Tein Street Flex - DANGEROUS !!!
08-31-13, 07:56 AM
#17
Lexus Champion
Thread Starter
is your setup on full stiff ? 0 or 16 ? It would be nice to have a formal complaint from you to tein as well so they may consider doing something
09-06-13, 12:03 PM
#18
Lexus Champion
Thread Starter
Thought you guys may want to know that the BBB case worker has made several attempts to contact Tein and received no response in writing or phone... 
09-17-13, 01:06 PM
#19
Driver School Candidate
wow...I wish you the best in this situation. I am also glad I read this because I was contemplating getting a set but now I will go with what I know, another set of Megans. Good luck on a soon resolution
09-17-13, 02:18 PM
#20
Lexus Champion
Thread Starter
We'll I just got word that Tein chose not to respond to the second BBB notice for resolution. They have an official black-mark on their file. Next step lawsuit - It really would be helpful if people started to post their about their experiences so it's all in one thread.
Maybe a poll will be better...
Maybe a poll will be better...
09-17-13, 07:39 PM
#21
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Tein dampers are complete trash! Iv owned several sets for different applications and in all cases I was extremely disappointed. I would even go as far as to recommend a set of Megan dampers before opting to go with the trash products Tein has been producing. From the horrible choice in spring rates for the GS they offer as standard choice, to the valving in the dampers, everything is wrong and makes the car handle like complete garbage. Sorry about your experience, I completely feel your pain! Hopefully with threads like this people will be a little more educated and go with different choices for suspension and stay away from Teins!
09-18-13, 08:06 AM
#23
There are way too many variables to claim something like that; are they installed correctly/ springs/ settings other modifications on the car like tires/ sway bars, the list goes on…
I understand that you know what you are doing but, to them you are just another customer that thinks that knows better and can say anything… I don’t think that because one person says that they are dangerous they will believe you or take you seriously, you need to put yourself in their position,
If you really want to keep going you may need to provide some better evidence like pictures of the installation/ measurements/ videos of how it drives on the street/ maybe take it to an Autocross and take videos and have someone else drive the car and get more feedback…
I do not like TEIN because they do not perform as well as others in my” personal experience” I believe that most people in this sector just want to “slam” the car and don’t care or understand performance. If you do, yes you will be disappointed…
I think that you should raise the car as it looks too low, and play with the compression and rebound until you get a better ride also check that they are not bottoming out and adjust your sway bars if possible…
Ultimately if you don’t like them and TEIN is not willing to take them back, your best bet is just to sell them.
I understand that you know what you are doing but, to them you are just another customer that thinks that knows better and can say anything… I don’t think that because one person says that they are dangerous they will believe you or take you seriously, you need to put yourself in their position,
If you really want to keep going you may need to provide some better evidence like pictures of the installation/ measurements/ videos of how it drives on the street/ maybe take it to an Autocross and take videos and have someone else drive the car and get more feedback…
I do not like TEIN because they do not perform as well as others in my” personal experience” I believe that most people in this sector just want to “slam” the car and don’t care or understand performance. If you do, yes you will be disappointed…
I think that you should raise the car as it looks too low, and play with the compression and rebound until you get a better ride also check that they are not bottoming out and adjust your sway bars if possible…
Ultimately if you don’t like them and TEIN is not willing to take them back, your best bet is just to sell them.
11-19-13, 08:44 AM
#24
Lexus Champion
Thread Starter
I just want to bring this back to the top to remind people that Tein treats their customers like garbage. Once they have your money, their warranty is useless.
To An2ny, I didn't see the post you made. I did exactly what you said about taking measurements.
The car sits exactly at their recommended specs for this product. I took measurements, photos, videos and still got the same responses. For Tein not to take action by even responding to the BBB should be a clear statement about how much they care about their customers and their reputation.
These have no rebound setting. The dampen setting at full firm is too soft. You can under no circumstances drive with these on any setting but the full firm. Regardless, they've been sitting in my garage in the factory packaging waiting to hear from my attorney. This may or may not turn into a class action suit.
