Alright only chime in if you fit one of the following:

1. Stock MR owner that has upgraded to a coilover or "better" suspension setup, how was it compared to stock for ride and such?
2. Stock GSR owner that has upgraded from a stock setup/coilovers to MR suspension, did race times improve, how was the ride difference?
3. If you can speak about long term effects of your stock suspension or aftermarket suspension including any failures or negatives you have encountered. Like degradtion of ride quality, dailure of stock system or coilovers, and mileage received from these before upgrade.

I have been contemplating a similar to stock setup with rebuilt stock cartridges and stiffer springs. Although at this expense I could have the MR suspension so I could go that route anyways. Although most importantly as a daily driver I would not want to get something that was not long lasting and up to crappy Michigan roads and then going racing on the weekends. Does a MR suspension on a GSR award the same benefits as on the MR? If I was to spend $800 on stock MR stuff why not get a set of sub $1000 coilovers that are out there?

Thanks for reading and if you have some to add please be specific.

 

What is this too complicated of a thread for anyone to relate?

 

It's a noob type post man..... you set up your suspension for what type of avenue your vehicle will be partaking in. For a tock car that will never see a track the MR and GSR suspensions are fine and many would say the GSR is a little too hard even. If you narrow down your question to autox, roadcourse, drag you might get more responses.

 

I am FOR SURE not a NEWB. I am Admin and owner of miEVO.net so I seel everything that is out there, I am looking for direct responses and intelligent reponses. I am looking for a setup that can do it all and still drive me to work everyday and not require a dampener rebuild every 20k miles. The GSR is not hard enough, it needs to be more a more rigid and needs to get rid of the understeer, which can mainly be accomplished by a rear sway bar. I also if I go with a coilover setup the ability to go back to stock or similar height during the winter.

 

bump, do people just upgrade their suspension just to spend the money?

 

I have done a bit of homework on this topic. It seems that a properly set up "stockish" suspension can be almost as fast as a good set of coilovers. I am following the Robi-Spec recipe.

Espelir GT Springs
Whiteline Bump Steer Correction Kit.
Whiteline Trailing Arm Bushings.

I will let you know how is turns out. Also I would not waste your $$$ upgrading to an MR suspension. It is not much if any better than a GSR. I have a friend who owned a GSR and an MR and prefered the GSR suspension. Track times were similiar.

 

I look forward to your results. Please explain what those whiteline items do. I think either way I may still be looking to replace the stuts, even if there with used ones with less miles. I think the Megan Racing springs I had took much of my dampener life away. I now have the Hotchkis springs.

 

Rebuild intervals should be few and far between. Its starting to look like a lot of members on this board are under the impression that coilovers require rebuilds as often as timing belt changes; this certainly is not the case. Or I should say, should not be the case. Unless the damper's seals are designed to leak, its shim's weaken, its oil aerate and its nitrogen chamber empty out, a damper should last you well past 2 years of regular driving. As a sidenote, springs should settle, but not sag. There is a difference.
Regular offroad use will shorten the lifespan of a damper, but not to the point where they require such frequent rebuilds.

 

So regular road use and say 5-7 races per year should last me 3-4 years? This is acceptable and is probably similar to 50-70k miles of driving. How do you know if a dampener has bad seals?

 

There's usually quite a few seals concealed in the typical damper, and symptoms of some bad seals are easier to spot than others. The most obvious is the very top seal/seals, which work to keep the oil contained inside your damper. If thats cracked/bad, the damper wil spill its guts all over the outside and you'll notice that right off the bat. If its got a dust boot on it, then a leak is tougher to spot in that area (where the top of the damper is capped, thats where the seal is on ours, and on most other monotube designs I would think). But a damper with no oil in it will not damp, and you'll get the bouncy bouncy ride that comes from only havig your spring supporting the weight of the car on that corner.
I don't know why I said 2 years, to be honest, as *based on what we have seen* there is no reason that an aftermarket damper cannot last as long as a stocker, as long as it is properly designed, built, and paired with spring rates. I might have been thinking back to the days when we had first gotten started and expected life span was something like 1 year out of coilovers and I was like "1 year? Thats terrible, we can do two" lol.
I could not quote you expected life spans, especially on other manufacturers' products, of course. I'm sure you know how varied track driving can be.

 

On my IX MR im running Swift MR springs coupled with a Perrin rear sway. Handles very well, corners quite flat but rides like stock. Perfect for the street, very slight drop.

 

Thank you for the explanation. I hope that I could find a good street/race combo that will last. Although I have heard people the MR Bilstein struts are not that much more of a comfortable ride. If this was true then why are they so popular. I think I would prefer something adjustable too like the Megan's, although I am unsure that I can trust their reliability.

 

Joe-

Great question and one I would like information on as well.

I am looking to rid the stock suspension on my 03 of its harshness while maintaining performance to the greatest extent possible. I have read numerous discussions of the Bilstein struts that conclude that they are a near perfect setup for on-road comfort and road course (not autocross) performance. I was hoping to find a set and possibly combine it with a progressive-rate spring (maybe Eibachs) which is a bit softer on initial compression but stiffens to reduce body roll. My prior experience with Bilsteins was outstanding and I just don't know that you will equal the quality of the Bilsteins in a $1500 set of coilovers (acknowledging the adjusability advantage).

Any personal feedback would be appreciated.

 

The questions you posed are quite valid btw don't let others unkind comments bother you. The MR/Bilstein oem struts DO ride better in fact the damping rate is I have read is 30% less than the kyb's and with less stiction . Many magazines including EVO mag in the UK have commented on this fact. This is the reason that many including myself are not completely happy with just springs and a rear bar. It still doesn't ride right to me and the handling is not quite what I want yet. I will be installing some PIC coilovers soon and reviewing them soon. I have an 05 GSR. I want a bearable ride better handling and longevity. Stay tuned.
Fletch

 

Thanks Fletch, I think many of us are looking for the same thing you are, "berable ride, better handling and longevity". BMW manages to do this with their M cars so it should be possible on the EVO with some research.

I am leaning quite heavily toward a set of Bilsteins with a progressive springs and the Hotchkis bar (that is on the car now). This combo should provide all of the above.

Please keep us posted!