which brand of coilovers should one get? please reply, ppl need answers!!!!

[driftfreek]

many people on this forum have been looking for the right answers about which coilovers should they get, whether is for drifting or road racing,etc. i would appreciate if people from this forum that own or have owned coilovers give us some feedback about their coilovers like brand, stiffness/softness, did u drift with them or road raced, price, and for how long have u had them? are the coilovers worth the money? (try to answer to this questions please)
no offense but, i dont want people that have not owned coilovers in their cars to post in this thread because their feedback would not as helpful as from a person who owns an s13,14,15 with coilovers. myself and other people want the best feedback possible.
thanks you.

[johngriff]

Tanabe Seven
http://www.tanabe-usa.com/coilovers/seven.asp

Having gone through Teins like butter from changing spring rates, those would be the coils I would definately suggest against. I would also suggest against anything less than TEIN (draw your own conclusions).

Jic
Silk Road
Tanabe (they're rebuild and customer service has gotten ALOT better).

If you wont be changing spring rates, and want to complain about ride quality, just slap some megans on it and call it a day.

[sideview_180sx]

tein, endless/zeal, kw, and tanabe for service/rebuild/tech support. pretty much if you are road racing. your budget should start at minimum 1500+ if you are serious about just road racing. drifting if whatever you want to spend brand names and no names. because rarely will you need separate bound/rebound adjustments for drifting. if you are just going for the look anything from 1500 or less regardless of brand.

[driftfreek]

wat do u mean by changing spring rates? can u change spring rates in coilovers? do u mean like, u can change the springs for other stiffer/softer ones? sry if my question sounds dumb, im learning like many people are.

[johngriff]

Yes, you can remove the spring very easily, and replace it with almost any other manufactures spring.

My "superdrifts" died, not once, not twice, but thrice running 10/10.
I forgot to include zeal, local and awesome C/S.

[driftfreek]

tein, endless/zeal, kw, and tanabe for service/rebuild/tech support. pretty much if you are road racing. your budget should start at minimum 1500+ if you are serious about just road racing. drifting if whatever you want to spend brand names and no names. because rarely will you need separate bound/rebound adjustments for drifting. if you are just going for the look anything from 1500 or less regardless of brand.


ima road race not that often, but when im going to race, i wanna have a car with good suspension. people have been talking about stance and kts. have you guys own or have owned them or know somebody that owns them, and for how long have them had them?

[johngriff]

ima road race not that often, but when im going to race, i wanna have a car with good suspension. people have been talking about stance and kts. have you guys own or have owned them or know somebody that owns them, and for how long have them had them?

You should take sideview's advice on your selection process.

[driftfreek]

hey johngriff, it says under ur paragraph that ur or are involved in race prep? what exactly do you do? if i can no.

[OptionZero]

dude i think instead of buying parts you go to a track day with someone who's competent and just observe

doesn't seem like you've worked on or driven cars much

[J-Style]

I have only heard good things about Stance Suspension (http://www.stance-usa.com/), you should check them out.

[driftfreek]

dude i think instead of buying parts you go to a track day with someone who's competent and just observe

doesn't seem like you've worked on or driven cars much

i've been autocrossing and road racing for a while now with my 240. i think i no what my car needs. i need some help choosing wat brands to get my stuff from.

[johngriff]

I prepare drift cars, exotic sports cars etc. Can do something as small as a simple turbo upgrade, to overseeing a whole project start to finish.

Right now I am most actively involved in formula ford stuff at the track. I can also work with you on track logistics systems etc.

[sideview_180sx]

I talk frequently to guys who compete in SCCA ITA, STS and in NASA ST. Those who drive 240sx. So I follow there advice and input from what they have told me from logbooks and seat-time. My friend who competes in ST uses Tein RS coilovers and uses two EDFCs . He also has 4 sets of different spring rates for front and rear. He is also working with reducing anti-squat by modifying the rear subframe.

