Mazdaspeed Struts & Springs
 

Sup guys im new to the club...i was wondering if Mazdaspeed Struts & Springs were any good...i just want to lower my 8 without losing my warranty...thanks...

The MS Shocks & springs set are really nice. Lowers you car anywhere from .75" to 1.25" I would recommend that you get them together as some people that have done just the MS springs on stock shocks have gotten some really funny handling behavior.

Something to do with the spring rates of the MS springs not matching up with the standard shocks I believe.

If you want to keep the stock shocks and lower the car, best to go with Racing Beat, H&R and Eibachs IMO.

By far one of the cheapest and best upgrades that you can do, but Nojooc is right do both the shocks and springs. Its like night and day between the stock and the MS, and the ride isn't too much rougher.

Does the package comes with new bushings as well??

the springs and shocks won't need bushings, you will need to cut your bump stops though.

now, the MS sways don't come with bushings, like the Racing Beat sways, so you will need to order some universal 27mm from energy suspension if you want them, they aren't required, I'm running without them now and its fine, I'm get some for the front just b/c i want the sharpest steering possible.

For the price I'd go with some sort of coilover setup. That way you have the ability to change your set up depending on what you are doing.

Factory type performance stuff is usually way overpriced too.

Well, the Mazdaspeed springs and shocks are priced quite wel IMO, given the rave reviews they have gotten, for someone who doesn't want to tune the suspension themselves, $650 is pretty good for the spring/shock combo. Now the sways are overpriced, I know I bought them, but I wanted to have a matched system. $1200 for matching springs/shocks/sways is a pretty good deal.

Mazdaspeed does do awesome R&D work I should also say.

I've never seen a price for those parts specifically for the 8. But yes, $650 is a pretty good price.

Yes, do not get the springs without the shocks. I went with the springs first; one week later I had my shocks being shipped to me. :eek: Springs with stock shocks are way too harsh. The MS springs have one of the greatest spring rate increase of all the shocks. Stock shocks cannot handle them.

If you want to just get springs, I would say Racing Beat. Good rep within the Mazda community.

What are the spring rates of the RB and MS compared to stock? I can't imagine it being that different.



Generally Mazdaspeed does not make their equipment that aggressive...

From the sticky at the top:D


Stock RX8 6spd
F 155.61 lb/in
R 112.86 lb/in

Stock RX8 Automatic
F 144.21 lb/in
R 101.46 lb/in

Mazdaspeed Spring
F 280 lb/in
R 190.4 lb/in

Racing Beat
F 187 lb/in (calculated 20% Stiffer than Stock)
R 136 lb/in (calculated 20% Stiffer than Stock)

Thanks Cam. ;)

I was talking to someone else who really liked the Mazdaspeed setup also.

Too bad they don't make coilovers!

Here's a stupid question. The spring rates are given in lb/in, which I am guessing is the force required to compress the springs, right?

If that is the case, the MS springs are about 75% stiffer then the stock Rx8 springs (using the fronts as an example). Wouldn't a car with these spring give an extremely bumpy ride?

I think you have to look at the rate in conjunction with the shock, which is why those people that just threw on the MS springs with out the shocks had really crappy ride quality.

Ok, well I have another question. Why do I always see "they lower the car anywhere from 0.75" to 1.25""? Do I have controller over the amount I choose to lower my car with the MS shocks and springs? Why does it differ so much? Thanks in advance!

From what I have seen... most off the shelf springs you can buy (for any vehicle) seem to be around 20-30% 'stiffer' than stock. Also keep in mind linear and progressive ratings....

As for smoothrx8's question about height.... Usually that is due to the different weights of different trim levels of the vehicle. They may also build a little margin so people won't be expecting something exact.

