Will H&R Sport Springs (28875-1) fit my '16 CX-5 GT?

M

McClure5000

Member
Contributor
:
'16 CX-5 GT FWD 2.5L w/ Tech
Bought this car last Saturday and want to lower it asap. I've looked through 100 threads and a dozen retailers and still haven't found an answer. Are the 2015 CX-5 H&R Sport Springs (part#28875-1) compatible with the 2016 CX-5? Do you have them on your '16 and did you install them? These seem to be the best fit for me as I don't want to down as far as the CorkSports and the Eibachs aren't quite low enough. Appreciate any help you can give.
 
Have you checked OE Mazda spring part numbers for 2015 and 2016 to see if there's any difference? I seriously doubt there is.
 
Hmm. Can't say I know of anyone specifically but the p/n vary also by oem options; ie sunroof, awd get different springs. But physically the spring perch shouldn't have changed.
 
Thanks for the help. I was able to find front and rear spring p/n's for 2015 fwd with sunroof but no luck on the 2016 p/n's yet. Hopefully the dealership can provide them when I call. I'll report back after I get those #'s.

What I've found so far:
• '15 fwd/no s.roof front springs= KD3534011B
• '15 fwd/no s.roof rear springs= KF7228011
 
McClure5000 said:
Thanks for the help. I was able to find front and rear spring p/n's for 2015 fwd with sunroof but no luck on the 2016 p/n's yet. Hopefully the dealership can provide them when I call. I'll report back after I get those #'s.

What I've found so far:
• '15 fwd/no s.roof front springs= KD3534011B
• '15 fwd/no s.roof rear springs= KF7228011
Click to expand...
I believe you're probably overthinking this McClure. These are aftermarket springs which are primarily intended to lower the vehicle and maintain "decent" ride quality. You can bet the Germans (H&R) didn't put near the development effort into refining them that the OEM did. So if they specify the same replacement springs for all FWD 2015 (and earlier) CX-5s, the same would no doubt hold true for the 2016 MY even if Mazda did change the part number again. When it comes to the aftermarket, these things are not an exact science. If you want a lower ride, you can't do better than H&R, unless you're really finicky about ride quality and maintaining factory camber settings (which cannot be done without aftermarket aids). I have H&Rs on my 2013 and am happy with the drop, in spite of the aforementioned shortcomings. I smile every time I drive by a stock CX-5 with huge wheel gaps and exposed damper bushings!
 
paris1 said:
I believe you're probably overthinking this McClure. These are aftermarket springs which are primarily intended to lower the vehicle and maintain "decent" ride quality. You can bet the Germans (H&R) didn't put near the development effort into refining them that the OEM did. So if they specify the same replacement springs for all FWD 2015 (and earlier) CX-5s, the same would no doubt hold true for the 2016 MY even if Mazda did change the part number again. When it comes to the aftermarket, these things are not an exact science. If you want a lower ride, you can't do better than H&R, unless you're really finicky about ride quality and maintaining factory camber settings (which cannot be done without aftermarket aids). I have H&Rs on my 2013 and am happy with the drop, in spite of the aforementioned shortcomings. I smile every time I drive by a stock CX-5 with huge wheel gaps and exposed damper bushings!
Click to expand...
You're probably right I tend to overthink most things. I just have this habit of making sure something works before I buy it. But it's looking like I'll just have to try it since I can't find a single example of someone that's already done it. Thanks for the help, maybe someone will chime in that has done it before I buy.
 
You can try or just wait, until somebody else replaces it, or the aftermarket companies come up with new springs, or update there listing to include the '16s as well.
 
I bought a used pair but haven't put them on yet. I noticed that some shocks now cover all years. Probably just taking a while for HR to update their catalog
 
Mondo said:
I bought a used pair but haven't put them on yet. I noticed that some shocks now cover all years. Probably just taking a while for HR to update their catalog
Click to expand...
Let me see how they turn out when you get them on. I'm going to order mine soon. Seems like everyone agrees that they didn't change springs for the '16s.
 
McClure5000 said:
Let me see how they turn out when you get them on. I'm going to order mine soon. Seems like everyone agrees that they didn't change springs for the '16s.
Click to expand...

Like Chris_top_her already pointed out, there are multiple OEM springs for any given model year. Models with sunroofs get different spring rates than models without, etc. But I'm not sure the aftermarket springs are this highly tuned for each model variation.
 
I'm sure they're not... but I bet most people are not that critical and are buying the springs for the stance more than anything else (and hoping the ride is as close to stock as possible).
 
Even still, the H&R springs are stiffer then the springs on the AWD with a moonroof, so really what does it matter lol. I wouldn't just wait around for someone else; just put them on. They will fit. Enjoy the new ride height and (level) stance also improved cornering.
 
Chris_Top_Her said:
Even still, the H&R springs are stiffer then the springs on the AWD with a moonroof, so really what does it matter lol. I wouldn't just wait around for someone else; just put them on. They will fit. Enjoy the new ride height and (level) stance also improved cornering.
Click to expand...

A higher spring rate will result in less body roll, it won't necessarily result in improved cornering. It might feel firmer and more precise but it won't necessarily offer more grip or a better balance of grip front/rear. You could go through many different spring rates trying to achieve front/rear balance. Even then, without adjustable dampers, the new spring rates will be unlikely to be matched to your damper rates.

On dry pavement you would have to corner very aggressively to discover these mismatches (like during an avoidance maneuver) but on rain-slickened pavement it could show up easily during a bit of spirited driving. Here in the rainy PNW I see the "ricer" cars spun off the side of the road on a regular basis. These mismatched suspensions were more common back during the years of easy money (2000-2007). Now a lot of those ricer cars are in the junkyard and I don't see it as often.

Typically these kind of suspension mods make the car feel like it has more control but result in slower lap times and worse avoidance maneuver capability. Sometimes the owners then compensate by replacing the tires with a sportier, grippier compound which helps mask the issue until colder weather arrives. But most people just want eye-candy and the illusion of sporty control and don't know (or don't care) if the performance (and the safety) of their car has actually decreased. Suspension tuning is a real art/science and true experts are few and far between. When damper rates, spring rates, etc. come together the car will have exceptional manners and be easy to drive near the limit, especially on slick surfaces like snow, ice and cold rain (and Mazda has done an exceptional job of tuning the CX-5). Sure, dry road handling and grip can be improved by throwing ride comfort and rough road performance out the window but it's not as easy as simply slapping on some shorter springs with higher spring rates because then your spring rates are no longer matched to your damper rates.

So, when you say "improved cornering" you are making a lot of assumptions.
 
MikeM. said:
A higher spring rate will result in less body roll, it won't necessarily result in improved cornering. It might feel firmer and more precise but it won't necessarily offer more grip or a better balance of grip front/rear. You could go through many different spring rates trying to achieve front/rear balance. Even then, without adjustable dampers, the new spring rates will be unlikely to be matched to your damper rates.

On dry pavement you would have to corner very aggressively to discover these mismatches (like during an avoidance maneuver) but on rain-slickened pavement it could show up easily during a bit of spirited driving. Here in the rainy PNW I see the "ricer" cars spun off the side of the road on a regular basis. These mismatched suspensions were more common back during the years of easy money (2000-2007). Now a lot of those ricer cars are in the junkyard and I don't see it as often.

Typically these kind of suspension mods make the car feel like it has more control but result in slower lap times and worse avoidance maneuver capability. Sometimes the owners then compensate by replacing the tires with a sportier, grippier compound which helps mask the issue until colder weather arrives. But most people just want eye-candy and the illusion of sporty control and don't know (or don't care) if the performance (and the safety) of their car has actually decreased. Suspension tuning is a real art/science and true experts are few and far between. When damper rates, spring rates, etc. come together the car will have exceptional manners and be easy to drive near the limit, especially on slick surfaces like snow, ice and cold rain (and Mazda has done an exceptional job of tuning the CX-5). Sure, dry road handling and grip can be improved by throwing ride comfort and rough road performance out the window but it's not as easy as simply slapping on some shorter springs with higher spring rates because then your spring rates are no longer matched to your damper rates.

So, when you say "improved cornering" you are making a lot of assumptions.
Click to expand...
And then when you throw in aftermarket anti-sway bars, things can really get dicey!
 
That's may be the case sometimes but with this spring on this car ot simply is the the case. I dont lose traction unless I'm going to fast or adding too much throttle for a maneuver whether its dry or not. The dampening rate is suitable still. Besides, the dampening rate of the pem shocks is just what Mazda picked on combination with their springs to give the handling, nvhand ground clearance they wanted. Otherwise dampening rate is pretty subjective.
 
Last edited:
Chris_Top_Her said:
That's may be the case sometimes but with this spring on this car ot simply is the the case. I dont lose traction unless I'm going to fast or adding too much throttle for a maneuver whether its dry or not.
Click to expand...

You don't lose traction unless you're going too fast or adding too much throttle? That's true of every vehicle on the road, regardless of road grip. I can put the reduced size spare tire on one corner of my vehicle and I won't lose traction unless I'm going too fast or add too much throttle (or brake). That's not to imply I haven't significantly reduced the performance of my vehicle.

The dampening rate is suitable still. Besides, the dampening rate of the pem shocks is just what Mazda picked on combination with their springs to give the handling, nvhand ground clearance they wanted. Otherwise dampening rate is pretty subjective.
Click to expand...

Damping rates are hard to quantify but they are not very subjective. While it's true that when fine tuning damping rates to match spring rates there is room for a little personal preference, and even more room to suit driving style or road conditions, the fact remains that, for maximum grip, there is a close relationship between damping rate and spring rate. To further compound the complexity, damping rate of a shock is not a single value. There are separate rates for compression vs. rebound damping. On top of that, two shocks could have the same damping rate during a slow compression of the dampers but vastly different damping rates during a fast compression.

Mazda did a good job of matching the dampers to the spring rates. Change the spring rates significantly (which all lowering springs MUST do to compensate for the lost travel) and it is necessary to change the dampers to suit if you want to avoid a mismatch between spring rates and damping rates. Otherwise the car can become very loose. On smooth pavement you can get away with large mismatches, throw in a pavement seam or a dip or bump and watch yourself spin out or off the road.

For future reference, the correct terms are damper and damping (not dampener and dampening).
 
My experience is that there two types of lowering springs: linear or progressive. On cars I don't track, I like progressive as the manufacturer usually tries to keep the first part of travel similar to stock and then it get progressively harder due to the shorter spring travel. So average bumps are pretty close to stock. I've had some Tein springs that were actually softer on the small stuff. But I wouldn't be as paranoid as Mike when using name brand lowering springs. They actually do "engineer" them and your not going to lose control on a pavement seam etc... I mean really, it is a multi-million dollar industry and with competition and all the reviews from performance magazines etc... If there crap, you should be able to find out with a little research.
I will agree with Mike in the sense that I wouldn't just by the cheapest springs I could find, from some company that no one has heard of.
 
Last edited:
Mondo said:
They actually do "engineer" them and your not going to lose control on a pavement seam etc... I mean really, it is a multi-million dollar industry and with competition and all the reviews from performance magazines etc... If there crap, you should be able to find out with a little research.
I will agree with Mike in the sense that I wouldn't just by the cheapest springs I could find, from some company that no one has heard of.
Click to expand...

Oh, please, I didn't say any aftermarket springs were "crap" and I'm not sure how you totally missed my point. The quality of the springs is not in question.

What I said is when you change the spring rate, you need to change the damping rate to match. And if the suspension is not properly dialed in, yes, the cornering limits will be reduced and you will notice it first on an imperfection of the pavement that exposes the mismatch. The cost of the springs, cheap or expensive, has nothing to do with it.
 
But to imply that just because the new spring doesn't "match" oem shock means cornering performance has decreased is simply not true with the spring and car in question. I don't doubt it can be the case, but not all springs are equal so it's just a generalization that does not apply to our case. We are talking about CX-5 and H&R springs. You don't even bottom out. The ride really isn't much different than stock in regards to normal roadway bumps. These are a very popular item in Germany because they are TUV approved; i.e they are a legal modification deemed safe to put on your car (non certified parts are illegal). So apparently any mismatch between the H&R spring and OEM damper is not enough to compromise safety. Despite what the very limited aftermarket information/buyers on this forum might have you believe, many more people are running H&R/Eibach/Auto exe and a lesser extent, coilovers and the results are mostly positive. I'll take my own experience and the experience of others, some who legally drive way faster than me over hearsay and/or generalizations.
 
Chris_Top_Her said:
But to imply that just because the new spring doesn't "match" oem shock means cornering performance has decreased is simply not true with the spring and car in question.
Click to expand...

Springs and shocks are designed to absorb pavement bumps and dips while maintaining tire contact with the road and controlling body motion to prevent loss of traction. All I'm saying, is for the best grip over uneven surfaces the spring rates should be well matched to the damping rates. This is undeniably true.

Claiming you can make the car grip better over bumps and dips by increasing the spring rate but leaving the OEM dampers in place implies that Mazda equipped the CX-5 with too high of a damping rate. Very unlikely due to the amount of suspension tuning Mazda did with the CX-5 at their test tracks.
 
Please log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

T
Tire suggestions for my 2016 CX-5?
Replies
4
Views
629
N7turbo
N7turbo
T
2017~2024 CX-5 H&R or Eibach lowering springs?
4 5 6
Replies
114
Views
67K
nikatin83
N
9
    • Like
2017~2024 Best Suspension Setup for CX-5?
Replies
7
Views
3K
vnitto
V

Latest posts

Back