Megan Racing street series review

[Drftfan]

Since I have started recommending these to people I figured I could give a little review.
I installed my coils about a month ago. When I started looking for coilovers Megan's were the only company I looked at. This is because I have had past experience with them and for me and my needs I felt no need to spend more.
I have been in the import tuning game for close to 20 years now and have used a variety of products.
I went with the street series over the EZ streets because of the slightly stiffer spring rates and the pillow ball upper mounts in the front.
Install was pretty straight forward. The rears were harder because I couldn't get the stock struts out. The write up I read didn't mention removing an additional bolt on the suspension, which once removed the rear struts came right out.
The car rides great. I literally felt no difference from stock. No bouncy suspension here. The fronts are set to about 16 clicks and the rears are at 14.
I have no weird noises other than standard coil noise. Handling is also great. I wouldn't hesitate to take it to the track. I also wouldn't hesitate to drift it.
If I could do it again I would buy them yet once again. Especially over just springs or springs/struts.
There... A nice, simple, quick review.

[wes1202]

nice what spring rates do you have ?

[Drftfan]

8k front and 6k rear.

[VIXEN]

How are these holding up? I was considering them...

[Drftfan]

They are great. Has been only a month but this isn't my first rodeo with Megan's so I feel very confident in them.
Also someone wrote me and asked why if Megan's are decent why do people buy more expensive coils?
My honest response was this. Basically I think it is lack of real world knowledge amd relying upon internet knowledge. Every product on the market will have a failure or an issue at some point. No matter who makes it. And unfortunately the Internet tends to breed a whole bunch of crap. How many times do you need to hear about this "curse" of wrecking FRS's? Last I checked a car accident can happen to anyone no matter what car your in. A buddy of mine had his Ferrari F40 practically destroyed by a hit and run driver. Google "Denver Ferrari Crash". I wouldn't say it was a curse. I was out of the Japanese car scene for about 5 years after my second 240sx was stolen. I had an Audi TT which had Vmaxx coils on it which also are a lower priced coilover. After a friend of mine recommended them from the vw community I figured I would try them. Very solid product. Then I had a Porsche Boxster which I sold in order to buy my first Ferrari which was a 92 348. Which I traded in on the FRS. Why? Wanted a normal, easy and cheap car to own and enjoy.
Point is I came back to the Japanese car scene and now there are all the additional coilover manufacturers that I had never heard of. So my feeling is this. I will not ever say Megan's are better than Tein or JIC or HKS. But against other similar class of coilovers all day I would choose Megan. They have been in the US for quite a while and they are rumored to have good customer service. I have not needed to contact them about anything so I have no first hand experience.
They work great for me. I think they will work great for anyone. And let's face it, they are affordable.

[VIXEN]

Originally Posted by Drftfan

They are great. Has been only a month but this isn't my first rodeo with Megan's so I feel very confident in them.
Also someone wrote me and asked why if Megan's are decent why do people buy more expensive coils?
My honest response was this. Basically I think it is lack of real world knowledge amd relying upon internet knowledge. Every product on the market will have a failure or an issue at some point. No matter who makes it. And unfortunately the Internet tends to breed a whole bunch of crap. How many times do you need to hear about this "curse" of wrecking FRS's? Last I checked a car accident can happen to anyone no matter what car your in. A buddy of mine had his Ferrari F40 practically destroyed by a hit and run driver. Google "Denver Ferrari Crash". I wouldn't say it was a curse. I was out of the Japanese car scene for about 5 years after my second 240sx was stolen. I had an Audi TT which had Vmaxx coils on it which also are a lower priced coilover. After a friend of mine recommended them from the vw community I figured I would try them. Very solid product. Then I had a Porsche Boxster which I sold in order to buy my first Ferrari which was a 92 348. Which I traded in on the FRS. Why? Wanted a normal, easy and cheap car to own and enjoy.
Point is I came back to the Japanese car scene and now there are all the additional coilover manufacturers that I had never heard of. So my feeling is this. I will not ever say Megan's are better than Tein or JIC or HKS. But against other similar class of coilovers all day I would choose Megan. They have been in the US for quite a while and they are rumored to have good customer service. I have not needed to contact them about anything so I have no first hand experience.
They work great for me. I think they will work great for anyone. And let's face it, they are affordable.

Affordability is my main concern right now. But I also want something reliable and safe. Megan does have a good reputation and they've been in the scene for years. But I've been hearing negative things about their coils, so that drew a big concern for me. Your response definitely makes me feel more secure about purchasing them. You said you got the sport street ones? From what site if you dont mind me asking?

Thanks for your help, much appreciated.

[wootwoot]

I think the negative reviews are based on performance. It is no secret that their struts are not the best. That said, they are not going to break into pieces on the interstate or anything of that sort. If you just want your car lower to the ground I don't see anything wrong with them. If you want it to go faster around a track, or even perform better than stock, I would look elsewhere.

