Super Street – October 2019

65

THAT NEW CAR SMELL

2019 LEXUS UX 200 F SPORT

STICKER $34,000

POWER 169 hp, 151 lb-ft of torque

LAYOUT Front engine, front-wheel drive

ENGINE 2.0L 16-valve inline-four with

electronic fuel injection

DRIVETRAIN 10-speed Direct Shift CVT

FOOTWORK & CHASSIS H&R Raising

springs; MacPherson independent front

struts; multi-link independent rear with

trailing arms

BRAKES Four-wheel power-assisted

brakes with 12-inch ventilated front, 11.1-

inch solid rear rotors

WHEELS & TIRES 18x7 aluminum alloy

wheels; 225/50R18 Bridgestone Turanza

EL450 tires

CURB WEIGHT 3,307 pounds

DIMENSIONS 177 L x 72 W x 61 H inches

AT THE PUMP (city/hwy/combined)

29/37/33 mpg

though we know it would’ve looked mad
clean!). So, we put our thinking caps on
and remembered past experiences with
crossovers, trucks, and SUVs. It’s not always
their large size that makes ’em appealing,
but their ability to go virtually anywhere
and drive on any type of surface. It got my
gears turning, so I made the decision to
throw out the old Super Street playbook and
write a new one. This time, we’re going up!
Note: Before the truck guys come out
in force to roast me, the new goal isn’t to
turn this into an off-road or overlanding
project, but something with a bit more
ground clearance that offers the driveability
qualities you’d find more in an SUV rather
than a city-centric hatchback.

H&R Raises the Bar

Despite the noticeable factory wheel
gap, the UX is so surprisingly low that
it’ll often scrape regular curbs in parking
lots. Without going with a balls-out lift
kit, we decided we needed some taller
springs. We contacted our friends at H&R
Springs who’ve been selling a wide range
of coilovers and spring kits intended to
raise a vehicle, now with more than 30
applications. After telling them our spiel,
it was only a matter of weeks until their
German R&D team developed and shipped
an affordable spring kit (MSRP: $399) to us
that would raise our UX 1-inch in the front
and 1.2 inches in the back.
Packed with our H&R goodies in the
trunk, we headed down to our good friends
at Auto Tuned in Monrovia, California, where
owner Young Tea would give us a hand
installing the new springs. A normal spring
install is pretty straightforward on the UX,
however, the only issue we ran into was that
compressing springs was a bit more difficult
than usual due to their taller height compared
to stock. You’ll definitely need a wall-mounted
spring compressor for the fronts.
After finessing our pretty blue H&R
springs in, we were shocked how much
difference an inch makes. We were well on
our way to reconfiguring our UX to be more
like an SUV and more like an “eXplorer.”
In regard to ride comfort, there was no
compromise. It didn’t feel too bouncy or
“springy” as one would expect.

Next Up

The waiting game starts now... We spent

a couple of days test-fitting different wheel

options at Mackin Industries and decided on

a wheel design from RAYS Japan that isn’t

offered in the States yet. We’ll be the first

(wink, wink)!

We’re definitely stoked about the wheels,

but pairing them with a set of meatier tires is

what’s got us excited but nervous at the same

time. Going from all-season street tires to

all-terrain tires is no walk in the park, and it’s

already looking like a tight fit—especially since

we don’t plan to cut the fenders. You’re not

going to want to miss how it at all pans out!

Since we were the guinea pig for the new H&R raising

springs, it was important we measured each corner to

check the total change in ride height later.

Comparison of the rear springs: The H&Rs gave

us a 1.2-inch lift.

Rears installed and looking pretty!

Front comparison, which gave us an inch of lift.

Getting the front springs in wasn’t the easiest,

as it required a lot more compression to get the

taller springs into the stock strut assemblies.

Voila! A mild raise and ready for the next step!

» CONNECT hrsprings.com • shopautotuned.com