Comfort Performance KW v3 vs HKS Hypermax IV GT
 

Hi All,

I've been scouring reviews and comparisons about different coilover setups for the twins (or is it triplets now?).

What my goal is:
To have coilovers that can be adjusted to be more comfortable than stock (girl is complaining), but can be dialed in for more high-performance sessions like AutoX and 1-2 track days a year.


Currently, I have stock struts with eibach pro kit lowering springs. There are no other suspension modifications.

Am I looking at the correct coilovers? (KW v3/HKS Hypermax IV GT)
I picked these two due to decent reviews and reputation. I also have read that these two coilovers are comfortable for daily driving, but what I have failed to find was a comparison to comfort levels vs stock.

I have seen the ST XTA coils but I live in Vancouver where we may get the occasional snow and salted roads -- which might corrode the body quicker.


I don't need a full discussion, although it would be welcome. It would also help if you guys are aware of threads that have a more direct comparison that I am looking for, and I may have missed.

I'd recommend having a look at the Tein Flex A CSG spec coilovers. They're Flex A coils that have had the dampening adjusted as per Counterspace Garage to remove the range that's too soft and unused.

comfortable does not mean low performance, not many people test coilovers back to back so everything will be subjective

Maybe Bilstein B16 fits the bill

Yeah, understandable.

I actually read that higher performance coilovers usually have a pretty solid and comfortable ride as they need a good base to give that higher performance needed.

The type of coilovers I'm looking for will simply have a range from being more comfortable than stock, and has the ability to be a decent choice for the occasional sporting event.

I'll look into the B16 too

Search for reviews on the Flex Z. Not sure how it will hold up against road salts. Better yet, got go a meet and try to find someone with a set installed and ask for a ride.

Not sure what you budget is but the Ohlins R&T might work for you, especially with the softer spring rates they now have.

KW V3 can be very comfortable...if the dampers are set up correctly. The spring rates would work nicely for you and they have a lot of travel.

I've not ridden on the HKS GT, but the shock dynos looked like they'd be relatively comfortable. I'd want to see how much travel they have though.

Bilstein B16 would be a good choice as well.

- Andrew

Am in the same boat and considering the same coils, Ohlins Road and track, Flex Z, Flex A (CSG spec), Racecomp T2s.

WOuld love to hear more about the Ohlins and the Flex A CSG spec.

The new Ohlins are very very soft. We liked the old ones (and ran them on our old shop car for a while).

No first hand experience with the Teins.

T2s aren't uncomfortable IMO but if comfort is a main priority I'd have a different recommendation. :)

- Andrew

Sent you a PM.

When you mentioned travel, is this the shock travel?
I'm just trying to get more info to research this myself.

I'm just adding this as a reference to the Teins mentioned earlier.
http://www.ft86club.com/forums/showthread.php?t=81829

Putting this in here in case for easier linking.

CSG Mike does mention that it is good for comfort, but AutoX/Track may wear the Teins very quickly.

Yes. :)

- Andrew

And yet again RCE comes off as awesome even if it means not selling their own product :thumbsup:

Hello! I have the KW V3s. I've had them for 1.5 years now. My goals were similar to yours. My car is a year-round DD, and I wanted comfortable coilovers (for miserable Chicago roads) that would cope with the occasional autocross, and also survive the winter months. I'm quite happy with them. They're a bit too soft for proper autocrossing, but that hasn't stopped me from winning my class last year, and winning all six events I've attended this year too :)

Let me know if you have any additional questions. Mine have been pummeled on Chicago roads, stressed at autocross, covered in salt in the winter, etc...

http://www.seriesblueadventures.com/...16/05/01-3.jpg

How often do you need to get them rebuilt? any idea on cost of rebuild?

When you mention comfortable, would you be able to describe stock and KW v3 on a scale of 1-10 when compared to stock? (10-like a lexus, 1-go cart)

My apologies for the delayed response to your questions. When you started talking about a scale compared to stock, I thought about it, and realized that I wouldn't be able to give you a very good answer as I hadn't driven a stock car in a very long time. So last night I arranged for a quick test drive of a stock, 2014 BRZ with my local dealership (36,000 miles on it) so that I could have a good benchmark for comparison.

It's important to keep in mind that my car is on 18x9 wheels, with 255/35 Michelin Pilot Super Sports. This means a much thinner sidewall, and a much stiffer tire compared to stock, and that alone will significantly increase ride harshness.

