When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
I've owned my RA for a few weeks now - bought from Rossyboy and all is well, thank you
The car is having a partial refurb of the underneath over the winter and I'm wandering what to do with the suspension.
The RA dampers seem to be quite expensive 2nd hand and having got in touch with KYB (the manufacturer) they can't be re-valved. Best I'll be able to do I guess is clean them up, powder coat, and put back on.
Now, I'm thinking would it be best to put on some aftermarket dampers to keep the miles off the OE set?
I'm leaning towards the Tein Flex Z - with maybe getting the EDFC if I like them. Pushing the budget over £1500 in total.
I'm just wondering whether it would be best to spend similar on more expensive dampers rather than lower spec dampers and a system that may or may not prove to be not very beneficial?
Don't want anything stupidly hard and nothing too complicated. I looked that BC Racing ER range (I think it was) and although I get ride height and damping rate, I'm not really into having to set compression and rebound rates.
Last edited by EddScott; 06 July 2020 at 01:28 PM.
I am in a similar dilemma with my 20th anniversary but then again it hardly gets driven so its mileage isn't going to increase dramatically.
I've bought a standard STi suspension with delivery mileage but haven't decided whether I will use it, perhaps if/when I use the car in winter (no plans yet).
What's the car's mileage and what are your plans with it? If you do less than 4k miles a year I'd leave it standard and get a spare set of shocks (if you can find any for sale either new or good second hand from yahoo auctions in Japan) as spares/replacements.
Suspension is something very subjective, one man's gold is another one's ****. I've been in a car with Tein coilovers and found them too harsh/"dry" for my liking.
Having tried 7 different suspension setups between my Subarus, I wouldn't use coilovers in a road car that does occasional trackdays (1-2 a year).
I’ve had 2 x sets of BCs they are dire. One set was on the car when I bought it. Blew a shock so bought a second set simply as I viewed it as I had used spares for 3 of the 4 corners for future use. This is on a UK Prodrive edition Bug STI. On my JDM Blob STI I have MeisterR GT1s. The old KYB were getting tired. If I’m brutally honest the Bug feels dangerous to drive in comparison and it’s been very well set up.
The GT1s have been on the car around 2.5 years with not a single issue. No banging, knocking, no top mount issues, nothing. They really do perform well on a daily. They were fitted by a guy who (at the time) was running a Nitron set up costing 3 times the price. He did not sell me the GT1s so he had no vested interest. He said he would of thought the GT1s were worth far far more than the asking price. He also races in his spare time do not just a fitter. They are not crashy or unsetting at all on uneven road surfaces (they gobble up poorly surfaced Moorland roads with ease). At the time MeisterR said any future improvements could be retrofitted to them (at a price). The after sales support was fantastic.
The best bit for me and most telling is the warranty they come with (it may be guarantee I can’t actually remember). It is lifetime to the original purchaser. There are very very few companies who have such confidence in their product. Every company has a sales pitch but if you check for yourself the companies used to make these in development/conjunction with they did not mess about. My background (amongst many) is traditionally engineering. I personally believe these are over engineered for their purpose hence why so good.
I have no idea of their lesser products but the GT1s get my vote and if I own another car will buy again. I may also be right in saying your car runs thicker ARBs than mine standard so you could run GT1s slightly softer again than me making them potentially even more compliment/comfortable.
Link attached if your interested. R&D starts from the first post
Thank you for your response. Funnily enough, after some researching, I ordered a set of GT1s yesterday.
Interested to hear how you find them day to day - my RA is really only for summer and dry use so isn't a daily.
I looked at coil over options and I liked the idea of TEIN EDFC but thought if the actual shock itself is too hard for me anyway, no matter of electrical wizardry is going to fix it. Also, if the damper itself is hard then going softer on the springs won't really help. I guess the car will just roll on the spring but still be hard over bumps. I race RC cars which although "toys" still need the whole damper/spring/ARB/geometry setup to actually work on the track.
I had a chat with someone at Meister who suggested I stick with the 6/5KG springs and stock valving and go from there.
Thank you for your response. Funnily enough, after some researching, I ordered a set of GT1s yesterday.
Interested to hear how you find them day to day - my RA is really only for summer and dry use so isn't a daily.
