Test dummy install part 2: rears!





Here you can see that the collars for the front of the rear subframe have a tight fit around the bolt and definitely remove play from the bore. The four fronts went in without issue and helped line things up. The center and rear collars were the split style and weren’t bad to squeeze up in there. Looked just like the fronts so I didn’t bother to snap pics. I got everything installed and put the car back on the ground.

The drive: is it different??

Well a little bit. It’s by no means a PHENOMENAL change as I’m sure most anticipated. Claims I’ve read include reduced vibrations and stiffer chassis from these collars. Here are my observations:

It feels a bit different.

What i can BEST relate this to is akin to installing a strut bar. It’s a small change but it’s not gonna knock your socks off. I drove around the neighborhood and was purposely hitting bumps and jamming through the gutters between streets. The car feels more level. A slight reduction in roll. When I cruise down the road, I found myself hitting sewer covers on purpose trying to see if I could tell a difference. It feels like my suspension does more work now. When I would hit a sewer cover, I felt less droop and bump and more...smoothness. I didn’t notice a reduction in vibrations or anything. Then again I’m already on Ohlins and have poly motor mounts. There’s no getting rid of every vibration :P

Is it worth it?

That is all gonna be in the eye of the beholder. Is it worth $500 from RHDJapan? No way. They’re a nice change, but I can pick plenty of things I would rather spend $500 on. Worth $200 or $250? You know, I could live with that. If I was in a position where I had already done everything else and I wanted just that little bit more, these could be worth it. It would be interesting to see a long term effect these could have on retaining a good alignment even after several track days. For a perfectionist or someone with money laying around, these are worth a shot. My alignment for my steering wheel is slightly shifted now. So I’ll need an alignment in addition to all this, but I’m preparing to swap a bunch of bushings to Mazdacomp in a week or so. So I’ll align it after.

Good product Matt Gold.

Matt

+1 for a replica set

[QUOTE=av8r01;12273754]1. Tabbasco (1 order F & R)
2. GS+
3. Paul_3rdgen
4. rotaryfdtt
5. c00lduke
6. street-heat7
7. 13bseries ( 1 order F and R )
8. cvzg77r (F&R)
9. 7krayziboi
10. Chon
11. ATX-RX
12. Spalato
13. Ptrhahn
14. Cloud9
15. artowar
16. neit_jnf (F&R)
17. bigpanda (F&R)
18. dannng (F&R)
19. dguy (f&r&)
20. patriick
21. av8r01[/QUOTE
22. gio610 (F&R)

Not very thick. I don’t have my calipers on me, but right around 2mm if memory serves.

Car has to be aligned after install - for sure. I mean, anytime subframes are coming offf I’d recommend it.

As for multiple uses - they say you can reuse them. But how often are we really dropping the subframe?

Either way. If someone wants to test a set and/or do a review PM me.

Might make sense to research S2000, Skyline and other vehicle installs. These are a bit more widely used in those markets and have much more feedback (almost all positive).

That is if if you are looking for confirmation on the theory itself. RX7 installs seem to be a bit behind.

1. Tabbasco (1 order F & R)
2. GS+
3. Paul_3rdgen
4. rotaryfdtt
5. c00lduke
6. street-heat7
7. 13bseries ( 1 order F and R )
8. cvzg77r (F&R)
9. 7krayziboi
10. Chon
11. ATX-RX
12. Spalato
13. Ptrhahn
14. Cloud9
15. artowar
16. neit_jnf (F&R)
17. bigpanda (F&R)
18. dannng (F&R)
19. dguy (f&r&)
20. patriick
21. av8r01[/QUOTE
22. gio610 (F&R)
23. rw_atelier
24. 2d-ink (1 order of rear)