i wouldnt be so sure, a lot of the cheaper coilovers, especially jap spec ones ive seen, and especially when they drop the car really low, i would say they are at a point where they hinder performance, they make the car more predictable beyond the tyre limits, but on a lot of roads the firmness reduces traction and can make the car less predictable within the tyre limits.
saying that, most standard suspension, especially the shocks die over time, my R31 has f**ked shocks and the thing is a death trap lol, rides lower than my 32 and it still has standard suspension, just f**ked, but id never get a 2nd look from a cop.
also ted, u have to understand, cops dont think like u and i, they think a standard car is perfect, anything that makes the car less safe is obviously a problem, but anything that makes the car handle better, stop faster, or have more traction means that ur hooning.
like ive said before, ive been defected before for tyres being too wide (225's, standard is 205), when i asked what the problem with increasing the traction of the vehicle the officer replied "improving ur car tells me that ur hooning the car"
that was after me intially telling him that the tyre size was actually quite legal and that id been through regency with 225 tyres before.