I looked at coil over options and I liked the idea of TEIN EDFC but thought if the actual shock itself is too hard for me anyway, no matter of electrical wizardry is going to fix it. Also, if the damper itself is hard then going softer on the springs won't really help. I guess the car will just roll on the spring but still be hard over bumps. I race RC cars which although "toys" still need the whole damper/spring/ARB/geometry setup to actually work on the track.
I had a chat with someone at Meister who suggested I stick with the 6/5KG springs and stock valving and go from there.
Thank you for your response. Funnily enough, after some researching, I ordered a set of GT1s yesterday.
Interested to hear how you find them day to day - my RA is really only for summer and dry use so isn't a daily.
I looked at coil over options and I liked the idea of TEIN EDFC but thought if the actual shock itself is too hard for me anyway, no matter of electrical wizardry is going to fix it. Also, if the damper itself is hard then going softer on the springs won't really help. I guess the car will just roll on the spring but still be hard over bumps. I race RC cars which although "toys" still need the whole damper/spring/ARB/geometry setup to actually work on the track.
I had a chat with someone at Meister who suggested I stick with the 6/5KG springs and stock valving and go from there.
I find them absolutely fine daily. That said everyone has a different take on these things. I would never take a sleeping police man in any car at speed (okay maybe a hire car). Had a fair few different set ups on various cars over the years. In some I would be fearful of sleeping policeman. The GTs deal with them very well. Not a huge point I know but it does go to show how quickly they respond.
Again personal but I’ve never felt the absolute need to avoid pot holes etc for fear of destroying something (I do on occasions but that’s just common sense I believe and not panic).
There are a few of us who head out for a drive on occasions. Whole range of performances vehicles from Subaru, stripped out little Clio RS, Porsches, Audi R8, even a Bentley GT on occasions. All walks of (car) life. Each has their strength and weaknesses but on poor road conditions when they all get a bit clench bum cheeks for various reasons I have confidence in mine.
As mentioned the guy who fitted mine has no vested interest in them, he had actually never fitted a set prior to mine. The GTs were a bit too new 2.5 years ago for people too jump right in with. They always tried to steer customers to the more established providers. Now they steer them to MeisterR even though they have no affiliation with them (that I know of currently).
4!final points, once fitted (but not daily use specific)
The guy who fitted said to me “it’s nice to work with an aftermarket part that just fits straight on, no fettling, good to go out of the box”.
The guy who worked the reception said (once I’d past the premises a few times) “that looks bouncy”. It was an optical illusion! He assumed the fast moving suspension equalled being bouncy. It definitely didn’t feel that way in the vehicle. It was simply compliance as you would expect.
My car has had weight taken out of it but nothing drastic. Our vehicle weights are comparable so you can get them
oerforming better with the odd tweak to maximise the GTs and your slightly lighter vehicle ability over what MeisterR initially recommended . It is a starting point they give you as a base line. Not suggesting spring weight or valving needs adjusting, merely pointing out playing around with damping etc can really make an improvement over standard.
I live in Scotland and it can get cold, on very cold mornings (I feel) it takes a couple of minutes for the oil to heat up and the viscosity to improve. It really does help them out. Every other set up I have had takes far far longer to improve. I think that also goes some way to highlight the quality of these items.
That's good to hear R666ORY+1 .
The clever valving (sounds like the DFV of Ohlins) seems to be making the difference.
I'd love to get a passenger ride in a car fitted with GT1s.
They are not cheap but I guess you get what you are paying for.
I really like my ST XTA coilovers, they feel great on the street and handle really well too. They are basically a KW V2 but in galvanized bodies instead of stainless steel. Front adjustable top mounts included for the price also. Maybe they are a bit on the soft side for serious track days, I don't know as I haven't tried them there. But there's one guy using them on the Nürburgring on his classic at least.
The D2 coilovers I had before were truly shocking and ruining the car completely.
Not sure if the galvanized housings are good enough for UK climate though, might be better to go with the KW's then. But I love how these german made coilovers feel on the street. I have been using then on my BMW's as well.
I really like my ST XTA coilovers, they feel great on the street and handle really well too. They are basically a KW V2 but in galvanized bodies instead of stainless steel. Front adjustable top mounts included for the price also. Maybe they are a bit on the soft side for serious track days, I don't know as I haven't tried them there. But there's one guy using them on the Nürburgring on his classic at least.
