Ksport Coilovers Customer Support

[ddgsxr504]

This thread has been created for technical info regarding warranty issues and customer service by Ksport inc. I don't want to hear any BS personal opinions about how they suck ect.

Every company started somewhere and I'm sure they all had issues in thier fledgling years. If we actually discuss the issues and support the company with honest and accurate problems/questions I'm sure they will be capable of providing us with better products in the future.

SO.... the primary reason I started this thread was to address some of the issues with Ksport coilovers that members of this forum have had.

I bought my Ksports back in Feb of 2006. The construction is superb, all aluminum billet mounts with electroplated damper casings. Its been 2 years and mine have yet to rust. However on to the real issues... valving and damper seals.

My first seal blew on the drivers rear about a month short of the 1 year warranty mark. I called them up, very courteous and professional. Offered to replace the unit free of charge if I sent it to them. Instead of shipping my damper to them and waiting for the replacement I just put down a $150 deposit, they sent me a new one and then I sent them the blown one and got my deposit back. I asked them what causes the seals to blow and they say that the dampening was set too soft. Well as some of you may know there are no disticnt clicks as to know where you are setting them but I did the sharpie mark and counted rotations method and figured that they were set right around 50%. Well after recieving the new damper I set the rears to roughly 75%, like I said this is all ballpark of course.

Well its now June of 2008, roughly 2.5 years from original purchase (close to 2 years from first replacement) and the same damper has blown it's seals again. Not wanting to waste my money in buying a replacement damper and being the person that I am (willing to provide positive feedback to the company instead of talking sh*t), I wrote them an email.

Dear Ksport, I am writing to ask for information on warranty work and possible damper issues. I purchased the Ksport Kontrol Pro Damper kit for my 1995 Nissan 240SX SE back in February of 2006. I am aware that my 1 year warranty is past due but I seem to be having a re-occurring issue with my dampers. I already had one damper replaced back in October of 06 under warranty (driver's rear) and I was told that the damper settings were probably too soft which is what might have caused the seals to fail. Well since there is no way to distinguish exactly where the settings are since there are no distinct clicks when adjusting them I basically made a mark with a sharpie after adjusting it to full soft. I then counted the revolutions on the knob and marked it again on the full hard setting. In so doing my rears are set at roughly 75-80% stiff. I noticed just the other day that the same damper has failed again (driver's rear). My question is why is the same damper failing roughly once a year? I set it stiffer as recommended yet it still failed. Also if the initial settings weren't hard enough (roughly 50% adjustment) then why would it be possible or feasible to set it there anyway? I've only had these coilovers for just over a year and this is the second time I've had to deal with damper failure. I understand shortly after my first replacement that all your damper seals on the new product line-up have been replaced with better ones from NOK? I need a replacement damper and it seems like there may be some sort of Quality Assurance Issue with the damper seals since I am not the only one experiencing these problems. I am a member of Nissan & Infiniti Car Owners (NICO) and I have stood by your product against the many negative comments your product has received by others. I love your set-up, all aluminum and overall nice manufacturing but 2 failures in a little over 2 years a little un-settling. Please contact me so that we can figure out what course of action that needs to be taken as I would like to get my car back on the road with your product.

Sincerely

Sgt Jason R. Evans United States Marine Corps.

Here is the response I got back the next day....

Ok, since you are out of warranty nearly 1 ½ years I can make you a deal.

We did change the shock design in October of 2007, so I can offer you the new shocks for $50 each if you want them, all I ask in return is you express your satisfaction with them online after you install them and are satisfied with the result.

Thanks,

Nick J.Ksport Suspension [email protected]

So not quite the free replacement I was looking for but since they have changed the internal design of their damper I can replace all 4 for roughly $200.

Not bad considering replacement price per damper is normally $150 each.

So $200 instead of $600? I can live with that, plus my other 3 are still in great shape.

Discuss.

[ddgsxr504]

MODS.... didn't think about this until after I hit post, please move to suspension forum if needed.

Thanks

Jason

[ILoveMyRHS13]

This sounds a hell of a lot better than what mrgreeneyes received... Oh and another problem, 8/6kgs.

Just kidding! I've honestly seen that KSport has changed a lot, that just doesn't change my opinion to buy them over a different company.

