Fortune auto vs Megan racing

[GeorgeJFrick]

Originally Posted by Cole

Will put my 2 cents in.

I had a set of GodSpeed Mono-Max RS coils. Good enough to go low and have moderate comfort if you're willing to spend time driving around then pull over and adjust the damping settings. I managed to get them to a livable state. I then had a set of FA 500's with Swift springs, conical bearings, etc and I didn't find them as comfy driving around and being low. I'm now on Tein S-Tech springs. These are better comfort wise than both sets of coils. I'm also about half as low as I was on coils.

I'd recommend saving yourself some money and buy some springs for around $200.

Edit: anyone who says that their entry level coils are comfier than stock is a liar. What I can say is: OEM:passed gf test. GodSpeed: passed gf test after tinkering. FA: passed gf test, barely. Tein springs: passed gf test.

Well, since we're shitting on people, I'll chime in. I've noticed some people in this thread and others talk about how we defend our purchases. Aka, all reviews are good because people don't want to look stupid. This is an overly convenient dismissal. Some people simply aren't high enough on the dial-o-experience and people on this forum judge them too quickly. It might be easier to be honest if people could be cool about it. Mine hadn't even arrived yet and people were giving me shit.

That being said, I agree with Cole. I'm on the FA 500s with swift spring upgrade. Not more comfortable than stock. Easy ride height adjustment. Comfortable install process. They barely pass the wife test, she would rather take her car now.

I can't honestly review them until I've done a couple of autoX and been to either RA or Blackhawk Farms for a track day. But I've been able to, and will be able to, learn a lot about my suspension and suspension adjustments in general.

That being said, if your goal is DD and not to learn because you want to win autox or bring down lap times; I'd just do springs as Cole suggested. I can't see buying low-mid end coils except to thrash them like a cheap learners drum set.

[finch1750]

Originally Posted by Ashikabi

If only sheep and go_away were here... the derail would have been much funner

edit it to tags so they definitely dont miss it when they return

[Ashikabi]

Originally Posted by finch1750

edit it to tags so they definitely dont miss it when they return

Done

[JoeCFRS]

Not sure if that statement about Fortune Autos being made from Megan parts was legit? Fortune Autos are made in Richmond VA. I have had my set for over a year with several autox events, hard driving and i daily them. They are pretty much the best bang for the buck. I personally know at least 3 other people using them for track, autox and daily driving and not one of us has had anything but great performance from them with 0 issues to speak of.

I cant really speak for the ST's but i dont even think those come with adjustable camber plates or damping. But if youre going to have to drop another 500 on camber plates its not worth it IMO.

[strat61caster]

Originally Posted by JoeCFRS

Not sure if that statement about Fortune Autos being made from Megan parts was legit? Fortune Autos are made in Richmond VA.

FA parts (the bodies, shafts, collars, etc.) are made in Taiwan, just like Megan, Stance, BC, Feal, Godspeed, all the other cheap coilover kits. They've had forum accounts to represent the company and answer questions and I've never seen this denied by anybody. It isn't unusual for one or two Asian factories to supply the vast majority of budget components for an industry, if you've ever looked at cheap and entry level bicycles you'd see the same thing, nevermind consumer grade electronics like cell phones and laptops or car parts or basically anything that has a demand for hundreds if not thousands of units to be made by the lowest bidder.

Fortune Auto has a good rep, there's no reason not to believe they don't do all their assembly and dyno test every shock they put out in their Virginia facility with high quality shock oil and Ohlins shims like their marketing says. IMO there's nothing wrong with them sourcing parts from China, but it's the truth. Hell I've got a cheap Taiwanese made road bike that I would rate highly and buy again in a second.

However I don't think it's unfair to note that independent dyno's are unicorns on budget dampers, I've seen one blurry cell phone pic of a Fortune Auto dyno (and I've spent some time googling for them). Not everybody needs that and that's fine, no disrespect, but I've learned: "Trust, but verify" when you care about something. When you start digging into what dyno curves you actually want to maximize performance and comfort it becomes apparent that ideal setups are rare at any price point.

[TylerLieberman]

Originally Posted by JoeCFRS

Not sure if that statement about Fortune Autos being made from Megan parts was legit? Fortune Autos are made in Richmond VA. I have had my set for over a year with several autox events, hard driving and i daily them. They are pretty much the best bang for the buck. I personally know at least 3 other people using them for track, autox and daily driving and not one of us has had anything but great performance from them with 0 issues to speak of.

I cant really speak for the ST's but i dont even think those come with adjustable camber plates or damping. But if youre going to have to drop another 500 on camber plates its not worth it IMO.

The STs are $850. Camber plates at $500 would put it at $1,350. That really isn't that much at all. In fact, you could get Whiteline tophats instead for the STs and those are like $200 and they increase camber and caster. So, for $1,400 or so, you could have ST coilovers with Whiteline tophats, SPC RLCAs, and a proper alignment done.

