Looking for ideas... (coilovers or upgrade struts)

J

jbiird317

Member
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07 MS3-GT
Well, originally I started seeking out individual opinions on their respective suspension setups, but I think I will open it up to everyone instead...

As some might know, my car was the test vehicle for roadmagnet springs. (This means, they beat my car up for a couple days and then gave me a free set of springs in exchange lol). I love them and have been a huge supporter for them for the last 2 years...

But now I'm getting a bit bored and am looking to do something different. I've heard a few creaks and squeaks from my stock struts, so I'm thinking of replacing them. Currently what I'm considering is keeping the roadmagnets and getting a set of Koni adjustable struts come springtime or stepping my game up and getting the BC coilovers. So anyone with these two setups that can offer me their opinions or advice, I would greatly appreciate it. I'm open to any other setup ideas too, so feel free to post those reviews as well.
 
well, once koni decides to get some more koni sports out to the retailers in august(according to Ken) I will be sporting a set on stock springs.
 
Just installed the BC's a few days ago and the car feels very stiff. Partially because I have the adjustable dampers set to very stiff but the spring rates are dramatically increased. The car seems to hold the road very well even over bumps. It hits them and settles almost immediately. Can't wait to track or auto-x on them!

Also the camber plates on the BC's will let you adjust the front camber. Get them through PG so you don't have to pay extra for the plates. You do have to take a 3 inch metal hole saw to the chassis to make these work though. Rear camber is still outa whack like it is stock. -2.5 left rear and -1.85 in the right rear. Good thing I installed the SPC adjustable camber links so I can fix that!
 
I know that the performance is top notch with the BC's and that would make them great for track use or spirited driving. But my concern comes in because this car is my daily driver 8 months out of the year. How would you rate the ride comfort for normal driving (mind you, normal for me is the pothole filled roads of delaware and PA)?
 
jbiird317 said:
I know that the performance is top notch with the BC's and that would make them great for track use or spirited driving. But my concern comes in because this car is my daily driver 8 months out of the year. How would you rate the ride comfort for normal driving (mind you, normal for me is the pothole filled roads of delaware and PA)?
Click to expand...

It is very stiff but my adjustments are at 9 front and 10 rear and they go all the way to 30. 30 being the softest. I've given people rides and they always go holy crap your suspension is stiff. Then again I'm 16 and ride comfort doesn't matter that much to me since I don't take long trips in my car. I'm sure some other BC owners can comment on this too.

I do hit some holes and it even surprises me how stiff it is. When I was the one who wanted it so stiff. I should probably play with the adjustments and see how soft it gets.
 
H3br3w_Ham3r said:
It is very stiff but my adjustments are at 9 front and 10 rear and they go all the way to 30. 30 being the softest. I've given people rides and they always go holy crap your suspension is stiff. Then again I'm 16 and ride comfort doesn't matter that much to me since I don't take long trips in my car. I'm sure some other BC owners can comment on this too.

I do hit some holes and it even surprises me how stiff it is. When I was the one who wanted it so stiff. I should probably play with the adjustments and see how soft it gets.
Click to expand...

ahhhh youth..

other opinions anyone?
 
Aren't the Konis set up for a stock MZ3 ride height? So lowering further the already lowered MS3 suspension doesn't leave much travel before it hits the bump stop.

So far it sounds like the best DD setup is FSD Konis and stock springs.

I went with Mazdaspeed coilovers. The handling is awesome. Corners where I felt like I was on the edge of control can now be taken faster and the car just laughs at how timid I am. Bumps that unsettled the car before, don't. Handling wise there isn't any situation that isn't greatly improved.

Ride is another issue. It feels like the springs, especially the rears, are too stiff and the high speed compression damping (non-adjustable) is too high for a good ride at moderate speeds. OTOH, if I hit a sharp bump at high speed it's perfect. I have the low speed compression set to three clicks less than recommended, and the rebound set to two clicks less (may set it to one less, it's a little bouncy). I drive a lot of twisty back roads, some of which are quite bumpy.

The tuning is on the sport end of the spectrum for sure, far enough that the ride can't be made smooth when you are going slow. I don't find it intolerable and my wife will still ride in the car, but there's times when I wish it was just a little softer.
 
I've ridden in Koni equipped cars before and most of them were pretty stiff even at their softest setting. Mind you, these were all Koni Yellows that only had rebound adjustment and all were dropped on some of lowering spring. I'm sure this varies from model to model but my experience is that Yellows are great for track use but only so-so for a DD.

