Well I am in a bind.
Im sitting here next to 4 brand new GAB super R dampers. Yes theyre discontinued. These were warehoused by someone else who sold them to me who is now sitting on them. Anyways, I want RSR race series springs but theyre out of stock and out of production(for now?). So, I can go with a ground control kit or I can sell my shocks and go coilover. Ive been reading the coilover threads and now I am scared to buy any of them because theres so much flaming or theyre too expensive. So what the fuuk do I do?

Thankyou,
D

 

it really depends what you want to acheive with your car whether or not you should spend the extra money for coilovers. start there

 

Frankly, I just need it to get around the block. Yeah I'm dying to go to a track day or an autocross but I can do that with RSR's with minimal difference. The advantage of coilovers to the RSR's is wheel clearance which I dont need because the only aftermarket wheel Id ever get is the MS-02 which I havent seen a set of in a year and can't afford anyways. The extra adjustability I'm just not willing to pay for. Are there any good coilovers for less than $1500?!?

 

I honestly couldn't tell you what's good for an FD (as I don't own one... yet) but I did find these COs for both FCs and FDs. Quality? No idea but by the description on them they sound just as sturdy as the 1500+ coilovers.
http://www.memoryfab.com/detail_susp...port.php?id=13

 

david,

no need to be frustrated.... you are halfway home to getting just what you want.

silver TRD is correct as to asking you what you want to do w your fd. and you answered him so i will help you get what you want.

you do not need coilovers.

you do not need rsr springs.

since you want upgraded ride/handling on the street and an occasional and positive result day at the track you will get 90% of what you want at 15% of the cost of coilovers w a properly chosen set of springs along w your shocks.

add in the proper tire pressures and suspension settings and you will be SHOCKED at the transformation of your fd.

the ideal ride height (low is fast) of the fd is approx 25 inches measured at the top of the wheelwell front and rear.

lower than this will cause camber problems (too much neg camber which will be impossible to dial out). it will also become a pita from a clearance w curbs etc.

the other (more) important factor is the RATE of the springs. conventional wisdom is that stiffer is faster. the car feels more responsive. after a while it also feels like a buckboard. stiffer is faster up to a point. that point is approx 560/450 lbs/inch or 10/8 expressed in kg. IMO, that's the max.

a stiffer spring, does reduce body roll, but does NOT change lateral weight transfer which is a primary determinent of corner speed limit. stiffer springs and rollbars merely change the SPEED that the weight transfers making the car more difficult to drive at the limit.

bodyroll is not necessarily bad because the FD, unlike porsche, bmw and various other "racey" cars has a double A arm suspension front and rear and as such has negative camber gain on bump so the outside tires remain negative as the body rolls.

the fd has a racecar suspension so you don't need heavy springs as they run in strut cars.

back to your spring choices...

these 3 will deliver approx proper ride height and rate:

Eibach Pro Kit rate is up 33% from stock at 350 front/255 rear. they set the FD at 25.3 front and 25.7 rear.

Tein S Tech 440/320 1.4 inch approx drop

Tein H Tech 390/290 .8 inch drop

these springs retail around $200 and can often be found used on the forum's classifieds by people wanting to "upgrade" to coilovers by spending 7X to get 15% more performance.

don't forget 2 other essential elements:

tire pressure.... 30 front, 28-27 rear set COLD.

suspension setup:

1.2 degrees negative camber front and rear.
less than an 1/8th inch toe in front and rear
zero rear thrust angle.

so throw on any of the 3 sets of springs, either run the excellent OEM shocks or your GABs set near full soft rear and no more than in the middle front and enjoy!

good luck,

howard coleman

 

Take Howards advice... good stuff.

I will only add that there's nothing wrong whatsoever with a GC coilover kit, should you choose to go that route. I don't know what specific flaming or complaints your refering to, but frankly, they're probably bullshit.

 

ah there was no flaming at the ground control setup just the less expensive coilovers

and thankyou howard you helped a lot

 

LOL!!


nice one.

I have the Tanaba Sustec Pro S/S and love em, have run them for years with no problems. They are less than 1500 as well:

http://www.gothamracing.com/catalog/...roducts_id=641

 

ive ridden in cars with tein coilovers and they are extremely comfortable and body roll was very minimal.

i have run rsr race with the gabs, like u planned, its a bit stiff for the street. you may want to look into rsr down springs... www.rs-r.com the rates are just a little lower ~100lbs

and i think rishie has them for $150, or u can get the identicle springs in Ti and reduce the weight of your suspension and wallet at the same time

 

aye yi yi guys. I just bought tein springs last night. I know they ride a little high in the back and the rear spring is a little soft for my tastes but it will have to do at least until I can track down some RS*R's. I re-read this thread too late. I wouldof gone with those sutec's in my fervor. Still a little pricey in retrospect but they look like exactly what I wanted.

 

If I remember right the stock shocks come in 3 flavors: R1, R2, and touring/base. Which set are the ones recommened with the eibach pro kit?

I have the eiback pro kit on my stock base shocks but they are a going (original shocks )

 

woohoo! i just got my teins, they pretty. will install lots of stuff this weekend. my guess is the R1 shocks will work the best with your shocks because i think theyre the stiffest but my opinion has been proven to be garbage so believe me at your own risk.

 

If I recall correctly. I think howard likes the touring or base shocks the best for some reason. Im not sure though. I think thats what he runs on the track...But I might be wrong.

 

the frudtration continues. now i need sway links, bushings, brackets, mounts. im beginign to undertands why jimlab's car is taking forever.

 

If you get the AWR mounts, you'll need to widen the holes in the RB brace to fit the new hardware. Might need longer bolts too. I'll let you know after tonight. Just a heads up...

 

argh! im so flooded with crap! i need to order everything

front mounts, bushings, front and rear links, the rubber grommet on the bottom of the shock, turn signal housings, reflectors, intake piping, a volume ****, other crap. if i ever get this rust bucket on the road itll be a miracle.

 

Step by step...You can only look at the project as one step at a time. Sure you can buy parts for many steps...but you can only put them in, one at a time.

That is how I look at it so I dont get frustrated.

I really like the Tein Flex coilovers I have on the car now. They are very compliant on the softer settings and give the car a very good feel. I dont have any track use of them yet because I am still putting the car together but I will have track feedback relatively soon.

FYI I just sold some eibach springs in the for sale section for $100 shipped....probably a little too cheap.

 

OK, I'm going to order my shocks this week. If I get the base/touring what year? I have a '93 FD but should I get the newer '95 base/touring shock? They do have different part numbers?

Thanks

Victor

 

Honestly if I were going to go with stock shocks I would order the year correct parts. Matching numbers.

 

93-95 shocks will all fit, so i'm not sure what "matching numbers" are going to do for you unless you're planning on showing it at Pebble Beach in 20 years :-)

I'm notr absolutely positive, but I think the base/touring shocks for all years were the same. They did soften the R1 shocks when it became the R2 in '94.

 

You may say I'm a deamer. But, I'm not the only one