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I would try and find shock dyno plots and visually compare the 2 different brands at the least. And even then it may not reveal everything. Sometimes from manufacturers all 4 shocks can be listed as the same valving, but do completely different things on a shock dyno. Hopefully this will kinda show how much effort was put into the design of the shock. Ive learned that some of the "hip"/popular branded shocks dont always indicate serious shock design.
My question to you is what is your purpose for the coilovers?
Just to go low? Maximum handling while retaining a slightly lower profile? Do you plan to spend alot of time on the track or non at all?
I'm no shock professional, but I love to achieve my suspension goals through DIY.
Thanks for dropping the knowledge, Kene. The purpose for the upgraded coilovers are for comfortable daily drivability with a finer look, lower center of gravity (better handling) with no track days. Hope that helps, thanks!
Originally Posted by kene
I would try and find shock dyno plots and visually compare the 2 different brands at the least. And even then it may not reveal everything. Sometimes from manufacturers all 4 shocks can be listed as the same valving, but do completely different things on a shock dyno. Hopefully this will kinda show how much effort was put into the design of the shock. Ive learned that some of the "hip"/popular branded shocks dont always indicate serious shock design.
My question to you is what is your purpose for the coilovers?
Just to go low? Maximum handling while retaining a slightly lower profile? Do you plan to spend alot of time spent on the of track or non at all?
I'm no shock professional, but I love to achieve my suspension goals through DIY.
Cheap shocks like the Koni yellow's (discussed on that site a lot) regularly outperform more expensive coilovers so don't take price as any kind of indicator of quality or performance.
What I can tell you is that the Cusco's have stiffer spring rates, depending on what spring rate was chosen. The application chart was showing me 14-18 kg/mm front and 9-11 kg/mm rear whereas the Megan are 10/8 kg/mm. I've personally ridden in cars that had 14 kg/mm springs that rode more comfortably than the same car with 6 kg/mm springs. It all comes down to the quality of the shock.
Please be aware Cusco shocks cannot be rebuilt as the rumor is parts don't exist although you could always try, especially with the right shop with JDM connections. I kind of doubt the Megan shocks would be any different.
All that said, the Cusco's have a reputation for quality and being a racing shock that's a cut above all the rest like Tein, HKS etc. They're definitely better than cheapo Taiwanese shocks like K-Sport and D2. I don't know much about the Megan's but they seem eerily similar to K-Sport and D2 coilovers.
Here's a sample image of the Ksport coilovers:
Notice it has the same threaded shock body which adjusts the shock height without preloading the spring. Same camber plates, same linear springs
Then the D2's are once again very similar:
So just be aware that K-Sport's are knockoff D2's and D2's are knock-off, continuation or spin-off (really unclear) of Kei Office. There's a lot of brands of coilovers that popped up that are all very similar to this. I'm not sure where Megan fits in. Some people have had success though.
Cheap shocks like the Koni yellow's (discussed on that site a lot) regularly outperform more expensive coilovers so don't take price as any kind of indicator of quality or performance.
What I can tell you is that the Cusco's have stiffer spring rates, depending on what spring rate was chosen. The application chart was showing me 14-18 kg/mm front and 9-11 kg/mm rear whereas the Megan are 10/8 kg/mm. I've personally ridden in cars that had 14 kg/mm springs that rode more comfortably than the same car with 6 kg/mm springs. It all comes down to the quality of the shock.
Please be aware Cusco shocks cannot be rebuilt as the rumor is parts don't exist although you could always try, especially with the right shop with JDM connections. I kind of doubt the Megan shocks would be any different.
All that said, the Cusco's have a reputation for quality and being a racing shock that's a cut above all the rest like Tein, HKS etc. They're definitely better than cheapo Taiwanese shocks like K-Sport and D2. I don't know much about the Megan's but they seem eerily similar to K-Sport and D2 coilovers.
Here's a sample image of the Ksport coilovers:
Notice it has the same threaded shock body which adjusts the shock height without preloading the spring. Same camber plates, same linear springs
Then the D2's are once again very similar:
So just be aware that K-Sport's are knockoff D2's and D2's are knock-off, continuation or spin-off (really unclear) of Kei Office. There's a lot of brands of coilovers that popped up that are all very similar to this. I'm not sure where Megan fits in. Some people have had success though.
A friend of mine works for an OEM in Japan so I asked him. He said that Japanese aftermarket companies don't release specs, not even tire tread wear index specs. As you know, the horsepower ratings of Japanese cars are usually wrong too. This article goes into the history of why all Skylines were rated at 276 hp although they made engine upgrades through each generation.
The term for a Cusco shock absorber dyno plot in Japanese would be Cusco 車高調減衰特性曲線 coilovers is shako cho, 車高調, damping is gensui 減衰, and characteristic curve is tokusei kyokusen 特性曲線. If you search for that term, you'll get no results but there are plenty for Koni and Ohlins.
Thanks all. After some R & A, think will go with the new item route.
Again, thanks for all the great advice and thoughts from the experts.
Originally Posted by Mandrake
A friend of mine works for an OEM in Japan so I asked him. He said that Japanese aftermarket companies don't release specs, not even tire tread wear index specs. As you know, the horsepower ratings of Japanese cars are usually wrong too. This article goes into the history of why all Skylines were rated at 276 hp although they made engine upgrades through each generation.
The term for a Cusco shock absorber dyno plot in Japanese would be Cusco 車高調減衰特性曲線 coilovers is shako cho, 車高調, damping is gensui 減衰, and characteristic curve is tokusei kyokusen 特性曲線. If you search for that term, you'll get no results but there are plenty for Koni and Ohlins.
gen 1 coilover Question
