my Fat Cat Motorsports custom FD coilover setup
08-29-16, 11:03 PM
#1
my Fat Cat Motorsports custom FD coilover setup
After years of thinking about having Shaikh at Fat Cat Motorsports build me a set of custom valved Bilstein shocks, I finally did it. 
I've tried about 8 different suspension setups over the last 15 or so years of FD ownership. All of them lacked something - too soft, too stiff - but mostly a poorly valved shock coupled with springs not tailored for a refined ride quality that allows the car to work over all kinds of roads as well as smooth track surfaces. I should have that now.
Need some more miles and testing to make sure.
The last setup was my former favorite - Koni shocks with Tein H-Tech springs (~400f/300r). Decent ride quality, good spring rates, quiet. The major complaint on all the suspension setups was the behavior of the rear suspension. The FD's rear tends to jack down on big whoops on the street and bumps. One of the things I learned during the evaluation and measurement of stroke and motion rations was that the FD was basically running on the bump stops with the Eibach and H&R springs. That is why those springs set the rear ride height on the high side. This is similar problem to the Miata. A problem that Shaikh fixed on the Miata with his bump stops and his coilover setup.
I did try the Ohlins and was very close to pressing the easy button with them. I even managed to get a back to back test drive from 'HadaVette' who lives a few hours away. The valving of the Ohlins is VERY good. Especially noticeable when you drive back to back with a non-Ohlins equipped car on a rough bumpy stretch of road like we did. HadaVette's FD with the Ohlins absorbed all the soft and hard, sharp bumps.
The only draw back to the Ohlins was the spring rates. Too frickin stiff - especially the rear springs. If I had gone with the Ohlins, I would have gotten softer springs immediately. This wasn't a surprise given most people had to remove the rear sway bar altogether in order to maintain somewhat balanced handling. One forum member from Chicago complained about the stiff ride quality as well in an old thread. If you get Ohlins, get softer springs!
I'll update more in the coming days. With pics!
I've tried about 8 different suspension setups over the last 15 or so years of FD ownership. All of them lacked something - too soft, too stiff - but mostly a poorly valved shock coupled with springs not tailored for a refined ride quality that allows the car to work over all kinds of roads as well as smooth track surfaces. I should have that now.
Need some more miles and testing to make sure. The last setup was my former favorite - Koni shocks with Tein H-Tech springs (~400f/300r). Decent ride quality, good spring rates, quiet. The major complaint on all the suspension setups was the behavior of the rear suspension. The FD's rear tends to jack down on big whoops on the street and bumps. One of the things I learned during the evaluation and measurement of stroke and motion rations was that the FD was basically running on the bump stops with the Eibach and H&R springs. That is why those springs set the rear ride height on the high side. This is similar problem to the Miata. A problem that Shaikh fixed on the Miata with his bump stops and his coilover setup.
I did try the Ohlins and was very close to pressing the easy button with them. I even managed to get a back to back test drive from 'HadaVette' who lives a few hours away. The valving of the Ohlins is VERY good. Especially noticeable when you drive back to back with a non-Ohlins equipped car on a rough bumpy stretch of road like we did. HadaVette's FD with the Ohlins absorbed all the soft and hard, sharp bumps.
The only draw back to the Ohlins was the spring rates. Too frickin stiff - especially the rear springs. If I had gone with the Ohlins, I would have gotten softer springs immediately. This wasn't a surprise given most people had to remove the rear sway bar altogether in order to maintain somewhat balanced handling. One forum member from Chicago complained about the stiff ride quality as well in an old thread. If you get Ohlins, get softer springs!
I'll update more in the coming days. With pics!
08-31-16, 01:16 PM
#3
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I will echo some of the posters opinions.
I have tried a few set ups and I like my current set up a lot. I have ridden in a lot of set ups and I like mine and my buddies the best of them.
I originally had 12/12 ARK STP coilovers on my car and my buddy had Stance 12/12 on his. both rode almost the same, stiff as hell. The car was flat through turns but the grip was low, car could move well in slower speeds but was rough and wild at high speeds.
