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Choosing new suspension setup...

CSVT#49

CSVT#49

Addicted CEG'er
Joined
May 28, 2004
Messages
6,768
Location
Andover, MN
Alright guys I'm getting tired of riding on my shot struts. I've looked around and searched through the posts and there is a lot of back and forth on what is best. Below I have listed some setups I've found (couldn't find D2) along with prices and I'm looking for comments/suggestions as well as personal experience with what you have purchased in the past.

Kits
------
KSport Coilover kit - $845.00
KSport RR version Coilover kit - $1040.00
Koni Sport kit - $796.95
BAT Euro kit - $595.00

Struts
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Koni's - $700
KYB G2- $279
Monroe Sensa Trac- $283.80
Bilstein - $502
BAT Euro - $500

Springs
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H&R - $226
B&G - $189
Eibach - $259.95
Intrax - $219.95
BAT - $219.50

Coilovers
------
Ground Control - $419
BOMZ (eBay) - $70
 
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I got the Ksports on my svt now:
Pros- can adjust to whatever height/harshness I want
Con- Very Hard ride IMO esp on 19's, had a very hard time installing them on my svt for some reason. Probably took a good 9 hours and Iv done several suspensions.

Koni & B&G (Have on my mystique and had on the svt)
Pro- Can adjust harshness and give a nice stance
Con- Cant adjust height.

Koni & H&R (First suspension on SVT)
Pro- Can adjust harshness.
Con- I didnt like the stance or the ride of it. To soft for me
 
Koni's and B&G: Gave a nice drop ~1.5" all around, rode great and handled well

BAT kit: Gave about a ~1" drop all around, rode very well also, especially for the price

Koni/GC: My favorite setup so far, adjustable drop, great handling but a harsh ride on rough streets.
 
Didnt know you could get a coilover/strut combo so cheap. Think I'm gettin KSports soon :cool:
 
No love for the Spax struts :(

I like the adjustable Spax so far. But its only been 500 miles in the winter so far.
 
I have the Koni kit on my car and it is a great kit! I've ridden in cars with the Koni/GC combo and they ride like crap. While they may handle well almost all coilover kits are very rough. The Koni Kit gives a nice 1.5" drop, front drops slightly more than the rear which is a good thing as the car looks level now. I previously had the Eibach springs with stock struts which was a nice 1.2" drop all around but the front was still sitting up a bit higher and it looked kind of odd. Get the Koni kit for an all around good kit that still has some adjustability.
 
Let's back off a little and remind everyone that most of what people call "handling" is extremely subjective, and more about how the car "feels" than really how fast it would be around a race track. Just because a setup rides very harsh, doesn't mean its the best handling . . .
A good case in point, the Koni struts have IMNSHO too much rebound damping, which makes the car "feel" faster, while probably making it slower around a track than it could be.

Suspension tuning is not nearly as "cut and dried" as the spring and strut makers / sellers try to make it out to be. So, keep these things in mind when picking a suspension setup, and when evaluating other people's opinions about them.
1. What am I REALLY going to use this setup for? Do I need the high dollar super fantastic road racing coilovers to go to the store and to the car show?
2. Do I really understand the tradeoffs I am making to use these parts? Things like the affect on ride? the affect on the suspension geometry (like camber curves, and how bad they get when over-lowering a contour) and things like tire wear.
3. Is this opinion about XYZ part biased? Yes, of course it is, but try to understand why, and see if the result still applies to you. Does the opinion poster drive on the same type of roads as you? Do they have the same driving style? Is thier car set up the same way? Do they drive in the same kind of weather?

Will keeping these things in mind help you choose parts better suited to your needs? Absolutely. Will they change what you would have picked anyway? Maybe, maybe not . . . It did for me . . .
 
Rara said:
No love for the Spax struts :(

I like the adjustable Spax so far. But its only been 500 miles in the winter so far.
Click to expand...

I saw them, but I didn't know they had adjustable ones. Plus all the ratings I saw about them were poor. What springs are you running with them?

