Warning to not buy HKS Products - My Opinion - Toyota GR86, 86, FR-S and Subaru BRZ Forum & Owners Community

Super Dave · 03-21-2017, 01:23 PM

After dealing with some unknown issue (clunk noise) with my HKS coilovers for the last few months I am about to give up and call it quits. Right around my 1 year mark with the coils (right when the warranty expires) I started hearing noises from the coilovers. I have been to probably 8 different shops within the area all the while trying to get into contact with HKS USA to purchase whatever replacement parts I may need to fix my issue. Apparently HKS USA doesn't exist anymore and is now being run by a different company all together? Regardless.... its a major headache. Im thinking ill begin to look into a USA based company that produces coilovers for our car. Any recommendations from you guys?

And as for the noises I'm hearing, I'm no suspension expert but I know the struts are not blown, and every single bolt that deals with the cars suspension is tight as can be. Its a click/clunk that is coming from the top half of the coilover somewhere. Possibly the top hat or near it. I was just hoping to purchase whatever parts I could from HKS to try and rebuild the coil.

Clipdat · 03-21-2017, 01:42 PM

@Torry@HKSUSA

Rougenite · 03-21-2017, 01:43 PM

(208)887-3738. - Brian (BK Industries) There you go, call that dude.

RJasonKlein · 03-21-2017, 04:30 PM

If I had to guess, the spherical bearing at the top of the strut was improperly installed and allowed for slop between the bearing and the retaining nut - over time, this excessive play has destroyed the parts and is likely the source of the clunking you're hearing.

Check this out for details:

[ame]http://https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2bab6x47CSs&t=12s[/ame]

gkubed · 03-21-2017, 05:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Super Dave

Im thinking ill begin to look into a USA based company that produces coilovers for our car. Any recommendations from you guys?

I'm sure there's several other alternatives, but I've had nothing but good experiences with my Fortune Auto 510's and FA's service.

finch1750 · 03-21-2017, 07:28 PM

Did you try the vendor you originally bought from? Were they an HKS authorized dealer?

wheelhaus · 03-22-2017, 07:02 PM

If they didn't do this new, and every single bolt has been triple checked, I'd suspect the spherical bearing may be worn. On most camber plates this is a replaceable part.

Lynxis · 03-23-2017, 11:06 AM

I've e-mailed HKS USA on multiple occasions about my coils and I've always gotten prompt replies although generally not very helpful. Thankfully, the answers I was looking for were actually present in the English sections of the Japanese user manuals.

I will note that I had e-mailed them a few months ago about suggested spring rates and revalving services and was told they don't suggest more than 20% higher or lower spring rate and they don't offer revalving services in the USA anymore. They advised they could provide any parts needed and suggested that I talk to an independent shop that can do that type of work.

In short, the coils themselves are great but their support, while present and prompt, isn't very good in the USA. Like others have mentioned, it might be best to stick with an North American company like Fortune Auto if having good support options are important to you.

03-21-2017, 01:23 PM	#1
Super Dave Stuck In a Sandbox Join Date: Jul 2015 Drives: FRS RS1.0 Location: St. Louis Posts: 91 Thanks: 49 Thanked 45 Times in 17 Posts Mentioned: 1 Post(s) Tagged: 0 Thread(s)	Warning to not buy HKS Products - My Opinion After dealing with some unknown issue (clunk noise) with my HKS coilovers for the last few months I am about to give up and call it quits. Right around my 1 year mark with the coils (right when the warranty expires) I started hearing noises from the coilovers. I have been to probably 8 different shops within the area all the while trying to get into contact with HKS USA to purchase whatever replacement parts I may need to fix my issue. Apparently HKS USA doesn't exist anymore and is now being run by a different company all together? Regardless.... its a major headache. Im thinking ill begin to look into a USA based company that produces coilovers for our car. Any recommendations from you guys? And as for the noises I'm hearing, I'm no suspension expert but I know the struts are not blown, and every single bolt that deals with the cars suspension is tight as can be. Its a click/clunk that is coming from the top half of the coilover somewhere. Possibly the top hat or near it. I was just hoping to purchase whatever parts I could from HKS to try and rebuild the coil.

03-21-2017, 04:30 PM	#4
RJasonKlein Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2014 Drives: 2013 Scion FR-S 10 Series Location: Clarendon Hills, IL Posts: 617 Thanks: 441 Thanked 356 Times in 202 Posts Mentioned: 7 Post(s) Tagged: 0 Thread(s)	If I had to guess, the spherical bearing at the top of the strut was improperly installed and allowed for slop between the bearing and the retaining nut - over time, this excessive play has destroyed the parts and is likely the source of the clunking you're hearing. Check this out for details: [ame]http://https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2bab6x47CSs&t=12s[/ame] Last edited by RJasonKlein; 03-21-2017 at 04:32 PM. Reason: Corrected a typographical Error.

03-21-2017, 07:28 PM	#6
finch1750 Undisputed El Presidente Join Date: Jun 2012 Drives: Zenki 37J ZN6 Location: Stockton, CA Posts: 11,571 Thanks: 9,382 Thanked 9,397 Times in 5,261 Posts Mentioned: 374 Post(s) Tagged: 33 Thread(s)	Did you try the vendor you originally bought from? Were they an HKS authorized dealer? __________________ "Just like how a strut bar somehow enables you to corner 20MPH faster around a cloverleaf on-ramp, when the reality is, you can do it already but you just don't have to balls to do it." - CSG David

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03-21-2017, 01:43 PM	#3
Rougenite Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2012 Drives: Raven FR-S Location: San Antonio, Texas Posts: 286 Thanks: 17 Thanked 36 Times in 30 Posts Mentioned: 0 Post(s) Tagged: 0 Thread(s)	(208)887-3738. - Brian (BK Industries) There you go, call that dude.

03-22-2017, 07:02 PM	#7
wheelhaus Join Date: Jul 2012 Drives: 2013 BRZ, 2020 KTM Super Duke 1290R Location: Denver Posts: 1,788 Thanks: 714 Thanked 1,141 Times in 624 Posts Mentioned: 49 Post(s) Tagged: 1 Thread(s)	If they didn't do this new, and every single bolt has been triple checked, I'd suspect the spherical bearing may be worn. On most camber plates this is a replaceable part.

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