eikond's WRB premium BRZ - Review and Journal

[eikond]

I got my wheels and tires.. got them on the car last night.. and had a nice little peak of sunlight to snap some pictures today.

NEEDS MOAR LOW.. I'll get the RCE Yellow springs installed in a couple weekends. That will help a bit. Need some tire shine as well..

[eikond]

I installed clear side markers today with amber bulbs.
Also put in a K&N panel filter.

I ordered a set of OEM mudguards as well. With the extra width from these wheels I want to prevent rock chips and scrapes down the doors as much as possible.

[kask2_6.0]

Originally Posted by eikond

I got my wheels and tires.. got them on the car last night.. and had a nice little peak of sunlight to snap some pictures today.

NEEDS MOAR LOW.. I'll get the RCE Yellow springs installed in a couple weekends.

Looks good. Could definitely use the springs though.

[eikond]

Originally Posted by kask2_6.0

Looks good. Could definitely use the springs though.

The springs go on this Sunday.. and if time allows.. brake pads, lines, and some aero bits.


I did install my front lip last night. I think it looks nice.. definitely makes the front end a little more "angry" and aggressive.

[MightyMeeple]

Your car looks great, and thanks for sharing the details and photos. May I ask how the lip installation went? Did you have to drill any, or is it simply blot into place?

[eikond]

Originally Posted by MightyMeeple

Your car looks great, and thanks for sharing the details and photos. May I ask how the lip installation went? Did you have to drill any, or is it simply blot into place?

Lip install was a lot more time consuming that I thought it would be. You have to remove a couple of undertray panels so that you can get your hands on the inside of the bumper. You do have to drill it because you'll want to have hardware to bolt it on. It wouldn't hold up very well to all the wind you get at the front of the car with just tape.. plus you want to snug it up tight toward the front so there is no gap to the bumper. Once you get the undertrays removed and get over that fear of drilling holes in your new car.. it's a pretty easy process.

I did it myself. I used some double sided tape on the inside most edge so that i could test fit it and adjust.. Once I had it where I wanted I snugged up the tape nice and tight and the held it in place enough for me to start drilling. I started at the two points in the front on either side of the grill and then moved to center and then outside.

the worst part was being out in the garage for so long.. brr.. it was like 20* outside yesterday. I need spring!!!!

[eikond]

MOAR LOW

details to follow...

[Cjymiller]

Throw on some pics of that lip!

[Ryephile]

Today @eikond & I installed a set of RCE Yellow's on his super clean WR Blue BRZ. Here are some pictures, starting with the "before" ride height:


RYE_6421.jpg by Ryephile, on Flickr


RYE_6417.jpg by Ryephile, on Flickr


RYE_6438.jpg by Ryephile, on Flickr


RYE_6439.jpg by Ryephile, on Flickr


RYE_6451.jpg by Ryephile, on Flickr


Here are the "after" pictures:


RYE_6457.jpg by Ryephile, on Flickr


RYE_6458.jpg by Ryephile, on Flickr


RYE_6470.jpg by Ryephile, on Flickr


RYE_6473.jpg by Ryephile, on Flickr


There are some suspension stroke measurements I'd like to share. All the ride height measurements are from axle center to the apex of the wheel arch. Note that I forgot to measure the rear motion ratio, so everything I'm mentioning stroke-wise in the rear will be wrong until it gets fixed. Thanks for your patience.

Stock Ride Height: 14 5/8" front & 14 3/8" rear
Stock damper full droop: 17 7/8" front & rear

Front damper free stroke [no bumpstop contact]: 3 9/16"
Front stock bumpstop length: 2 5/16"
Maximum possible damper stroke [100% theoretical bumpstop squeeze]: 5 7/8"

Rear damper free stroke [no bumpstop contact]: 3.0"
Rear stock bumpstop length: 2 3/16"
Maximum possible damper stroke [100% theoretical bumpstop squeeze]: 5 3/16"

RCE front bumpstop: 2.0"
RCE front free stroke: 3 7/8"
RCE rear bumpstop: 1 1/16"
RCE rear free stroke: 4 1/4"
RCE Yellow ride height [provisional]: 14.0" front & 13 7/8" rear

Translation: The stock suspension has 1 5/16" front and 1 1/16" rear free compression damper travel before becoming bumpstop active. Crazy as it sounds, this is more than many cars in this weight range. The RCE setup with the new bumpstops add back precious free compression travel, at the expense of a more aggressive bumpstop curve. As such, with the RCE setup at its ride height, there is 5/16" less free compression travel in front and 5/8" more free compression stroke in back versus stock.

