How Much Does It Cost To Lower A Car Or Truck?

Driving a lowered car or truck can transform its look and really make it stand out from the crowd. But getting that mean, slammed stance isn’t cheap. Replacing key suspension components to drop your ride closer to the pavement carries a hefty price tag.

So if you’re wondering, “How much money will it take to get my car low?” – you’ve come to the right place!

In this detailed guide, we’ll cover all the costs and options to get your vehicle sitting pretty – from budget-friendly lowering springs to ultra adjustable air suspension set-ups.

Here’s The Short Answer:

Expect to spend $500 to $5,000+ to lower your car or truck, depending on how extreme you go. A set of lowering springs can start at $110 to drop it 1-3 inches. For more adjustability, coilover kits run $410 to $580. And air suspension takes things to another level, with prices starting around $3,400.

Below, we’ll break things down in depth looking at:

• The different types of lowering options and how they work
• Average costs for lowering cars, trucks, and SUVs
• How low you can realistically go
• The best affordable kits to get improved stance on a budget
• If it’s worth paying a shop for professional installation

So by the time you’re done reading, you’ll know exactly what lowering your ride will involve and cost. Let’s dive in!

Lowering Springs, Coilovers Or Air Suspension: How Do They Work?

Lowering a vehicle is achieved by replacing the factory suspension components with aftermarket parts engineered to reduce ride height. There are three main options that do this in different ways:

Lowering Springs

These replace the stock springs in your suspension to drop ride height 1 to 3 inches typically. Lowering springs compress more than stock springs when weight is applied. This brings everything down closer to the pavement.

Cost: $110 – $720

Pros: Low cost, simple install, modest drop improves appearance

Cons: Can cause a harsher ride, limited adjustability, doesn’t improve handling significantly

Coilovers

Coilovers replace both the springs and shock absorbers as a complete suspension unit. Extended collars allow ride height to be precisely dialed in. Most offer damping adjustment too.

Cost: $410 – $580

Pros: Tunable ride height and damping, improved handling, 1 to 4 inch drops achievable

Cons: Can degrade ride comfort, pricier, requires professional installation

Air Suspension

Air suspension uses air bags instead of springs that inflate and deflate to raise or lower the vehicle. Ride height can be adjusted from inside the car.

Cost: $3,400 – $9,800+

Pros: Ultimate adjustability, can lay frame at shows, raise for driving

Cons: Most expensive option, requires electronically controlled air compressors and management

As you can see, each type works differently and has its own pros and cons. Lowering springs offer the simplest and most budget friendly way to enhance stance slightly. For truly dialed fitment or radical drops, air suspension and coilovers start to make more sense despite higher costs.

How Much Does It Cost To Lower Popular Car Models?

Labor and parts costs for lowering your car vary depending on the make and model. Here are some rough estimates:

Lowering a Sedan or Coupe: $100 – $2,000

Smaller cars like Civics, Mustangs and BMW 3 Series can be lowered relatively affordably with springs or coilovers. Expect pricing on the lower end of the range.

Lowering a Truck: $249 – $20,000

Full-size pickups sit higher, so dropping them requires heavier duty springs and shocks. Expect to pay more for a proper lowered stance.

Lowering an SUV or Crossover: $1,000 – $2,500

Larger and heavier SUVs also call for oversized lowering components driving up costs. Air suspension easily over $2,000.

As you can see, trucks and SUVs that originally sit higher will generally cost more to lower significantly. The good news is there are ways to save for any vehicle when choosing parts.

Top Affordable Lowering Kits To Enhance Stance On A Budget

Don’t want to break the bank but still want to enhance your vehicle’s stance? Thankfully there are many budget-friendly options that offer great value:

Eibach Pro-Kit Lowering Springs

One of the most respected brands in the game. Pro-Kit springs offer a sporty 1.5-2.3 inch drop on most cars for around $110-$720. Significant improvement over stock.

