I don't want a drop. I dont track my car. Any benefit from coilovers for me?

[bfrank1972]

Originally Posted by strat61caster

He's concerned primarily with comfort and asking about modifications that 90% of the time decrease comfort, especially wheels.

Common sense advice will be "don't do the thing that will have the result that you explicitly don't want"
/thread

Imo OP should go to 16" wheels, 7-8" with big cushy tires, will stand out more than the typical 18x10 that the other hardparkers all run and if they're light wheels and quality tires will noticeably increase ride comfort. Check out the meaty tire thread.

Edit: Double checked the meaty tire thread, not what I thought it was, searching "16" wheels ft86club" does turn up some results though.

I dunno man, maybe you read his mind better than I I read the part of his post was about comfort, and part of it was talking about 9.5" wide wheels and needing coilovers, and he may well be right. Try fitting deep dish wheels like that under the fenders and you could very well have clearance problems with the stock setup.

[PandaSPUR]

Thanks for all the replies so far.

So to clarify:

1. If I went with coilovers I'd be going with Tein Flex A (~$1,000) or the RCE Tarmac Zero (~1,600). Those are the only two I've looked into so far.
2. Main reason for wanting coilovers is to fit 18x9.5 57C6 wheels.
3. Not really interested in the slimmer 57C6s because those dont look concave at all.
4. Thinking about going FI in 2017+ just for a bit more acceleration fun as I drive around. So for that I'd like 9.5" wide wheels. But again, kinda a waste for just street driving, I know that. I have spending problems

New questions:
1. How much worse is my ride going to get with 18" wheels? I didn't really think much about that.
2. Another route I was considering was 18x9 57DR wheels, these would fit without coilovers. Any opinions on that? They look pretty good with or without a drop from what I've seen in threads. Or maybe 17x9 with a meatier tire would fit the look better... Dunno

Like others mentioned, I do realize that if I want coilovers I need to aim for the higher end stuff if I want to have a ride quality that isnt worse than stock. But yea, I realize it'd be a waste of nice coilovers if I dont plan on tracking my car frequently. Thats why I asked if I'd really feel a noticeable difference with coilovers. Right now I'm leaning more towards just keeping the stock suspension and getting 9" wide max.

[Pat]

You say you want 9.5" wheels to handle increased power. But it's just going to make it ride worse at a higher cost. Silly, given your priorities.
Get a properly fitting wheel with good, sticky tires. You'll accomplish your goals and save money by doing it.

[PandaSPUR]

Originally Posted by Pat

You say you want 9.5" wheels to handle increased power. But it's just going to make it ride worse at a higher cost. Silly, given your priorities.
Get a properly fitting wheel with good, sticky tires. You'll accomplish your goals and save money by doing it.

Increased handling is more of a bonus, I realize I could get that with 9" tires and stock suspension too.

Basically, main reason is: I want 18x9.5" Gramlight 57c6 wheels because of how that specific spec looks. But, I'm hesitant about spending money on good coilovers just for that if I won't notice a better ride quality during daily driving.

You think RCE Tarmac 0s + 18x9.5" wheels would cancel each other out in terms of street comfort? I.e. the combo wont feel any worse than stock setup?

[strat61caster]

The sacrifices made for beauty, good luck.

[jawn]

If you absolutely, positively have to have a concave wheel, I'd look at 17x9s. Everything between +35 and +42 should fit on stock struts depending on your camber, and you'd still have a good amount of sidewall to soak up potholes. Plus, you can have a nice meaty look with 245/40/17s.

For what it's worth, I've ran 225s on a car that made 230WHP and 300 lb/ft of torque. Compound makes more of a difference than width, even with forced induction.

[PandaSPUR]

Originally Posted by jawn

If you absolutely, positively have to have a concave wheel, I'd look at 17x9s. Everything between +35 and +42 should fit on stock struts depending on your camber, and you'd still have a good amount of sidewall to soak up potholes. Plus, you can have a nice meaty look with 245/40/17s.

For what it's worth, I've ran 225s on a car that made 230WHP and 300 lb/ft of torque. Compound makes more of a difference than width, even with forced induction.

I'm not looking for just any concave wheels though. I specifically like the 57c6 and those dont get concave until 9.5"

The other route I'm considering is 57DR in 17 or 18x9, those wouldn't require coilovers.

(The following isnt directed at you specficially, jawn)

I'm just trying to figure out: are there any benefits of me (someone who mainly drives on the street) getting high quality coilovers, and will the ride feel better than stock?

Only like three or four people have answered the actual question so far -.-
At least I'm being honest about not having any actual technical need for coilovers or higher power. But jeez, seems like I shoulda just acted like I auto-x so I could get real responses about suspension options.