[ddgsxr504]

This sounds a hell of a lot better than what mrgreeneyes received... Oh and another problem, 8/6kgs.

So what happen to him? Also what fo you mean by the 8/6kgs? I am assuming you mean spring rates but for what purpose?

[3cpeeo]

I'm actually suprised they replied, and cut you a deal.

[94_240sx]

So what happen to him? Also what fo you mean by the 8/6kgs? I am assuming you mean spring rates but for what purpose?

What's your current spring rates? If springs are too soft, dampers can blow easily.

[ddgsxr504]

What's your current spring rates? If springs are too soft, dampers can blow easily.

9/7kgs

[numbnuts240]

I'm actually suprised they replied, and cut you a deal.

so am i, but i bet the fact that you signed your e-mail as sgt jason evans, usmc helped out a little bit.

[adrianfromthecastle]

MODS.... didn't think about this until after I hit post, please move to suspension forum if needed.

Thanks

Jason

done.

lol... with all the negative comments on K-sports... they NEED you to give positive feedback.

it seems as if they're giving you a discount in return for a cheap commercial, lol.

[Hijacker]

Off to suspension this goes!

EDIT: Adrian beat me to it. That's what I get for doing work when I'm at work

[adrianfromthecastle]

EDIT: Adrian beat me to it. That's what I get for doing work when I'm at work

on a relative note...

some dude actually modified his Ksports to fit Koni shocks... I can only imagine how awesome the ride must feel

zerothread?id=336836

[ddgsxr504]

so am i, but i bet the fact that you signed your e-mail as sgt jason evans, usmc helped out a little bit.

I'm sure it did, but hey whatever. I bust my @ss being a Marine, if it gives me some special kudos when I throw the title around then it's worth it.

lol... with all the negative comments on K-sports... they NEED you to give positive feedback.

it seems as if they're giving you a discount in return for a cheap commercial, lol.

I figured someone would notice that too. If you read the last part though...

''after you install them and are satisfied with the result.''

Well, once I get them in and install'em, then I'll let you guys know if I'm satisfied. If they know that lower spring rates would decrease the life of the damper then why offer them?

[JSDEVILDOG29]

How is the ride quality with the ksports? I just found an awesome deal on them and as you know us Cpls dont make much even when were deployed. haha. Would you recommend them over all even if they didnt hook you up? Thanks for any info you provide Sgt.

[IanS]

Its great that they are working with you. In this economy they kind of have to though, gotta keep every customer.

A little info on dampers in general. Seals do not fail directly because the springs are too light, or the valving is set too soft. There are three major things that can destroy a sea.

Too much side load being put on the strut piston during compression can create a flatspot on the seal which eventually leads to a leak.

Seals need to be lubricated. If the damper is poorly designed, its possible that too little oil will be dragged up to the seal, causing it to dry out, crack, and fail prematurely.

Here is where the valving/spring rates come in to play. OE dampers are meant to last for an average of 50 thousand miles. IIRC on the average car this translates to somewhere in the neighbourhood of 250,000 full up/down strokes. Seals wont last forever, if the damper does not have the proper combination of valving and spring rates matched for the given vehicles weight, and available stroke, it can cause the suspension to physically bounce. This means 2, 3, even 4 full up and down strokes, for a given movement. Not only does this put added wear and tear on the seal, it also cavitates the fluid in the damper, decreasing its viscosity. This can greatly decrease the life of a damper. Major car manufactures put endless hours/dollars into picking the perfect valving/spring rate for a given vehicle, and they have it easy. Remember, for factory suspension systems, the stroke length is constant, they dont have kids like us fidgeting with things like spring preload, stroke length, and what have you.

In the aftermarket world those extra variables of height adjustability and whatnot make picking the correct valving profile even more difficult. This leads me to my next point.

I have heard (no proof) that some aftermarket damper producers are using the same dampening profiles, for multiple applications to save money. It would be great if we could get someone from Ksport in here to expand on this conversation.

[locoluna825]

sorry to dig this up, just wondering. i have a question for ddgsxr504. In that period of time when you first bought the coil overs. When your first seal blew, around how many miles did you put on the car with those coil overs? do you track the car or is a daily driver? thanks would really appreciate a response .