I was wondering what type of coilovers are some what of a replacement for let's say a stock R1 suspension street feel. I do no racing so I am not looking for top of the line stuff, just want to lower my car abit with out having my wheels smash my fenders.

 

Why not Koni's and Eibach springs?

 

Thats what I have now.

 

That is the closest you will get from my experience.

Good condition stock shocks have very nice street manners. Konis are the next best from what I have tried.

 

Tein Flex. If you have the money, add the EDFC.

 

I will second Mahjik on the Tein Flex. They surprisingly feel EXTREMELY similar to stock R1 suspension but have 550 lb front and 440 lb rear springs which are approximately double the stock rate.

 

hmm...i keep thinking i'll need to upgrade my coilovers i'll wait and see till i get it on the track but i dont think they're gonna cut it, they're the apexi exv's. awesome on the street, they're 12/12 spring rate but surprisingly not harsh, i hope i'm wrong.

 

I second the Tein Flex. On my last FD I had Tein Flex and at the softest setting, they were too soft.

 

Anyone wanna give me a ride in some Tein Flexes?

 

i rode in a friends with flex's and felt very similar to my apexi's...

 

I would suggest getting Koni Yellow w/ Ground Control or similar coilover kit. This will allow you to adjust ride height and switch out springs with different rates without spending a fortune. I have this setup on my R1, which is street driven. I tried 2 other different springs rate, until finally settling on a 550lb front and 400lb rear. This spring rates may be a little on the firm side for some people, but we have pretty smooth roads here in PHX and works perfect for me.

 

I also agree that Tein Flex would be the way to go.

Hit me up for holiday pricing.

Rishie

 

Is there any reason not to just go with R1 shocks and your eibach lowering springs? I mean, you do want that R1 feeling right?

 

I'm assuming he wants some ride height adjustability to get the look he's going for.

 

I am tired my tires destroying my front fenders.. I figured with nice coilover I can adjust the hight but I don't want to feel like I am in a racecar..

 

MOBEONER,

I'm happy with the ride of my TEIN Flexes. (Click my avatar for a pic of the stance.)

I've even added 3/4" of "pre-load" at all four corners with the dampening set at around the 8th click (of 16), and my FD has a significantly more comfortable ride than my brother's stock Special Edition NB Miata. Reducing the dampening greatly improves the comfort level. While you're at it, you might consider installing some upgraded sway bars since the stock ones won't be as effective with the higher spring rates.

Note: With the car on jacks, you'll need to raise each rear suspension arm to get each sway bar bolt off.

When I had the stock fenders and wheels/tires, I was running 1* of camber, and under full suspension compression (i.e. on the dyno), there was still over an 1-1/2" between the top of the front tires and the fenders. I was occasionally rubbing on the inside of the wheel well cover though, which I later trimmed. I also repositioned the harness on the passenger side to avoid it getting frayed. Finally, the TEIN Flexes come with the pillow ball mounts, which are solid aluminum, so if you're aiming for an "R1" feel, you may consider inserting some rubber between the shock and the mounting points on the suspension towers, for some extra "cushion."

Here's a old pic/vid of my FD. This is what a 2-1/2" drop with 1* of camber looks like under compressed suspension:


Hope this helps!

 

if your tires are destroying your front fenders, i don't think it's a problem with your ride height, it's more a problem with wheel/tire sizing.

 

^ I think it can be attributed to both. Before I installed my Zeals I had the bathurst coilovers. With the bathurst setup it only lowered the car about .5" in the front and with my wheel and tire setup (17x9 +35 With a 235 40/17) and with factory fenders I had absolutely no rub even with the wheel at full lock pulling into my driveway.

With the Zeals and with the car lowered about 1.5" to 2" if I pull into my driveway and have the wheels turned a little bit it hit my fender lip.

So if he would raise up the car I dont think he will have as many problems or get stiffer spring rates.

P.S. MOBEONER You should have bought my old coilovers


John

 

That, and/or too soft springs for your ride height, or no bump stops. If you've got big aftermarket wheels on a lowered car, you need to roll your front fenders.

 

Being that he's running Eibach springs, I assumed that his car wasn't slammed to the ground, thus my comments above.

Agreed on the soft/smooshy springs.

 

My humble opinion is, Eibach stock-replacement (Pro-Kit) springs suck ***. Through a straw.

1. They are too low in the front, and not low enough in the back
2. They are too soft for how low they are

I used to run them with Konis, and I had to run them on the highest perch up front, and the lowest perch in the rear in order for the car to look level, and then it was really a little too low overall. And, the thing used to crash over every bump and undulation in the road.

I switched out the springs for a GC kit with 500/400 Eibach ERS springs, which are technically stiffer than the Pro-Kits by quite a bit, but the car actually rode much better, because it had enough rate to keep it from crashing over every bump.

When I installed, I got some bump stops from True Choice, and installed the shock with no springs and zip tie on the shaft, bolted on the wheel, and jacked up the wheel until it just touched the liner. Then, I cut the bump stop down to about a half inch longer than where the zip tie rested under compression.

Reinstall w/ springs, set the ride height to 25" to 25.5" at the fender lips, enjoy.

 

That is the 35 offset causing your issues. You can kinda sorta get around the issue a bit by running stiffer springs than you need for proper handling but it really is a band aid in the name of fashionable offsets.


I run 17x9 +45 w/ 255/40/17 for 8 years or so. I have run this wheel/tire combo on stock suspension, stock shocks w/ H&Rs, stock shocks with PFS blue, Konis w/ H&Rs, Konis with PFS blue, RSR/Tein HA coilovers, Konis w/ Ground Controls with 400, 450 and 500# front springs (at different times while testing spring rates). I don't get any rubbing at the track running full tilt or at the autox. I occasionally get a rub when pulling into a STEEP driveway at a gas station - maybe twice a year.

 

^ My spring rate is 13kg up front. Im definately not complaining I know why it rubs, I have since rolled the fender lips and it eliminated the problem.

The rubbing had more to do with the fact I have the car much lower than it should be.

As for offsets according to Mr. Goodfella, my front wheels look sunken in. Now that I have rolled the fenders I will install some spacers or go with a wider front tire.




John

 

Since you mentioned ride height, I'm at 25 1/4" ride height up front.

 

I am driving on 18x8 235/40/18 front and 18x9 275/35/18 rear. The rear tires never hit the fenders only the front. Even when I am driving in a straight line when I hit a low spot on the highway the front tires rub the inner Top fender lining.