I went to 8/6 spring rates (448/336) and this rate was really good, smooth, stiff enough, and absorbed high speed bumps well. its a little soft for slow autox courses but high speeds the car absolutely grips and rips all day. I ran this with the ARK STP coilovers and it was good for the majority of the stuff outside of high speed bumps/steps in the roads which the car wanted to jump instead of absorb. still, probably one of the best value set ups.
I went to ohlins DFV 11/11 and the car again felt and handled great at lower speeds but the high speed stuff it absolutely sucked like before. car was floaty and bounced like hell in a lot of sections. I went to 8/6 and the car rides like a dream again and absorbs bumps well....the ohlins did get rid of my jumping trait that the old shocks had as well. they are damped well and handle the spring rates great at 12/12 setting. I am running stock sway bars with custom endlinks.
I am running about .5" preload front and .75" rear preload from what I remember with the 8/6 set up.
My buddy went through the same exact scenario. He went with a 9/8 ohlins dfv set up and his car rides and handles very well. I would say this set is very close to ideal, I like my softer 8/6 but I think 8/7 or 9/8 are all very good options for a street car. The stiffer rate springs don't have the grip or ability to soak up canyon road bumps like the softer rates do. We both run 285 width tires on 18x11.5 wheels.
I think the key for most street cars is the spring rate of around 7/5 to 9/8 and to run a stiffly critical damp ratio. so the car rides a little stiff which is highly controlled but is super compliant. That is what I like the best. I can understand slow speed high transition will need higher spring rates, but it will come at the cost of grip and high speed stability.
Pre-load will center the shock in its operating range. I haven't bottomed my 6KG spring in the rear, I run 25.5" ride height and .75" preload, roughly 252lbs of compression force, each corner is about 680lbs, so figure 428lbs compression, that is roughly 1.27" compressed spring/shock movement on a 2.1" shock travel. roughly .83" compression left and 1.27" droop. 40/60 comp/droop ratio. I think this also helps with the higher speed bumps as well. Be interested to see how a little preload would work on a higher rate spring to see if that helps with absorbing the bumps at high rates of speed. I set up the ohlins dfv set up with the stock recommended preload from ohlins.
I have tried a few set ups and I like my current set up a lot. I have ridden in a lot of set ups and I like mine and my buddies the best of them.
I originally had 12/12 ARK STP coilovers on my car and my buddy had Stance 12/12 on his. both rode almost the same, stiff as hell. The car was flat through turns but the grip was low, car could move well in slower speeds but was rough and wild at high speeds.
I went to 8/6 spring rates (448/336) and this rate was really good, smooth, stiff enough, and absorbed high speed bumps well. its a little soft for slow autox courses but high speeds the car absolutely grips and rips all day. I ran this with the ARK STP coilovers and it was good for the majority of the stuff outside of high speed bumps/steps in the roads which the car wanted to jump instead of absorb. still, probably one of the best value set ups.
I went to ohlins DFV 11/11 and the car again felt and handled great at lower speeds but the high speed stuff it absolutely sucked like before. car was floaty and bounced like hell in a lot of sections. I went to 8/6 and the car rides like a dream again and absorbs bumps well....the ohlins did get rid of my jumping trait that the old shocks had as well. they are damped well and handle the spring rates great at 12/12 setting. I am running stock sway bars with custom endlinks.
I am running about .5" preload front and .75" rear preload from what I remember with the 8/6 set up.
My buddy went through the same exact scenario. He went with a 9/8 ohlins dfv set up and his car rides and handles very well. I would say this set is very close to ideal, I like my softer 8/6 but I think 8/7 or 9/8 are all very good options for a street car. The stiffer rate springs don't have the grip or ability to soak up canyon road bumps like the softer rates do. We both run 285 width tires on 18x11.5 wheels.
I think the key for most street cars is the spring rate of around 7/5 to 9/8 and to run a stiffly critical damp ratio. so the car rides a little stiff which is highly controlled but is super compliant. That is what I like the best. I can understand slow speed high transition will need higher spring rates, but it will come at the cost of grip and high speed stability.
