Here's an updated list of potential options at the 1200 price point (some are sub 1k some might be a little more then 1200)

BC Racing BR Series
Function & Form type 2
K Sport kontrol pro
Stance GR+
tanabe sustec S-0C
Tein Basic
Eibach pro street coilovers
KW variant 1 coilovers
Buddy Club D1 Spec Coilovers
Apexi N1 Damper ExV (Expert Type V)
Megan Racing
D2 Racing Sports RS Coilover
Fortune auto

I'm not positive but these seem to be the newer lower quality and/or "for show" type coilover brands

K sport
Stance
Megan Racing
D2
Fortune Auto
BC Racing
Function Form (not sure about this one? lots of random obscure "hardcore" brands out there)


out of this list these would be the more reliable "brand names"

Buddy Club D1 Spec Coilovers
Apexi N1 Damper ExV (Expert Type V)
tanabe sustec S-0C
Tein Basic (i've continuously read bad reviews about these)
Eibach pro street coilovers

 

They (truechoice) raised their prices not too long ago....

 

Unfortunately none of that xtra money has gone to updating webpage.

 

The prices were raised on Sept 1 2010. I know because I just got my shocks back with a catalog. Inside was a note that all prices had increased since the publication of said catalog, and to call them for current pricing. Their web page does suck.

 

Bc, higher end stance, or my preference is ast. The new dgrs look good as well.

 

Ksport honestly makes a great product for the price. At your price point, you could move up from the Kontrol Pro.

 

no

see link: http://www.mazdas247.com/forum/showt...about-K-Sports

 

thanks for the clarification on truechoice. their phase 2 didnt go up by much, but the phase 3 went up significantly.

 

great info in this thread, thanks to all who have contributed. I'm looking forward to future posts.

 

I have the BCs on mine. I bought an 08 6M Coupe new, but at the beginning of 09, when the 370 was being released. Did about 12,000kms on the stock suspension, which I would describe as quite firm/harsh really.

With the BCs I've done a further 5,000kms and have the car dropped about 25mm all round, levelled the car up (was about 10mm low on the drivers side from Nissan), have the diagonals balanced to within a few kgs of each other, and on softer setting the car is noticeably more comfortable at my normal driving speed which is never much more than the NZ speed limit of 100km/hr. I'm making do with the stock camber adjustment at the rear and have Kinetix adjustables at the front.

So yes the handling will have been compromised, but the way the car is being used you just don't notice - and it's way more comfortable.

Done five track days with this car. Use a firmer setting obviously, and my times are the tiniest bit better than when on the stock suspension, but there are other variables in the mix. Next time out will be on Dunlop StarSpecs so hoping for more improvement.

 

A majority of the time, these guys seem to be at the top

 

yea the kw v1's lower 0.8"-1.5" front/rear with preset damping. V2's come with adjustable rebound damping. and V3's come with adjustable compression and rebound damping.

I have a friend that works for KW and can get you a discount if you do decide to go with KWs.

 

If it were me...I would just do Koni Yellows, threaded perches, and Eibach/hypercoil spirngs with a rate you choose. Probably looking at 1400ish bucks for a solid entry level suspension. I'd take that set-up over any stance, bc, etc combo I have seen at the same price point.

 

didn't even know they made sleeve type coilovers for the 350. I had ground controls on my old civic (basically just a sleeve with eibach springs).

that's definitely a viable option for me

 

You can just buy generic koni sleeves. They are $75 a piece for the fronts. The rears you need to get from truechoice, etc are more.

 

or you can get the spl rear midlink/spring bucket that can also adjust height and toe...but thats another $600...

 

Those shock dynos are old, and were done by a shop who makes a large percentage of their income from selling Koni products. Ksport will be the 1st to admit that they've made a ton of improvements. Oh, and Force Vs Displacement dynos are almost worthless in terms of judging a dampers performance.

There's a ton of Ksport-equipped cars doing well in road racing, time attack, autox, and drifting.

Let's not derail this thread with old info.

 

KW makes a great product, but you adjust ride height by sagging the spring, which decreases ride quality. Unless you're going for a VERY conservative drop, I'd look at something with an adjustable lower mount.

Nice review. Looks like BC has provided the best of both worlds in your situation.

I liked my Koni/GC setup on my Civic, but the only down side is that you adjust height by sagging the spring, like the KWs. Again, for a conservative drop, not a problem.

The SPL midlink is a great piece. With OEM style coilovers + SPL midlinks, you might run into fitment issues. I'd double check that if you go with the SPL midlinks.

 

Fair enough, Force Vs Displacement is relatively useless in judging damper performance, but certainly NOT useless in determining quality control/damper consistency. In this case the two IDENTICAL front dampers were just ridiculously apart in performance.

Also I've seen this argument of X-brand (usually crap) coil overs doing "well" in track events, hpde days, etc. That is in no way, shape , or form a logical argument for the performance of a damper. There are more factors than just the spring and damper combo that will determine how well a car will do on a track. The first one being the driver. Its a false argument and throwing it around sets a very poor precedent.

 

I have had the Tein Basics for ~3yrs with no issues. Haven't sagged and definitely make the car handle like a go-cart.