On the note of Internet information: why is it that everyone thinks they need coilovers in the first place? It is as if coilovers are the internet forum equivalent of snake oil. Your car will NOT handle better just because you bought coilovers. A quality shock (Koni) and lowering spring will, with out a doubt, outperform any of the cheaper coilovers on the market. Megan included. I guess the word "coilovers" just gives people that warm fuzzy feeling inside?

[Drftfan]

I went with coilovers simply because springs will not give me the drop I want. It is really that simple.
Which is also why I went with Megan's. Typically you want to swap shocks/struts at around 30-50k miles. So probably close to the three to five year mark. My feeling is if you get three years out of them that is pretty typical of a standard strut anyway.
As far as the Koni/spring out performing I can't say I agree. A long time friend had a 93 Integra and I had a 92. He had the Koni/spring set up and I had megan ez street coils. I genuinely and honestly can say they were about the same feel and handling. That is strictly my opinion though.
And my FRS ABSOLUTELY handles better than it did stock so I really disagree with that claim 100 percent.

[Drftfan]

I will say this. I bet you a money most of the manufacturers are getting their springs from the same source. It isn't an uncommon thing.
I have no issue with my coils themselves.
I got the standard street series. NOT the EZ streets.
And I got them from FT86speedfactory.com

Originally Posted by VIXEN

Affordability is my main concern right now. But I also want something reliable and safe. Megan does have a good reputation and they've been in the scene for years. But I've been hearing negative things about their coils, so that drew a big concern for me. Your response definitely makes me feel more secure about purchasing them. You said you got the sport street ones? From what site if you dont mind me asking?

Thanks for your help, much appreciated.

[VIXEN]

Originally Posted by wootwoot

I think the negative reviews are based on performance. It is no secret that their struts are not the best. That said, they are not going to break into pieces on the interstate or anything of that sort. If you just want your car lower to the ground I don't see anything wrong with them. If you want it to go faster around a track, or even perform better than stock, I would look elsewhere.

On the note of Internet information: why is it that everyone thinks they need coilovers in the first place? It is as if coilovers are the internet forum equivalent of snake oil. Your car will NOT handle better just because you bought coilovers. A quality shock (Koni) and lowering spring will, with out a doubt, outperform any of the cheaper coilovers on the market. Megan included. I guess the word "coilovers" just gives people that warm fuzzy feeling inside?

I agree with you.. I'm 28 and I've owned about 4 cars and I've never once had coil overs. I always bought springs because they were afforable for me & it seems I've always stuck with Tein. On my TC I had the Tein S-Techs, which I loved. The drop was PERFECT. I did my research on springs for the FR-S as soon as I got it and from what I read Eibach Sportlines were the lowest drop you can get with springs for the FR-S and that's why I bought them. They've settled and I would approximate a 1.8" all around, but its not low enough for me, especially since I've upgraded my wheels & tires. I'm sitting on 18x8 / 18x9's now and it definitely picks the car more up. Honestly, I want a clean 2.5 - 3" drop all around and I cant achieve that without coils.

[VIXEN]

Originally Posted by Drftfan

I will say this. I bet you a money most of the manufacturers are getting their springs from the same source. It isn't an uncommon thing.
I have no issue with my coils themselves.
I got the standard street series. NOT the EZ streets.
And I got them from FT86speedfactory.com

Whats the difference between Street Series and EZ Streets?

[TylerLieberman]

Megan doesn't compare to the other big guys and costs less because of product quality and R&D. Not because of failure ratings. I'm not saying Megan sucks, but they cost sub $1,000. Expect a sub $1,000 product. Don't expect to spend $1,000 on coilovers and get something equivelant to like KW V3s or something.

Some people don't need all the features of higher costing coilovers so I can understand the reason to go with cheaper products. It comes down to what the person wants and what they're willing to spend.

Why buy coilovers? Camber adjustment, damping adjustment, ride height adjustment etc etc. Some people don't need it and a lot of people run springs or spring/strut combos. But there are people out there who want to lower the height by more than an inch or 1.5 inches and we all know that isn't a smart thing to do on stock struts. So either spring/strut combo or coilovers.

For the amount I would spend on aftermarket struts/springs, I can spend the about the same, or a little more and get all the adjustability a coilover system offers as well.

[Drftfan]

The ez streets give you less adjustability and no pillow balls in the front so you can't adjust camber. I almost bought the ez but I am now glad I didn't. As soon as I put my rims on I had too much poke in the front. Readjusted camber. Poke gone.

[xia]

Picture of drop?

I had Megan coilovers on my 94 Celica GT (slammed) for 3 years now and they're still holding on just fine. IMHO, people who track their cars buy the expensive coilovers. Like most, I daily drive my cars so as long as the coilovers have good repuation it's all good.