Coilover suggestion for IS250 AWD
01-09-14, 05:51 PM
#17
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Reyoasian, curious what you ended up doing. I'm in the GTA as well, having the same thoughts as you were and wondering about the clunk on the BCRs. Would be great to hear what you went with and your experience.
01-10-14, 06:53 AM
#20
The clunk, from what I can find, is pretty common with aftermarket coilovers (regardless of brand).
One source of the clunk is the pillowball mount. Not much you can do about that. You can try to tighten the top nut, but don't overtorque.
Another source is that the oem struts have some rubber between the strut and the car to act as an insulator.
One source of the clunk is the pillowball mount. Not much you can do about that. You can try to tighten the top nut, but don't overtorque.
Another source is that the oem struts have some rubber between the strut and the car to act as an insulator.
Last edited by scott1256c; 01-10-14 at 08:14 AM.
01-10-14, 01:01 PM
#23
Forgot to mention that I'm in Canada as well, Winnipeg, Manitoba specifically. Our roads are probably just as bad, if not worse than the roads in Toronto. The BCs have held up very well in the harsh conditions, I even drove my car in the -50c temps, and while the suspension was a little tight at first, over the course of 5-10 mins the suspension smoothed out quite a bit. Highly recommended, and CircuitMS is a great vendor to buy them from 
01-14-14, 10:40 AM
#24
Hi guys, I ended up going with Road Magnet springs with F-Sport shocks for the following reasons:
BCR Coils:
- made in taiwan
- clunking (my friend had his fixed with a replacement part from BC but had to pay extra labour)
- amount of salt-filled slush in Toronto winter is ridiculous..everyone of my friends with BCR coils are getting rusted or seized after 2 winters
- this is a daily driver and it is AWD, so I can't really go much lower on coils than on Road Magnets. I still want the car driveable in this horrible horrible Toronto road conditions (if you've driven downtown Toronto you know what I mean..............)
- I don't ever plan on fidgeting with the dampers, prefer just one general setup and stick with it
- I don't ever plan on fidgeting with the ride height, can't afford alignment every season to raise for winter and lower for spring
Road Magnets with F-Sport shocks
- it is decent enough drop for the AWD to make the car look better while retaining drive-ability (again, downtown Toronto roads....you don't know what's bad until you've driven here)
- the springs are linear (not progressive like the H&R I have right now...very inconsistent in taking hard corners)
- F-Sport shocks are made by Bilstein and made in Germany (Tuned in USA)
They're not installed yet but I will be getting them installed together with F-Sport front/rear sways and 2012 ISF steering ECU. Hope to see night and day difference in handling (especially since my stock rear shocks are very weak now)
BCR Coils:
- made in taiwan
- clunking (my friend had his fixed with a replacement part from BC but had to pay extra labour)
- amount of salt-filled slush in Toronto winter is ridiculous..everyone of my friends with BCR coils are getting rusted or seized after 2 winters
- this is a daily driver and it is AWD, so I can't really go much lower on coils than on Road Magnets. I still want the car driveable in this horrible horrible Toronto road conditions (if you've driven downtown Toronto you know what I mean..............)
- I don't ever plan on fidgeting with the dampers, prefer just one general setup and stick with it
- I don't ever plan on fidgeting with the ride height, can't afford alignment every season to raise for winter and lower for spring
Road Magnets with F-Sport shocks
- it is decent enough drop for the AWD to make the car look better while retaining drive-ability (again, downtown Toronto roads....you don't know what's bad until you've driven here)
- the springs are linear (not progressive like the H&R I have right now...very inconsistent in taking hard corners)
- F-Sport shocks are made by Bilstein and made in Germany (Tuned in USA)
They're not installed yet but I will be getting them installed together with F-Sport front/rear sways and 2012 ISF steering ECU. Hope to see night and day difference in handling (especially since my stock rear shocks are very weak now)
01-14-14, 12:29 PM
#25
I'm glad you found something you like.
That said, I still think the BCRs are leagues better than any shock/spring combo by a long shot. Even if the coils are made in Taiwan, they aren't your typical "off-the-shelf" coilover, in that each damper is shock-dyno tested, then paired with similar dampers to a tolerance more stringent than the OEM tolerances. I don't think you can say that about many other coils, and even if you can, it means that you're getting a better product because of the higher quality control procedures. These coilovers are also valved specifically for the springs that are going to be installed on them. That alone is going to affect ride quality so much more, since they are paired together and "tuned" from the factory for those exact springs.
