I'm thinking about a set and I'd like to hear about some real world experiences from owners who have had them for more than a year, good or bad. Were the improvements worth the money? Superior to a Z06 setup?
I like driving the mountain roads here in So-Cal that have big dips and midcorner bumps and I'd like to find a solution that allows a decent ride height without exessive bottoming.

 

:lurk:

 

TTT

 

I started with an '01 Coupe with the F45 suspension. I've only briefly had the coilovers so I can't say anything about experiences over a year but I can definitely tell you that they're an improvement. Better road feel, better tire grip, no more floatyness. However, I also live in SoCal and I can tell you that you will quickly notice the difference between a good road and a bad road. Coilovers give me a lot more feedback about the road. They also help the tires provide better grip. I would encourage you to speak to Randy at Doug Rippie Motorsports (DRM) to tell you more about them. 763-477-9272
Randy is very knowledgable and good to work with. He's also patient and takes time to explain things.

I love mountain roads as well and if you've gone over mid-corner bumps, you may have noticed that sometimes the car steps sideways a bit--very disconcerting to me. That completely goes away with coilovers.

My main difficulty so far is that I selected springs that are too harsh for bumpy, pothole filled roads in LA. The car is great on smooth OC roads but Hollywood is too rough if you want a car with a compliant ride. I'm working with DRM to figure out the best spring rate for my car and have confidence that they'll take care of me.

 

STILL waiting for mine to ship !! :banghead:

 

Please let us know what springs you move to. I'd like to do this sometime in the future, but here in CT it seems the only kind of roads we have are ones in NEED OF REPAIR!!!! :banghead:

 

Paras- thanks for the info. My car is also an F45 with Bilstein Sports. The sidestepping is wAAAy annoying and I think dangerous at even 8/10 effort. As this is my fun car, I'm ok with a rough ride and am willing to sacrifice it for predictable and stable handling.

One question: Why DRM over say, the LGM spherical mount setup?

:cheers:

 

Before you buy any coil over setup, contact mark @ MSI (forum vendor)for info about the new C/O setup they are about to release.. after 5 years of looking at C/O setups.. that would be the only set I would buy!

VR :cheers:

 

APT-If you already have Bilstein's you probably don't have as much of the floatyness as I did but yes--the sidestepping is troublesome! I haven't side stepped yet with the coilovers--and I don't expect to!

I'm not exactly a weekend driver but closer to what you're saying--I'm a weekend/weeknight driver or longtripper. Don't shortchange yourself on comfort. I was thinking the exact same thing you were about sacrificing comfort for handling but I believe (and we'll see what happens) that with the coilovers, you can get both. But consider this--the turns only last so long--you have to go straight for a ways to get to where you're going most of the time. If the car is too bumpy and it makes your head feel like a bobblehead doll, you're going to get tired of it after a while--at least this is my experience. I am not sure yet but I believe a consideration of spring rate is very important here. Keep in mind also, that too stiff means that (in my novice experience) that the tires will not absorb the road imperfections as readily (I'm not a track driver) and therefore the handling, with regards to the tires keeping with the road and not skittering about, will not be as good.

With regards to LGM vs. DRM, I'd say that you should call both of them and have each of them try to sell you on their setup. What factored into my decision were: 1) Am I driving this on the race track or on regular roads (mountain or otherwise). If there's some part of it that allows for a little play and therefore dampens the effects of the road a little--for me that's better. 2) Price--for a relatively similar product, how much more/less are you willing to pay? Does it make sense for the difference? And is anyone ready to work with my on the pricing? 3) Who takes the time to explain things to you? Do they want to address your concerns to your content?

Part 3 is making a big difference for me now cause in the imperfect world of modifying your car, sometimes you don't get it right the first time. The fact that DRM is readily and wholeheartedly working with me to adjust my suspension to what I want makes all the difference in the world. I'm not saying that the other vendors would not do it but I have confidence in DRM cause they're helping me now.