3RD GEN Protege endlinks, front and rear, NEW!!

[carbonkid]

Agency Power, 3rd Gen Protege endlinks, NEW!!

5MAR09 UPDATE:
Rears are avail, he has only sold 3 sets. Here is the latest summary from the product/brand manager:
"We haven't made any progress on the front Mazda links. We have sold 3 sets of the rear links for Mazda so I haven't put much work into it. I don't want to end up with 50 sets of links on the shelf and sell 3-5 sets. If more of the rears sell, I will have no problem with making them."
I can't blame him. Come on guys, I have over 5,000 miles on my rears and have had not one issue...



Just gauging interest in well built, high quality, adjustable and much stronger than OEM endlinks for the 3rd Gen Protege, created by Agency Power, the manufacturing division of Vivid Racing.

No info on pricing without knowing interest level/demand, hence the creation of this thread. Their likelihood of production depends largely upon the interest for them. I am in no way related to Agency or Vivid, I just happen to live near by and mentioned the need for non-clunking 3rd gen Protege endlinks in the aftermarket.

Assuming they are reasonably priced (based on the price of the other Agency Power models that they sell), please let me know if there is any interest by adding your name to the list below. I am thinking at least 25 persons interested will get this going. It is about time to have an affordable aftermarket endlink solution WITHOUT a clunk associated with it.

9OCT08 UPDATE: I will pick up my car tomorrow, but I saw it today and the Agency Power brand manager installed these links in the pictures on the rear only for me TO TEST!! I will report here what I find ASAP. If they work, then development/research on the fronts will soon follow. DO NOT BUY THESE THINKING THEY WILL NOW 100% WORK YET, PLEASE GIVE IT SOME TIME FOR ME TO DO SOME TESTING AND REPORT BACK!

Also, I asked the brand manager about possibility of a clunk, and he said when you go from an OEM, fairly weak, gel-filled, ball joint to a solid 6061 built link, you sometimes have a tradeoff. As such, these ARE NOT GUARANTEED to be clunk free.

However, I have every possible GTSPEC brace for the MSP, KW V2 coilovers, and AXR anti-clunk/sway bar relocation kit, so needless to say my ride is stiff...if ANY car will make them clunk, it will be mine, lol! Cross your fingers!

14OCT08 UPDATE: Got my car on Friday, and they fit/sound/work great! They want to wait a little longer, and then you will be able to find these, with a BJ chassis code on www.agency-power.com for sale!


30OCT08: Since they still have not posted a BJ-coded part number, just order the ones in the pictures: Mitsu EVO XIII/IV and you should be all set. No special discounts for pricing at this point, sorry, it was the best I could do.

18NOV08: ORDER AT WILL!!! http://www.agency-power.com/catalog...ar-links-mazda-protege-01-msp-03-p-48029.html I will keep this thread updated with any progress towards a front end link solution.

 

[Sliver5]

I would be interested but they would have to not rust. My AWR's are rusted to hell, thats the only complaint I have from those.

 

[Outlawstar98]

Can u get the info on what kind of material they used? if its Stainless Steel then im on the list, i dont like things to rust.

 

[SuperProtege5]

I'm probably down, but still have some questions in the back of my mind. I know for a fact that Agency Power makes some good stuff, so have no doubts these endlinks have potential.

 

[Bigway]

souds good put me on the list for both thanks

 

[CulRidr]

I would seriously consider these if they were priced just a shade lower then the AWRs...MSP length rear and 99-00 length front.

 

[MS_Rick]

Sub...

 

[carbonkid]

Silver5, Outlawstar98:
Please read the description in the link and see the pictures.

In other words, I have no reason to believe it would be any different than the RX8 materials ("6061 CNC machined centers"..."stainless steel hardware"..."stainless steel rod ends") You get the idea. Cheers!!

 

[carbonkid]

Let's start a list which INDICATES INTEREST only at this point:
screen name (desired pair)

1. carbonkid (front/rear)
2. bigway (front/rear)

 

[carbonkid]

souds good put me on the list for both thanks

Done.

 

[carbonkid]

I would seriously consider these if they were priced just a shade lower then the AWRs...MSP length rear and 99-00 length front.

CulRidr, I appreciate your interest and concern about the price point, but IMHO (again, I DO NOT represent AP), ONE thing will dictate the price range:

1) Agency Power's perception of interest in these (for a car, to quote them, "that has been out of production for 5 years") and ability to recoup production costs through future sales.

As far as pricing lower than AWR, I could not guess on that, but knowing they won't clunk, I really don't care, because their other similar products are reasonably priced. I have wanted a be-all, end-all solution for our end links for 5 years now, and now that a major league company MIGHT possibly make them, stating they will not clunk (WITHOUT suggesting garden hose O-rings as a repair technique, READ:AWR)...as for me, I am sold on that fact alone, much less the obvious quality, possible warranty, etc.

