Coilover assistance please
 

Hey guys,

I upgraded to coilovers and poly bushings a while back. One of my goals with the upgrade was to improve the cars mid corner stability. For me, even stock, the car felt as though it was upset by any sort of bumps intercepted when the suspension was loaded. Bad pavement that was found mid corner seemed particularly offensive. I assumed a lack of rear travel was causing me to slam into the bump stops so I looked sort that out. I ended up with RSR iSports.

After the install, which included corner balancing and performance alignment, I found the problem was actually worse than stock. Now, with the stiffer spring rates, it feels like the car will literally fly off the road if it gets upset by imperfect pavement mid way through a turn. I've had these for over a year now. I've tried all sorts of settings and adjustments and..... I'm finished. I need to upgrade again.

I'm comfortable at the $3000 mark. I'm looking at the Tarmac 2's and the Ohlins R&T's right now. It seems the Tarmacs have more travel of the two, and the better warranty. I do like the single adjustable set up of of the R&T, however.

My car is on 225 MPSS. Winmax W2's and lines. Poly bushings. Adjustable rear lower control arms. And Whiteline roll center kit. It is 95% street driven. I want it to be comfortable and perform well on the street. Most of all, I don't want to feel like I am about to die when I hit a mid corner undulation in the road.

So which would be better and why?

How old are the tires, and what is the car primarily used for? Just spirited street driving, any track or autox?

Which coilovers do you currently have, the sports-i or the sports-i club sports?

Interested in your responses to wparsons as well.

Another option to consider would be SACHS RS-1 coilovers. They're comparable to the Ohlins R&T, Bilstein B14, and KW V3 (particularly with the new softer spring rates on the Ohlins and KWs), with a primary focus on improved street driving but also plenty of capability for autox and track day use. The rear spring is progressive, which helps with the limited travel these cars tend to have there. You can also always upgrade the springs to something stiffer if desired.

I daily them on crappy Chicagoland roads and they feel great on the road, comfortable with a noticeable improvement in handling and reduction in body roll. They've felt great at autox and a few track days since I put them on. I expect I'll go to some stiffer linear rates in time, but they're more than capable for pretty much anyone who uses their daily for autox and some HPDE.

Have you tried adjusting the dampers on your current setup? If set to stiff it will make the car skip over uneven surface rather then absorb the rough pavement to keep the car planted.

So these corners you're attacking. Are they the tight 90° right hand corners at intersections or are they more the large sweeping corners? Since knowing what you're up against will help us in knowing how far we should go in suggestions.

Also what speeds are you taking these at, since it all plays into what can and can't be dialled away for uneven city streets.


Oh and how low are you running?

Tires are basically brand new. I'm on the moto spec sports-i, not the club sports. A lot of spirited driving with an occasional track day or driving school school.

I'll look in to Sachs. At this point I'm looking for something objective to push me in one direction or another. I am glad you are happy with your choice, however. It seems like a good fit for the both of us. The progressive rear spring is something I hadn't considered.

As per my OP, I've been adjusting them for a year with no success.

We are not talking about 90 degree intersections. I live near the Pacific Ocean and drive on very crooked roads all day long. It's basically a race track in all directions.... Speeds vary from 30mph hair pins to 70mph sweepers. The car seems to have more trouble with mid corner bumps the faster I'm going, if that helps.

Armchair quarterbacking I'd pick the Ohlins due to the softer spring rates and their reputation for building dampers that ride like butter. What they're known for is a blowoff valve that allows the dampers to stop building damping forces as they speed up, basically they 'soften' during fast harsh inputs. Sounds like exactly what you're looking for to me.

First thing that came up on google describing what I understand Ohlins R&T to be designed for:
http://urgedesigns.com/?page_id=340

Searching 'Ohlins DFV' should yield more info.

My only concern with Ohlins is that they are short on rear travel when compared to the Tarmac's. That, plus the softer rates, worries me a bit. That's the only reason I haven't bought them already. I am sure the dampers at awesome.

Combine selling your RS*R with that $3000, and get some JRZs.

The small blonde girl that lives with me would kill me in my sleep.

Also, I can t imagine those rsr's are worth much.

That said, I assume we are talking the rs1's? Can you PM me the magic number on those? And please..... Be gentle.

Have you had someone else drive your car experience the same thing?

I hate to say 'driver error' but I didn't experience the same problem you did when mine was stock, and after Swift springs, LCA's, and a good alignment, it only got better.

Have you tried an alignment from a different shop, or maybe a local performance shop making a few adjustments?

What are your alignment settings? I'm mostly interested in toe :)