Ohlins R&T on the street?

[mav1178]

Originally Posted by RJasonKlein

One question I have for you is: How many miles are on your FR-S/BRZ? I ask because my car was far stiffer over sharp edged bumps when new, but after about 1,500 miles it became much more supple (although it still seems over-damped to me). If your car is still new, it will settle down shortly.

I can help answer this since I have very comparable scenarios of stock vs Ohlins:

Stock:
Drove up to around 11k miles, which included several long roadtrips up to SF, Mammoth, and LA > Jackson WY > LA in 3 days.

Ohlins:
Currently around 20k on them, which includes around 15 track days, 2 autocross, and a LA > SF > OR > Sac > LA roadtrip over 4 days.

There is one simple fact that you cannot dispute: with stiffer springs, you will feel like the initial ride quality is worse. Going over the same bumps at the same speeds will bounce you around more, all else being equal. But it's what happens after the bump that makes a difference.

Stock is great, but will "float" for a split second more. The Ohlins settles nicely after the initial bump much faster than stock shocks.

But... to see how any coilover can be uncomfortable, find a stretch of road with badly designed concrete expansion joints and you'll think you've made a horrible financial decision... a lot of people can't distinguish this.

-alex

[donoman]

My FR-S has 22K or so miles.

I do agree that it handles great... regardless of the price. It handles better than any BMW I've ever owned... and that's a lot of them from E36, E46, E39, E85.

[Raven240]

Originally Posted by mav1178

I can help answer this since I have very comparable scenarios of stock vs Ohlins:

Stock:
Drove up to around 11k miles, which included several long roadtrips up to SF, Mammoth, and LA > Jackson WY > LA in 3 days.

Ohlins:
Currently around 20k on them, which includes around 15 track days, 2 autocross, and a LA > SF > OR > Sac > LA roadtrip over 4 days.

There is one simple fact that you cannot dispute: with stiffer springs, you will feel like the initial ride quality is worse. Going over the same bumps at the same speeds will bounce you around more, all else being equal. But it's what happens after the bump that makes a difference.

Stock is great, but will "float" for a split second more. The Ohlins settles nicely after the initial bump much faster than stock shocks.

But... to see how any coilover can be uncomfortable, find a stretch of road with badly designed concrete expansion joints and you'll think you've made a horrible financial decision... a lot of people can't distinguish this.

-alex

How much did you lower your car? I just picked up a set of Ohlins and I'm currently sitting at stock height.

[fatoni]

Originally Posted by gramicci101

Are you still pushing that nonsense? Do you still firmly believe that you clearly know better than all the suspension engineers in Toyota and Subaru and all the aftermarket companies that build products for our cars?

he is probably just pulling that information because it is common in autox but i dont think he realizes that if you do that, it changes droop when loaded and that causes changes to camber gain and some other important things which cause problems for performance outside the realm of dodging cones.

[gramicci101]

Originally Posted by fatoni

he is probably just pulling that information because it is common in autox but i dont think he realizes that if you do that, it changes droop when loaded and that causes changes to camber gain and some other important things which cause problems for performance outside the realm of dodging cones.

You should read some of his threads. He takes a shotgun approach to solving nonexistent problems and then blows off everyone who actually knows what they're doing.

[x1UP]

Originally Posted by Raven240

How much did you lower your car? I just picked up a set of Ohlins and I'm currently sitting at stock height.

Curious and side note: how much did you pay for your set of Ohlins? Considering getting a set, but don't know where to buy for a good price.

[Racecomp Engineering]

I'd recommend getting them from a shop that has run them before and has a good relationship with Ohlins USA. That way, you'd be able to call and talk to someone who has installed them on a BRZ, tracked them, found settings that work, etc. Pretty helpful.

(cough like us cough)

- Andy

[mav1178]

Originally Posted by Raven240

How much did you lower your car? I just picked up a set of Ohlins and I'm currently sitting at stock height.

Rear was maxed out, about 30mm.

Front was around 35mm, but after installing the Raceseng upper mounts I ended up around 40mm lower than stock.

-alex

[fatoni]

Originally Posted by gramicci101

You should read some of his threads. He takes a shotgun approach to solving nonexistent problems and then blows off everyone who actually knows what they're doing.

i probably shouldnt but i totally believe you.

[Raven240]

Originally Posted by x1UP

Curious and side note: how much did you pay for your set of Ohlins? Considering getting a set, but don't know where to buy for a good price.

I got mine used, $2200. I cofounded a local car club in SF bay Area. We have about 400 members.

[Raven240]

Originally Posted by Racecomp Engineering

I'd recommend getting them from a shop that has run them before and has a good relationship with Ohlins USA. That way, you'd be able to call and talk to someone who has installed them on a BRZ, tracked them, found settings that work, etc. Pretty helpful.

(cough like us cough)

- Andy

Lol. So what's the prescribed track setting? =)

[mav1178]

Originally Posted by Raven240

Lol. So what's the prescribed track setting? =)

What track?

[Raven240]

Originally Posted by mav1178

What track?

Laguna Seca.

Side question. That might be too much for me if it's track specific. I'm just looking for a blanket setting to track with and dial in from there.

For example, 5 front 6 rear, 15 mm drop from stock.

I'll be lowering my car tomorrow. Do Ohlins naturally sit lower than stock? How much lower?

[mav1178]

Originally Posted by Raven240

Laguna Seca.

Side question. That might be too much for me if it's track specific. I'm just looking for a blanket setting to track with and dial in from there.

For example, 5 front 6 rear, 15 mm drop from stock.

I'll be lowering my car tomorrow. Do Ohlins naturally sit lower than stock? How much lower?

Ohlins is disassembled when it is shipped, so the "natural" setting is whatever you set it at.

As for track use, it entirely depends on what your comfort range is. I start with 5/5 and go up or down depending on track surface conditions.

For Laguna Seca I end up with 3/3:

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TnEnPtpIUms"]Laguna Seca Raceway - 27 December 2014 Subaru BRZ - YouTube[/ame]

-alex