Gauging interest in "Mild upgrade" aka OEM+ spring/shock combo

[mav1178]

Originally Posted by solidONE

How much are flex-z's? $800 w/6kg spring all around and extremely good road manners not to mention adjustable height and damping? How do you compete against that? lol

1) having damper adjustment isn't always a good thing
2) having ride height adjustment isn't always a good thing
3) 6kg springs isn't always a good thing

It's great that Tein made the Flex Z for that price point. Not all of it is made in Japan though, it's the only way they can achieve that price point.

But like you said, I'm not looking to compete against Flex Z. Plenty of folks have went the spring/shock route, those are more ideal targets.

Originally Posted by ryoma

how do you know half of the owners are not looking for coilovers?

Because not all FRS/BRZ owners are enthusiasts. And even if they were, not everyone is looking for coilover suspension as a route of modification.

If they were, then there'd be 10 times as many coilover options on the market for us to choose from. 50% of owners wanting coilovers = more than 30k people that are looking to buy suspension kits in the United States that has a FRS or BRZ.

More than half of the owners out there finance their cars, they can't even cover normal vehicle expenses...

-alex

[Kodename47]

Do you mean something like these:
http://www.rhdjapan.com/showa-tuning...6-zn6-m-t.html

[mav1178]

Originally Posted by Kodename47

Do you mean something like these:
http://www.rhdjapan.com/showa-tuning...6-zn6-m-t.html

Correct, but imported officially into US w/ warranty support and proper inventory.

Plus, you can't air freight or EMS pressurized shock assemblies.

-alex

[strat61caster]

Originally Posted by ryoma

however, this is all my opinion and I have not been to everywhere in the US so I don't know what it's like in other places.

You don't have to leave LA metro to find hundreds, if not thousands of 86 owners who wouldn't touch ~$1k coilover kits with a 10-ft pole.

Show up to an autox event, if that was my only barometer I would say almost nobody considers those cheap coilovers.

[Kodename47]

@mav1178 those look good. Just an FYI the BRZ offerings are different to the 86 for some reason, they have a different drop for both the Sport and Sport Evo. Handy as then you have options with regard to lowering.

I found these by accident the other day and would be tempted when my stock shocks die, however your plan isn't of much use to me.....

[mav1178]

Originally Posted by Kodename47

@mav1178 those look good. Just an FYI the BRZ offerings are different to the 86 for some reason, they have a different drop for both the Sport and Sport Evo. Handy as then you have options with regard to lowering.

Yeah I'm aware of the differing offerings. I found out it's primarily because of two reasons:

1) AT vs MT: the weight difference apparently prompted Showa to offer different shock tuning based on vehicle weight distribution
2) 86 vs BRZ: as you may know, Japan has strict guidelines about vehicle height for the safety inspection. The different part numbers reflect the difference in ride height clearance from 86 to BRZ because of the different locations of turn signals and fog lights.

A bit confusing for end users, but I find it refreshing that they adhered to OEM standards so much that they took this into consideration when designing and offering products.

-alex

[solidONE]

Originally Posted by mav1178

1) having damper adjustment isn't always a good thing
2) having ride height adjustment isn't always a good thing
3) 6kg springs isn't always a good thing

It's great that Tein made the Flex Z for that price point. Not all of it is made in Japan though, it's the only way they can achieve that price point.

But like you said, I'm not looking to compete against Flex Z. Plenty of folks have went the spring/shock route, those are more ideal targets.

While not always good things, when executed the way Tein did with their Flex-z it is very good, IMO. I think that's a good model for something that will sell at the 1K price point (but sells for 800.. like hot cakes). Anything less in terms of performance and features will be a harder sell.

Originally Posted by Kodename47

Do you mean something like these:
http://www.rhdjapan.com/showa-tuning...6-zn6-m-t.html

Nice! Something with these specs, at this price (600~700 USD) would have much more interest, I'd think. Collision and repair shops wouldnt have trouble pushing this or something that's a bit lower priced with OE specs sold in front and rear pairs.

[NLSP]

Oooh. Very very interested.