I'm removing the set of have on my 1st gen and ditching those in favor of another set of KW's....
To An2ny, I didn't see the post you made. I did exactly what you said about taking measurements.
The car sits exactly at their recommended specs for this product. I took measurements, photos, videos and still got the same responses. For Tein not to take action by even responding to the BBB should be a clear statement about how much they care about their customers and their reputation.
These have no rebound setting. The dampen setting at full firm is too soft. You can under no circumstances drive with these on any setting but the full firm. Regardless, they've been sitting in my garage in the factory packaging waiting to hear from my attorney. This may or may not turn into a class action suit.
I'm removing the set of have on my 1st gen and ditching those in favor of another set of KW's....
There are way too many variables to claim something like that; are they installed correctly/ springs/ settings other modifications on the car like tires/ sway bars, the list goes on…
I understand that you know what you are doing but, to them you are just another customer that thinks that knows better and can say anything… I don’t think that because one person says that they are dangerous they will believe you or take you seriously, you need to put yourself in their position,
If you really want to keep going you may need to provide some better evidence like pictures of the installation/ measurements/ videos of how it drives on the street/ maybe take it to an Autocross and take videos and have someone else drive the car and get more feedback…
I do not like TEIN because they do not perform as well as others in my” personal experience” I believe that most people in this sector just want to “slam” the car and don’t care or understand performance. If you do, yes you will be disappointed…
I think that you should raise the car as it looks too low, and play with the compression and rebound until you get a better ride also check that they are not bottoming out and adjust your sway bars if possible…
Ultimately if you don’t like them and TEIN is not willing to take them back, your best bet is just to sell them.
I understand that you know what you are doing but, to them you are just another customer that thinks that knows better and can say anything… I don’t think that because one person says that they are dangerous they will believe you or take you seriously, you need to put yourself in their position,
If you really want to keep going you may need to provide some better evidence like pictures of the installation/ measurements/ videos of how it drives on the street/ maybe take it to an Autocross and take videos and have someone else drive the car and get more feedback…
I do not like TEIN because they do not perform as well as others in my” personal experience” I believe that most people in this sector just want to “slam” the car and don’t care or understand performance. If you do, yes you will be disappointed…
I think that you should raise the car as it looks too low, and play with the compression and rebound until you get a better ride also check that they are not bottoming out and adjust your sway bars if possible…
Ultimately if you don’t like them and TEIN is not willing to take them back, your best bet is just to sell them.
03-01-14, 01:34 PM
#25
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I wanted to get some coverage here on the forums. I've had the old tein flex's on my wifes GS430 for several years and have had them on my 1gs for a decade. They were amazing.
Long story short - The set on the 430 were ready to rebuild, but due to it being a DD we cant wait 3-6 weeks for a rebuild. So I decided to do the next logical thing and buy the new street flex series.
What a horrible waste of money. The car is flat out dangerous right now. Aside from a little around town driving it has to be parked and im sharing our other car with my wife.
I have them at the recomended settings per the manual that came with them. The car is not laid out flat or VIP low.
We have adjustable upper front arms, lower rear toe arms and are at full factory alignment specs.
On the softest setting the suspension will bottom out, even on a medium setting.
On the stiffest setting, the car bounces like crazy and will start to hobby horse.
This induces dangerous bump steer that will unsettle the chassis and make the tail wag causing a loss of control.
Im not a newb, i've been working on cars for 22+yrs and have fabricated complete suspensions from scratch. Been a member on this forum (EDIT: 12 years) for a while as well as SF and several others.
Just wanted to warn you all about the issues im having since Tein thinks its ok.
I'm not going to bash the company, but thier tech support is seriously lacking for what seems to be a decent size company.
Thier expaination of the lack of dampening and rebound is that the settings are either incorrect or this system is just unsuitable to me and I should perhaps pay them to revalve and/or buy stiffer springs. As if thats ok to spend $1,350 on coilovers that are advertised as being designed for "street driving and periodic track use" + two alignments...
