matt5462

I was planning to get the MS Sport springs and shocks to my 06 Shinka.......Until I realized that there would be a huge problem parking my car in my garage and not leaving my MS skirts on the driveway!!! I really don't want to do a coil over setup so I might just add MS fr and rr sways. Any constructive thoughts on this???? The dealer told me that the Shinka model had a better suspension then the reg touring model all I can find about this better suspension is that it has some sound damping foam???

Thanks inadvance

TeamRX8

iTrader: (25)

the Shinka shocks are different, but it has the same springs as the 6 spd RX-8

the sways will be a subtle change without killing the ride quality

hitman408

You can go with racing beat springs its just .5" drop

LowCG

related question - has anyone with 3/4 - 1 inch drop had issues with speedbumps, driveway entries, etc.?
Im looking at lowering, but do not plan to add a front bumper lip (stock bumper).
thanks for any comments

nycgps

iTrader: (1)

Stock bumper is fine.

but if u have MS like me, my bumper sometimes can reach the floor even with Stock springs. So Im not sure what would happen if I change the springs ...

FABRO

All I have to say is cement that drive way Matt! You saw how clean it looks to get rid of that gap. And get yourself a nice set of coilovers

fisherdn

I am considering picking up rb springs/shocks, but my other option is koni/tein (s or h). My hesitation with tein is the greater drop in front than back. It seems to me that this may upset the balance of the car. Obviously, the front fender gap is greater than the back, so is this staggered drop a way of making it look better? This may even the front and back fender gap, but is it best for handling? Mazda must have set the ride height for a reason. And, notice the ms springs and the rb springs provide an even drop front and back. It is fair to assume both of these companies put a good amount of research into this. In tein's defense, DPE is a big fan of koni/h-tech, and i know they've done some homework.

Lost post short, is the tein drop mainly for looks, not as much balance?

mikeschaefer

well the 'S' is for style/stylish and the box says dress up master... so you do the math you can see that on the tein website as well

poolsidenaz

I have the MS suspension and got about a 3/4" drop, stock wheels, no MS kit, no problems. I can't imagine how you're able to touch the MS kit on stock suspension. The MS suspension kicks azz by the way. Great responsive handling, reduced body roll, and still serviceable by Mazda including the sport alignment. It's a great way to go.

mikeschaefer

sport alignment? what's that?

DPE

iTrader: (1)

I told fisherdn I would reply to this . . .

And he makes a good point regarding lowering the front of a car more than the rear. In our experience, that CAN throw off the balance of a car, particularly one that already pushes too much; it'll push even worse! This is experience gleaned from the Subaru world, as I've had three Imprezas of some sort over the past five years (I've finally seen the light and have an RX-8, though the scenery on the straights moves by a bit more slowly now ). This is not always true, and with proper coilovers (and alignment) you can lower the front notably more than the rear on a Subaru and still balance the chassis out nicely. But just throw on some Tein springs (which also lower the front more than the rear on Subarus) and you'll be fighting understeer.

The RX-8 is different, due in no small part to the superior suspension design (wishbone/5-link vs. struts all around). I've driven a car with S-techs and Konis, and the balance was very nice; similar to OEM. I've driven a car with H-techs and Konis, and the results are the same. And my own car with H-techs and Tokicos has remained well-balanced too; there's no discernable difference really (balance-wise, that is), and in fact my car seems to have even more front end grip (and thus be slightly more prone to rotate). Though that's most certainly from the additional negative camber up front that the lowering caused, and that I left in place because it worked out to -1.4 degrees on both sides; just about right!

I have no special agreement with Tein, and in fact can make more money on other springs. But the simple fact is that every single Tein product we've used has fit properly and functioned well (Tein springs on Subarus notwithstanding; they fit and work great for reducing roll/dive/squat, but the balance suffers). That is extrememly hard to find in this business, so when you find a company that makes stuff right you stick with them. Plus, Tein springs are inexpensive, which everyone seems to like. Additionally, Tein increases spring rates by the same percentage front and rear (14% for the H-tech, 30% for the S-tech on the RX-8), so the stiffness component of chassis balance isn't effected. It's just the relative ride-height front to rear that we're talking about, and it's evident to me that it is a non-issue on the RX-8. And to address the specific question, I do believe Tein does the 'rake' mostly for appearance reasons, and from that standpoint they work pretty well too .

As for the 'sport alignment' mentioned regarding the MS suspension, you can pretty well align the car however you like with any aftermarket suspension within reason. That's another huge advantage of the RX-8; a broad range of adjustability. Align it to about -1.5 degrees front and rear, zero toe in front, and perhaps 2mm of toe-in in the rear, and you should be about right. I'm sure there are lots of opinions on this, but that's worked pretty well for us for road and track (not autox) use. I have no doubt the MS suspension is quite nice, but I don't see any reason to get it over Konis or Tokicos (which are adjustable) and a good-quality aftermarket spring. And I sell Mazdaspeed too (it's not on my site, but I've sold a number of their parts to folks overseas AND I have the MS Sport exhaust on my car), so it's not that kind of bias .