The D2 coilovers I had before were truly shocking and ruining the car completely.
Not sure if the galvanized housings are good enough for UK climate though, might be better to go with the KW's then. But I love how these german made coilovers feel on the street. I have been using then on my BMW's as well.
My previous Abarth came with KW v3 coilovers but even at their maximum height, the suspension bottomed out when exiting roundabouts as a result of which the inner wheel spinned and the LSD kicked in. They were also too hard for bumpy roads.
After having them modified by a good friend of mine who removed the internal spacers, raised the suspension height and replaced the helper springs and normal springs with a single spring, the car was totally transformed. No more bottoming out, and the car became compliant (using the same bounce/rebound settings I had used before the modification).
Not entirely sure where but I’m pretty sure in the link I provided Jerrick (from memory) goes into the valving and yes it is a similar system (from memory). I agree you get what you pay for but in this instance I actually believe you are getting more than you pay for in comparison to other products.
If I was to play devils advocate I would say the following (I doubt I am correct though). It could be suggested in the earlier days of a product you keep standards high to support your product, then over time reduce material qualities etc to save money. The thing is that is a risky strategy given the warranty offered, also why bother if your target audience will figure this out when things go wrong and the good reputation you had is tarnished. My point is I’m open to suggestion and not some fanboy just because I like them.
I applied sound engineering principles and production techniques (I’m sad like that) and everything I was hearing added up. I bought early on this basis whilst others wanted to wait. They were cheaper then than now, again that’s just a common sales tactic.
I also looked at the EDFC product range from the entry level package to the top of the range sensors everywhere package. I think they are a whole new thread again to get into.
Fpan replied bud. I don’t wish to go off topic and hijack the thread! BUT I found the link provided really insightful in the past. I am sure some manufacturers have done so but it just goes to show that if you built a car (literally) from the ground up, with the suspension and it’s efficiency being a key consideration (performance wise, not over safety etc) you wouldn’t need excessive BHP to be quick, the handling would be more than enough to negate any power advantage where it’s needed most. But BHP figures and 0-60 times grab headlines more to a greater audience. I do understand I have overly simplified it though!
I’m a bit sad (very sad). I’ve read about 12 of these articles on various suspension related topics. All from “vehiclephysics.com
just brought myself the tein flex Z coilovers and the edfc active to try with there GPS kit ,, managed to get the whole lot for under £1000 ,, coilovers have done around 1000 miles and the edfc kit was new in the box for 300 but needs two motors ,,, margins to be found if you look hard enough lol
Domino46. May seem like an odd question however! Do you have an application in mind for this? Is it to benefit daily or is it an addition to be utilised more on track? The basic package seems really to be best used to have a couple of presets, for example comfort/sporty/track. Soft/medium/hard however the individual chose to view it.
The all singing, all dancing. GPS sensor package (assuming it is the Pro you have) has far greater flexibility. You could almost have presets for any given track in the Uk. You could even have several for various parts of any given track in the UK (used purely as an example).
I can also see the advantages of the damping being automatically adjusted at say 70mph on the motorway. It automatically adjusting during hard braking or accelerating but you don’t always want that. I know the answer to that is to just turn it off or change preset but then it’s just getting in the way.
Also if you were on a unknown stretch of road that you have never driven on before, moving on nicely. You may have the system set up to dial out body roll. Which in turn firms up the wheels on what would normally be the part of the road most likely to be damaged. Really you would want things backing of, not firming up and becoming harsher (possibly even dangerous?).
Im thinking of your typical country road where road surface and road condition can change at any moment and around any bend (or even mid bend).
I know again you could just change preset etc but the motors may change in 0.25 seconds but the damping simply doesn’t. By the time it had adjusted you could well be on a different bit of tarmac requiring yet a different preset again.
I genuinely like the idea and I’m genuinely interested but I do wonder about it’s true effectiveness. Also it’s only as good as the coilover it’s used in conjunction with. If it’s a dud then it’s possibly only going to make it worse.
Would you do a long term review on it please? I’d really be interested what you think of it on a Scoob. I’ve looked around and the reviews are very mixed and in some cases pointless.
