I am 2 weeks from purchasing a set of coilovers for my MT 04 RX8. I was leaning towards TEIN but I am having second thoughts about it. I have read some threads about a few other coilover systems but Iam looking for some suggestions from some of you that have them installed from all of the different manufacturers. I was prepared to pay 700$ for a set but would be okay with paying 1500$ for a high end set. What I am looking for in a set:

1) Height Adjustable. The most flexibility here.
2) Dampening. Street driving, but if I ever venture to take her on a track I want to have the option to do so.
3) Easy adjustments.
4) From a reputable company that uses high end material.

So if you guys/girls can help me in making a decision that would be great.

Where are you finding $700 coilovers? They are generally in the $1500-$2500 range.

Where are you finding $700 coilovers? They are generally in the $1500-$2500 range.

ebay? :Wconfused

ebay? :Wconfused


RZ motoring here in FL sells Tein Basic Coilovers for $650,and charges $150 for install. Theres plenty of places that sell them for that cheap , you just have to search.

HKS HIPERMAX RS. $1850.00 MSRP. but im sure u can always talk them down.

short details on it:
The all-new Hipermax Racing Sport (RS) coilover suspension kits are the first Hipermax line to be engineered as a truly global suspension system. HKS suspension engineers’ spent over a year developing the Hipermax RS, testing on various race tracks throughout the world, auto cross events and street testing in both Japan and the United States.

The result of all this testing and development is a coilover suspension system that has been precisely valved to dramatically improve handling at a competitive track level, yet still be comfortable even on the harsh road conditions in the United States. HKS was able to achieve this versatility by using an F1 inspired single tube structure coupled with an oversized piston and dual oil and gas chambers. A shortened cylinder body allows suspension travel to be maintained when the car is lowered. The Hipermax RS also features HKS’ trademark 30-way dampening and rebound adjustability that is adjusted simultaneously for easy tuning. The included anodized aluminum upper pillowball mounts improve steering response, traction and offer a more direct feel to the driving surface. On certain applications camber can be adjusted on the upper pillowball mounts. All HKS Hipermax RS coilover suspension kits are built in-house at HKS Headquarters in Japan.

Jic !!!!

Tein Basic Coilovers can be purchased for about 700$ give or take a few dollars.

if you want dampening control though, better look into the higher end one since the tein basic is only height adjustable.

go HKS like lazi said!

RZ motoring here in FL sells Tein Basic Coilovers for $650,and charges $150 for install. Theres plenty of places that sell them for that cheap , you just have to search.

Tein Flex for $650! in FLA! ...Ocala here, where is RZ motoring located at cause I'll be there tomorrow.

Tein Flex for $650! in FLA! ...Ocala here, where is RZ motoring located at cause I'll be there tomorrow.
if u read it rite its not the tein flex its the tein basic coilovers. 2 WAYYY DIFFERENT coilovers

ZEALLLLLLL

too bad they are stupid expensive

I can hook you up with some Tein Flex's if you want em.

yea go hks...liek the above guys said

NO, use KW Variant 3 coil overs !

Get what the pro's use. It will last you for ever. 2" down, 2 " up 12 way adjustable.

6 compression, 6 dampening.

It cost money for the best.

Razz, do you sell KW's? Every thread that involves suspension lately has you telling everyone that they are stupid & cheap for buying anything different.

lol, wtf, he says he's looking to spend 700 bucks, and everyone recommends him something about double what he's looking to pay. Can't believe bindon mentioned zeals...

There are no coilovers that lets you adjust dampening levels at that price range, only height. Maybe get some koni yellows and some springs.

Razz, do you sell KW's? Every thread that involves suspension lately has you telling everyone that they are stupid & cheap for buying anything different.


I've never used those words or anything like those.

Remmber you get what you pay for.

Main thing to consider is the application.

If you want adjustability and height KW's are one of the ways to go.

If want same on a cheap buget keep looking. Good Luck.

You can always consider seperate spring and shock purchase to suit your needs like RB springs and Koni's.

Okay so to further clarify.... I have 2k for a set of coilovers. my quick search revealed the link below of list of coilover applications for the 8. I would rather not pay 2k for a set and I am looking for a nice cost to benefit ratio.


http://www.horsepowerfreaks.com/performanceparts/Mazda/RX8/Suspension/Coilover

hmm... anyone heard anything about the silk coilovers?

Okay so to further clarify.... I have 2k for a set of coilovers. my quick search revealed the link below of list of coilover applications for the 8. I would rather not pay 2k for a set and I am looking for a nice cost to benefit ratio.


http://www.horsepowerfreaks.com/performanceparts/Mazda/RX8/Suspension/CoiloverI've been looking at all those too on that site, and to me, so far, the Cusco's look like the best deal. Not cheap, just the best deal for value. Why? The electronic controller is available (easy adjustment and w/a reasonable useable number of stops, 6 I think), they're SS in part so they'll last and adjust over time wo/trouble, the height adj setting does not affect damper stroke, and they have a good rep as far as I can tell. There's more detail on them here http://www.jscspeed.com/evo/evo_base.html?/evo/suspension/cusco_zero1_evo.htm and you can get pillowball mounts for a bit extra, which is nice. I'd be interested to hear if anyone else has these and what they think of them.

So does Tein Flex and SuperStreet having Electric damper control. Tein's EDFC allows 32 level control (16 major clicks but also allow 16 1/2way clicks).

Tein Flex is hard enough for street, unless you are living in Japan, you need not go any harder. Uneven road make my car uncompfortable.

Tein has MonoFlex now - even lighter and bigger piston.

I can suggest my dream suspension but it will way over your budget.