BTW johngriff whens the next formula ford race in socal, or is it only laguna seca and sonoma ??

[johngriff]

Fontucky! Next month, 16,17th or 23'rd iirc, I'll check tomorrow when i get in.

[khmerguy618]

ebay coilover sleeves w/ stock shocks always win.

well not really. I got the HKS coilovers(10k/7k, but i might want to make it an 11/8) and they're kinda stiff but not too much for daily, haven't taken em to the track, but i like em, maybe i'll just get a 8k rear spring and call it a day.

I personally like zeals which i drove on a s13 but those break the bank.

the silkroads are pretty good for the money.

He's suck for wheel clearance.

rocked the Ha's too, they were just soso

D2's absolutely suck.

been in several cars w/ the agx/spring combo and the ride was wayy to boaty for my taste.

COilovers are def worth the money imho, but make sure u get a set tuneable to ur application/s.

[sleepy_s13]

dont spend your money on expensive coilovers. just get the megans. they have street and track series. i have the tracks and they feel fine. my friend had tein super drifts and you wouldnt be able to tell the difference. plus you can find the megans for around $800 bucks.

[johngriff]

Of course you wouldnt be able to tell the difference, super drifts are junk.

[BusBOy]

i have three buddies of mine who has one a ps13 with zeal coilovers no matter how soft he sets it to its still stiff.. i like it.. then secone a buddy wit a s14 kouki with megan i dunno if its the driver or the suspensions. but he hit corner hard wit them.. it gets by..i own a rps13 with kts and i cant complain..

[Jung918]

The difference between cheap coilovers and nice coilovers are night and day.If you already have money saved up to buy cheap coilovers, why not just save a little more and get something decent. Otherwise you will regret it. Don't make the same mistake I made because I regret it every time I drive my car. From what I hear, the best bang for you buck are Stance coilovers and I hear they have good customer service. No point in getting a product where the own manufacturer doesn't even back up their product like JIC.

[GSXRJJordan]

Lol Johngriff's rippin on Tein... most people like them because they have a big name and are expensive, then realize they can't rebuild them cheaply and the valving isn't all that great anyway.

I'm a huge proponent (read: fanboy) of my Tanabe Sevens. They're not the HD version (I have the "normal" 10/8 springs) and set to medium, it's a fantastic ride - a little stiffer than the z06, but not too harsh/bumpy, and not bouncy at all (even on soft, they don't bounce - compression tracks very well with rebound across the adjustment range). I rock em a click or two stiffer than medium, and it's aggressive for the street, perfect for freeway/canyons. I imagine that when I track the car, I'll stiffen it up a little more, and it'll be great for those silky smooth transitions to the infield...not...

Anyhow, Tanabes are great, but a little on the expensive side. Silkroads are great, Stance +s are good and can be rebuilt here in the states, JICs are nice but once they blow you're toast, and I'm interested to ride in KTSs and the new Max coilovers. This doesn't mean all others are bad, but those are the only one's I'd really think about if I were in the market.

And for the record, a couple F-D drivers use Megan track coilovers - I've drifted an F-D car with 'em, and they're stiff as hell. Wouldn't use em on the street if my life depended on it, because once you turn the damping down softer than about half, they oscillate like a Honda on cut springs/blown shocks.

[eastcoastS14]

I had D2's that came with my last car and they were comfortable on the street, not to soft and not a bone chattering ride like some coilovers...I have a set of tanabe sustec pro sevens with TEAS that ive been waiting to install forever but I plan to put them in soon...Ill post a review when its done, but even just holding them in your hand compared with the D2's you can see a difference in quality....tanabes are very solid and actually suprisingly heavy but seem like it would really take a lot to damage them in any kind of way, of course I think the coilovers plus TEAS controller ran me about $2400

ahhahaha never mind about the review.....gsxr beat me to before i could even finish typing

[khmerguy618]

Lol Johngriff's rippin on Tein... most people like them because they have a big name and are expensive, then realize they can't rebuild them cheaply and the valving isn't all that great anyway.