Pre-load will center the shock in its operating range. I haven't bottomed my 6KG spring in the rear, I run 25.5" ride height and .75" preload, roughly 252lbs of compression force, each corner is about 680lbs, so figure 428lbs compression, that is roughly 1.27" compressed spring/shock movement on a 2.1" shock travel. roughly .83" compression left and 1.27" droop. 40/60 comp/droop ratio. I think this also helps with the higher speed bumps as well. Be interested to see how a little preload would work on a higher rate spring to see if that helps with absorbing the bumps at high rates of speed. I set up the ohlins dfv set up with the stock recommended preload from ohlins.
Last edited by lOOkatme; 08-31-16 at 01:23 PM.
09-12-16, 10:56 PM
#4
Had to do some stuff on the house and get the Spec Miata setup for the next race so got distracted from the FD.
So... where was I... Oh right, this is a suspension thread!
Recap goals
- the best riding suspension for primary use on streets and back road carving of Cali roads. Maybe I'll do a track day someday but the Spec Miata is the drug of choice for my racing addiction.
- The Ohlins have wonderful valving but springs are too stiff.
- Better ride quality than the Ohlins and better overall performance on the street
The parts
What I got is a set of new, off the shelf Bilstein HD shocks rebuilt and revalved by the master - Shaikh at Fat Cat Motorsports. I'll let him talk about the valving magic and flat ride concepts he builds into the shock valving, spring rates and ride frequencies.
The knowledge
Shaikh came by a few months ago and measured motion ratios and wheel rates. We talked a bunch about my goals and settled on a set of Tein tapered springs (90mm top to 70mm bottom) in 8k front 7" length and 7k rear 8" length. We chose the tapered springs so that I could use the stock upper shock mounts which have a nice thick, rubber cushion that should result in less NVH than a solid metal, poly or delrin upper mount.
I thought I knew alot about suspension and shocks but talking to Shaikh is enlightening. Check out his videos on his YouTube channel about Flat Ride, shock valving and suspension tuning.
Some pics:
This is the rear shock with Fat Cat's collars and a custom adapter so that I can use the tapered Tein spring which has a 70mm inner diameter. It's worth noting that the adapter started out as the Bilstein spring perch for a Miata shock than was machined to fit.
Pictured here with Fat Cat's bump stops at the correct length for the FD with this spring rate
Here's a pic of the front shock, with one of the tapered Tein springs and slightly modified stock upper shock mounts and custom length bump stop.
Here is a comparison of the Bilstein spring perch for Miata before and after machining for this custom setup.
[/url]
Another special, custom touch that I added myself are these Spring Thrust Sheets from Swift Springs. Since I'm using the stock rubber upper shock mounts, the top of the springs will not easily rotate - b/c rubber. So I added these thrust sheets to allow the spring to more easily move around on the lower spring perch and not bind and make it easier to adjust ride height.
I was thinking of using what is referred to as a Torrington bearing but I could only find them in standard race spring diameter of 2.5".
Got them from Goodwin Racing for $20 in 70mm inner diameter.
Customizing the stock upper shock mounts
Here is the stock upper shock mount in all it's glory. I bought these new a few years ago and was using them with my Tein H-Tech springs over the Koni shocks.
These require some disassembly to remove the stock rubber bump stops like so:
and so
Then I needed to slightly trim the rubber to fit the inner diameter of the top of the spring which is 90mm. Here is a pic looking down the inside of the spring to the unmodified rubber.
Same pic after trimming the rubber to fit inside the spring. Hope you can see that...
As some of you know, the stock upper shock mounts are ever so slightly different front to rear so I had to trim different amounts on each but it was still a small amount. A good kitchen / butcher knife made short work of filleting the extra rubber off the mounts. It was a pain in the *** and thankfully I didn't cut myself...
Aaaannnnnd, that's all the pics I got atm.
da Setup
I mostly have my ride heights where I want them at this point.
Front is at 25 3/8"
Rear is at 25 1/2"
With work, the house and racing, I have only put 10 miles on these so don't have any real feedback on ride. I have noticed just driving around my 'hood on supermarket runs that the car rides compliantly and that Bots dots are absorbed much better than anything else I've been in. I'm looking forward to spending some quality time in the FD in the coming months driving and cutting up the back roads and will report back on impressions further.
Hopefully I can meet up with HadaVette again (or someone else local) and we can do a head to head comparison of suspension setup of Ohlins vs Fat Cat. That should be interesting!