If you're looking more for comfort with a slight drop and don't care for damper adjustability, I'd give the H&R coilovers a serious look. I've had them for about a year now and they're really quite good at soaking up small to medium sized bumps without jarring the chassis. This is all on a very mild drop, about 1 - 1.25" drop all around. I originally had them lower and as you got closer to the bumpstops, they got stiffer and handled noticeably better but at the expense of ride comfort.
 
ericm said:
Aren't the Konis set up for a stock MZ3 ride height? So lowering further the already lowered MS3 suspension doesn't leave much travel before it hits the bump stop.

So far it sounds like the best DD setup is FSD Konis and stock springs.

I went with Mazdaspeed coilovers. The handling is awesome. Corners where I felt like I was on the edge of control can now be taken faster and the car just laughs at how timid I am. Bumps that unsettled the car before, don't. Handling wise there isn't any situation that isn't greatly improved.

Ride is another issue. It feels like the springs, especially the rears, are too stiff and the high speed compression damping (non-adjustable) is too high for a good ride at moderate speeds. OTOH, if I hit a sharp bump at high speed it's perfect. I have the low speed compression set to three clicks less than recommended, and the rebound set to two clicks less (may set it to one less, it's a little bouncy). I drive a lot of twisty back roads, some of which are quite bumpy.

The tuning is on the sport end of the spectrum for sure, far enough that the ride can't be made smooth when you are going slow. I don't find it intolerable and my wife will still ride in the car, but there's times when I wish it was just a little softer.
Click to expand...

As far as Konis, there isn't and shock specifically geared towards the MS3 that they make. Both shocks, however, are both "approved" for the MS3
 
Ok, well I realize that the koni struts are not specifically designed for the ms3 but can be made suitable. I'm not too worried about the practicality of installation, but its something to think about for sure.

As for ride comfort, I'm used to a pretty stiff ride...anyone who has ridden on a set of road magnets can testify that they don't have a whole lot of give. I can handle harsh, but my concern for my roadmagnets is their durability while paired with stock struts.

Here is where I stand so far:
-coilovers will give me better performance, should hold up under daily driving but sacrificing ride comfort at the height I'm used to.

-struts with roadmagnets keeps my ride height, saves money, adds durability, but runs the risk of tricky install and lacks adjustability of the coilover setup
 
derspi said:
If you're looking more for comfort with a slight drop and don't care for damper adjustability, I'd give the H&R coilovers a serious look. I've had them for about a year now and they're really quite good at soaking up small to medium sized bumps without jarring the chassis. This is all on a very mild drop, about 1 - 1.25" drop all around. I originally had them lower and as you got closer to the bumpstops, they got stiffer and handled noticeably better but at the expense of ride comfort.
Click to expand...

you know, I totally forgot about the H&R coilovers. I think 1.25" drop is plenty agressive for daily driving. The chassis jarring bumps is definitely what I'd like to avoid, but its nice to know that the ability to go lower is there if need be. I'm def going to check them out, thanks!
 
^^

You're very welcome. Yeah, not too many ppl give the H&R coilovers much thought. I had them on my Civic Si and they were an amazingly good DD setup - the ride was darn near cushy but I was dropped a good 1.75" on that setup. From what I've been told, most H&R coilovers use specially valved Bilsteins and that was the case on the Civic Si but I'm not sure if it applies to the MS3 set. But the characteristics are very similar - decent ride quality with a lower centre of gravity. The MS3 at a 1 - 1.25" drop does ride a bit rougher than the Civic Si on a 1.75" drop but I think that's more due to weight and chassis differences (the Si is a good 400 lbs. lighter).

What drop is that in your sig pic? I don't think I'm as low as you are in that pic. I can snap a few pics of my current ride height and you can judge for yourself if you like it.
 
Konis are great but can be stiff and even then it's a matter of find the right springs to match them.

How about H&R or KW V2 Coilovers? Both of which are supposed to be (and are known for) being a great blend of daily confort and occasional track days.
 
ok well I found some FSD's in stock at a local vendor so I will hopefully be picking those up tomorrow. Once I ge them on(maybe sunday) Ill give you my feedback. It willbe FSDs and stock springs
 
i got the bc coils and i luv em nice ride and i have my car pretty freekin low. i actually have mine set on like 9 in the front and like 10 in the back and its good for daily driving but i can go even softer.
 
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