I'm a huge proponent (read: fanboy) of my Tanabe Sevens. They're not the HD version (I have the "normal" 10/8 springs) and set to medium, it's a fantastic ride - a little stiffer than the z06, but not too harsh/bumpy, and not bouncy at all (even on soft, they don't bounce - compression tracks very well with rebound across the adjustment range). I rock em a click or two stiffer than medium, and it's aggressive for the street, perfect for freeway/canyons. I imagine that when I track the car, I'll stiffen it up a little more, and it'll be great for those silky smooth transitions to the infield...not...

Anyhow, Tanabes are great, but a little on the expensive side. Silkroads are great, Stance +s are good and can be rebuilt here in the states, JICs are nice but once they blow you're toast, and I'm interested to ride in KTSs and the new Max coilovers. This doesn't mean all others are bad, but those are the only one's I'd really think about if I were in the market.

And for the record, a couple F-D drivers use Megan track coilovers - I've drifted an F-D car with 'em, and they're stiff as hell. Wouldn't use em on the street if my life depended on it, because once you turn the damping down softer than about half, they oscillate like a Honda on cut springs/blown shocks.

great feedback on the tanabes, I myself was thinking about dumping my hks's to rock some zeals, but i just might to check out those sevens.

[johngriff]

The valving on the Sevens are beyond quality. That is the big deal. You can get springs from anywhere, it is mainly the strut and adjust ability you are paying for. The big difference being, "Can the valving handle different spring rates than specified with the kit".

So, what is with the rumor about Bike shops being able to rebuild coil overs? There is a couple bike shops i've noticed around me now, Im going to go bug some people during lunch tomorrow to see if i can prove/disprove this one.

[the terrible one]

coilovers ARE worth every penny
running the hks hiper d right now
stiff as hell but i love it (12k/10k)

used to ride on the tein he..they fucking SUCK.
when i was driving my car when they were still on there it looked
like i was dancing while driving.
my friend used to run the egay setup.lol. on stock struts. it was so bouncy in there youd feel like your spleen would pop or something.
johngriff is right. anything less than tein is grade A crap

[Flipzide]

stance or apex'i. can't go wrong with either, imo.

[eastcoastS14]

on second thought dont get the tanabe sevens.......I like having something that not everyone in their mother has:naughtyd:


of course around my area a 240 is rare enough itself

[johngriff]

on second thought dont get the tanabe sevens.......I like having something that not everyone in their mother has:naughtyd:


of course around my area a 240 is rare enough itself

hahahahaha srlsly, best kept bandwagon secret!

[driftfreek]

dont spend your money on expensive coilovers. just get the megans. they have street and track series. i have the tracks and they feel fine. my friend had tein super drifts and you wouldnt be able to tell the difference. plus you can find the megans for around $800 bucks.

how are those megan track series, they are 12/10 right? are they too stiff for DD?

whats the best spring rate for a 240 dat weights 2800? i think 12/10 is too much, ionno, 8/6 i think i bit too soft....i think either 9/7 or 10/8? wat do u think? keep in mind that i'd drive that car everyday and going to the track once in aaaaa whiiiile!

[driftfreek]

i have three buddies of mine who has one a ps13 with zeal coilovers no matter how soft he sets it to its still stiff.. i like it.. then secone a buddy wit a s14 kouki with megan i dunno if its the driver or the suspensions. but he hit corner hard wit them.. it gets by..i own a rps13 with kts and i cant complain..

for how long have u had those kts? hows the stiffnes for racing and dally driving?

[s13gold]

get some zeals....they're the shit...

customer service is great and i think its a 1 or 2 day turnaround on a rebuild...