So... where was I... Oh right, this is a suspension thread!
Recap goals
- the best riding suspension for primary use on streets and back road carving of Cali roads. Maybe I'll do a track day someday but the Spec Miata is the drug of choice for my racing addiction.
- The Ohlins have wonderful valving but springs are too stiff.
- Better ride quality than the Ohlins and better overall performance on the street
The parts
What I got is a set of new, off the shelf Bilstein HD shocks rebuilt and revalved by the master - Shaikh at Fat Cat Motorsports. I'll let him talk about the valving magic and flat ride concepts he builds into the shock valving, spring rates and ride frequencies.
The knowledge
Shaikh came by a few months ago and measured motion ratios and wheel rates. We talked a bunch about my goals and settled on a set of Tein tapered springs (90mm top to 70mm bottom) in 8k front 7" length and 7k rear 8" length. We chose the tapered springs so that I could use the stock upper shock mounts which have a nice thick, rubber cushion that should result in less NVH than a solid metal, poly or delrin upper mount.
I thought I knew alot about suspension and shocks but talking to Shaikh is enlightening. Check out his videos on his YouTube channel about Flat Ride, shock valving and suspension tuning.
Some pics:
This is the rear shock with Fat Cat's collars and a custom adapter so that I can use the tapered Tein spring which has a 70mm inner diameter. It's worth noting that the adapter started out as the Bilstein spring perch for a Miata shock than was machined to fit.
Pictured here with Fat Cat's bump stops at the correct length for the FD with this spring rate
Here's a pic of the front shock, with one of the tapered Tein springs and slightly modified stock upper shock mounts and custom length bump stop.
Here is a comparison of the Bilstein spring perch for Miata before and after machining for this custom setup.
[/url]Another special, custom touch that I added myself are these Spring Thrust Sheets from Swift Springs. Since I'm using the stock rubber upper shock mounts, the top of the springs will not easily rotate - b/c rubber. So I added these thrust sheets to allow the spring to more easily move around on the lower spring perch and not bind and make it easier to adjust ride height.
I was thinking of using what is referred to as a Torrington bearing but I could only find them in standard race spring diameter of 2.5".
Got them from Goodwin Racing for $20 in 70mm inner diameter.
Customizing the stock upper shock mounts
Here is the stock upper shock mount in all it's glory. I bought these new a few years ago and was using them with my Tein H-Tech springs over the Koni shocks.
These require some disassembly to remove the stock rubber bump stops like so:
and so
Then I needed to slightly trim the rubber to fit the inner diameter of the top of the spring which is 90mm. Here is a pic looking down the inside of the spring to the unmodified rubber.
Same pic after trimming the rubber to fit inside the spring. Hope you can see that...
As some of you know, the stock upper shock mounts are ever so slightly different front to rear so I had to trim different amounts on each but it was still a small amount. A good kitchen / butcher knife made short work of filleting the extra rubber off the mounts.
It was a pain in the *** and thankfully I didn't cut myself...Aaaannnnnd, that's all the pics I got atm.
da Setup
I mostly have my ride heights where I want them at this point.
Front is at 25 3/8"
Rear is at 25 1/2"
With work, the house and racing, I have only put 10 miles on these so don't have any real feedback on ride. I have noticed just driving around my 'hood on supermarket runs that the car rides compliantly and that Bots dots are absorbed much better than anything else I've been in. I'm looking forward to spending some quality time in the FD in the coming months driving and cutting up the back roads and will report back on impressions further.
Hopefully I can meet up with HadaVette again (or someone else local) and we can do a head to head comparison of suspension setup of Ohlins vs Fat Cat. That should be interesting!
Last edited by gracer7-rx7; 09-12-16 at 10:59 PM.
09-13-16, 09:29 PM
#5
has a Full Member
I'm an ME student at SF state, and I worked at FatCat for over a year. Taking a break from work for my senior year but i'm glad you're spreading the word on here. Shaikh's stuff is top notch. Definitely throw up a comparison with the Ohlins on here if you can. Curious to see your thoughts on fancy gold anodizing and dual flow valves vs. a solid monotube design with Shaikh's master digressive valving recipe.