I hope I haven’t offended you or your latest mod, really not my intention.
Domino46. May seem like an odd question however! Do you have an application in mind for this? Is it to benefit daily or is it an addition to be utilised more on track? The basic package seems really to be best used to have a couple of presets, for example comfort/sporty/track. Soft/medium/hard however the individual chose to view it.
The all singing, all dancing. GPS sensor package (assuming it is the Pro you have) has far greater flexibility. You could almost have presets for any given track in the Uk. You could even have several for various parts of any given track in the UK (used purely as an example).
I can also see the advantages of the damping being automatically adjusted at say 70mph on the motorway. It automatically adjusting during hard braking or accelerating but you don’t always want that. I know the answer to that is to just turn it off or change preset but then it’s just getting in the way.
Also if you were on a unknown stretch of road that you have never driven on before, moving on nicely. You may have the system set up to dial out body roll. Which in turn firms up the wheels on what would normally be the part of the road most likely to be damaged. Really you would want things backing of, not firming up and becoming harsher (possibly even dangerous?).
Im thinking of your typical country road where road surface and road condition can change at any moment and around any bend (or even mid bend).
I know again you could just change preset etc but the motors may change in 0.25 seconds but the damping simply doesn’t. By the time it had adjusted you could well be on a different bit of tarmac requiring yet a different preset again.
I genuinely like the idea and I’m genuinely interested but I do wonder about it’s true effectiveness. Also it’s only as good as the coilover it’s used in conjunction with. If it’s a dud then it’s possibly only going to make it worse.
Would you do a long term review on it please? I’d really be interested what you think of it on a Scoob. I’ve looked around and the reviews are very mixed and in some cases pointless.
I hope I haven’t offended you or your latest mod, really not my intention.
sorry mate only just noticed this
I have the active with gps sensor ,,, not the pro ,, the pro requires me to send my active back in to have it upgraded but I dont think I require it for my needs
its the pro that does everything in the corners aswell but iv felt I didn't need that part
,always happy to talk things over like this dude so no offence taken at all ,, from my personal point of view im using the system to help with back issues as I struggle to drive anything to hard these days ,, but dont want it wobbling all over the place when I do put a bit of speed into it so this is a very good system for me really
quite a few of my mates have had this system over the years and it seems to work well from what has been talked about and what iv felt with my own **** so im more than happy to give you my really world feeling on it ,, im not one to tell poeple my stuff is great just because its on my car like some do lol ,, if I think its not working as well as I thought ill be the first to say
I think a lot depends on setting it up like most things ,, the more you know the system the more you would be able to get from it
being the Z flex mine only has the damping adjustment ,,, but if you have rebound you can also set up another 4 motors on the same system to work in tamdem with the others so you would have the system doing rebound and damping ,, but again I think this would only be as effecting as the user can set it I think ,,
how effective the system would be for spirited road driving im not really sure but iv been in a track car with it all set up and it seemed to work very well
my take on the system might be a bit different to most who use it but im still happy to give you a run down on it once iv got it all set up and running for a while
No worries. Yeah would be really interested how you get on over time with them. The back issue for you (I’m sure) makes a lot of sense. I have trashed my back and both shoulders over the years. Even shoulders can get battered by overly firm suspension. A permanent back issue would definitely make me reconsider using them purely for comfort.
As said I can see the concept working very well on track depending on set up. I personally think there could be issues on varying road surfaces but would definitely be interested in your thoughts over time.
Also (opinions differ drastically) Tein seem to have mixed reviews depending on vehicle used on. Also country based in. I suspect that has more to do with physical road construction techniques. If Tein did a high end coilover that EDFC can be paired with I’d possibly reconsider them as a true performance modification when used in conjunction with EDFC. I personally don’t hear Tein mentioned often when looking to spend healthy money on coilovers.
First hand experience could well be different of course. Thanks Domino46. Also (not entirely current) but welcome back to the fold.
I bought gt1 coilovers, question is do they come in correct lenght or am i have to set them up before fitting?
Have alk and roll centre kit to.
landed just unpacked🎁
Last edited by JdmSti2006; 25 December 2022 at 12:17 PM.
06 July 2020, 01:16 PM
Thinking of changing dampers - Spec C Type RA
and not to mention knocking after 1,000 miles
