a reference to the "Pick n Pull" statement.
Now, as long as a part is sound (believe it or not I'm not gonna buy a blown part) it's good to go, if nothing else I know people with integras many who may have extra parts lying round, many who do have the cash to spend thousands of dollars to spend on their vehicle so the forks wouldn't be that hard to find with relatively little ware even with a rough idea if not exact amount of mileage.
No, by junk I meant the coilovers your looking to buy. If they were really a good brand name and this guy knew anything, they would probably go for over a hundred easily in good condition.
And no, even if that suspension is in good PHYSICAL shape, it does not mean it is good to go. Your suspension all has to work together in a certain way. Dropping your car 2.5" on say stock shocks with any coilover whether it be no name or GC is not smart. You need to know what spring rates you're getting. If these come with shocks, what brand are they and will they work with those spring rates.
I'm not talking about the forks. I know these cars are a dime a dozen.
Your misconception that I can't "spare" 30 dollars for my car is out of left field, because I said simply enough that I could invest it somewhere else in a more sensible purchase if this wasn't a pretty cheap/effective good way to go. Like my insurance, or a nicer pair of wipers ( I can get some RainX ones for 20 bucks and some change) the money would go into my car either way. This isn't a eat or don't eat scenario I'm not "sparing" anything.
You're looking into buying, what's sounds like, a very questionable suspension setup. The fact that you are looking to only spend $30 on one of the most important parts on your car speaks for itself. UNLESS this guy that's selling it really has no care to get anywhere near what the coilovers are really worth if they were a good quality brand.
Now, I'd like you to do me a favor, go out, find a used car on craigslist or a forum or anything.
Now when you have found one make sure it has a reliable lowering done to it with coilovers (whether they be ebay nameless or ground control or whatever)
Now, go find a similar vehicle completely stock. Even if it's just the one modification done I guarantee you that the lowered one will likely cost more money (without bartering assuming same condition etc)
Man this happens far to often... A lot of people THINK the value increases but it doesn't. Do you think the average person(non-car enthusiast/tuner) gives a crap about modifications? Any aftermarket suspension is meaningless to them and in most cases would make the car uncomfortable to drive. So for them, the value decreases if it is not stock. Even for the average tuner, buying a modified car is sketchy. You must assume that since the car is modified, it has been abused. You also have to question the quality of the parts and the quality of the work for installing those parts. All of which decreases the value.
I've been around for a little while now and Ive seen COUNTLESS of times people bringing their cars back to stock in order for them to for one, sell it at all, and two, get more for it.
I've worked for a couple of dealerships for years and you know what, they very RARELY buy any car that is modified. Why? Because it would be a very tough sale and they know they won't make anything off of it.
Personally, I'd never buy a modified car from someone I didn't know personally. I sure wouldn't buy one that had cheap parts on it.
Taking a part out of pick n pull isn't a crime, i've seen clean cars with pick n pull radiators/distributors and even wires. Go for the exact same price they would despite that, now as these may not be as essential to safety as some forks, buying used isn't a bad thing. Especially when I have a buddy who's a certified mechanic and has been working on hondas since he was 10 (level of help varies with age) we're going to do it right.
I have no doubts that this is any problem..
I find your comment condescending and quite frankly pretty douche baggy, it's discriminating against people who are less well off than you. Now this seems to be a friendly community so I'm not sure what happened but I'd suggest you go take a good look at your car and ask yourself how a less well off 21 year old kid has a more mechanically and functionally sound than you despite how ugly it may be at the time then take that information and kindly blow it out your tail pipe.
I'm not trying to be or even sound like a dbag. I'm trying to help you make an informed decession. Unfortunely it's the Internet and you can read my writing in many different ways. This is a friendly forum which is why I'm still here. Otherwise yeah, I'd have no part in it.
I don't know how my car has anything to do with this but, it is mechanically and functionally sound. If it weren't I wouldnt race it. And I'm not pulling this info out of my ass. I've been a Toyota T-TEN certified tech for 3 years and have 5 years of hands on experience plus a few more in my personal life. I've also researched suspension products for many years now and being that I am an avid autoxer, I know what's out there and I know what works and what doesn't work.
Take my advice how you want. After all its not my car so I really don't care. I try to help, you can decide to take it into consideration or not..