09-13-16, 11:01 PM
#6
^Cool deal.
The Ohlins were definitely good when I experienced them in HadaVette's FD on really rough broken up side roads in Santa Rosa. Probably the best shock I ever experienced to date. I immediately noticed that the spring rates were rather stiff and it took a bit to separate the impact of the stiff rates on ride quality vs what the shocks were doing. Like I said, if I got the Ohlins, I wouldn't even bother with the standard springs. Just order softer springs right off the bat.
I'm looking forward to experiencing the Fat Cat valving in more detail
The Ohlins were definitely good when I experienced them in HadaVette's FD on really rough broken up side roads in Santa Rosa. Probably the best shock I ever experienced to date. I immediately noticed that the spring rates were rather stiff and it took a bit to separate the impact of the stiff rates on ride quality vs what the shocks were doing. Like I said, if I got the Ohlins, I wouldn't even bother with the standard springs. Just order softer springs right off the bat.
I'm looking forward to experiencing the Fat Cat valving in more detail
09-22-16, 12:22 AM
#7
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Very nice!
Your research and implementation is awesome - it's great to see new suspension setups showing up. And your kind words are also appreciated. Let's compare, round 2!
Your research and implementation is awesome - it's great to see new suspension setups showing up. And your kind words are also appreciated. Let's compare, round 2!
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09-26-16, 04:12 PM
#9
^I don't remember
This project started in January. Paid for something then, paid for something in the spring, bought some springs and other parts on my own etc etc. I'll add it all up one of these days when I have some time. It was likely around $2-3k but well worth it for me. Mind you that the shocks are custom. Fat Cat offers various options from a simple revalve to KBO, Ripple Reducer and other valving options that will impact pricing.
Small update
I've been busy trying to run the last couple of Spec Miata races and helping a friend with his SM build so haven't had much time to pleasure drive the FD. I did take it out last weekend to a dog show and put 60 miles on it. I was seriously impressed with the ride quality! It was frickin' amazing! I intentionally hit rough road patches that I would normally steer around to test the suspension out and it was stunningly smooth! All the road imperfections just gets soaked up!
As a side benefit, the interior is much, much quieter w/o the shock from road vibrations vibrating the plastic bits in the interior.
I'm stunned by how nice the suspension felt. I need to get some more time behind the wheel and really feel this out. So far, I'm very very impressed with the shocks.
This project started in January. Paid for something then, paid for something in the spring, bought some springs and other parts on my own etc etc. I'll add it all up one of these days when I have some time. It was likely around $2-3k but well worth it for me. Mind you that the shocks are custom. Fat Cat offers various options from a simple revalve to KBO, Ripple Reducer and other valving options that will impact pricing.
Small update
I've been busy trying to run the last couple of Spec Miata races and helping a friend with his SM build so haven't had much time to pleasure drive the FD. I did take it out last weekend to a dog show and put 60 miles on it. I was seriously impressed with the ride quality! It was frickin' amazing! I intentionally hit rough road patches that I would normally steer around to test the suspension out and it was stunningly smooth! All the road imperfections just gets soaked up!
As a side benefit, the interior is much, much quieter w/o the shock from road vibrations vibrating the plastic bits in the interior.
I'm stunned by how nice the suspension felt. I need to get some more time behind the wheel and really feel this out. So far, I'm very very impressed with the shocks.
Last edited by gracer7-rx7; 04-14-20 at 10:11 PM.
10-12-16, 06:26 PM
#10
Looking forward to a more thorough review.
Are you still running the 18x11.5 wheels with 285 all around? (what offset?)
Do you have the corner weight for the car?
Also what swaybars are you running?
Sorry if I missed any of this information.
Are you still running the 18x11.5 wheels with 285 all around? (what offset?)
Do you have the corner weight for the car?
Also what swaybars are you running?
Sorry if I missed any of this information.
10-12-16, 07:39 PM
#11
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My car is not corner weighted. I measured the car from the ground up and tried to do what I think makes good sense in terms of trying to balance everything and not pre-load the endlinks for the sway bars (they are adjustable).
I am running stock sway bars front and rear for a 1993. I have adjustable end links and poly bushings around the entire car (superpro).
