Lowering the MkIII, but keeping stock feel
- Thread starter 89MkIII
- Start date
im wondering about this as well.
i just had older HKS coilovers on my s14, 8kg and 6kg...
i liked this setup, it was stiff but i wasnt riding on 3 wheels down the highway
i was looking at the megan racing track coilovers and theyre like 18kg and 16kg ive never seen such a high spring rate
i just had older HKS coilovers on my s14, 8kg and 6kg...
i liked this setup, it was stiff but i wasnt riding on 3 wheels down the highway
i was looking at the megan racing track coilovers and theyre like 18kg and 16kg ive never seen such a high spring rate
16kg rear is too high for a street driven Supra. I would recommend putting the 16kg on the front and buy 10k springs for the rear. Or even buy 14k for the front. You don't need to sell the coilovers to get the ride you want! Just measure the internal diameter and overall length of the springs and order Eibach springs in whatever spring rate you want.
In all honesty though, if you wanted a stock-like ride you should not have purchased coilovers. The stock-like ride kinda sucks, imho. It's ok for getting groceries, but high speed cornering is just scarry. It's like the people who put 22's on their Expedition and then take it back to the dealer and say "it feels bumpy", well of course, you modified it to be like that!
In all honesty though, if you wanted a stock-like ride you should not have purchased coilovers. The stock-like ride kinda sucks, imho. It's ok for getting groceries, but high speed cornering is just scarry. It's like the people who put 22's on their Expedition and then take it back to the dealer and say "it feels bumpy", well of course, you modified it to be like that!
I had them, they were way too soft for any spirited driving, they were designed for drag racing. If you take a sharp corner with any kind of bump the tire actually hits the top of the wheel well!ma71supraturbo said:
bigaaron 10/22/06 said:
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vasponger said:
You cannot compare spring rates from one model of car to another. There is a motion ratio for each suspension geometry -- basically the wheel/tire will move x inches and the spring/shock will move y inches.
The MK3 and MK4 Supra use double-wishbone suspension (ok, the rear is more of a multi-link, but stay with me). The lower shock mount is generally farther inboard on a double-wishbone than on say, a macpherson strut car. This means that spring rates are generally going to be higher since the spring will compress less for the same movement of the wheel. In addition, the base weight of a mk3 is hundreds of pounds heavier than a 240sx, so even if the cars had the same suspension, you would have a heavier spring on the heavier car...
Example. The "basic" race coilover spring rate for a mk3 and mk4 is around 18kg/mm front, 10kg/mm rear. On a 240sx, you typically see somewhere in the neighborhood of 10kg/mm front, 8kg/mm rear...
vasponger said:gotcha, anyone know of any coilovers around the 14kg-16kg range
how easy is the install
For a Supra..... nope not in that spring rating. However, with coilovers such as D2's and I can't speak for other brand names, you can order those rates if you need em. Swapping springs on a fully adjustable coilover is quite easy to do. :icon_bigg
Johnnieee said:
Doing a little searched came up with these numbers for another brand spring for the supra
RS_R Down Springs have 503 ft/lbs in the front and 262 ft/lbs in the rear. IOW, this is a little stiffer than the stockers...
Suspense Techniques Sport springs claim a 10-15% increase in spring rates while Tanabe GF210 Grip Feeling claims 20-30% increase.
Good reading. I'm leaning towards Megan, Tein Flex, Tein RA. If i get either of the Tein i will have the EDFC with it. But i'm not sure what to go with. Megan or Tein.
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I'd have a hard time choosing between megan street and tein basic, but you cannot compare it to the Flex or HA. The valving on those upper-end teins are really good.TaSe said:
mattjk said:
well i have no real experience with no suspension parts for the MKIII. I had Eibach's on my 90T 3 years ago but i didn't have the car long enough to enjoy or not enjoy them. I have some choices, use my CC and get 1500 coil overs or wait till tax return and use the 1000 for some megans. I am still gathering parts for a 1J swap as well. BPU w/ lots of suspension work. I want coilovers, sway bars, end links, traction arms, bushings. I want a top of the line suspension for a decent price. Decent HP and i'm happy.
Don't get me wrong, megans are nice for the money, but they don't put that much time into getting the valving right, so the ride isn't that good, and is a bit choppy.
I installed megan streets on my wife's wrx, and I had tein flex on my wrx. Out of the box, the flex felt like a bmw with the sports suspension. Firm, but never bouncey or choppy. The megans on the other hand was horrible. I had to go to a light spring front and rear because the damper just did not match well with the springs. Too much compression damping and not enough rebound. I have it set pretty nicely now with the softer springs... but I shouldn't HAVE TO have done that.
I installed megan streets on my wife's wrx, and I had tein flex on my wrx. Out of the box, the flex felt like a bmw with the sports suspension. Firm, but never bouncey or choppy. The megans on the other hand was horrible. I had to go to a light spring front and rear because the damper just did not match well with the springs. Too much compression damping and not enough rebound. I have it set pretty nicely now with the softer springs... but I shouldn't HAVE TO have done that.
mattjk said:
Thanks, i need something i can enjoy for spirited driving and hopefully the weekend trips to E-Town and their road course.
Tein Flex or RA's it is...
Hopefully come Feb i'll have the 1J with the new suspension parts w00t.
TaSe said:
I would caution you against throwing suspension parts at your car and expecting them to magically jive. There are countless examples of people with top of the line everything coming short on the track to someone with just a few well-tuned suspension parts. (Just look at the Super Street Time attack results from Nov 8th).
If I were building a track car today, here is where I would start:
Sound Hardtop chassis w/ typical weight reduction & race seat(s)
18kg/mm front, 12kg/mm rear springs on highly adjustable coilovers
Stock front sway bar
No rear sway bar
Poly or Nylon Bushings (if you can still find the nylon)
Roll cage (at the minimum, a MDC harness bar)
lightweight 17x10 wheels w/ appropriate rubber for your needs (bonus if the wheels can clear a 14" BBK). I'd recommend running the same size tires front & rear too
Front @ Rear bbk. Temporarily turn off ABS (unplug the wires to the actuator) and make some threshold braking stops. Adjust proportioning. Plug ABS back in...
Run the stock LSD until it wears out. Then either get a cusco (or the like) and spend a ton of time adjusting the preload -- or spend some $$ and get a custom helical to fit (jza70 torsens have proven to be weak, and the Toyota truck helicals don't quite fit).
Avoid buying suspension links & arms unless you:
a) need the adjustability
b) need the strength
Most, if not all, of the various adjustable arms are heavier than stock. We want to keep unsprung weight down, and we've already increased it with the big brakes (hopefully the larger 17" wheels are light enough to offset their size increase from the heavy sawblades).
Now, if you're not building a track car then disregard everything above.
I love my TIEN's! Only lowered my hooptie about an 1 and a half or so. Good ride characteristics given Japan's rather crappy roadways.
Thanks for the info. But this will not be no track monster, just something i can have fun with into corners. 1/4 mile is fun but i rather be hard on the brakes in the and power slide out. I want a well rounded suspension. I want to keep all stock form in my car. Interior and all. Then i want to have the power to lauch it and go fast. My 89T has no rear seats it was ok but i rather keep them in. I want a small system maybe 1 small sub and nice speakers a working AC and all working factory options. But it would be nice to have a car with some nice power and good suspension.
ma71supraturbo said: