# Need Some Advice on coilovers



## x0dyssey (Mar 26, 2004)

Ok imp looking into spending around 1200 or less for a nice set of coilovers. From what I have been researching so far. I have seen that most kits under in this price range have a spring rate of 6/4kg 7/5kg or 7/7kg. I have seen some other rates but from what I have read the looks like the 6/4 setup is the best for daily driving, and occasional track/drift use. Is this correct?

Also on dampening....
Most kits under 1200 have either no dampening force or they have what seem to be outrageous or small ranges. For example Megan Racing and K-Sports both have 32 way dampening, JIC (FLT-A1US) has 4 front and 6 rear, and tanabe is either none or 4 front and 8 rear. What is the difference in the numbers? I know that lower is softer and higher is a stiffer rebound, but form brand to brand I know they are different. 

I was planning on going the Megan coils mainly because they look strong enough to handle the forces of drifting, and also seem too offer a nice daily driving experience.

So with all of this said, what exactly should I look for?


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## ReVerm (Jan 13, 2003)

x0dyssey said:


> Also on dampening....
> Most kits under 1200 have either no dampening force or they have what seem to be outrageous or small ranges. For example Megan Racing and K-Sports both have 32 way dampening, JIC (FLT-A1US) has 4 front and 6 rear, and tanabe is either none or 4 front and 8 rear. What is the difference in the numbers? I know that lower is softer and higher is a stiffer rebound, but form brand to brand I know they are different.


I'm not a 240 guy, so I'll leave it to them to advise you on brands.

Most respectable manufacturers have approximate figures for the damping rates that each damper at each setting has. These are expressed in units of Force at a certain Velocity in compression and rebound. If the measurements were done on a damper dyno, the results will usually be described through a graph like this.

So what do you need to do to get these numbers? Usually you need to either pin down an engineer at the manufacturer and interrogate him or find someone who has put the damper you're looking at on a dyno. Yeah, it's an annoying amount of leg work, but if you go and do it now it will keep you from wasting money in the future.


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## sultan (Mar 11, 2003)

i can't remember who makes the megan ones but the aussies seem to like them (under the other name, but they're the same).

also check out the spl/kts coilovers from splparts. they did a shock dyno that shows that they're better than tein he and they're pretty cheap.

32 way is really just a gimmick, on most of them a single click (even 2 or 3)makes no real difference. as for spring rate, i think 8/6 is a good street setup, just adjust the dampers softer and don't drop it all the way. i think my 240 on tanabe sustec pro ss (8/6) dropped all the way is more comfortable to drive than my Q45 on stock springs. maybe i'm crazy.


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## Flying Vv (Apr 10, 2003)

tein is a very affordable brand if you get the Basic coils, no adjustablility but they come with a full life time warranty. they have the height adjustability, but to get the tunable damper function, you have to spend alittle more than 1200. some aorund 1350 or so, not too much of a difference
http://www.raretrick.com/index.asp?cat=1906&Action=cat&Page=1
check them out to see what you would like, its all JDM and all high quality products on there ( just a little marked up, you can find them for cheaper)


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## ReVerm (Jan 13, 2003)

sultan said:


> also check out the spl/kts coilovers from splparts. they did a shock dyno that shows that they're better than tein he and they're pretty cheap.


Would you happen to know where that data is? All I see on their website is an incredibly confusing damper dyno comparing theirs to the Tein RAs, and they don't make any inferences from that data on their site.


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## sultan (Mar 11, 2003)

i guess it was the RAs. there was an explanation of the shock dyno somewhere, but it never made sense to me. some people apparently understood it and said the kts were better.

it was stated by one of the spl guys that on paper the kts were better than the HEs because of inverted monotube and whatever. the review in this link is a person who switched from he to spl/kts: http://www.********.com/zerothread?id=73810 and http://www.zilvia.net/f/showthread.php?t=58046 (don't know if you need to be signed in for zilvia). worth noting that the spl/kts don't (didn't?) have a bracket for the front brake line and that front wheel clearance is very good, you can run usdm tite 17x7 +40 without rubbing.

spl/kts coilovers are the new fn01rc, i know a bunch of people with them, i wouldn't buy them cause the spring rates are too weak (same as i got now). the price keeps changing cause of exchange rates, though.


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## ReVerm (Jan 13, 2003)

sultan said:


> i guess it was the RAs. there was an explanation of the shock dyno somewhere, but it never made sense to me. some people apparently understood it and said the kts were better.
> 
> it was stated by one of the spl guys that on paper the kts were better than the HEs because of inverted monotube and whatever. the review in this link is a person who switched from he to spl/kts: http://www.********.com/zerothread?id=73810 and http://www.zilvia.net/f/showthread.php?t=58046 (don't know if you need to be signed in for zilvia). worth noting that the spl/kts don't (didn't?) have a bracket for the front brake line and that front wheel clearance is very good, you can run usdm tite 17x7 +40 without rubbing.
> 
> spl/kts coilovers are the new fn01rc, i know a bunch of people with them, i wouldn't buy them cause the spring rates are too weak (same as i got now). the price keeps changing cause of exchange rates, though.


Hmm. I see. I'll have to do more research on the damping rates and the details on the damper construction when I have a bit more time. 

Thank you for the informative post though. I have a feeling I'll be making use of all of it relatively soon.


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## x0dyssey (Mar 26, 2004)

so, pretty much any coilover under 1200 is going to react the same?

so what about the spring rates.. is there a big difference in the 6/4kg 7/5kg or 7/7kg rates?


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## ReVerm (Jan 13, 2003)

Haha. I tracked down the source of those SPL KTS coilovers. Turns out they were build, designed, and manufactured by the techs of a company which serves as one of the biggest Tein retailers in Japan. It's random trivia, but I found that to be interesting so I thought I'd share it with you guys.


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