I really like my set up. Its soft yet firm and handles very well. I could see how someone might like more spring rate but on the street thay are amazing and they have a TON of grip. Every single time I get out of my car I say to myself, This is an amazing set up. I am running an efr 8374 turbo as well which I like a lot.
There are a couple of things I think you can distinguish between shocks. Once you find a good spring frequency (I like 1.5-1.6ish Hz) and you have a flat ride, you want a soft damping initially to soak up the little crap, and you want a firm mid to low speed range, and a blow off high speed.
11-24-16, 04:23 PM
#15
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Hey Good work on your custom dampers.
I'm on Ohlins DFV's oem. 11kg f+r
Oem Bushings all round
Oem ARBS
255 35 17s all round currently achilles 123s.
Used to run 255 40 17s all round, r888s and 595 rsrs set previous to that.
Most of my track days are at llandow, Cardiff and the yearly trip to nurburgring. Done 8 trackdays including a sub 10 at the ring. Next year I'll aim to go sub 9 need to gain more experience.
Mr first FD came with Tein super street 8KG F and 6KG R (Felt like a boat tipping over under hard cornering) then moved to Feed F09 Pro 16KG F+18KGR (Massive step forward but the damping wasn't great for street use. On track they were amazing body roll was eliminated) My current setup is Ohlins DFV's 11KG F+R (IMO THE BEST COMPROMISE FOR A STREET/TRACK FD). I dont understand why a lot of US owners want to go softer spring rates and complain 11kgs is stiff, I'm from the UK and we haven't got the best roads here but not once have i thought damn these 11kgs springs are too stiff. On tracks like the nurburgring some of the corners are 140mph and the compression / rebound and elevation change is severe...I bottomed out the first time at only 90mph on 8kgf/6kgr with 5mm lower than stock ride height at the first compression at tiergarten....and the following corners the car just felt like a barge tipping over, it was terrible i wouldn't recommend a 8/6 setup at all no matter how good the valving on a damper. On street they were very comfy, However my ohlins on the soft setting are even better, so no reason to go softer.
Here is a pic of my car on the 11kg springs, fast right hand bend, only 80mph. Dampers are nice and compliant but I'm not rolling excessively but you can definitely see from that pic there's a lot of room for improvement, im only 10mm lower than stock, not stacenation. Some may suggest this spring rate should be bad on track. I beg to differ.
Another one, any softer and i'd be tipping over.
Next year im planning to go upto 14KG F+R on the stock ohlins damping. Personal preference i guess but i've been softer and it dangerous at this track. Fine on road but no good for track days imo.
I'm on Ohlins DFV's oem. 11kg f+r
Oem Bushings all round
Oem ARBS
255 35 17s all round currently achilles 123s.
Used to run 255 40 17s all round, r888s and 595 rsrs set previous to that.
Most of my track days are at llandow, Cardiff and the yearly trip to nurburgring. Done 8 trackdays including a sub 10 at the ring. Next year I'll aim to go sub 9 need to gain more experience.
Mr first FD came with Tein super street 8KG F and 6KG R (Felt like a boat tipping over under hard cornering) then moved to Feed F09 Pro 16KG F+18KGR (Massive step forward but the damping wasn't great for street use. On track they were amazing body roll was eliminated) My current setup is Ohlins DFV's 11KG F+R (IMO THE BEST COMPROMISE FOR A STREET/TRACK FD). I dont understand why a lot of US owners want to go softer spring rates and complain 11kgs is stiff, I'm from the UK and we haven't got the best roads here but not once have i thought damn these 11kgs springs are too stiff. On tracks like the nurburgring some of the corners are 140mph and the compression / rebound and elevation change is severe...I bottomed out the first time at only 90mph on 8kgf/6kgr with 5mm lower than stock ride height at the first compression at tiergarten....and the following corners the car just felt like a barge tipping over, it was terrible i wouldn't recommend a 8/6 setup at all no matter how good the valving on a damper. On street they were very comfy, However my ohlins on the soft setting are even better, so no reason to go softer.
Here is a pic of my car on the 11kg springs, fast right hand bend, only 80mph. Dampers are nice and compliant but I'm not rolling excessively but you can definitely see from that pic there's a lot of room for improvement, im only 10mm lower than stock, not stacenation. Some may suggest this spring rate should be bad on track. I beg to differ.