BTW I got my Tein Flex damper just over US$1100 in HK

2k budget, hks are great coilovers. Silk Road are a great option too, i believe they're made using some cusco parts. I'll look into those two.

Someone should really ask what the goals of the OP are. He mentions "Height Adjustable. The most flexibility here."

Why do you want to adjust the height so much? If you're in to a show car that you slam at the venue, that's fine. For a car that actually handles, you can't adjust the height without re-corner weighting the car and re-aligning the car after EVERY height change.

yes re-aligning must be done and it is such a pain

i didnt think cusco had a coilover for the RX8, and on their site... its still not listed.
I would be careful and double check with Cusco before buying.

I would go with the HKS Hipermax RS

http://shop.edoperformance.com/product_info.php?manufacturers_id=&products_id=4236

this is the best price I could find on the web

Someone should really ask what the goals of the OP are. He mentions "Height Adjustable. The most flexibility here."

Why do you want to adjust the height so much? If you're in to a show car that you slam at the venue, that's fine. For a car that actually handles, you can't adjust the height without re-corner weighting the car and re-aligning the car after EVERY height change.


Flexibility defined: I would not want to buy an application that only allows for a one inch drop (for example). I after installing I find that a 1 1/2 inch drop is what I wanted then I want an application to give me that option, hence flexibilty. I would like to dial in the exact height I want and if "re-corner weighting" or "re-aligning" is needed then so be it. I am not bothered by the fact that this would have to be done any time that I decided to make changes. Again, what I am looking for is valuable input from RX8 car owners or other car make owners that can provide their personal opininions on the installed coilover applications that are installed on their cars. I am appreciative of the great input and links people have sent. Thanks.

Do you want to lower it for looks or for handling?

Of the coilovers in the $1500-2000 range, we're familiar with Tein Flex, JIC FLT-A2, and HKS Hipermax RS. We also had Tein Basics installed on one of our cars for quite awhile. As has been made clear, Tein Basics offer only height adjustability, and while they are a good quality product it doesn't sound like they would really meet your needs. In addition, if you are going to spend around $700 on a suspension for your RX-8, this is a better setup: http://www.rx8club.com/showthread.php?t=95369

Also in that link you'll see links to JIC FLT-A2s and HKS Hipermax RS for some pretty attractive prices that include shipping.

As for what to get? Quality-wise HKS, Tein and JIC all make good products. You couldn't go too wrong with any of them. Technically the JIC and Tein offer more adjustability by having both an adjustable spring perch and an adjustable lower bracket. What this allows you do to is change ride height without changing the preload on the spring or changing the effective length of the damper, thereby providing a bit more consistency in performance when you do adjust height.

HKS and JIC are monotube dampers, while Tein is a twin tube. You'll have many people try and convince you that monotube is vastly better, but for street cars that are predominantly driven on the street it's virtually a non-factor. In fact, I'd say the twin-tube Koni Sport shock is probably a better quality damper than the vast majority of the coilovers out there by virtue of superior (and more complex) internal valving design. Don't get hung up on that when making your decision, in other words.

JIC seems to show up more often in race cars, but I really can't say for sure they are used more than Tein or HKS. The fact that they make a race-spec coilover for the RX-8 with firmer springs and appropriate valving modifications might be the reason I perceive that.

Anyway, good luck in making your choice, and feel free to PM or email me if you have any further questions.

Do you want to lower it for looks or for handling?

Is it possible in your opinion to arrive at both with any coilover application that you might recommend?
BTW, I have had my car lowered for just about 3 years now with lowering springs. The shocks are going out so I want to replace with coilovers. I did not have any degradation in road handling performance when I lowered the car with the springs until just recently.

DPE, Thanks. Your reply to this thread was exactly what I was asking for. I was narrowing my choices to the 3 you mentioned but started looking into the CUSCO coilovers as a forth possibility. Thanks again, I do appreciate it.

i didnt think cusco had a coilover for the RX8, and on their site... its still not listed.
I would be careful and double check with Cusco before buying.
I just did check, and yes the Cusco 2E is available, part 107483. There is a part w/pillowball mount too, but they say it is a total waste of money on a double-A arm suspension, and I agree.

The 2Es for any car are not listed on the Cusco website at all, but of course they exist. I think the site needs updating. There is a note for the part that the electronic controller is not compatible w/the OEM strut bar, as it covers the top of the shock where the motor would mount, but on 3rd party...like my Autoexe, that is not the case, but they are checking anyway.

X-SIN-X, It was good meeting you at the MSCW meeting last week.
I was driving the Ti Grey RX8.
Similair to you, I will be purchasing a set of coilovers in the next two weeks in the same
price range. My focus is mainly for performance on the track.
I am leaning towards the JICs.
I have located a source for Bilstein coilovers for the RX8 and would highly recommend them.
I was told that they are more suited for the street so thet would not meet my needs

X-SIN-X, It was good meeting you at the MSCW meeting last week.
I was driving the Ti Grey RX8.
Similair to you, I will be purchasing a set of coilovers in the next two weeks in the same
price range. My focus is mainly for performance on the track.
I am leaning towards the JICs.
I have located a source for Bilstein coilovers for the RX8 and would highly recommend them.
I was told that they are more suited for the street so thet would not meet my needs

I started a thread on the Bilsteins...the spring rate bias is really off on those as compared to how Mazda positioned this car from the factory. Really turned me off on getting them.

Just picked up a set of TEIN Flex coilovers for 1340 tax/shipping included......from SCO

Tein has MonoFlex now - even lighter and bigger piston.
Is this even coming out for our car? if so when?