I completed the lowering project a while ago now and am just getting to posting about my results. I decided to do the swift springs as mentioned above, and I replaced the shocks and struts, as well as the mounts and the swaybar links while I was at it. The car was at 105K miles and even though it all looked to be in fine shape still, the parts were relatively cheap and it was all being taken apart anyway and I know it will be placed under more stress after lowering.

I went with the slightly beefier Moog links up front and did adjustable SPL links in the rear, and I went with the (probably OEM identical) KYB GR-2 shocks/struts. I also added 15mm spacers. I wanted a relatively conservative look and also I'm a touch wary of stone chips given the quantity of miles I drive at mostly 60mph+ speeds.

Obviously, the overall appearance is significantly improved. I'm not honestly into a slammed/tucked look at all, but the wheel gaps on the AWD sedan are gaping openings that had to be dealt with. The drop actually ended up just slightly more than I anticipated and wanted, but I'm still generally happy with it. The front wheels are right about where I want them in terms of offset, but the rear wheels look just a hair more tucked, and I may someday go to 17mm or 20mm spacers in the back if I feel motivated enough.

As far as the driving goes, I think I can sort of understand why the swift springs get such mixed reviews. It depends a ton on what sort of roads you drive on. I haven't found it bothersome at all most of the time, but the other day I found myself on some pretty unpleasant roads on the west side of Cleveland with four people in the car, and I noted that I wouldn't even consider such a mod if I lived around roads like that. Fortunately, that's not my usual drive, and I definitely find the updated ride far more rewarding when it comes to steering inputs and feel. Also, it depends on what you consider "stiff." I've been in some sports cars with harder rides than this from the factory, but some people don't like those cars. It surely also helps that I'm still on 18" wheels and that I don't have other worn out suspension components in the mix. Is it under-damped? Only by a tiny amount. It only ever feels bouncy at slow speeds in a rough parking lot. In fact, I've grown accustomed to it enough that I don't even notice that anymore. Also, since lowering I've felt a touch of renewed sway in the rear, because physics. The energy isn't absorbed by the springs as much now. I may go back and adjust my rear swaybar to the stiffest setting at some point.

 

Almost forgot, the alignment. So, I was not one of the lucky folks who ended up with a perfect -1-1.5 degrees of camber after adjustment. I started out at -1.4 in the front and -2.0 in the rear, which I considered borderline, but after settling for a few weeks I ended up at -1.6 in the front and -2.4 in the rear. Too much, at least in the rear. It was visible at that point.

So, I puckered up and bought some SPC rear camber arms and adjustable Whiteline front A-arms and had them put on at the same time I had my sport brakes installed a couple of months later. (if you squint you can see those in the pictures above) My alignment is now perfect, and most of the hardware attached to the wheels in any way is new. (I may have just jinxed my ball joints)

 

Great updates^^^^
What is your alignment in the back now??
The ride can be a bit alarming vs. the soft OEM setup but should get easier to live with as you get more accustomed to it. Looks like you did things the right way w/ quality parts, and AFAIK those KYBs are real similar to OEM but just a bit firmer, so combined w/ the Swifts that ride would be firmed up a fair amount.

Nice job with the detailed write-up too!

 

Thanks! I wish I had a print-out to post. The shop's printer was broken that day.

With the adjustable arms all around there was plenty of slack to adjust it at either end of the OEM "good" range, so I asked them to leave it at -0.7" all around, which they did right on the nose.

Honestly, I never found the ride to be overly harsh with the swift springs. It's just with certain surfaces that I realize there are probably some outliers for whom the experience is less good. My biggest actual issue is the lack of clearance. The AWD Sedan only starts with 4.9" minimum ground clearance, least of the G family. (I think the coupes have 5.1" and the other sedans 5.3") I haven't measured it, but the drop on swifts is specified as 1.3" in front where the lowest point happens to be, which would leave me 3.6" of ground clearance. I suspect it ended up a touch lower than that, though. It's not a huge problem but I have to be careful. Just the other day I was on a side street with ruts on either side and a hump in the middle due to semi traffic, and I scraped bottom. Also, I can't pass over squirrels without killing them.