This is my DD car for now. However I want the ability to tune the suspension if I decide to take it to the track in the future. I don't want to buy a non-adjustable setup and then later on decide I want to do more with the car and then have to buy something else.

As of right now I'm leaning towards the Ksport coilover kit for $845.
 
Rara said:
Let's back off a little and remind everyone that most of what people call "handling" is extremely subjective, and more about how the car "feels" than really how fast it would be around a race track. Just because a setup rides very harsh, doesn't mean its the best handling . . .
A good case in point, the Koni struts have IMNSHO too much rebound damping, which makes the car "feel" faster, while probably making it slower around a track than it could be.

Suspension tuning is not nearly as "cut and dried" as the spring and strut makers / sellers try to make it out to be. So, keep these things in mind when picking a suspension setup, and when evaluating other people's opinions about them.
1. What am I REALLY going to use this setup for? Do I need the high dollar super fantastic road racing coilovers to go to the store and to the car show?
2. Do I really understand the tradeoffs I am making to use these parts? Things like the affect on ride? the affect on the suspension geometry (like camber curves, and how bad they get when over-lowering a contour) and things like tire wear.
3. Is this opinion about XYZ part biased? Yes, of course it is, but try to understand why, and see if the result still applies to you. Does the opinion poster drive on the same type of roads as you? Do they have the same driving style? Is thier car set up the same way? Do they drive in the same kind of weather?

Will keeping these things in mind help you choose parts better suited to your needs? Absolutely. Will they change what you would have picked anyway? Maybe, maybe not . . . It did for me . . .
Click to expand...
Very well said Rara. Most people dont understand what happens to the suspension geometery when you lower/over lower your car. I wouldnt have a problem with people slamming their 'tours IF we had some RCA's built for the car (BTW im looking at possibly getting some made).
 
striker2 said:
Very well said Rara. Most people dont understand what happens to the suspension geometery when you lower/over lower your car. I wouldnt have a problem with people slamming their 'tours IF we had some RCA's built for the car (BTW im looking at possibly getting some made).
Click to expand...

You shouldn't have an issue with anyone slamming their cars as low as they want to go. Its for aesthetic purposes and the average driver would hardly be able to tell the difference in 'handling' from slammed to reasonable height.

I can say, tires the same.... My on and off ramp speeds increased greatly going from Koni's and bats to D2's on slam.
 
I've had both a BAT kit, and a Koni Sport Kit, and to be honest, unless you're going to constantly adjust them, the BAT was awesome! Loved it, rode great, looked great, handled great!
 
Pudmunkie said:
You shouldn't have an issue with anyone slamming their cars as low as they want to go. Its for aesthetic purposes and the average driver would hardly be able to tell the difference in 'handling' from slammed to reasonable height.

I can say, tires the same.... My on and off ramp speeds increased greatly going from Koni's and bats to D2's on slam.
Click to expand...
yes but your spring rates also increased when you went to the D2s which helped make up for it. I would bet that you would be able to go even faster around the same turn just by raising the D2s up to the stock ride height.

this will put your roll center much closer to the center of gravity giving you a shorter roll couple. this reduces the amount of weight transfer to the outside wheel allowing it to grip better. you would then also have the stiffer springs to reduce body roll even more.

i could take pictures of the drawings i have done of my suspension on GC's lowered about 2" if you like.
 
[QUOTE
As of right now I'm leaning towards the Ksport coilover kit for $845.[/QUOTE]

Where did you find these that cheap? Do you know if these will fit a SE zetec?
 
I have had both as well BAT and Koni Sport..I like the lowerd stance of the koni kit..Ride is alright
Bat kit, rides amazing and looks good as well..( best bag for buck suspension nuff said )
 
Does anyone know the spring rates on BAT, KONI, and B&G?

My KONI springs seem so rough in comparison to my old B&G springs. I'm considering switching back to BAT to give some more ground clearance and ride comfort. The KONI springs are just too rough for me, even though it's the same height as my B&G's were.
 
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