[GSXRJJordan]

Johngriff - I have the best motorcycle suspension shop around right by me, called ESP (Exceptional Suspension Products), they specialize in dirtbike/sand rail/Formula truck stuff but if you want custom stuff done, they can make ANYTHING. Right up on Foothill Blvd EDIT: EAST of Lowell :)

[the terrible one]

12/10 springrate isnt that bad for dd
well to me
for dd just set them to softest setting. and for the track day just set the dampening to what you need.easy.

megans come in 12/10 spring rate on their track series??

[TheSquidd]

Love the guys chiming in with serious road racing experience, then the S13 boro drifters saying:

"OH just get Megans! They're great!"

Road racing suspension =\= Drifting suspension.

Me personally, I drive on Silkroad RM/A8's, and love them. But I'm a stupid drifter and I couldn't tell you one single god damn thing about what makes a coilover great other than "Boy they feel great!".

Boy they feel great.

Driftfreek, it's WHAT not wut.

[johngriff]

ITT:

Noob: "What are the best coilovers?"
Zilvia: "X,Y and Z"
Noob: "What about this its half the price?"
Zilvia: "No; X,Y and Z will serve you best."
Noob: "Ok cool im going to get R because its half the price, thanks guyzzzz."

LoL wtf omg bbq

[sleepy_s13]

how are those megan track series, they are 12/10 right? are they too stiff for DD?

whats the best spring rate for a 240 dat weights 2800? i think 12/10 is too much, ionno, 8/6 i think i bit too soft....i think either 9/7 or 10/8? wat do u think? keep in mind that i'd drive that car everyday and going to the track once in aaaaa whiiiile!

i wouldnt say there to stiff for dd they feel good to me I drive from west covina to burbank just about everyday. thats like a 35mile trip one way. I guess it all depends on you

[sleepy_s13]

wtf to who ever bad repped me for making a suggestion to get the megan coilovers. the thread is asking for suggestions. I think there fine and i dd my car. why am i going to buy expensive ass coilovers and beat them to shit, when I can get the cheaper ones and get the same effect. all Im saying is that i made a suggestion and I dont appreciate the bad rep.

[OptionZero]

1. Double posting
2. Whining
3. Sign up for premium membership
4. Being cheap

[sleepy_s13]

im being cheap? you have a KA

[eastcoastS14]

we own 240s...we're all cheap

[TheSquidd]

blah blah rep.

Because what you just listed as the reasons for your suggestion, are completely OFF TOPIC to what the OP asked about.

[GSXRJJordan]

Lol "12/10 Megan coils are great for DD/blah blah I know what I'm talking about/etc" - they're about the worst thing on the planet for daily driving. I'd honestly like to know where you have those dampers set at, but I already know that even though they're 1,425,983 way adjustable, the actual change in damping is so negligible... anyway, I'm going to assume they're the best coilovers you've ever ridden in, and you're giving an honest review, and offer you a ride in my car if we ever meet :)

Lol - "Youre cheap"/"Cheap? You drive a KA" hahahahahahahaha, cmon Option, that shit is funny... this fool's got ur number! :rolleyes:

[DP_Michelle G]

Check out Bc Racing's BR coilovers, I have them and I really like them the price is good and the ride is sick for not being a jdm tite setup

Check out my review

[bardabe]

I have Kei Office and I absolutely love them. and No I don;t drift. but i can say that my car grips like no other now. no more sliddy slippery do. =]

[OptionZero]

im being cheap? you have a KA

Yeah, and you have Megans. And a blown SR.

But you are correct, I do own a KA. It came with the car, sorta fits with the whole "240sx" name. KA24de. 2.4 Liter. 240SX. Damn. It's like it was planned out that way.

