coilovers, official overview on brands?

[drsmith]

just looking at getting some coilovers when i return from working in the USA, i loved them on my old 2.1ZVH throttle bodied fiesta, handled like a go kart! awesome fun! they were AVO's by the way just in case people were wondering. had them refurbed too, their service was immaculate and very friendly!

anyway, that aside i just wanted a general opinion on what people thought of the various brands. i know everyone raves about Leda's etc.. but i cant justify that kind of price on my second car. id be looking around the FK price bracket, $400-550 (quid, im in the USA and they dont have a pound sign on the keyboard!!!) some people really rate the GAZ setup where as others slate it, i know lots of people are happy with their FK's, but the problem i found with my AVO's was that the adjustable rings became rusted and siezed on due to them not being zinc coated or rust proofed. i could buy the stainless FK but that takes them close to the LEDA price bracket so id rather do that?!?! lol decisions decisions, so opinions, which ones and how much?

 

[wide]

H&R's £700 are supposed to be the nuts, nice ride than the fk's!!!

 

[Guy]

depends on budget

LEDA if you can afford it - fully adjustable
if not 7-800 ish gets you some H&R's - height adjustable but damping is meant to be preset spot on anyway
600ish will get fully adjustable fk's with koni inserts?
and 500 ish get height only fk's?

 

[drsmith]

is it really worth the extra moola to get the koni inserts? over the standard fk's?

 

[Matty]

Depends if you want adjustable damping. I didn't feel I'd bothe radjusting so went with the Highsports rather than Konigsports.

Got mine 3 years ago and the adjustable rings haven't rusted. Yoy get good spanners and a spray can of stuff to spray them with once in a while. Place I got mine from were impresses with the FK's as they didn't round off like other rings they had experienced.

Would Say go for FK's as TUV approved and lifetime guarantee. If you can afford more then H&R's and even more go for Leda's. At their price their isn't much to match the FK's.

 

[EVOgone]

KW v2 and Bilstien PSS are same price as the H&R's.....

 

[davyboy]

I've said it before, and I'll say it again.

My experience with Leda was poor. They rust, they break, and they don't fit very well (rattles etc). Granted this was not on a Clio, but I would not use them again.

I ended up spending another £1000 to get rid of them and fit Koni.

Dave

 

[Turkish]

Cant go wrong with H&R's I'm unlikely to fit anthing else after my experience with various other kits.

 

[stoddie]

im on kw v2's cant fault them at all.

theyre zinc plated i think and dont rust and are easy to adjust.

not many people have them on here, think i paid about £800 for them though.

 

[Gary G]

I've said it before, and I'll say it again.

My experience with Leda was poor. They rust, they break, and they don't fit very well (rattles etc). Granted this was not on a Clio, but I would not use them again.

I ended up spending another £1000 to get rid of them and fit Koni.

Dave

hahaha, so let me get this right....you removed a Leda Suspension kit that is built to order and by hand using the very best race proven components available for budget Koni stuff? :S

What vehicle and type of application was it mate?

 

[davyboy]

hahaha, so let me get this right....you removed a Leda Suspension kit that is built to order and by hand using the very best race proven components available for budget Koni stuff? :S

What vehicle and type of application was it mate?

Thats right, I removed rusty old Leda from my 944 turbo and replaced it with 968 M030 koni adjustable suspension.

When a guy worked on my car he said, how long has this suspension been on the car....it looks really old and does not fit propery, and in the end it broke.

If I had to fit the best I'd fit KW as it is TUV approved and coated so doesn't rust.

Koni does not just make budget stuff.

 

[CHRIS172CUP]

I can't fault my H&R's. They're great on the road but probably a little soft for track use but that would be nit-picking. The damping and rebound is spot on especially considering how much less travel there is over the standard 4x4 setup. Much better ride quality.

As above, you pay for TUV testing/standard.

Never tried any of the other brands so can't compare.

 

[edde]

Don't bother with the GAZ unless you want a very hard ride.

 

[drsmith]

ok so getting a good vibe about the FK range of coilovers, whats peoples opinions on fixed dampening and adjustable? is it really worth it? my old AVO's were almost infinately adjustable it seemed which really gave me too much choice! haha

oh and is anyone taking some off their car to return to standard or upgrading ;o)

 

[MAXIBOY]

been running leda on the 16v clio and used them for years before that still think there the best with full rebuild and repair service second to none.

