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damper discussions always go like this on forums. People who mostly drive their cars on the street defend the likes of Tein, Buddyclub, Stance, k-sport, etc. The race community almost always disparages them. People will justify purchases however they want, and do indeed have different criteria they are looking for. Lap times not what everyone is after...
Here are a couple facts (admittedly from someone who has done damper development and chassis set up for other race teams - so you can already guess which side of this arguement I come down on)
1. Many high volume, lower cost dampers use generic valving which is manufactured with little quality control. I've put 4 different shocks from a manufacture named above on a shock dyno. And not only were the damping "curves" not curves at all, they also weren't the same from unit to unit. Not only that, when we took them apart to revalve them, we discovered the shim stacks were not even put in the same order from unit to unit. SO not only were the parts made poorly, but the poorly manufactured parts were then put together improperly.
2. In many mass production dampers made by companies that don't specialize in damper development, "adjustments" either don't change the damping curve, change it unpredictably, change both compression and rebound at the same time, or don't change the same from one unit to another. Each of these has its own issues, but ultimately keeps the car from being set up predictably or optimally.
3. Often the dampers used on chassis "A" are also the exact same damper used on chassis "B". Some manufactures have masked this by using adjustable threaded pearchs to make the damper fit in multiple chassis. But they can't however adjust for the inherently different stroke requirements of the cars. the manufactures then say this is an added feature called "spring preload tuning". While in reality, if the spring is a linear spring, the force required to compress them is the same for the first inch of compression from full expansion as it is for the last inch of compression before binding.
4. The quality of the springs shipped with the kits. Just like putting product on a shock dyno, teams looking to ensure the best quality also double check the springs they use. I've also checked the spring rates on cheaper kits as we tried to set up budget race cars. And they were not what was advertised. I'm at a point now that if it isn't a KW or a swift spring, I want it meassured before being put on the car.
Paying a lot doesn't necissarily get you a better product. I personally have had bad experiences with HKS, silk road, and several other "high end" shocks made by tuner brands. And even the ones that have quality valving are sprung way too stiff for US roads and tracks. Best guess is that maybe these setups work well in japan where the race tracks generally have much smoother surfaces than here in the US. Our tracks are rough, and need a more compliant spring rate to keep the tires on the ground.
Hope you are happy with whatever you buy. The sad reality is that most FR-S don't need better dampers to be faster - the owners should spend the money on performance driving classes instead. Now appearance is another thing. Sorry if I sound like a shock snob.
Best,
Matt Andrews
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