KYB AGX Installed UP FRONT!!!

[floydiancomplex]

I have finally found a set of KYB AGX adjustables that will fit on the front of our cars.
When I say "FIT" I use it pretty loosely, this is my no means a bolt on part but for my
use it is perfect. After growing increasingly annoyed with the soft dampening of the
GR2 and tired of bottoming the shocks on every other bump something had to be done.
Enter once again our friend the 1997 Mitsubishi Mirage, KYB AGX part #'s 734011 and
734010 for the left and right side. The overall length with coilovers installed is about 1"
shorter than the festy unit and has about 3/4" more travel. Which means at 2" lowering
I still have the travel of the stock setup. No more bottoming and I get to run my LCAs
parallel with the ground. These struts also have some hardcore dampening ,the front
has never felt so planted. I will repeat this is not an easy job, I have access to a
machine shop which made the job alot simpler. It could be done with a grinder and drill
but would be a lot of hassle, but then again it is totally worth that hassle. You can get
them from Summit for 119.99 Each.


This is straight out of the box (a lot of work a do)

Using the mill to thin down this strut mounts on the hub (yeah, yeah, structurally
weakening critical suspension components is dangerous and stupid, also necessary)

Taking the spring perch off with a lathe (much prettier than just using a angle grinder)

Those are all the shots I took in the shop (I was tired and running short on time)

Mounted and installed (sideways yes I know)

Look closely and you can see an extra mounting hole by the bottom bolt (they were
spaced too far apart so a new one had to be drilled (another place the mill came in
handy

New 7" 250lb springs

4 position adjuster on top of piston rod (not a very clear pic)

Another side shot

Front shot all bolted up and ready to roll

New Lower Floor brace helps reduce chassis flex (it really does too)

Rear strut tower brace (its never felt so stiff back there)

Hope you enjoy the pics, any questions my door is open. - Chris

[Omgloltokyodrift]

Hope you enjoy the pics, any questions my door is open. - Chris

Yessir, when are these spindles going to be ready for order? And how much? Haha.


Great work!

[lastplace]

that is awesome. ive been trying to figure out how i could get the agx up front and im so glad you were able to figure it out haha where did you get the floor brace and the rear strut brace? or are they custom made?

[Hot_Wheels]

how much of the hub do you think you milled off?

[floydiancomplex]

- tokyo drift
You don't really need a machine shop to do this (I did my test fitting with an angle
grinder on a spare hub). I would be a bit wary of performing this on someone elses
car (Its one thing to risk your own life, anothers is a different story) but it could be
done with simpler tools with a little patience.

- last place
the floor brace and tower brace were "custom" hardware store mods. A 3/4" Dia length
of galvanized pipe cut to size and ends threaded. I used pipe mounting flanges to bolt
it to the car. I will take some better pics and post later tonight.

-hot wheels
about 1/10th of an inch off the back side, I should have taken it off the front (to
give a little more positive caster but you live and learn. If you take off your strut
and look at the hub you'll see there is a raised section by the upper bolt hole.
Basically I removed that and the same amount off the bottom.

[Aaronbrook37]

Just so you guys know, I'm conveniently a Mirage owner. Here's my wisdom to you:

All 1993-1996 Mirage Shocks/Springs will bolt onto 1997-2002 Mirages... the other difference is that 1993-1996 has a 2-bolt top mount whereas the 1997-2002 has a 3-bolt, but they're interchangeable with a drill.

Some 1993-1996 owners have adapted the larger and firmer 1990-1994 Eclipse AWD struts and springs, but these would probably be firmer than anyone of you would want to go. However, the Mirage AGX stock is falling apart, and we're finding it harder and harder to find them. (particularly the rear ones, which are rumoured to be discontinued by KYB)

The only modification needed to get these to work on mirages is to remove and replace the lower shock mount from the Eclipse with that from the Mirage. For the springs, remove a coil or so unless you want to be a van.

So, I'm guessing then, if you wanted a ridiculously firm ride, you guys could also adapt these.

[Hot_Wheels]

i have been thinking of doing this for the last week and im just worried of grinding the hub, i was thinking what if you cut off the inner flange inside the strut where the sturt mounts to the hub and weld that piece on the outside so it would still be riggid and you could get your clerance with out grinding the hub. does that make sense?

[floydiancomplex]

i considered that option but it just seemed to difficult to remove the inner flange
layer without damaging the strut body, and welding on any gas charged strut is
a bad idea, although Quadawg got away with it so who knows.

[nEighter]

So is that a QA1 sleeve & Coil for the coilover? I have those for my mustang.. pricey but great stuff

[quaddawg]

Very cool!!

I will disagree about it being "prettier" though, you should have finished it up!... .haha!!




Now I have to go get a set of the AGX and do it again!!!

THANKS!

[floydiancomplex]

nEighter - The springs are QA1 from summit only $40 each for the 7", the adjusters are
made by Ractive (Toucan industries $50 on Ebay)

Quaadawg - I been waiting for you to chime in on this, I just meant a prettier cut.
than grinding it off but I agree yours looks better with the pipe section and bondo
setup. It may be a hassle but these struts are worth it, the fronts are 4-position,
I have it set on 3 and it feels awesome with the 250 lb springs. No more clunking
or bouncing (it is bouncy on the street but not because it is underdamped and
can't control the spring, but because a properly damped race suspension is just
bouncy on the street). We had our AutoX this weekend on a road course, 90 sec+
runs on about 1.25 miles of track with the last 1/4 mile cone free. I was crossing
the timing lights at over 70 mph. Fronts on 3 rears on 4 and I have never felt so in
control. Lift, Steer, Rotate, Plant, it was simply astounding.

Like the 323 struts they have that extra step in the rod so you need a stack of
washers to tighten it down, also the Rod itself is fatter so you have to ream about
1/8" from the bearing and the bump stop. - Chris

[Omgloltokyodrift]

What wheel and tire setup are you running?

[floydiancomplex]

Sumitomo HTR 200 175/50 R13 on Aero Race Wheels 13x6 3.5" backspacing

[pumbaplus]

Hi all,
are mirage struts (front + rear) the same as those on mitsu lancers? do you get lancers in the US?

want agx or bilstein but the mirage is not on the bilstiein catalogue.