Another one, any softer and i'd be tipping over.
Next year im planning to go upto 14KG F+R on the stock ohlins damping. Personal preference i guess but i've been softer and it dangerous at this track. Fine on road but no good for track days imo.
11-24-16, 08:12 PM
#16
Eats, Sleeps, Dreams Rotary
My 2200-pound FD has 11kg shocks (same rate rate as the Bilsteins) and I found it hilarious that anyone thinks that is too stiff.
Compared to my MR2 it's a butter-smooth ride. Stiff begins at about 16 kg for a stock-weight FD.
Are the roads where you live really that bad?
Compared to my MR2 it's a butter-smooth ride. Stiff begins at about 16 kg for a stock-weight FD.
Are the roads where you live really that bad?
11-24-16, 08:58 PM
#17
It depends on how you use the car. For a track car, 11k is good. If you don't track the car and instead you are driving on a lot of backroads and choppy roads in general, then one might find 11k results in rougher ride than one would like and that something around 8k offers better ride comfort.
I don't use my FD for track days anymore. I race a Spec Miata for those kinds of kicks. The FD is basically just a fun street car for me. I don't need 11k springs for a street car.
Plus, I'm older (mid 40s) and less tolerant of rough riding suspensions than I was when I was younger.
I don't use my FD for track days anymore. I race a Spec Miata for those kinds of kicks. The FD is basically just a fun street car for me. I don't need 11k springs for a street car.
Plus, I'm older (mid 40s) and less tolerant of rough riding suspensions than I was when I was younger.
11-24-16, 09:02 PM
#18
Back to critiquing ride quality.
I did have a boring-ish 120 mile drive in the car last weekend. Mostly highway and city driving through Berkeley. The suspension performed very well. I've said it before and I'll say it again - the car just soaks up all the bumps, pot holes and road cracks. It is so utterly unlike anything I have driven before.
I've had the car 15 or so years and have tried around 7 suspensions setups on this car, driven various other cars and the ride on this is just so supple while preserving the FDs awesome handling and steering feel.
Good times.
I did have a boring-ish 120 mile drive in the car last weekend. Mostly highway and city driving through Berkeley. The suspension performed very well. I've said it before and I'll say it again - the car just soaks up all the bumps, pot holes and road cracks. It is so utterly unlike anything I have driven before.
I've had the car 15 or so years and have tried around 7 suspensions setups on this car, driven various other cars and the ride on this is just so supple while preserving the FDs awesome handling and steering feel.
Good times.
11-25-16, 12:17 PM
#19
Back to critiquing ride quality.
I did have a boring-ish 120 mile drive in the car last weekend. Mostly highway and city driving through Berkeley. The suspension performed very well. I've said it before and I'll say it again - the car just soaks up all the bumps, pot holes and road cracks. It is so utterly unlike anything I have driven before.
I've had the car 15 or so years and have tried around 7 suspensions setups on this car, driven various other cars and the ride on this is just so supple while preserving the FDs awesome handling and steering feel.
Good times.
I did have a boring-ish 120 mile drive in the car last weekend. Mostly highway and city driving through Berkeley. The suspension performed very well. I've said it before and I'll say it again - the car just soaks up all the bumps, pot holes and road cracks. It is so utterly unlike anything I have driven before.
I've had the car 15 or so years and have tried around 7 suspensions setups on this car, driven various other cars and the ride on this is just so supple while preserving the FDs awesome handling and steering feel.
Good times.
11-26-16, 08:45 PM
#20
Senior Member
Join Date: Jun 2010
Location: U.K - Instagram - copyninja_fd
Posts: 297
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78 Posts
Back to critiquing ride quality.
I did have a boring-ish 120 mile drive in the car last weekend. Mostly highway and city driving through Berkeley. The suspension performed very well. I've said it before and I'll say it again - the car just soaks up all the bumps, pot holes and road cracks. It is so utterly unlike anything I have driven before.
I've had the car 15 or so years and have tried around 7 suspensions setups on this car, driven various other cars and the ride on this is just so supple while preserving the FDs awesome handling and steering feel.
