A little help picking a set up....
 

My FRS is a weekend car that will likely become my everyday driver at some point. I am hoping to get it out for a track-day two or three times per year max. I'm looking for something fun to conquer the back roads or take on a drive down the coast. I have a radiator, oil cooler, header, mid pipe, power blocks, intake, OFT, 4.7 diff, etc. for bolt on's. Suspention wise I have diff, cross member, control arm, trailing arm, and most other bushings. Also have RacerX rear adjustable control arms. Stainless lines, upgraded fluid, and pads are on the way. Going to be running 225 Michelin PSS. At this point I am trying to finish the suspention with coils or spring/Struts.

I have narrowed it down to a few options:

1. Bilstiens with Ground Control springs (sleeve kit) and front camber plates.
OR
2. ST XTA coilovers
OR
3. RSR iSport coilovers

These are all in the same price range with the RSR's being slightly more expensive. I don't want to deal with any more adjustability than camber, height and one way dampening. I am aware of the other systems on the market, but these make the most sense for me. Any opinions would be appreciated. I am hoping some of you will think of things I have not in making this decision.

From your description, I don't know that you would really need damper adjustability. I'm basing that on the only 2-3 track days comment.

I'd suggest the RCE Tarmac 0's.

I am not married to the idea of having that adjustment, and I have considered the T0's. After looking around, however, the T0's seem like less of a value than the options I mentioned above. The ST's, for example, are made by KW, rebound adjustable, and come with top hats that adjust camber and caster. They are likely valved similarly and have similar spring rates, so I would prefer the camber plates and adjustability of the STX vs the stainless construction of the T0's. I consider them a very similar product.

More adjustment isn't better unless you plan to (and know how to) optimize them.

Coming with top hats/camber plates is certainly a plus for the STs.

The T0 spring rates while similar, are different, and the T0s have a firmer option. I suspect the valving may also be different. The RCE guys can probably comment on that.

I have been researching this topic as well, although I plan on more track time that you and I DD my car in a winter/salt environment so rust is an issue.

Indeed. thats why I want the fewest knobs possible... But dialing in a one-way adjustable shock isn't rocket science. Camber and caster will likely be set and never touched again. Same with the drop.

That makes sense for you then.

I am not saying the valveing is the same, but I bet it is similar and they are made by the same company. The issue with the upgraded springs on the T0's is that they put you near the price of V3's and T2's. They are another $350... Doesn't make sense to me.

One thing to keep in mind is that the T0's are more corrosion resistant than the ST's are. Not a concern in California, but for anyone winter driving cars in snowy regions it's a concern.

Ya... But I don't live in a place like that so it doesn't matter in my case... The ST's give up some corrosion resistance for more adjustability. That's how I see it anyway.

Ya... That's a good point. I'm just always worried the springs won't match well with the shocks, which is why a little adjustment would be nice. For longevity sake I certainly understand. The bilstien ground/control combo will likely outlast any of the systems mentioned in this thread.

Thanks for the advice. More to think about....


Anyone else?

thats a lot of money already spent just to fall short on the actual coilover. get something better?

And what would you suggest?

i would suggest you call the professionals and ask them what they think. or see what kinds of lap times people are running on what suspensions. if/when i get coilovers, they are going to be tein src but i dont need them now as the stock suspension still works and the car can go faster than i can.

I'm a bit confused.... I'm not a professiona driver, and I don't want to be. I also won't be taking my car to the track more than a few times per year as I mentioned in the first post. When I do go to the track they will be non-competitive events... So why is it important to know what lap times guys are getting on what coilovers?

I agree I should talk to professionals. I was hoping a few would chime in as we have some high level guys bouncing around the forum. So, professionals, any advice given my criteria?

Have you considered the Bilstein B14 coilovers?

If you want something with linear springs, I would start building from there rather than going with a sleeve kit over the fixed perch Bilstein offerings.

- Andy

We have similar parts and car is also a DD with track days.

Ohlin R/T's have been excellent and reliable. Standard springs(380lb) that come with them work well for tires with treadwear 100+ on track days. Anything stickier and the springs begin to feel soft.

With PSS tires and R/T's we can leave the track day camber and toe settings for DD. High camber doesn't seem to hurt the the PSS's much, just a little white noise while highway driving.

The only suspension change after a race are the clicks on the shocks. 3-7 for track days, 14-18DD.

Happy hunting.

Would I do custom spring rates? And would I need a re-valve? Do you know anyone that could help me with that? Maybe someone who is a vendor? On PM perhaps?

Those things are sweet. They are also double the price of anything listed.... May have to up my budget.

RS*R owns #1 and #2. You'll want camber plates for the RS*R though.

If you swap the upper mount on the RSRs and have a camber bolt for the front would that give enough camber?

How much camber are you looking for?

Have you looked at the Ground Control setup?

I was a big fan of setups I had on a couple of different BMWs. The height adjustment mechanism is also much tidier than the lock ring setup.

Looking to get to 2* or maybe 2.25*.

I'm at 1.5* with just camber bolts.

I like the design of the RSR top hats. They are fixed and rubber, so they should be quiet. They also can be rotated to produce 0 or -1.5 degrees of camber. I imagine if you set them at -1.5 and used camber bolts you could get to -2 or -2.5. That would be more than enough for my application.

If you want linear springs, you'll have to add a decent amount of cost on top of the coilover. Probably don't need to do a revalve unless you decide to go with stiff rates. We can help but I'm not sure it's the most cost effective solution and it would require some thinking to get everything right.

They're still good coilovers with the progressive rates, just more of a street thing.

- Andy

Maybe picking up the Bilsteins and running them for a while is a good option. Then I could rebuild to different specs down the road.

How do the B16's compare to the iSports? I like that the B16's can be rebuilt. I would have to buy top hats, however.

Two different price points also indicating 2 different tiers. B16 is a good setup, but I wouldn't call it ground breaking performance. It's nice for people who haven't tried anything else better.

The Sport-i is a surprising coilover. It's not exactly extravagant, but it works exactly for its intended goal.

That's pretty easy to get on the RS*R without the camber plates.

Cool, thanks.

Just go on ebay or amazon to get coilovers dude. No need for that expensive stuff bro. Dude, you can get epic deals...like $600 coilovers...pretty stoked. Quality made too, made in china coilovers are the best (orientals make quality stuff). You can even get colorful coilovers to match custom wings, bodykits and interiors. Shaka bro.

Ha! Shaka bro.... Love it.

Can you elaborate on what you consider the intended use for the iSports? Where do they shine and where do the fall short?

I have the exact wants and needs that are described in this thread. I have been tossing around the ideas of b14s b16s and rce t0. I'm interested what you will end up with

It defines the sport usage of the vehicle. Sport-i is not meant for competitive track use. It's meant to improve upon the performance of the base setup and allow you to improve as a driver instead of focusing on suspension setup.

With that said, this is a coilover setup with a decent spring stagger that provides you a slightly more neutral handling feeling. This makes the car feel closer to the feeling you get from the factory yet provides a substantially better ride quality over certain surfaces.

It shines for literally your specific use. It will fall short if you expect to be very competitive on track. Our sponsored driver uses the RS*R "Club Racer" Sport-i model (slightly stiffer springs + camber plates front) and has suddenly went from being potential podium to consecutive 1st place finishes in his autocross classing. :)

for that price range, Bilstein.