Having said that, I was genuinely surprised when driving the stock BRZ. My car is MUCH more planted, and changes direction much more willingly, and with much more precision than the stock car, and yet I was blown away by how similar the overall ride comfort was. My car is a bit more "harsh" over bumps due to the thinner, stiffer tires on bigger wheels, which cannot absorb sharp impacts as well, but the overall ride was eerily similar, which was pretty cool to me. It doesn't have the floaty feeling you get with the stock suspension (which is FINE on its own, until you compare it with a car like mine), and it will follow bumps and curves in the road more aggressively, and it won't lean as much in corners, but even with my thinner tires, the ride quality was surprisingly similar.

If I had the OEM wheels and tires on the car, I'm not sure you could really say one was noticeably more comfortable than the other, but even with my skinny tires, it was close enough that if you're fine with the OEM ride quality, you wouldn't be complaining :)

On a scale of 1 to 10, (10 being Lexus, and 1 being Go-Kart), and with OEM being a 5, I'd honestly rank my current ride quality, even with my wheels and tires, at maybe a 4 at the WORST, but probably more like a 4.5.

Also worth noting that this is with my compression and rebound at recommended "intermediate" settings. They can be made softer than my current setup, and also stiffer, which is what I do for autocross.

Hope this helps :)

I honestly don't know the answers to these questions. I was just going to play it by ear. Someone the other day said 25k mile intervals, but that would mean a yearly rebuild which I think is ridiculous. Hopefully more like 60k miles, which would be every three years in my case.

KW V3s can be very comfortable. :)

- Andrew

Wow, thanks for the very detailed comparison and even going out of your way to drive a stock FR-S. This definitely helps with the perspective of comfort when comparing to stock suspension.
I run 225/40/18, so I'm guessing the sidewall height should be similar to yours, and the tire composition will be the determining factor in sidewall stiffness.
Thank you so so much for contributing your time to help my decision.



Based on the huge comment experience above, yeah. That may have set my mind in going for the KW v3.

We do carry them and have a lot of experience with setting them up, but it looks like you're in Canada so you might get a better deal locally.

- Andrew

Well, doesn't hurt to ask about your pricing. I send you a PM.

FWIW, I'm replacing my T2s with Swift Sport springs and B6s. T2s are stiffer than what I want on the street. Also, for that much spring my personal preference is much more damping.
Adjustable damping is a nice feature, but honestly it's not as important as I thought it would be before owning T2s. Keep in mind my experience with T2s is my first experience owning adjustable dampers, so I am far from an authority. But to me it's MUCH more important to have the proper spring rate and matched damping than have adjustability. IMO once the damping is properly matched to the spring rate there shouldn't be much need to adjust it anyway. Especially if you're going to the track once or twice a year. I get in about a dozen days per year on tracks.

Would you mind sharing the rebound/compression settings that you find is most comfortable for the KW v3 with new rates on an otherwise stock BRZ?

Did you try running the T2's near full soft? I've found them to be reasonably comfortable doing that with the stock springs. For me double adjustability is nice, but being able to change ride height is more important. Don't think I could go back to shocks and springs simply because of that.

For ultimate ride comfort, go just 2 clicks from full soft front and rear for rebound and compression. Add compression until it feels good (meaning not bouncy OR crashy). A couple clicks should be good. Leave rebound super soft.

- Andrew

Yes, I did try running them at full soft. In my opinion they need way more damping than that to keep up with the springs. There's just not much one can do to compensate for springs that are stiffer than what they really want.

The KWv3 was shipped quickly, and I just picked it up recently from my box across the border.

Once installed, I'll try to get back to this and post what I find.

It'll be stock strut with eibach prokit vs Kwv3 (stock tophats)

After a few months, I finally got to install the KW V3 coils.


Initial comparison between Stock Struts + Eibach Pro Springs vs KW V3(stock kwv3 springs and stock tophat) :

Minor road bumps and jitters are now lessened although bigger ones feel fairly similar. This is with the default settings that the KW V3 came with.


I will be initially find three different settings throughout this year:
1. Daily driving comfort
2. AutoX
3. Track

I'm back with my personal experience running KWv3 with settings adjusted to comfort.

As one of the suggestions in a previous comment, it was to set all adjustments 2 clicks from full soft.

I did that, and the ride is much better than when I was running stock suspension with eibach prokit (TRD-equivalent) lowering springs.

I'm glad I made the change. Now I have to start going into AutoX and Track to dial in settings for those activities.

Hi sorry to bring up an old thread, but can you give us another review? Do you still feel like you made the right choice with kw v3 for daily drive and occasional track days and harsh winter?