Good times.
I did have a boring-ish 120 mile drive in the car last weekend. Mostly highway and city driving through Berkeley. The suspension performed very well. I've said it before and I'll say it again - the car just soaks up all the bumps, pot holes and road cracks. It is so utterly unlike anything I have driven before.
I've had the car 15 or so years and have tried around 7 suspensions setups on this car, driven various other cars and the ride on this is just so supple while preserving the FDs awesome handling and steering feel.
Good times.
I'm not a ohlins fanboy but they have saved me few times at the nurburgring which is a treacherous track. I've made rookie mistakes and hit the high kerbs in error by choosing the wrong lines, usually this is enough to end up in the armco/barriers but they kept the car from unsettling which I find amazing.
Anyways glad you're happy with you're set
11-27-16, 12:50 PM
#21
Depends on what tires (well tyres where you are) are mounted and driver preference. I and many others ran a compromise street / track setup and did track days with 450/350, 500/400 rates and your typical 200 treadwear tires w/o dive, roll and pitch being that much of an issue where we'd have rather stayed home playing tiddlywinks.
That of course changes as you start running grippier tires like R compounds. Generally speaking - the stickier the tire, the higher the spring rate you'll want to manage the improved grip.
YMMV
The Ohlins are indeed a far better shock than anything out there on the retail market w/o getting into race shocks. Thankfully they are fairly priced these days and readily available for many street cars. This wasn't the case as recently as 5 years ago.
That of course changes as you start running grippier tires like R compounds. Generally speaking - the stickier the tire, the higher the spring rate you'll want to manage the improved grip.
YMMV
The Ohlins are indeed a far better shock than anything out there on the retail market w/o getting into race shocks. Thankfully they are fairly priced these days and readily available for many street cars. This wasn't the case as recently as 5 years ago.
03-30-17, 12:21 PM
#22
Brief update
I've been putting some more miles on the car since I've had way too much free time lately...
I continue to be impressed by how good the valving is over rough crappy roads. I drove up 880 from San Jose to Oakland and around Oakland for a bit last weekend and it's amazing how they just soak up the shitty, really rough highway surface of 880 between 580 and Oakland. The 'quality' of that particular route reminds me of NYC highways.
There have been a couple of instances where I thought the shocks might have been a little slow to react but I need to spend more time getting a better feel for those scenarios. The quicker reacting shock behavior can result in less grip in some instances. These shocks are a very different experience than any of the other shocks I have ever experienced on this car.
I will be taking the car up to Thunderhill this weekend so I should have a track report next week.
Stay tuned.
I've been putting some more miles on the car since I've had way too much free time lately...
I continue to be impressed by how good the valving is over rough crappy roads. I drove up 880 from San Jose to Oakland and around Oakland for a bit last weekend and it's amazing how they just soak up the shitty, really rough highway surface of 880 between 580 and Oakland. The 'quality' of that particular route reminds me of NYC highways.
There have been a couple of instances where I thought the shocks might have been a little slow to react but I need to spend more time getting a better feel for those scenarios. The quicker reacting shock behavior can result in less grip in some instances. These shocks are a very different experience than any of the other shocks I have ever experienced on this car.
I will be taking the car up to Thunderhill this weekend so I should have a track report next week.
Stay tuned.
03-31-17, 05:36 AM
#25
I'm a relatively new FD owner (6 months) and My FD came with some leaking Ground Control Advance Design coilovers, and when I couldn't find people to rebuild them (locally) and wanted to hit the track quickly, so I just bought a kit from Ground Control with some Koni sports to tide me over but I'm still interested in the Advance Design for the track. I'm fairly happy with the Koni sports though I need to adjust my set up (more rear toe and different rear sway bar).
The previous owner ran the Advance Designs on the street, which isn't really what they were meant for so it's not surprising that they broke. I had someone recommend Fat Cat as potentially someone local who could rebuild these -- based on this thread sounds like I should give them a yell
The previous owner ran the Advance Designs on the street, which isn't really what they were meant for so it's not surprising that they broke. I had someone recommend Fat Cat as potentially someone local who could rebuild these -- based on this thread sounds like I should give them a yell