AE86 Coilovers....the best upgrade yet!!

[goodcookiedrift]

Well, i've scrapped my marketing and sales of the custom ae86 coilovers. why? too damn lazy. However, being the good guy that i am, i've decided to share my experience with all...especially the newbies.

The custom coilover setup as described by Moto P, Shin Kai, tony jspec and others has to be, by far the best bang for buck upgrade any ae86er could do. tis relatively easy, and compared tot he prices of suspension setups....its reasonably priced.

I'm not gonna go into detail as to the process of building them...because thats waht Club4ag is for. However, I will give you a real time canadian breakdown of cost and labour involved...something often overlooked on those sites.

first cost: it was relatively cheap to assemble the coilovers...considering the price of Teins, JIC magic or Tanabe Sustecs.

the Ground Control coil kit was $400 after taxes, after conversion and after shipping. The shocks, depending on what you run (i'll be running trd short strokes and Tokico HTS in the front and Tokico short stroke Illuminas in the rear) are what really determine your cost. you can get $300 trd adj or $75 sensatracs, but all in all, i paid around $800 for 6 shocks...thats pretty damn good. I'm using CMR springs in the front and rear in addition to the Eibachs that came with the coil kit. 6.9kgmm f, 4.8kgmm r, and 7kgmm f respectively. total cost for 6 springs? $200.

The biggest incurring cost or hassle(if you don't have a hook up) is getting the struts welded. shops will charge up to $200 + some to weld the strut....agian if you don't know them. Soooo....hang out around your local shop, buy them a case of Sleemans and you'll probably get them for free.

Labour:

Pulling sturts isn't all that hard. it just take time and patience....once you do them enough, pulling struts is like clockwork....right randy!!??

cutting them is easy enough...you want a good angle grinder with a cut off wheel. take your time and cut the perch bit by bit. Contrary to Moto, i'd rather not cut out the 40mm form the casing myself...you want the strut to be as straight as possible...so once again...get to know those shop guys real good and they'll prolly use the chop saw for a straighter cut.

All in all, i figure the coil setup cost me around $800 dollars (if i exclude the extra springs and shocks). compared to $400 trd springs and $800 trd adj shocks, i would say the coil over conversion is a great deal. you get full adjustability and besides, they look so damn pimp.

IMO, don't waste your time on springs and shocks...save up and get the coil conversion done...you get the ride hieght, the stiffness and the flexibility for a few hundred LESS!!!

pictures soon to come

Nick

[bondobondo]

you the man nick,

good work with the innovative applications.

[Skeetzilla]

nice. shall be my upgrade when i find myself a GTS.

[mr_sinister]

yeah i would say our only hitch getting the strut casings was almost taking out some dudes eye..

spring compressors are good, spring compressors are good

so how do those bad boys drive?

sounds like a sweet set up!

[Voodoo.Priest]

Damn! Thats all it cost!?!
Me trying to save $6k for full coilover kit for the front and rear sems so stupid now. I would have gotten shafted.

I shall make note of this valuable infomation you have shared with us here.
Burlington roads suck so the only suspension kit I would think of getting is the coilovers mainly cuz of the hight adjustability. To lower a car in this city just limits where you can go and put you at unnessisary risk of botteming out.

[fatredcircle]

voodoo: first, there are zero companies in NA that carry a full (front and rear) coil setup for the ae86. Tony jspec can source you the rears and bill sherwood in Australia can also get them for you. However, 90% of all the coil over setups you will buy will only be for the front with springs and shocks int he rear.

contrary to belief, tiens are actually shite. they are made of steel and polished. good if you live in sunny side california....bad if you live in canada. the moisture, salt, and harsh conditions WILL make them rust. and i;ve heard numerous stories from many tien owners that the ring eventually siezes.

GC are really good because they are made from aluminum, so there is no chance of them rusting or coroding.

i think Fernando is also selling the JIC Magic Coilovers...they look pretty good...not too sure if aluminum or steel.

if you have the cash, you can get some serious coils from japan....Ohlins, Noby Booth, Techno Pro Spirit (full coils), Garage Loft, and such.

Nick