I have the MS shocks, springs, and sways. It is like driving a new car! My question is, my personal mechanic, (non-stealership), tightened everything while the car was up on the lift. I heard that something, not knowing what, should be tightened after the car is lowered to the ground. Anybody know this? Or, am I OK with the way he did it. :confused:

Nem,

If the car appears evenly lowered and your not feeling or hearing anything funny, your probably ok. If you want to be safe and make sure, you could just jack the front and rear ends up, break the bolts "Only" on the upper a-arm and the lower shock nut in front (lower shock nut and control arm in back), then retighten them by hand to a good hand tight, put the wheels back on, then let the car settle for about 30 minutes. after that, simply turn the steering wheel to move the front wheels out of your way to torque down to spec the a-arm & stock bolts in front and the shock bolt and lower control arm in the rear. (the rear is pretty easy to reach on the ground)

It looks OK, and no sounds. But I did put 3,000 miles on the tires after the MS suspension upgrade. I then rotated them. After rotation, I have a sound coming from the rear tires, (that used to be on the front), that sounds like they are cupped or something. Could be nothing, but I think either I need the front end alignment checked or my tires are just getting old at 17,000 miles. Any ideas if I may have changed the shape of the front tires because I tightened everything while in the air??

can't see how that would happen, I would maybe run your car by the shop that did your tires and see if they can spot your problem. How do you like the ride on the MS? with my MS sways it still feels stock, my buddies Racing Beat setup actually rode better than stock I thought. Have you done any road trips with it? How is it over long distances?

The ride is awesome - my co-worker says it now handles better than his '91 911, and after getting a chance to drive the 911 I have to agree. As for long rides, how about Washington to Sevenstock and back this year? The car felt great the whole way, and did not wear on me like I thought it might. I highly recommend this setup for the 8.

hmm, from what everyone is saying, i cant wait to install mine this week. they are just sitting in the garage.

does anyone have pic of the car with them on ??

I wonder will that be even better if one opts for the MS springs/shocks and the RB sway bars setup?
Btw, are the end links for the sway bars that bad in stock form that you need to replace it with a beefier one??

I'll take some photos tonight, but I warn you - it has been raining here in Washington, so the car is , yep dirty!

:rolleyes:

The MS rear links will need replacing if you use MS sway bars. I'm not sure about RB sways and links.

Thought I'd share this...

There is two RX-8's in town at an auto-x event. RX8 #1 was driven by a very experienced autocrosser and road racer. His suspension was stock. I believe his springs may have been cut (just a temp. thing he did until he got something better).

RX8 #2 was driven by someone with zero autocross experience. The suspension on setup consisted of MS Struts/Springs with NO sway bars (no, not even stock sway bars... long story).

RX8 #2 was only 2-3 10ths slower.

(I'm not saying pro or con to anything, just comparing two cars with different setups and different drivers. :))

Did RX8 #2 have the MS shocks??

We like long stories by the way :rolleyes:

>The MS rear links will need replacing if you use MS sway bars.

Replacing with what? Does the MS sway bar comes with any replacement rear links in the package??

With upgraded MS end links - they do not come with the sway bars. They are a separate item to purchase.

I'm not aware of MS endlinks, where have you seen those?

http://www.trussvillemazda.com/PartsStore/index.cfm

Select RX8/2004/Suspension - Should be forth item down

those are the stock endlinks, I know as I had to replace two of them :)

do you guys know if we need to cut the bump stop for the MS shocks and springs?

Really? Brian at Trussville told me I needed these to go with the rear sway bar. I'll compare the two tonight to see if they look the same - amazing that these might be the same ones as stock. :confused:

>http://www.trussvillemazda.com/PartsStore/index.cfm
>
>Select RX8/2004/Suspension - Should be forth item down

I ain't see it anywhere in the site.


>those are the stock endlinks, I know as I had to replace two of them

You broke the stock end links already?!

I was told no - but then again I could be wrong because now there is confusion over the end links - yikes I need the right answer - brillo help us out on this one also.

Maybe cortc knows the answers - after all he is the MS King :p

I copied the text and image from the site:

DESCRIPTION: Mazda RX-8 Rear Sway Bar End Link. This fits on the end of the rear sway bar. Left and Right are the same. Sold as 1 each.

PART NAME: Mazda RX-8 Rear Sway Bar End Link
PART NO: F151-28-170
OUR PRICE $23.84
Retail Price: $29.80
Total Savings: $5.96

I didn't break them while driving, I stripped the damn nuts trying to get the stock ones off when I was replacing the bars :) The stock endlinks seem pretty stout to me, I know, I used a dremel to cut one in half :)

The bump stops do not need to be cut down...

Hey, glad you joined the thread - it is imperative that you help with these questions. I'm confused about the endlinks, and also about my installation. Can you add any comments?

>DESCRIPTION: Mazda RX-8 Rear Sway Bar End Link. ................

It didn't say its from Mazdaspeed and looks like its just the regular one to me.