LittleJohn

Guy n Gals,
I'm looking at getting new suspension, either springs + shocks or coilovers, and sways. But while I'm doing this, i'd like to be able to loose a few kilos off the stock setup.
Any ideas where I should start looking???

I noticed that there a few coilovers with independent compression and rebound dampening circuits.

any info would be great.


Cheers,

LJ

Mikelikes2drive

i say we not be lazy and search :/ there are alot of threads about the Racingbeat sways and such... i dont really know how much weight u can save on springs and shocks but if you go search around on this forum u'll be able to find some valuable information

LittleJohn

Yes indeedy... thanks for your wonderful insight. But maybe I should have been more specific on what I was after.
There are many threads on sways and sus mods. But I have had difficulty in finding any info about weight savings to be had if any and there are relatively few sus mods which talk about products which have independent rebound and compression dampening circuits.
If you noticed, I was actually asking for help on where / how to start looking in the right direction. As searchs are only useful if you have the right keywords to enter.

Cheers

djmano

i dont think you'll save too much weight with suspension mods. aftermarket coilovers may even be heavier than the stock setup, but dont quote me on that. i think the RB swaybars are a little lighter than the stock setup.

as for the independent rebound and compression, im not sure. maybe the higher end coilover systems like tein flex, hks hipermax, jic flt-a2 have what you are looking for.

Lock & Load

The whiteline swaybars will certainly not save you any weight , but the handling of the car is improved .

Weight saving can begin with the driver loosing weight .

Lighter wheels , get rid of spare tyre , aircon if not wanted , rear seats , springs and swaybars arent going to save any credibel weight .

cheers
michael

LittleJohn

hmmm.. I don't think there is much more I can loose here... anymore than 5kgs and I'm in trouble :p

these replies don't sound very promising... I guess I may just stick to the mazdaspeed setup then as I don't plan on doing any track work

Spin9k

LittleJohn, here is a site to try www.kwsuspension.com - go to 'products', 'coilovers', variant 3', which is their high end kit - the only product the offer for the 8. I've been looking at these for a while now, and with the ind. rebound/compression control, and the SS body, plus made in Germany....it looks pretty darn good!! Check it out.

ps: the 'technology', 'damping technology' section is a good read too.

LittleJohn

has anyone tried Ohlins??

Fanman

Haven't heard of much weight saving with the suspension components. The have the stock stuff sitting in my garage (sways, strut bars, etc.) and they are pretty light to begin with as they are pretty small & narrow. If you are looking for unsprung weight savings, I would look at lighter rims.

LittleJohn

Hey Fanman,
would you be able to post the individual weights of each of the stock items??

Fanman

Let me get a scale. Don't have one readily available, but I was going to get one anyways.

GeorgeH

iTrader: (2)

Quite often, higher performance suspension mean more weight. Stiffer swabars and springs require more steel. Many aftermarket coilover systems are monotube, and if you do a bit of reasearch on this you'll find the credo in terms of piston diameter is "bigger is better" which means large diameter shock bodies, which means more weight. I have a set of JIC coilovers for my Miata, and even though they are partially constructed of aluminum, they are a touch heavier than the Tokico Illumina/Ground Control setup they replaced. However, when you put them side by side, the beefy JIC bodies (monotube technology) make the Tokicos look rather dainty.

Of course, there are aluminum bodied shocks out there, but I suspect they are quite expensive.

The KW stuff looks totally trick. I've talked to them a bit and they make some pretty bold claims, putting their damped technology on par with Penske and Ohlins. Not sure if it's true, but they have a good sales pitch. I might have bought a set for the Miata but they don't have an application, other than their race stuff.

Another tidbit I got was that KW is working with Mazda on the dampers for the Mazdaspeed Miata. Since the development work for current MS Miata is long-since finished I assume that they are talking about the NC (next gen Miata) although I was not told that. If true, that's a nice endorsement from Mazda.

George

LittleJohn

Bugger eh.. that sounds like no fun at all.
I would have tought that the "better" suspension products (shocks anyway) would be using more exotic matierials, like all Aluminium body and internals, plus Titanium springs or something like that.

I was reading on the Ohlin site that there "new" TTX40 shocks weigh in at approx 850g. Which I thought was reasonabl, then add in some Ti springs and I think 650g is possible.
I know they look pretty pricey and many of you are goign to say that you "Don't" need this for street driving... But who "needs" and RX8 :D