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2020 Corvette of the Year Finalist (performance mods)
C4 of Year Winner (performance mods) 2019
I can't speak to reliability with lowering collars, but I will point out there is a specific GM service bulletin that tells dealers to look for aftermarket collars any time there is a front lift failure, and if present to deny warranty service.
I initially had a front lift failure with the lowering collars. They were installed by my dealer about two years ago, before all the hoopla about the collars came out from GM. They repaired the problem under warranty and I haven't had any problems since (still have the Paragon collars on). I think my problem, and probably most problems with the collars, was a result of damage during the installation. For whatever reason you do run the risk of front lift problems with the collars that GM will not repair under warranty. Use them at your own risk knowing what can happen. I like mine and didn't want different springs.
I selected FAILURE with collars only because I had a "service lift system" and failure to lift on probably 2 occassions out of thousands. Probably 99.9% of the time my front end lift is working fine with collars installed.
I can't say for sure that it would have thrown that error without the collars installed. I am inclined to think the collars probably didn't have an effect.
The front end lift on my vehicle was delivered with a blue cap and was leaking fluid all over the place, and it has always been "noisy" (for lack of a better word) even before collars were installed.
In my opinion the key to the install is to make sure the copper crush washers used for the Front lift hydraulics are REPLACED with GM OEM washers only and to really watch with an eagle eye if the system is leaking. One key failure seems to be air in the system which apparently once those pumps on the front struts themselves inhale enough air that seems to enough to do them in - and I noticed a lot of it comes from over time small leakage seeping / very hard detect unless one removes the wheels to examine.
Thats the one thing Paragon 'neglects' to mention in their install videos and assumes you can re-use these, I would change these if ever opening the front lift system...
I was wondering the same thing, built a Cobra kit car many years ago and crush washers are one time use only! Bought new ones in preparation for the collar install. Will make sure to keep the cap on the reservoir when disconnect lines and then loosen top when go to “bleed” when done to let air escape. Bought a small container of Dot 4 brake fluid just in case I need to top off. Thanks for all the replies and sharing your results!
While there are a limited number of responses to the poll, one might easily conclude there is some correlation to the collars potentially causing lift failures. There were a total of 9 responders with lift collars installed, and 3, or 33%, had a failure. There were a total of 36 responders without collars that responded, and only 2 or 1/2% had a failure. These are small numbers, but they do cause concern on my part. I really want to lower my C8, but I don't want to take the chance of having to replace the lift. The other alternative is to replace the springs on the front with some that are 3/4" shorter. It is my understanding they are stiffer springs. Will those noticeably make the ride more harsh?
Thanks for the summary Sledge Hammer. Since I posted the poll I’ve lowered the car using the Paragon collars with no ill effect to the lift system thus far (3 weeks in). I was careful to line everything up the way it was with witness marks and also replaced the banjo bolt crush washers with new ones and tightened using a torque wrench. I also topped off the hydraulic (Dot 4 brake fluid) fluid with a couple of tablespoons to bring to the max fill line. Mine does not have MRC so didn’t have to mess with the wires. Lowering and widening with wheel spacers makes the car look like it should have from the factory.
Thanks for the summary Sledge Hammer. Since I posted the poll I’ve lowered the car using the Paragon collars with no ill effect to the lift system thus far (3 weeks in). I was careful to line everything up the way it was with witness marks and also replaced the banjo bolt crush washers with new ones and tightened using a torque wrench. I also topped off the hydraulic (Dot 4 brake fluid) fluid with a couple of tablespoons to bring to the max fill line. Mine does not have MRC so didn’t have to mess with the wires. Lowering and widening with wheel spacers makes the car look like it should have from the factory.
You'll be sorry that you topped off that reservoir. The max fill line shouldn't be used. It will overflow during lift operations, and the DOT4 fluid will spray out and it's corrosive to painted surfaces. There are a ton of posts about this issue related to the lift reservoir cap leaking.
A lot of testing was done to determine the correct level of fluid to fill to avoid issues. Even if you have the blue cap with the "flat" seal underneath. (I actually worked with the BGA QA lead on this issue after the "blue" cap fix didn't actually fix the problem).
My lowered C8 with front-end lift is working great, and I probably put a lot more stress on mine than the typical user since I believe I heard more than 80% of the C8's never see the track.
It was lowered around July 2021. I have only had maybe 2 or 3 times where it said service lift system, and these occured when I didn't wait for the car to fully lift before bumping the left tire going up my driveway.
Look at how close the front gets to the road surface when heavy braking before getting into balance! Maybe 1" clearance there.