 

[davyboy]

Don't bother with the GAZ unless you want a very hard ride.

I think the quality is poor, but they should let you valve them for however you want.

 

[drsmith]

does anyone know if fred or anyone are running a good special discount price on a set of new fk's? or is anyone upgrading?

 

[edde]

I think the quality is poor, but they should let you valve them for however you want.

O I agreet yep you can I belive have them revalved but why are they so hard as standard?

 

[Andy_J]

does anyone know if fred or anyone are running a good special discount price on a set of new fk's? or is anyone upgrading?

try http://2modified.com

 

[davyboy]

I agreet yep you can I belive have them revalved but why are they so hard as standard?

Becuase they dont know what they are doing, or never asked you the right questions about how you wanted to use your car?

...or to use another phrase, "buy cheap buy twice".

I did this with Leda on the 944 (Leda are one of the cheaper suppliers for 944 stuff).

 

[edde]

Becuase they dont know what they are doing, or never asked you the right questions about how you wanted to use your car?

...or to use another phrase, "buy cheap buy twice".

I did this with Leda on the 944 (Leda are one of the cheaper suppliers for 944 stuff).

FK and H and R and Apex etc are all much softer and enjoyable. I think its a popular thing that there setups are very hard and they don't offere more normal setups as standard the setups are sold as road/race usable like the competitors but there so much harder.

The Leda head technitial has apparently moved there though so it will be interesting to see how or if they change.

 

[Brian]

Currently looking into coilovers, been chopping and changing my mind on what to go for so this has helped a bit. Kind of going back to the H&R decision....
Does anyone knoe if H&R have a website,if not - contact details?

Thanks in advance!

 

[matty w]

KW v2 and Bilstien PSS are same price as the H&R's.....

bilstien kit is the same as the h&r kit

 

[Turkish]

WRONG. H&R make the springs for the bilstien kit and bilstien make the dampers for the H&R kit but thats where the similarities end. Damping and spring rates etc are different. The billies ride a bit firmer and are better for track the H&Rs are a bit softer and better for road use.

 

[Steviant]

Non-official overview on 'Brands' will be had tomorrow.

Testing the Leda's out. On the road they are awesome.

 

[matty w]

WRONG. H&R make the springs for the bilstien kit and bilstien make the dampers for the H&R kit but thats where the similarities end. Damping and spring rates etc are different. The billies ride a bit firmer and are better for track the H&Rs are a bit softer and better for road use.

oh sorry i knew they had somthing to do with each other,i cant fault my h&r's there so composed

 

[Turkish]

Me either, had them on my 172 now on my 182 and after my bad experiences with other kits i dont think i'd touch anything else again.

 

[Fred@BTM]

FK - cheap and cheerful, if setup correctly, can be very good
H&R - awesome
Bilstein - awesome
KW - good

i'd only use zee suspension from zee Germans

 

[MrStabby]

So Freddy, can you setup FK's correctly? If so when I get mine, im straight to you

 

[Andy_J]

i threw my FK's on, made a quick adjustment and they seem perfect!! although i have never tested the other brands so couldn't compare!

However i am well chuffed wi the FK's!

 

[Donz144]

I ride with LEDAs (custom built for the car) and they offer superb grip, are completly adjustable (4 wheels in less than a min) they will change my springs if and when im not happy with them and do complete rebuilds for pennies. New lEDAs also have anodized alu adjusters to avoid ceasing.

As always..you get what you pay for!

 

[John2Modified]

Fks kits are very underated!

The FK Silverline X are an amazing deal, Height and Damping adjustable, Koni inserts and lifetime guarantee on the shock body itself.

We have sold quite a few sets to 172 owners and have heard great things.

They give you the freedom to play around and find the perfect set up.

By the way we sell them for around the £580 mark, alot cheaper than other comparable brands!!

 

[cK]

^ bought my FK silverline x coilovers from john@2modified and like them lots.

 

[Gaz_]

lol at the saying' buy cheap buy twice', thats my gaz experience, been running h&r's now for a year on my cup and they are faultless