help me make a decision plz

[LiU]

haha umm if I sound like a lil girl right before a backstreetboys concert sorry - haha just can't wait but I need some help, I'm torn between whether to get the Tein basic dampers or the JIC Magic fltA1.

here's some info on the 2JIC flta1 - 7/5 rates, 5 way dampening adjustable, height adjustable, front pillowball mounts, rear hard rubber mounts, $999 at enjukuracing. I believe the coilvoer assembly comes... well assembled so installation wouldn't be too hard.

tein basic - 6/6, non dampening adjustable, height adjustable, no mounts $799 at enjukuracing - one of my strut mounts has a bent bolt, so I require another one, so estimate $20+, so $819 in total - installation more work since a spring compressor is required, spring compressor rental is free.

my car is mostly going to be street driven, but hopefully will see more track time, but I can't decide if I should spend the extra $180 for the JIC and the adjustabiltiy and pillowball mounts. Currently I do not see the need for adjustability, but the JIC is a good deal that I don't want to pass up on, and I'm afraid the Tein basic's valving won't be as aggressive as JIC's and will disappoint me - but on the other hand I don't know if JIC's hardest settings will be used at all since this car will mostly street driven.

[Q45tech]

"Don't see the need for adjustablity" {??????}.............say what, how are you going to compensate for the shock wear every 6 months.Adjustability will almost double the time when you need new shocks.

You cannot trust any manufacturer to pick the absolutely correct rate for your car on your roads, with your tires, and your sway bars, with you as a driver..............everything needs to be adjustable to get the best ride and performace.........otherwise a waste of time and money!

[LiU]

what do you mean double the life of the shock? explain more plz - thx

[RagingPanda]

My dear 240SX brother...again n again I've told you....JIC. Get it so u can give me honest reviews on it cuz I'm goin to get it.

[Ceptos]

i think the more adjustability you have, the more satisfied with your purchase you will be. id say for $180 the added extras are worth it. the different spring ratios will make the car feel a little different, the 6/6 are the same as stock, but a 7/5 will, i want to say add understeer (or do i have this backwards?). im guessing this is better for our cars when pushing them to the limit, ratios like that seem to be popular (8/6). i had 8/6 and thought it was a little bouncy for me, so i got a set of 5kg for the rear and moved the 6 to the front (5kg is as soft as jic offers, unless the springs for the a1 are diff) what about a camber kit, either come with?

i think that means as the shock gets weaker over time from use, you can stiffen them up with the adjustability to compensate.

[aither]

sorry to hijack this, but I'm wondering about staggered spring rates as well. Why have 8/6 kg/mm spring rates (F & R), if the car has a suppposedly 50/50 weight ratio? I'm guessing that running something like 8/8 or 9/9 would make drag racing harder, and make the car more willing to oversteer. Also, since rear weight transfer might be greater with the staggered setups, you could still have an equal amount of lateral weight transfer front to back with a big, fat rear anti-roll bar, and a small one up front. I know a lot of japanese drifters use 9/9 or 10/10 on s13's, but I'm wondering why coilovers aren't sold in staggered set ups.

[Q45tech]

Necessary to tune the spring rates to the body weight and road speed so that the car will not pogo, pitch, or undulate down the road when excited by seams on the road........even asphalt has periodic imperfections which reoccur based on the machine length used to pour the asphalt.

Always have the rear spring rate [ona RWD] [corrected for geometric attachment points to create wheel rate] at least 20% less stiff than the front spring rate.........exact number depends on wheel base legth and desired optimize road speed.

A 10 foot wheel base means a front bump excites the rear 113 milliseconds later [when it lifts the rear] at 60.0 mph............how far are your road undulations apart:?

Tire diameter is important also as the radial force frequency can mix with the chassis frequency and spring frequency to add or subtract nodal vibrations.

It isn't simple to design a smooth chassis.

[Ceptos]

"how far are your road undulations apart?"

heheh, couldnt help but laugh at how that sounds =)

was just thinking if anyone already knows the calculations for the s14 (and/or s13 for others) to get wheel rate?

[LiU]

ahh so hard to make a deicision

[aither]

Thanks for the reply. So, with a lower rear spring rate, the rear tires are more able to make contact with the road when going over bumps and uneven surfaces? I'm assuming that a lower spring rate allows the rear wheels to travel further, and prevent them from hopping or bouncing along the road, as long as shock valving is corrected for the suspension.

[Nismo_Freak]

My setup was this:

S142670 lbs. 52/48 Weight Distribution Stock Base Model Front Sway No Rear SwayFront/Rear STBsTein HA Dampers6 kgf/mm Front Spring Rate5 kgf/mm Rear Spring Rate215/45/16 Falken Azenis Sports Front @ 40 psi (hot pressure)215/45/16 Falken Azenis Sports Rear @ 45 psi (hot pressure)- 2.5 Deg. Camber Rear0 Rear Toe0.05 Front Toe-In- 2 Deg. Camber Front~ 7.6 Caster (don't remember the correct number)

I set the dampening withen 2 of each other like Tein suggests... they were about middle of the 16 clicks. Then I kept getting oversteer and the back of the car would always want to come out. So I dropped the rear down 2 more clicks and ever since it's been glued to the road, and with a little touch of understeer on the exits you can just lay into the throttle and it's perfectly neutral.

In my new setup I'm thinking of moving to this:

~ 2600 lbs. ~ 50/50 Weight Distribution OEM SE Sway Front OEM SE Sway Rear Front/Rear STBsTein HA Dampers8 kgf/mm Front Spring Rate6 kgf/mm Rear Spring Rate255/40/17 BFG GeForce KD Front @ 40 psi (hot pressure)275/40/17 BFG GeForce KD Rear @ 40 psi (hot pressure)- 2 Deg. Camber Rear0 Rear Toe0.05 Front Toe-In- 2 Deg. Camber Front8.2 Caster