Seems this is a major hazard to me.
The old flex's on all of the other cars have done great...
Long story short - The set on the 430 were ready to rebuild, but due to it being a DD we cant wait 3-6 weeks for a rebuild. So I decided to do the next logical thing and buy the new street flex series.
What a horrible waste of money. The car is flat out dangerous right now. Aside from a little around town driving it has to be parked and im sharing our other car with my wife.
I have them at the recomended settings per the manual that came with them. The car is not laid out flat or VIP low.
We have adjustable upper front arms, lower rear toe arms and are at full factory alignment specs.
On the softest setting the suspension will bottom out, even on a medium setting.
On the stiffest setting, the car bounces like crazy and will start to hobby horse.
This induces dangerous bump steer that will unsettle the chassis and make the tail wag causing a loss of control.
Im not a newb, i've been working on cars for 22+yrs and have fabricated complete suspensions from scratch. Been a member on this forum (EDIT: 12 years) for a while as well as SF and several others.
Just wanted to warn you all about the issues im having since Tein thinks its ok.
I'm not going to bash the company, but thier tech support is seriously lacking for what seems to be a decent size company.
Thier expaination of the lack of dampening and rebound is that the settings are either incorrect or this system is just unsuitable to me and I should perhaps pay them to revalve and/or buy stiffer springs. As if thats ok to spend $1,350 on coilovers that are advertised as being designed for "street driving and periodic track use" + two alignments...
Seems this is a major hazard to me.
The old flex's on all of the other cars have done great...
04-07-14, 07:33 AM
#27
Lexus Champion
Thread Starter
I just got a set of these on my subaru and i have to agree that they are a defective design. There is no damper setting that makes them handle or ride properly and the stroke is way too short for the springs it cane with. I think my only two options are to get stiffer springs or sell them and get a real suspension such as kw
04-16-14, 10:50 AM
#28
My brother had a very similar experience with a brand new set of Powered by Max coilovers for his SC300. After replacement, his car behaved the same way. I would not consider it to be unsafe because it is a symptom not experienced before. The suspension needed adjustment. Coilovers like these require fine tunning due to their wide range of adjustability to get the vehicle driving right. After weeks of going back and forth with the manufacturer, they decided to send a technician out to trouble shoot the problem. After more days of not being able to figure it out, my brother ended up getting back a full refund and using it towards a different set of coils. The original set was sent back and tested for defects. The manufacturer determined that it was improper adjustment of height vs preload.
On my GS I installed a set of BC coils. They felt the same way. I bottomed out just driving at cruising speeds. One of the benefits of having BCs is that the swift springs don't bind. I readjusted the ride height to make sure all four corners were even and tightened up the preload on the springs. I ride low and I do not bottom out anymore. If you look through VIP magazines and sites, sometimes they will show off their setup. If you notice, their springs are almost fully compressed to avoid bottoming out.
Those are my experiences. I hope they help out in some way. Good luck!
On my GS I installed a set of BC coils. They felt the same way. I bottomed out just driving at cruising speeds. One of the benefits of having BCs is that the swift springs don't bind. I readjusted the ride height to make sure all four corners were even and tightened up the preload on the springs. I ride low and I do not bottom out anymore. If you look through VIP magazines and sites, sometimes they will show off their setup. If you notice, their springs are almost fully compressed to avoid bottoming out.
Those are my experiences. I hope they help out in some way. Good luck!
04-16-14, 11:24 AM
#29
Lexus Champion
Thread Starter
That's good information above.
I'm familiar with suspensions and how to tune the car how I want and ill say in regard to this specific incident, the ride of the teins was absolutely not safe. Under full stiff, full soft and any setting in between, there was no way to control the bouncing and bobbing around of the car. I hit a small dip in the freeway and the car moved over an entire lane toward another passenger car. My car and tein coilovers were 100% the recommended settings that came with the coilovers.
With zero changes to the setup on the car, just dropping the BC's in; was a night and day difference. The same dips and bumps in the road, at the same speeds and no other changes, are soaked up properly.