The parts are solid components, you have a proper alignment, the car will drive great, and ride quality doesn't go to shit, because the shocks are done by KW, who know what they're doing.

That's REAL bang for buck.

If you aren't needing to run a good amount of camber, or make adjustments at the track, there's really no reason for camber plates. They're just going to cause the ride to be louder because of the metal to metal contact.

Based on the info provided by the OP, I'd say Whiteline tophats are fine; hell, camber bolts would probably be enough for what he's looking for.

[strat61caster]

Originally Posted by TylerLieberman

They're just going to cause the ride to be louder because of the metal to metal contact.

Based on the info provided by the OP, I'd say Whiteline tophats are fine; hell, camber bolts would probably be enough for what he's looking for.

The camber plates I have produced zero additional noise, vibration or harshness from the OE tophats, but I spent money on the fancy ones. No passenger has been able to tell the difference and I kept the rest of the suspension stock so there were no other factors to muddy the water.

OP doesn't want performance and is considering camber plates in order to keep the front alignment near 0 degrees of camber to preserve tire life, I agree camber bolts are ideal for his situation.

http://www.ft86club.com/forums/showp...18&postcount=7

[JoeCFRS]

Originally Posted by TylerLieberman

The STs are $850. Camber plates at $500 would put it at $1,350. That really isn't that much at all. In fact, you could get Whiteline tophats instead for the STs and those are like $200 and they increase camber and caster. So, for $1,400 or so, you could have ST coilovers with Whiteline tophats, SPC RLCAs, and a proper alignment done.

The parts are solid components, you have a proper alignment, the car will drive great, and ride quality doesn't go to shit, because the shocks are done by KW, who know what they're doing.

That's REAL bang for buck.

If you aren't needing to run a good amount of camber, or make adjustments at the track, there's really no reason for camber plates. They're just going to cause the ride to be louder because of the metal to metal contact.

Based on the info provided by the OP, I'd say Whiteline tophats are fine; hell, camber bolts would probably be enough for what he's looking for.

And you should be able to get Fortune Autos that come with all of that brand new for under $1200. Not sure what their prices currently are but thats what mine were.

[TylerLieberman]

Originally Posted by JoeCFRS

And you should be able to get Fortune Autos that come with all of that brand new for under $1200. Not sure what their prices currently are but thats what mine were.

Fortune Autos are $950 ish for just coilovers by themselves. Yes, you get camber plates, but they don't come with LCAs or a free alignment. You still have to spend the money there. So, realistically, it'd cost about the same as the STs would when everything is said and done, which is about $1,400, unless you absolutely have to have adjustable camber plates; at which point, the STs would be more expensive in the end.


God forbid somebody spends a little extra or puts forth a little bit of work in these days. Lemme guess... #feelthebern, right?

[KevinK121]

Have fortune auto 500's w/t radial bearings in the brz

Had Megans in my RSX

FA500'S are perfect. Megans were garbage.


This is far past "/thread"

but....


/thread

[strat61caster]

Originally Posted by TylerLieberman

God forbid somebody spends a little extra or puts forth a little bit of work in these days. Lemme guess... #feelthebern, right?

Thanks Obama!

[murdoc]

Can't speak for megans, but for when I had fortune autos on my 240sx ~5 years ago, I had a great experience with them for support. I had one of my coils making a bit of noise, and I called them up and they got me a replacement within a few days, and allowed me to ship them back the old one after I got it. So the zero downtime was nice.

When I wanted to upgrade from the Gen 1 to the Gen 5 kit, they allowed me to purchase the Gen 5 and send the old one back for a refund of a few hundred dollars, rather then paying to rebuild the outdated model.

Never dealt with megan, but I've had a great experience with Fortune Auto both times.

[GeorgeJFrick]

Originally Posted by strat61caster

However I don't think it's unfair to note that independent dyno's are unicorns on budget dampers, I've seen one blurry cell phone pic of a Fortune Auto dyno (and I've spent some time googling for them). Not everybody needs that and that's fine, no disrespect, but I've learned: "Trust, but verify" when you care about something. When you start digging into what dyno curves you actually want to maximize performance and comfort it becomes apparent that ideal setups are rare at any price point.

I assume you mean a picture of the dyno actually being done? Otherwise I could post a picture of the dyno sheet that came with my coils if you want?

Your comments were spot on in regards to FA.

[g0odspeed]

Originally Posted by nickmerronesucks

I'm running megan track series and they are great. No issues. Have used them in the past on an s13, and a wrx, and an e36. Never had any issues.

That's what I'm talking about! I've got a complete Megan racing suspension. Minus the sway bars and I love it. Ran them on my eclipse and never had any issues. Not sure why everyone says they are trash? I've ridden in cars with the other brands and it felt the same to me.