Long story short, the RCE Yellows are about as smart as lowering springs get, in my experience. They keep a reasonable amount of free compression travel, which will keep ride quality decent.

The only install notes worth posting is the rear suspension appears to have implemented significant usage of stock rubber bushings put in torsion to add damping to both the control arms and anti-roll bar. We had to use a big-ole-2x4 piece of lumber to leverage the rear suspension to allow the coil-overs to be removed from the car. This suspension tuning strategy isn't terrible per se, but it will reduce the anti-roll bar wheel rate and effective damping level as the bushings wear out.

Cheers,
Ryan

[Rampage]

Looks good. Classy mods. How much more do you expect the new springs to settle?

[eikond]

Originally Posted by Ryephile

There are some suspension stroke measurements I'd like to share. All the ride height measurements are from axle center to the apex of the wheel arch. Note that I forgot to measure the rear motion ratio, so everything I'm mentioning stroke-wise in the rear will be wrong until it gets fixed. Thanks for your patience.

Stock Ride Height: 14 5/8" front & 14 3/8" rear
Stock damper full droop: 17 7/8" front & rear

Front damper free stroke [no bumpstop contact]: 3 9/16"
Front stock bumpstop length: 2 5/16"
Maximum possible damper stroke [100% theoretical bumpstop squeeze]: 5 7/8"

Rear damper free stroke [no bumpstop contact]: 3.0"
Rear stock bumpstop length: 2 3/16"
Maximum possible damper stroke [100% theoretical bumpstop squeeze]: 5 3/16"

RCE front bumpstop: 2.0"
RCE front free stroke: 3 7/8"
RCE rear bumpstop: 1 1/16"
RCE rear free stroke: 4 1/4"
RCE Yellow ride height [provisional]: 14.0" front & 13 7/8" rear

Translation: The stock suspension has 1 5/16" front and 1 1/16" rear free compression damper travel before becoming bumpstop active. Crazy as it sounds, this is more than many cars in this weight range. The RCE setup with the new bumpstops add back precious free compression travel, at the expense of a more aggressive bumpstop curve. As such, with the RCE setup at its ride height, there is 5/16" less free compression travel in front and 5/8" more free compression stroke in back versus stock.

Long story short, the RCE Yellows are about as smart as lowering springs get, in my experience. They keep a reasonable amount of free compression travel, which will keep ride quality decent.

The only install notes worth posting is the rear suspension appears to have implemented significant usage of stock rubber bushings put in torsion to add damping to both the control arms and anti-roll bar. We had to use a big-ole-2x4 piece of lumber to leverage the rear suspension to allow the coil-overs to be removed from the car. This suspension tuning strategy isn't terrible per se, but it will reduce the anti-roll bar wheel rate and effective damping level as the bushings wear out.

Cheers,
Ryan

^Yeah what he said..

I understand the big 'ol 2x4 part

I also understand that despite the lower ride height the I think the ride is smoother and more comfortable. My first reaction was that I thought it was "bouncier".. but after a little more time in the car, it's not that at all.. it's that when you hit big bumps it doesn't bottom out so harshly. It seems to absorb more in the springs before it hits the bump stops. I love the ride.. it feels more connected and more confident.


Ryan, you are awesome! Thanks a ton for helping me with this today. I would have been stuck on the rear suspension for a LONG time.

[Killerbee]

looks very good. Drop lets the car really shine now

[eikond]

Originally Posted by Rampage

Looks good. Classy mods. How much more do you expect the new springs to settle?

RCE says they are 20mm drop. I think Ryan measured about 16mm after a quick ride around the block. So if measurements are correct then it should settle another 4mm.. say about 1/8th of an inch.

I'm fine with it.. sure it's not as low as some of the other kits.. but I've never been a fan of super low dropped cars. With my driveway and the roads around here.. this drop is great.

[kask2_6.0]

Originally Posted by eikond

RCE says they are 20mm drop. I think Ryan measured about 16mm after a quick ride around the block. So if measurements are correct then it should settle another 4mm.. say about 1/8th of an inch.

I'm fine with it.. sure it's not as low as some of the other kits.. but I've never been a fan of super low dropped cars. With my driveway and the roads around here.. this drop is great.

Car is looking really nice. Can't wait to see it in person! Almost went with those wheels myself.

It won't settle too much more than your initial drive assuming you got to corner with it a little bit and load everything up. Did you end up doing the RCE sways as well?