[sleepy_s13]

my sr runs perfectly fine

[bardabe]

my sr runs perfectly fine

so what you think you are cool or something. My RB runs perfectly fine too. you aren't proving anything pal. Option Zero has an S14. i think that got you right there. Megan coilovers are shit he is not lying. I could have bought Megan a Long time ago. but i chose to stay with blown HKS ones untill I was able to afford KEi Office. Yes 240sx owners are broke asses with their cars. that doe sent mean we all get the cheap shit. it's just a fact. have you ever seen a D1 car run the full Megan Racing Line up? or even a Formula Drift car Running the Full Megan Racing Line up? :keke: I didn't think so. I proved my point. :bigok:

[sleepy_s13]

so what you think you are cool or something. My RB runs perfectly fine too. you aren't proving anything pal. Option Zero has an S14. i think that got you right there. Megan coilovers are shit he is not lying. I could have bought Megan a Long time ago. but i chose to stay with blown HKS ones untill I was able to afford KEi Office. Yes 240sx owners are broke asses with their cars. that doe sent mean we all get the cheap shit. it's just a fact. have you ever seen a D1 car run the full Megan Racing Line up? or even a Formula Drift car Running the Full Megan Racing Line up? :keke: I didn't think so. I proved my point. :bigok:

im not saying megan is the shit. im saying it is good if your on a budget and they were fine for what i needed them for, if i had a d1 car i wouldnt have megans shit in there:keke: . wtf? who cares if he has an s14, he said i had a blown sr, my motor is not blown and i was clearing that up for him.

[bardabe]

im not saying megan is the shit. im saying it is good if your on a budget and they were fine for what i needed them for, if i had a d1 car i wouldnt have megans shit in there:keke: . wtf? who cares if he has an s14, he said i had a blown sr, my motor is not blown and i was clearing that up for him.

i don;t think he meant blown as in "BOOM!" blown. blown as in SR20 = the next B16. its the most popular / expected swap in a nissan. :duh:

[OptionZero]

I was referring to a post in another thread where he mentioned one of his SR's blew up.

Regardless, you aren't convincing anyone I'm cheap because I have a KA, and you aren't convincing anyone you're not an idiot by continuing to post in this thread.

[azndoc]

This is an awesome thread. I enjoy reading it.

But seriously OP, just buy the coilovers that you deem yourself fit for your driving style and budget. If you don't like it then sell it and move onto another coilover. I understand that asking people for their opinions might help you, but at the end of the day everyone has their own different driving styles, different budgets, and different opinions on how they feel each different brand is.

Basically what I'm saying is to R&D it out yourself.

GL

[A4ORCE]

I had the Apexi N1 Exv for my S13. I've since moved onto an MR2 and the coils I ordered for that weren't exactly top notch. I actually had to send it back because it was defective. All I got to say is the Apexi coils were worry free and after seeing my new coils, I appreciated the little things on the Apexi I took for granted that the cheap one seemed to skimp out on. It was just competent.

As far as the ride goes, I put it on at the height the instructions suggested and set the damper at mid level. Now, stiffness on the road is going to be a subjective issue... For me, I prefer stiffer rides and having everything at the mid setting was comfortable. Even when the roads got pretty rough, my passengers never complained; only the occasional "whoa." It was low enough that I wouldn't be flying around speed bumps or driveways.

I had no problems for the short time I had them. Because of my car's premature death, I didn't really get a chance to see how it'd perform on the track or anything, but on the mountain roads, the car was predictable for the most part (no LSD). I felt it responded well to bumps and didn't unsettle the car like I felt some suspensions do in friends' rides.

I paid just under $1400ish, give or take a few. It was definitely worth the money. For those wishing to get coils, I'd say stay around this level or more. If I had to do it over again, I'd have avoided the bargain basement coils. You guys know which ones they are...