Here is a quote from their description you can link to in the first post: "One of the most over looked parts of suspension is the spherical rod ends. Agency Power does not short this area and that is why our parts cost more. These spherical rods are designed to last a long time in a suspension component. A 3 piece design, these rod ends are stainless steel and have a Teflon liner to keep a secure and tight fit. Never occurring premature wear or clunking noises that poor quality rod ends have."

As far as length, I have given them an OEM MSP front and an OEM MSP rear to develop off of. The fact that they will be adjustable in length should be the solution for almost everyone, including your needs, right?

 

[carbonkid]

I'm probably down, but still have some questions in the back of my mind. I know for a fact that Agency Power makes some good stuff, so have no doubts these endlinks have potential.

You are absolutely correct, AP does make some HOT ****!! I have seen it first hand, and they have CNC type machines that can make ANYTHING!

If after reading the description in the link above, you still have questions, ask them here by all means. I will try my best to answer them. Cheers!

 

[carbonkid]

Let's start a list which INDICATES INTEREST only at this point:
screen name (desired pair)

1. carbonkid (front/rear)
2. bigway (front/rear)

 

[CulRidr]

CulRidr, I appreciate your interest and concern about the price point, but IMHO (again, I DO NOT represent AP), ONE thing will dictate the price range:

1) Agency Power's perception of interest in these (for a car, to quote them, "that has been out of production for 5 years") and ability to recoup production costs through future sales.

As far as pricing lower than AWR, I could not guess on that, but knowing they won't clunk, I really don't care, because their other similar products are reasonably priced. I have wanted a be-all, end-all solution for our end links for 5 years now, and now that a major league company MIGHT possibly make them, stating they will not clunk (WITHOUT suggesting garden hose O-rings as a repair technique, READ:AWR)...as for me, I am sold on that fact alone, much less the obvious quality, possible warranty, etc.

Here is a quote from their description you can link to in the first post: "One of the most over looked parts of suspension is the spherical rod ends. Agency Power does not short this area and that is why our parts cost more. These spherical rods are designed to last a long time in a suspension component. A 3 piece design, these rod ends are stainless steel and have a Teflon liner to keep a secure and tight fit. Never occurring premature wear or clunking noises that poor quality rod ends have."

As far as length, I have given them an OEM MSP front and an OEM MSP rear to develop off of. The fact that they will be adjustable in length should be the solution for almost everyone, including your needs, right?

Good answer...I might simply end up with only the front OEM ones as the strain on the front end isn't nearly as significant as the rear, is it?

The length for the front endlinks I would need is fairly similar to the rear *I think* so the adjustability might do it (the 01-03 ones are much longer in the front). Consider me very interested in the rear as long as the price is reasonable (I'd consider ~150$ reasonable when looking at the prices on the link you posted)

Having said that, I'd be in for a set of rears, and a big maybe for the front.

1. carbonkid (front/rear)
2. bigway (front/rear)
3. CulRidr (rear, front?)
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.

 

[122 Vega]

The range of length is pretty drastic when you lower the car. I had to switch from AWRs to custom made ones because the AWRs did not have enough adjustment. THe lower the car, the longer the endlink needs to be.

I'm not sure "developement" time would be any more than a couple of keystrokes on thier cnc machine to change the length of the RX8 part.

Britt

 

[carbonkid]

Good answer...I might simply end up with only the front OEM ones as the strain on the front end isn't nearly as significant as the rear, is it?

The length for the front endlinks I would need is fairly similar to the rear *I think* so the adjustability might do it (the 01-03 ones are much longer in the front). Consider me very interested in the rear as long as the price is reasonable (I'd consider ~150$ reasonable when looking at the prices on the link you posted)

Having said that, I'd be in for a set of rears, and a big maybe for the front.

1. carbonkid (front/rear)
2. bigway (front/rear)
3. CulRidr (rear, front?)
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.

Great!!

 

[carbonkid]

The range of length is pretty drastic when you lower the car. I had to switch from AWRs to custom made ones because the AWRs did not have enough adjustment. THe lower the car, the longer the endlink needs to be.

I'm not sure "developement" time would be any more than a couple of keystrokes on thier cnc machine to change the length of the RX8 part.

Britt

Britt,
I am sure you are right about the CNC machine, but I think OEM MSP length (front and rear) is a good starting point for a possible 1st run, even though most MSPers have lowered their cars.

 

[Tzar177]

1. carbonkid (front/rear)
2. bigway (front/rear)
3. CulRidr (rear, front?)
4. Tzar177 (front/rear)
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.

 

[Tzar177]

Britt,
I am sure you are right about the CNC machine, but I think OEM MSP length (front and rear) is a good starting point for a possible 1st run, even though most MSPers have lowered their cars.

Do awr's work when lowered on tein s techs and illumina struts by chance?

 

[Dpwhitehead1]

put me on carbon