tokico illumina 2

suprahflyg

Prodution N's MA70!
Mar 6, 2013
77
0
0
California
So i got some Tokico Illumina II and they are REALLY SOFT im getting a bunch of body roll and i was wondering if anyone can tell me how to stiffen it? or do i haveto get new spring/coilovers?
 

suprajztwenty

Member
Nov 5, 2009
369
0
16
corinth tx
id also like to know what you mean by priming the strut.

my new illumina 2's + h&R race springs on soft mode feel stiffer than the stock setup was on firm mode...but thats just my own perception.

youll get some body roll if youre on stock springs, mostly because the ride height is so high.

my advice would be to get a large friend to push each corner of the car to try and pinpoint one side or a corner as being the culprit.

used shocks suck, goodluck man
 

Dirgle

Conjurer of Boost
Mar 30, 2005
1,632
0
36
41
Pauma Valley, CA
Mmmm.......pie.

Tokico Illumina II are not know for being the most reliable shock. Purchasing a used set is nearly a guarantee that you are getting a dead set.

As far as your question goes about body roll. A cars suspension is a very complex system, with a huge number of variables that affect it.

You should take some time and do some research into the subject.
But the extremely simple and dirty answer is to first look at spring rates, also seen as deflection rate. Increasing the spring rate will help the car in dealing with chassis squat, dive, and roll. Since springs affect all three of these things this is the starting point in dealing with chassis movement.

Next, increasing the spring rate also means that you are increasing the energy stored in the spring when moving over the same distance. So it is a good idea to make adjustments to the shock to control this. At minimum increasing the rebound dampening.
Now understand that the purpose of a shock is to control the rate of compression and rebound, ie controlling the storage and release of energy in the spring.

So you control chassis movement with spring changes, then you control the springs with dampener/shock changes.

Lastly additional control of body roll can be done with the anti-roll/anti-sway bars. Now increasing these front and rear helps with chassis roll but does not effect dive or squat. So it only effect one of the three chassis dynamics you are dealing with. And why its should be adjusted after setting up springs and dampeners.

Now while changes in these can help with body roll they will also affect other things such as instances and initiation of oversteer and understeer. So choosing suspension components should be made with an understanding of what they will do to driving dynamics.

Now Tokico Illumina II's were designed to be stock replacements so they shouldn't change driving dynamics enough to worry about. So if you can get a good set of Tokico Illumina II's then they will return the vehicle to factory behavior, provided that the rest of the suspension is stock and in serviceable condition.
 

suprahflyg

Prodution N's MA70!
Mar 6, 2013
77
0
0
California
well i bought them for $200 because my stock were blown and i needed something and thought oh hey these are nice lol. but they are alot softer than stock and they arent stock springs i think it was a drop of 1.5front and 1.3 back. Also what do you mean by your soft mode? do i need the electric box thing to stiffen my ride or is there a way i can do it by hand? because my friend has tien and he has the electric box in his car that adjusts it and i wasnt sure if thats needed for illuminas II
 

AbsoluteSpeed

Member
Aug 8, 2007
735
0
16
Edmonton AB
Pulled right from their website
http://www.tokicoperformanceshocks.com/p-480-shocks-illumina-series-toeu3634-front.aspx

Damping Force Adjustment
With a choice of five settings from the softest (#1) to maximum control (#5) the Illumina Series allows drivers to easily change the balance, overall handling and ride quality for everything from daily driving to autocross or even drag racing. To change the damping force, simply insert the Illumina adjuster (part #TO 00102) into the top of the rod, and turn it to any of the five numbered settings.
 

Trent

Quietly Browsing
Oct 30, 2007
78
0
0
Austin TX
AbsoluteSpeed;1947426 said:

I've had the Illumina 2's and because they are specifically TEMS compatible and a shock made just for the MK3 with the TEMS system, the regular adjustment knob or whatever it is, doesn't apply. You have to have the TEMS actuators to make any adjustments to the Illumina 2's. I don't see of any way to adjust them otherwise.

To the threadstarter, if you do not have TEMS, then you can't adjust these antyhign other than the soft setting that they are apparently stuck on.
 
Oct 11, 2005
3,816
16
38
Thousand Oaks, CA
Actually. you can adjust them with needle nose pliers by twisting the tab in the top of the shock tube, but you won't know what setting you have without spending some time with the TSRM.
 

suprahflyg

Prodution N's MA70!
Mar 6, 2013
77
0
0
California
what are TEM? i cant just twist it the same rotation? lol. also if TEM is what i trhink it is i can use the one from my friends car? the box thing that goes over the shock tube?
 

peytoncoyote

New Member
Aug 5, 2012
44
0
0
Lemoore, CA
Quick question, I have TEMS and I do like it when it is working on better shocks, I.E. not old old shocks. Where can I find replacment shocks for the car? Every one I go to says the Tokico shocks are out of stock and no one knows when they will be in stock again.