[strat61caster]

Originally Posted by PandaSPUR

At least I'm being honest about not having any actual technical need for coilovers or higher power. But jeez, seems like I shoulda just acted like I auto-x so I could get real responses about suspension options.

Upgrading for comfort is rare in these parts and difficult at your price point (most want stiff and the feeling of sportiness so that's what the market produced), nobody has any insight further into that (and if they did it'd be anecdotal) so welcome to the peanut gallery.

[PandaSPUR]

Originally Posted by strat61caster

Upgrading for comfort is rare in these parts and difficult at your price point (most want stiff and the feeling of sportiness so that's what the market produced), nobody has any insight further into that (and if they did it'd be anecdotal) so welcome to the peanut gallery.

My price point is really undetermined right now. Even $1600 coilovers wont give me the same or better ride quality as the stock suspension?

I'm trying to figure out whats possible, then determine how much it would cost me, so I can decide if I want to go that route or not.

[jawn]

Originally Posted by PandaSPUR

Only like three or four people have answered the actual question so far -.-
At least I'm being honest about not having any actual technical need for coilovers or higher power. But jeez, seems like I shoulda just acted like I auto-x so I could get real responses about suspension options.

Anecdotally, the Tein Flex Z's/A's and the KW/ST line of coilovers are reportedly comfortable and aren't particularly spendy. The Bilstein B14s are also reportedly pretty comfortable. The RCEs you mentioned earlier are more aggressive than the KW coilovers, and manufactured by KW. If you want to spend more, the Ohlin Road and Track coilovers are also comfortable.

I guess comfort can be very subjective, which is why you won't see definitive answers sometimes in this category. I don't mind firm/controlled rides, but I hate bouncy or harsh suspensions. A high quality coilover should feel settled and composed over all surfaces, but some will be firmer than others. Generally speaking, if you want it to be less race car and more comfort, stick to lower spring rates and hope that manufacturer matched the dampers accordingly.

And I know you were being facetious, but good autocross/track coilovers aren't necessarily going to be the same as good street coilovers, so pretending isn't going to get you any better answers (asides from the fact it's probably been beaten to death in a number of threads).

[ajc209]

Firstly comfort is massivley subjective. I have the Ohlins and they are great but I wouldn't say that hands down they are better than stock comfort. It massively depents on the road surface. Most coilovers are bumpstop active on bumpy (British at least) back roads. If I were driving those roads all the time i'd pick the KW V3 as they have softer spring rates but enough travel for that to be okay.

[bfrank1972]

Originally Posted by PandaSPUR

I'm not looking for just any concave wheels though. I specifically like the 57c6 and those dont get concave until 9.5"

The other route I'm considering is 57DR in 17 or 18x9, those wouldn't require coilovers.

(The following isnt directed at you specficially, jawn)

I'm just trying to figure out: are there any benefits of me (someone who mainly drives on the street) getting high quality coilovers, and will the ride feel better than stock?

Only like three or four people have answered the actual question so far -.-
At least I'm being honest about not having any actual technical need for coilovers or higher power. But jeez, seems like I shoulda just acted like I auto-x so I could get real responses about suspension options.

Eh, don't let other people's narrow views get you down. Do what you want with the car, it's yours!

I think you have some pretty good ideas on where you should go:

1) stock suspension, maybe add Koni or Bilstein dampers, go with the 9" rims, be mindful of offset

2) tein flex z, adjustable and can ride as well as stock, more room for the bigger rims. Also has camber plates up front, and gives you the option of lowering later if you desire. Also with these, ride height is adjustable independent of preload, so lowering has no effect on ride/travel until your tires start hitting the fenders or wheel wells.

Personally I'd go with option 2, damping quality might not be quite as good compared to the Koni or Bilstein dampers but they are still really good (better than stock dampers). And you get more options to adjust your look. If you want to go even further, you can get Teins EDFC, and control damper stiffness on the fly.

Edit: or flex A if you want the hydraulic bumpstop

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[nikitopo]

Most people install coilovers just for the drop. Then they have to match them with much harder springs because of the more limited suspension travel. As most people said you'll get a better ride only with very high end coilover products.

[strat61caster]

Dunno, I haven't tried them all, I have Bilstein B14s and would say they're on par with stock, definitely not noticeably better.

They're good on small surface irregularities but bad on big bumps so you probably wouldn't like them.

Edit: I've heard mixed things about budget teins, this forum has an echo chamber when it comes to them so there's a lot of positivity with the brand (and fortune auto) but that's just armchair quarter backing.