Megan Racing Street Series Coilovers

Aggressively priced coilovers known for great bang-for-buck. $410-$580 buys you adjustable dampening and up to 3 inches of drop on common vehicles. Can’t be beat for the money.

Air Lift Performance Air Suspension

Air Lift is the pioneer of air suspension for lowered vehicles. A basic air kit starts around $3,400. Not cheap but much more affordable than most alternatives. Allows the highest possible drops when aired out.

As you can see, sticking with reputable brands known for value helps save money without sacrificing performance and looks. Springs from Eibach, coilovers from Megan Racing, or air suspension from Air Lift are proven ways to get more for less.

Is Getting Professional Installation Worth The Cost?

You’re going to be really digging into the underside of your car or truck to install lowered suspension. Is paying a professional mechanic or shop to do it worth the extra cost?

The short answer – it really depends on your mechanical skills and willingness to take on a fairly advanced project.

Here are some general guidelines:

• Installing lowering springs: Very doable as a DIY project if you’re handy. Just expect lots of time on the garage floor and some frustrations. Plan on saving $200-$400 in labor costs.
• Installing coilovers or air suspension: We highly recommend leaving this to experienced pros. The complexity goes up tremendously over springs. At a minimum get help with the initial install to avoid issues.

Unless you are very mechanically savvy, gritty and have a lift – paying those labor fees for anything beyond lowering springs will likely be money well spent. Not to mention supporting your local speed shop is cool!

How Low Can You Go? Important Limits To Dropping Your Car?

Slamming your ride as close to the pavement as possible looks awesome when parked. But daily driving reality imposes some limits on just how low you can go.

Lowering 2-3 inches with springs or coilovers is generally the most you would want to drive regularly. Anything more extreme starts to become problematic:

• Steep driveways and speedbumps become nearly impossible obstacles. Pulling into parking lots requires caution not to scrape your bumper.
• Oil pans, exhaust systems and other low hanging pieces under the car start smashing into the ground. This happens even at stock ride height on very low cars.
• Handling, wheel alignment and tire wear can be negatively impacted. Most vehicles were not engineered for extreme lows.

Now air suspension allows the highest possible drops when fully deflated at shows. But note that even with air, ultra low ride heights wreak havoc in normal driving situations.

Our advice? For a street driven vehicle, keep the drop in the 1-3 inch range at most for the best combination of looks, performance and daily usability. Leave radical lay out moments just for the show.

The Cost Of Lowering A Car Recap: What Should You Expect To Pay?

We’ve covered all the bases when it comes to lowering costs. To recap:

• Plan on spending $200 – $400 for lowering springs to get a 1-3 inch reduction in ride height. Great bang for buck.
• Coilovers deliver adjustable height and damping for $800 – $2,500. The go-to choice for tuned performance and handling.
• Air suspension takes adjustability to the next level. $1,500 is entry level. The sky is the limit for custom setups.
• Labor costs extra for anything beyond DIY spring installs. Consider professional services for more complex work.

Dropping more than 3 inches looks awesome but really hampers daily drivability and requires extra care.

With this knowledge you can now confidently pick lowering parts within your budget. And turn heads as you roll down the street with your new slammed stance!

Conclusion

Whether you want a mild 1 inch drop to clean up the wheel wells, or are ready to lay frame and scrape pavement – lowering your ride dramatically transforms its appearance. With the right parts and professional installation, you can achieve the exact look you’re after.

Lowering coils, springs or bags range widely in price from just $200 into the thousands. Set a budget, do your homework on quality suspension brands, and get ready to enhance your vehicle’s style. A lowered stance communicates both performance attitude and a high level of personal customization.

Just be realistic about limitations for daily driving when lowered, and the additional maintenance required to avoid damaging low components. Carefully driving lowered cars rewards you with head-turning curb appeal unmatched by vehicles sitting at stock ride height.

Get out there and start scoping the options to lower your car or truck. The open road awaits – and you’ll be hugging every curve with style at your new altitude.