[ms!3]

megan, kts, stance in that order. unless youve got some loot to spend on tein, zeal, tanabe, and plan to actually track your car all the time. or hey even better, go with ksport or max!:keke:

[opticfilms]

I Have Megans Track They Work

[TheWolf]

While some people like stiff springs. I'm a big bar soft spring person for a street car suspension. I love my tein flex's with 6/5kg springs. I could see where someone would want a stiffer rider but I'd rather my car drive like a street car on the street instead of a race car on the track. There's no magic bullet that is awesome at both. Running 12/10 on the street, no matter who makes the damper, is to rough on the street. The tire will skid and slide. (fine for drifting but useless in the rain or on a sandy road)

[Kaotik25]

hey OP, i'm running Stance GR+ Pro with 9k/7k springs with similar weight. They are fine, not too stiff and not too soft. I don't drift. I road race so for DD just set it soft and for road race set it whatever you want. They're affordable, just save up.

One thing though, road race isn't all about coilovers. You will need supporting supension modification for best handling. But for this, you'll have to sacrifice a lil bit of DD comfortability.

[hayaimoto]

Its funny how there is alot of dampers going around but no real dyno charts for these products under performance....maybe someone should start a test...after we find some "shock damper" dynos? Personally I ran everything from TEIN-JIC-ZEAL-APEXI-HKS-KEI OFFICE, but I cant recall just how "different" or "better" every damper is from each other by just driving reference. I know that a company called "SCOOT" from Japan dyno's all sorts of dampers...they got it down to a science, just wished someone here in the states would do that.

[Rkesh88]

not to start a new thread but for DD, how would the stance GT basic and the Tein SS compare and contrast. so far ive found their pretty much the same in pricing through specials going on now and both have great reviews.

[yokotas13]

Good
JIC
Cusco
Extra-made garage shit (believe it or not)
SIlkroad

Bad
Ksport


I loved all the ones i put in the good category
mainly becuase they all responded well even whern i put differnet spring rates on it, bound and rebound settings were stupid out of whack like Ksports are
all rode well, the extra-made garage ones were slightly stiffer, but still no bouncyness....and did well for me on the track on a few occasions.

[Slow Poke]

Good
JIC


What a joke, JIC makes JUNK shocks! I would spend my money on Megan crap before I wasted my time with JIC. I have seen the shock dyno's first hand and they were horrible. So inconsistent it's not even funny. This test was run on 2 full sets of brand new shocks both were sent back to JIC for a refund.

I am surprised there is not more praise in here about the KTS's. Zeal/Swift would be my #1 choice w/o dropping 3k+

[Silvia_S13]

if it hasn't been mentioned already.

MAX coilovers are pretty dope. i have them on my coupe and i love them. pretty agressive ride but if ur down i'd say get em. if u want soggy street coilovers then try otherones. but for the price and quality, Parts shop MAX coilovers are pretty ILL.

www.poweredbymax.net if ur interested.

[steve shadows]

gorund control

[flytwa78]

I have Tein HE's and have been running them for the pass 1 1/2 years and logged about 15,000 miles on them. I use my car (S14) for daily driving, autocross and drifting and never had a problem. I do note they rust somewhat easily (the rears anyways).
A friend of mine in Japan said that they blow after awhile. He has Tein HE's on his S13 and they blew in less than a year. And after they were re-built, they blew about 8 or 9 months later. He still uses them though (for drifting and daily driving).

[GabeS14]

Everyone has the right to their own opinion, cant bad rep someone for saying he likes something you think is shit!!

I was decided on getting JIC's but I guess I just changed my mind....thanks guys...

[byebye_sti]

1. Double posting
2. Whining
3. Sign up for premium membership
4. Being cheap
__________________

hahaha that's funny right there.. but anyways

I run JIC magic's and I've had no problem with them. It's a little rough ride driving them around all the time, but that might be because I have to drive on New Hampshire's shitty backroads..:keke: Other than that these coilovers are great! I've taken them to the track a few times and they hold up really well.

Good-luck with whatever you decide to go with!

[Irukandji]

MAX coilovers.
They rule. Why? Cheap, stiff as fuck, new shocks are only $100 a corner if you manage to blow one, and go retarded low

[bigOdom1]

Ground Control

[onehalfasia]

Struts for the GC?