I've made some adjustments to fine tune the car to handle the way I want. But overall its phenomenal.
I'm glad I've been able to help at least 7 people that I know of from purchasing something they would have found out was a poorly made design and was represented poorly by the US counterpart on behalf of their Japanese parent company.They would be ashamed. Not responding to the BBB, pathetic.
I'm familiar with suspensions and how to tune the car how I want and ill say in regard to this specific incident, the ride of the teins was absolutely not safe. Under full stiff, full soft and any setting in between, there was no way to control the bouncing and bobbing around of the car. I hit a small dip in the freeway and the car moved over an entire lane toward another passenger car. My car and tein coilovers were 100% the recommended settings that came with the coilovers.
With zero changes to the setup on the car, just dropping the BC's in; was a night and day difference. The same dips and bumps in the road, at the same speeds and no other changes, are soaked up properly.
I've made some adjustments to fine tune the car to handle the way I want. But overall its phenomenal.
I'm glad I've been able to help at least 7 people that I know of from purchasing something they would have found out was a poorly made design and was represented poorly by the US counterpart on behalf of their Japanese parent company.They would be ashamed. Not responding to the BBB, pathetic.
04-16-14, 04:09 PM
#30
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My brother had a very similar experience with a brand new set of Powered by Max coilovers for his SC300. After replacement, his car behaved the same way. I would not consider it to be unsafe because it is a symptom not experienced before. The suspension needed adjustment. Coilovers like these require fine tunning due to their wide range of adjustability to get the vehicle driving right. After weeks of going back and forth with the manufacturer, they decided to send a technician out to trouble shoot the problem. After more days of not being able to figure it out, my brother ended up getting back a full refund and using it towards a different set of coils. The original set was sent back and tested for defects. The manufacturer determined that it was improper adjustment of height vs preload.
On my GS I installed a set of BC coils. They felt the same way. I bottomed out just driving at cruising speeds. One of the benefits of having BCs is that the swift springs don't bind. I readjusted the ride height to make sure all four corners were even and tightened up the preload on the springs. I ride low and I do not bottom out anymore. If you look through VIP magazines and sites, sometimes they will show off their setup. If you notice, their springs are almost fully compressed to avoid bottoming out.
Those are my experiences. I hope they help out in some way. Good luck!
On my GS I installed a set of BC coils. They felt the same way. I bottomed out just driving at cruising speeds. One of the benefits of having BCs is that the swift springs don't bind. I readjusted the ride height to make sure all four corners were even and tightened up the preload on the springs. I ride low and I do not bottom out anymore. If you look through VIP magazines and sites, sometimes they will show off their setup. If you notice, their springs are almost fully compressed to avoid bottoming out.
Those are my experiences. I hope they help out in some way. Good luck!
The only conditions I can recommend these coilovers for is if you want to ride waaaay too low for style purposes and you throw handling out the window. Since they have adjustable preload, you can "fine tune" them to give you a barely acceptable ride. Also you are so low that you can't use any more than the 2 1/2 inches of stroke anyway so you don't really give up anything. A Bilstein or KW setup that has helper springs instead of preload adjustment cannot ride that low, but for those who just want their car as low as possible without any concern for ride or handling, these will do the trick. They definitely will ride better than chopped springs which is the only other way to ride that low.
If you were to hypothetically go with some extremely stiff springs, these could be good for very smooth surfaces since you won't hit any bumps, you dont need any extra stroke. Also the dampers have a wide range of adjustment so you can definitely get some decent performance for the price. Still not an ideal setup though.
I think the only person who should actually consider paying money for the Street Flex is the person who wants to ride super ultra low slammed to the ground and spend the least amount of money possible and still ride a little better than chopped springs and have no handling to speak for whatsoever. Otherwise the 6 inches of travel you get with a real coilover like bilstein or KW will get you way better ride and handling. I have heard nothing but rave reviews of KW coilovers and wish I had done some more research before blindly listening to a buddy who recommended Teins.