My review of the Fortune Auto 500 series coilovers

[Thongpocket]

I wanted to post up my experience with these since which coilovers to buy seems to be a hot topic on most days. First, some back story.

Background:

I bought eibach sway bars and sportline lowering springs just before NOPI so that I wouldn't look like a 4x4 on my 17x9 +38 offset Axis wheels that they were so gracious to sponsor me with. These springs had me at good stance and helped the car handle more sharply but also gave a very rough ride. So I decided to look into coilovers.






The Field:

I began with about 2 months spent researching all the different companies that were popular and wanted to but something that was great for weekend autoX and track events as my BRZ is not my daily driver. I found that the range seemed to go from lower priced options like Megan and BC all the way up to Ohlins and KW. I knew I did not want to spend more than $2k on my setup so those higher end options were eliminated from the running. So I started to narrow my search down and came up with 3 companies: R*SR, Fortune Auto and Eibach. While the Eibach and R*SR products are great, I finally decided on the Fortune Auto 500 Series Coilovers.
Customer Service:
I spoke with each manufacturer several times on the phone and Fortune Auto was most impressive in that their people never had to research or call me back. They just knew the answers to my questions. They knew where their products came from and the names of the people there who build them as well as what the differences between the products are. They never had a bad word to say about anyone else’s products and were genuinely interested that I get the right product for my needs. I value this very much when buying anything in my life. The fact that they offer a 5 year warranty that is NOT voided by track use was also a great feature of their product.
The Choice:
I went with the Fortune Auto 500 Series V5 coilovers with all the upgrades. They have swift springs for which I chose 6k and 7k spring rates and Koyo radial bearing mounts to keep binding and noise to a minimum. They build each set to order and use a shock dyno to match every set of coilovers to ensure balanced performance and solid reliability. They have a digressive piston to aid in sharper feedback and they use Amsoil synthetic shock fluid. All components are precisely engineered and matched together to create the best unit possible for the price.
Purchase and Install: I bought my coilovers from ProAuto, LLC in Columbia, SC from the owner, Nick as they sponsor our club (Southeast86 on Facebook) and are also fairly close to me. I was given a fair price and also bought them during a free installation promo period so that was just icing on the cake. It took about 8-9 weeks to get mine as they had just started producing the V5 coilovers and as I said, they make them to order. So this past Friday night I drove to Columbia to have them installed. I am still waiting on my Whiteline rear lower control arms so I have not yet had it aligned and it is riding pretty low until I decide what ride height I want to compete with.



Driving Impressions:
These have made my car much more impressive to drive! Even with the car slammed pretty low bumps and potholes do not jar me like they did with the lowering springs only. I have all the shocks set to about 1/2 on rebound or 12 of 24 clicks. My car sticks to turns and DOES NOT budge at all. My Birdgestone Potenza S-04 Pole Position tires in 245/40/17 just grip and grip. I tried to get the rear end to slide just a little on an offramp and it did not budge. Exactly what I was aiming for with this setup. I could not be more pleased with this product and I hope this write up may help anyone else looing to choose a set of coilovers in the future for their twin. I am running an AutoX event this upcoming Sunday so I will be sure to get some video and add to this my take on the coils for autocross use. Thanks for reading!

[Thongpocket]

Reserved for more

[DrDuquette]

My Fortune 500's are on the way. Can't wait!! Thanks for you making me feel better about my purchase!!

[Thongpocket]

You will love them!

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[R/T Tuning]

We see Fortune coilovers come in on a lot of customer cars and the reviews from those customers are always positive. You chose well.

[yomny]

spring rates?

[Thongpocket]

Originally Posted by yomny

spring rates?

7K & 6K

[FastWhite]

Do they pass the wife/girlfriend test?


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[Thongpocket]

I haven't tries that one yet but my roommate hated the ride on my old ones and said it was much much better on bumps at speed. No more spine jarring. Lol

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[DrDuquette]

Originally Posted by Thongpocket

You will love them!

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Are you able to feel the difference between full soft and full hard settings? Do you think that the ride quality for a DD is actually improved over stock suspension when it come to comfort of absorbing road imperfections?

[FastWhite]

These do sound very promising for the price point.
More affordable than Ohlins/JRZ


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[Thongpocket]

I believe it rides smoother than stock. I have not yet tried full hard or full soft but will soon.

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[Propaganda]

Originally Posted by DrDuquette

Are you able to feel the difference between full soft and full hard settings? Do you think that the ride quality for a DD is actually improved over stock suspension when it come to comfort of absorbing road imperfections?

From full soft to full hard, yes there is a difference...at least on the v4.

Open jet... rough and somewhat bouncy. Close the jet and put it on the first soft click, and it immediately rides better. I have it on 5/15 (soft-hard). Full hard seems a lot more responsive, and i would only recommend for a reallllly smooth surface.

My first few autocrosses were on "click 1." Just for fun, i bumped them up to somewhere on the higher end for one run, and it drove much different... I was slower that run since I wasn't used to it. I turned them back down to 5-7 and am much more happy with those numbers.

Do they ride smoother than stock? Honestly, I can't remember. It's been so long for me. I got my car August 2012, threw the coilovers on in November. It's now a year and a half later... Personally, I think it does ride a bit harsh over some bumps...I'd rather have people think it be rough and have it not be, than think it's smooth, but find out it's harsh and then regret their decision..., but it's responsive and every time I drive the car I have a blast, even if it's just driving down the road to a grocery store

[mwjcyber]

I too love my Fortune Auto 500's. My BRZ is planted, controlled, but subtle and smooth over bumps and rough roads. The ride is superior to stock in every way, which was also very good. For me I found 10 clicks of rebound front, 0 clicks of rebound rear provided the response and feel I was looking for. Unlike some other coilovers brands, every couple of clicks noticeably modifies the suspension characteristics of the car. It's good to hear other people are having positive experiences with a product I'm extremely happy with.