949 Racing project car - Blub

[new2subaru]

Originally Posted by 949 Racing

Street and Race are the exact same shock. Just different spring packs. The KW V3 is a mass produced steel bodied street shock. High performance yes, but not the same level of product.

Legit question, would "Joe Average" be able to tell the difference or are these designed for the more experienced drivers?

[949 Racing]

Originally Posted by new2subaru

Legit question, would "Joe Average" be able to tell the difference or are these designed for the more experienced drivers?

Our Xidas for the early Miatas are the gold standard in that segment. No need for a degree in science or pro race license to appreciate a good suspension.

You know good food when you taste it without having a clue how it's made or why it tastes so good.

You know that a Cayman GTS handles better than that Kia Forte without being Fernando Alonso.

[949 Racing]

Originally Posted by mistople

Would love to hear about what you've done to reduce weight. Unless I've missed a post in this thread?

No single post, but a few details further back.

[Pat]

Can you provide a range of expected service life between rebuilds on these dampers? I'm under the impression motorsports-level dampers often need to be rebuilt annually to perform as designed. (rough estimate)

[949 Racing]

Originally Posted by Pat

Can you provide a range of expected service life between rebuilds on these dampers? I'm under the impression motorsports-level dampers often need to be rebuilt annually to perform as designed. (rough estimate)

Having no dust boots, they would indeed be less weather proof than OEM shocks. Typical street only use could be 4-8 years between rebuilds.
For frequent or only motorsports use, 100hrs is typical. We would not recommend Xidas for extended winter use on salted roads. That destroys everything under the car, including your fancy shocks.

Know that even amateur level racers at the national level (winning national championships) will usually rebuild shocks between 20-50hrs. Pro teams rebuild pretty much every race weekend.

If a shock begins to leak, makes new noises or loses damping, it should be rebuilt regardless of age.

All Xidas have a standard one year warranty. Our authorized service center is Inertia Laboratory in Austin , TX. Typical turnaround for rebuilds is 2-3 days. Contact Inertia for service rates. http://www.inertialaboratory.com/

[new2subaru]

Originally Posted by 949 Racing

Our Xidas for the early Miatas are the gold standard in that segment. No need for a degree in science or pro race license to appreciate a good suspension.

You know good food when you taste it without having a clue how it's made or why it tastes so good.

You know that Cayman GTS handles better than that Kia Forte without being Fernando Alonso.

Thanks, going from stock suspension - to stock suspension with lowering springs - to Ohlins with a corner balance was night and day x2

[949 Racing]

This is 140mm front, 145mm rear ride height with 225/45/17. Probably about as low as we will recommend for the Street version. With driver and passenger, handles huge sharp dips at speed with only gentle bottoming, just like OEM. The difference is it's significantly lower than OEM and actually works on track.

Overall ride quality on the Street springs is a bit better than Sachs on BRZ we tested last week. I think folks are going to be really happy with these. Perfect daily driver setup that is just a few turns of the adjuster knobs away from a whole new level of grip and poise on track than OEM.

[churchx]

Different folks may want different things. For example i absolutely don't want any lowering below stock twins height, and hate that 95% of coilover aftermarket target lowering crowd. Well, probably it's what sells and i'm simply been outvoted with their wallets, but still ..

[949 Racing]

Originally Posted by churchx

Different folks may want different things. For example i absolutely don't want any lowering below stock twins height, and hate that 95% of coilover aftermarket target lowering crowd. Well, probably it's what sells and i'm simply been outvoted with their wallets, but still ..

So it's clear, Xida are engineered to allow OEM ride height no problem. But you are right, the vast majority want to lower it as much as possible. So we have to very clearly define lower ride height limits that still give the ideal ride quality we designed in.

[Clutch Dog]

Originally Posted by churchx

Different folks may want different things. For example i absolutely don't want any lowering below stock twins height, and hate that 95% of coilover aftermarket target lowering crowd. Well, probably it's what sells and i'm simply been outvoted with their wallets, but still ..

Im facing this issue. im on swift spec r springs on koni's and it sits too low for me. I just wanted stiffer rates

Im hoping this street package will be perfect for my usage

[949 Racing]

Originally Posted by Clutch Dog

Im facing this issue. im on swift spec r springs on koni's and it sits too low for me. I just wanted stiffer rates

Im hoping this street package will be perfect for my usage

Our Street spring pack is slightly softer than OEM rates, not stiffer. Its important to discern whether you actually need higher rates or merely want better response and control without sacrificing ride quality. IOW, don't chase higher rates unless you actually need them.


Generally speaking, higher spring rates are simply tied to load that the vehicle will see. Whether that's towing hauling in a truck or cornering harder in a passenger car. A low grip OEM tire can only generate so much lateral grip, which limits how much force is trying to make the body roll. This is the RM (Roll Moment). More grip = higher RM. Higher RM means a suspension is more likely to get too far into the bump stops while cornering hard. Touching the bump stops intermittently at peak lateral G on a bumpy track is OK, but just camping on them even in smooth turns causes major handling problems.
The stock shocks do this, riding on the bump stops in high G turns when sticky tires are added.

So the first question we ask customers when they ask for advice on springs rates for their Xidas, is what tire they are using. Generalizing here but we would suggest running no more than a 225/45/17 280tw tire with our Street spring pack. If you run say, 255/40/17 200tw tires on the Street springs, you will overwhelm the springs even with the dampers set full firm.

The dampers (shocks) themselves play a role in handling roll and pitch moments. Valved and dimensioned correctly for the application and you can get away with lower spring rates. 86 Xidas have increased bump travel over OEM so in effect, more useful travel before the bump stops are engaged. Combine that additional bump travel with better low speed (piston speed, not vehicle speed) damping and you gain suppleness over rough pavement. That's where the grip and composure come from.

[Clutch Dog]

so running in autox with 225' 200tw should opt for your higher stuff. Ill start saving my pennies

[949 Racing]

Originally Posted by Clutch Dog

so running in autox with 225' 200tw should opt for your higher stuff. Ill start saving my pennies

Definitely. Same shocks, just the Race Spring Pack. Much busier ride but still soaks up everything everywhere. But that sustained 1.5g on "street" tires is all worth the occasional spilled Starbucks.

[Clutch Dog]

Originally Posted by 949 Racing

Definitely. Same shocks, just the Race Spring Pack. Much busier ride but still soaks up everything everywhere. But that sustained 1.5g on "street" tires is all worth the occasional spilled Starbucks.

Cant afford Starbucks, friend! 200tw's get pricey


I do it old fashioned way. munch on coffee beans and drink hot water after