Even if the F-Sport shocks are built in Germany and tuned by German engineers, they engineered the shock to work best with the OEM springs or the F-Sport springs. I think of it like, the OEM shock is meant to be used with the OEM spring. If you put an aftermarket spring on there, it has an adverse effect on the shock, causing it to wear out faster. While the F-Sport shock is undoubtedly a better shock, it's still subject to the same problem. It will probably hold up better than the OEM, but the fact remains that the shock was not valved for the Road Magnet springs. With the BCRs, or any other mid-level coilover in that price range, the shock is engineered for the springs installed on them. Its more predictable in the long run. Plus if you ever need to replace a shock, you can rebuild the BCRs individually for a flat cost of $100 per coilover. With the F-Sport shocks, as far as I know, you have to buy them brand new. I don't know what they cost, but if it's more than $100, that's another advantage for the coilover over the shock/spring combo.
Again, this is purely my outlook on the matter. I'm not trying to convince you to change your mind, just putting the information out there. More information is never a bad thing
EDIT: For the record, I'd be willing to bet that my Winnipeg roads are worse lol. New York probably has us both beat though.
That said, I still think the BCRs are leagues better than any shock/spring combo by a long shot. Even if the coils are made in Taiwan, they aren't your typical "off-the-shelf" coilover, in that each damper is shock-dyno tested, then paired with similar dampers to a tolerance more stringent than the OEM tolerances. I don't think you can say that about many other coils, and even if you can, it means that you're getting a better product because of the higher quality control procedures. These coilovers are also valved specifically for the springs that are going to be installed on them. That alone is going to affect ride quality so much more, since they are paired together and "tuned" from the factory for those exact springs.
Even if the F-Sport shocks are built in Germany and tuned by German engineers, they engineered the shock to work best with the OEM springs or the F-Sport springs. I think of it like, the OEM shock is meant to be used with the OEM spring. If you put an aftermarket spring on there, it has an adverse effect on the shock, causing it to wear out faster. While the F-Sport shock is undoubtedly a better shock, it's still subject to the same problem. It will probably hold up better than the OEM, but the fact remains that the shock was not valved for the Road Magnet springs. With the BCRs, or any other mid-level coilover in that price range, the shock is engineered for the springs installed on them. Its more predictable in the long run. Plus if you ever need to replace a shock, you can rebuild the BCRs individually for a flat cost of $100 per coilover. With the F-Sport shocks, as far as I know, you have to buy them brand new. I don't know what they cost, but if it's more than $100, that's another advantage for the coilover over the shock/spring combo.
Again, this is purely my outlook on the matter. I'm not trying to convince you to change your mind, just putting the information out there. More information is never a bad thing
EDIT: For the record, I'd be willing to bet that my Winnipeg roads are worse lol. New York probably has us both beat though.
01-14-14, 01:12 PM
#26
I've considered every single factor you've mentioned however still decided to go this route to satisfy my specific needs. We'll see how well they work together. Definitely going to be a whole lot stiffer since my ride right now is bouncy as hell (in the rear)
01-17-14, 07:27 PM
#27
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Reyoasian, I've ordered my set of BCs with Swift springs and am looking forward to it ... But your comment on them rusting in our toronto slush has me worried!
Any comments from those with experience?
Any comments from those with experience?
01-18-14, 02:04 PM
#28
^ it's mainly surface rust, I'm more worried about seizing than rusting. don't know anyone with the Swift upgrade local though.
If you're RWD, then there's still more benefit to coilovers. Since mine is AWD and daily driven, I don't wanna fidget with anything, plus the shocks were on sale
If you're RWD, then there's still more benefit to coilovers. Since mine is AWD and daily driven, I don't wanna fidget with anything, plus the shocks were on sale
01-18-14, 08:46 PM
#29
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So a few more questions then. I have a 2008 IS250 AWD and will soon be getting BCs with Swift Springs, hopefully by next week.
1) do I need an alignment after installing? If so, anything I need to know or straightforward alignment?
2) how much can I/should I lower given it's AWD if I don't want to bring on any CV or other issues, but still want an improved ride and improved look?
3) I currently have 16" winters on it, and then 17" summers (all-seasons actually). How does the seasonal change impact things (i.e. My selected ride height and requirement for an alignment)?
As you may be able to tell, I've been an all-stock guy my whole life - this is my first foray into this stuff so I'd really appreciate your expertise.
1) do I need an alignment after installing? If so, anything I need to know or straightforward alignment?
2) how much can I/should I lower given it's AWD if I don't want to bring on any CV or other issues, but still want an improved ride and improved look?
3) I currently have 16" winters on it, and then 17" summers (all-seasons actually). How does the seasonal change impact things (i.e. My selected ride height and requirement for an alignment)?
As you may be able to tell, I've been an all-stock guy my whole life - this is my first foray into this stuff so I'd really appreciate your expertise.
01-20-14, 10:38 AM
#30
^ it's mainly surface rust, I'm more worried about seizing than rusting. don't know anyone with the Swift upgrade local though.
If you're RWD, then there's still more benefit to coilovers. Since mine is AWD and daily driven, I don't wanna fidget with anything, plus the shocks were on sale
If you're RWD, then there's still more benefit to coilovers. Since mine is AWD and daily driven, I don't wanna fidget with anything, plus the shocks were on sale