my first experience with nameless coilovers

[Hoffman5982]

thnk you alms for your testimony. i was actually going to get k-sports before these popped up., now i know the k's suck. and if they croak then i'll go pbm or megans..

Lmao, your logic kills me

[wa-chiss]

Just because they're made in the same factory or even on the same line doesn't mean they have the same quality.

Case in point: I'm a Toyota technician at an auto group. We sell Toyotas and GM's. You remember the Pontiac Vibe right? If not, its basically a Toyota Matrix with a Pontiac logo on it. I have worked on countless Vibes with engine problems (not due to owner error) ranging from broken internal baffles to oil pickup tubes falling off or breaking. However, I can count on one hand how many engine problems (not due to owner error) I've seen from not only the Matrix, but any Toyota with the same engine. "Why is that", you might ask. The simple fact is quality control. The same exact part made by the same manufacturer for two different companies. Two companies that have two different ideas on what's acceptable and what can pass specifications. So, whatever didn't pass Toyota's very strict specifications went to GM's more lenient product lines.

Someone also mentioned oil. It's the same principle. There are really only a handfull of oil manufacturers. The manufacturers make the oil for many companies. All those companies have their own ideas and reaserch as to what additives should be in an oil. They tell the manufacturers what they want in the oil and the manufacturer makes that oil to meet the company's specifications. It is very possible for one company to overlook oil breakdown more than the next company.

So, this brings us back to your coilovers. Even if the MDUs you bought were made on the exact same line as Tein or any other quality proven company, doesn't mean you got a quality part. You got a part that met the specifications and requirements of a second rate company who contracted their business out to the lowest bidder. If your coilovers last over a year, woopty doo. I still see Vibes on the road to this day that use inferior oils. That still doesn't take away the fact that they're crap and should not have even been made or sold. But hey, what do we know. We've only seen it a thousand times.

[Mercury_Hg]

You should know already, as Jim said, these coilovers and the Godspeed coilovers are from the same factory (MDU) and as you know, Godspeed coilovers are terrible.

No, I don't know. I know that a lot of people with higher priced coilovers are of the opinion that they're terrible, but I have a sneaking suspicion that's gross exaggeration. While I'm certain higher priced coilovers perform better overall, I highly doubt cheaper coilovers are absolute s***, which is what you would have me believe.

There are dyno sheets from coilovers that are above the price range of these coilovers (Ksports) that showed the horrible quality of the shocks.

I'm not sure what you're trying to convey here, except "you get what you pay for" by drawing the conclusion that if higher priced coilovers of the same class are bad, these much be much worse.

Shocks are carefully designed things.
You can barely buy decent set of shocks for a stock car for $500, how low does the quality have to go to have an adjustable coilover set that's priced at $500?

You're not paying for R&D when you buy coilovers, you're paying for quality control, and dramatic markup. Performance car parts will rape your wallet. I'd expect the occasional dud to fall through with cheaper coils, or premature failure, but not to the degree you would have me believe. Which is less relevant when you consider ALL brands of coilovers fail.

A friend of mine bought a used set of Godspeed coilovers, the ride quality is horrible and the "clicks" on some of the shocks didn't work, the knobs just spun freely.

How is buying a used set of coilovers (especially when you fail to mention how used) in any way indicative of the new product? This is what I'm talking about with firsthand experience. It's always "my friend" or "my aunts dogs friends owners wife's stepson". Define "horrible ride quality", because as far as I'm aware, most people would consider even a premium coilover set to be horrible ride quality. This is all very opinionated and devoid of hard evidence. Some people don't need 10,000 way adjustability.

In the case of coilovers, you get what you pay for.

No you don't. In most cases you either pay entirely way too much for peace of mind or pay too little and end up regretting it. There is a middle ground to be had, hence the point in my interest in these coilovers. People are polar here, and it's like I'm reading the same regurgitated opinion in every post.

Jim should just look at this set as a temporary setup to replace your previously blown shocks.

Why not use it in the long term, if it holds up? That's an extremely biased thing to say.

All the coilovers functions he listed are the same for all coilovers on the market, except the higher end ones do it better.

I'm sure they do do it better. But these, I'm sure, do it good enough.


I'd like to see some dyno sheets. I'd also like some firsthand accounts. Even biased info; give me something negative if you want. You haven't given me anything but conjecture so far.

God, you just don't listen do you? Quite with the "everyone on this forum just wants to be cool" bull s***. We are simply here to help you. Krash fu**ing posted pictures to show you proof and you are still sitting there being a jacka**. I didn't spend 1200 on coilovers so that I would feel accepted. I honestly don't give a flying fu** what people think about me online or in real life. I bought it for the quality and peace of mind. I didn't buy a haltech ecu because I had a stock a** KA at the time. My focus at the time was Suspension. The point, the only point, is that you get what you pay for. This goes for pretty much everything in life. You are a cheap a** on something, you will get cheap a** results. If you don't want to believe us, fine. There is nothing we can do about that. But stop parading around because you "didn't follow the crowd". That is not what you did. Good luck with you shi**y coils. Like I said before, you have no business writing a review until you've actually used them for a period of time

Would you care to explain why most people here condone buying used higher quality coils? There's nothing safe about that either. You don't know how long they've been used, how hard they've been beat on. Yet it's thrown around consistently with "safe a few hundred more and get brand_x or brand_y."

Brand loyalty makes me sick. There're a lot of fanboys here, I can smell them.

[LoserCard]

There is such thing as a competitive market. I think the only deciding factor of this argument will be the test of time. Everyone needs to stop being prejudice and just have an unbiased opinion about these coilovers. Don't judge a book by it's cover and don't judge a coilover by it's price. Not everything that is cheap sucks. Not everything that is expensive is good. Companies do not just stagnantly produce the same thing over and over, things get developed, new procedures are used, errors are corrected. STOP ALL THE JUDGEMENTS!

I want someone to find me 10 failed products out of 100 that are still being produced before you pass judgement. One inconsistent failed product out of 1000 is not enough to black mark a company forever. Promise me TEIN, KTS, or HKS hasn't EVER made an error before you tell me that they are perfect.

[Mercury_Hg]

There is such thing as a competitive market. I think the only deciding factor of this argument will be the test of time. Everyone needs to stop being prejudice and just have an unbiased opinion about these coilovers. Don't judge a book by it's cover and don't judge a coilover by it's price. Not everything that is cheap sucks. Not everything that is expensive is good. Companies do not just stagnantly produce the same thing over and over, things get developed, new procedures are used, errors are corrected. STOP ALL THE JUDGEMENTS!

I want someone to find me 10 failed products out of 100 that are still being produced before you pass judgement. One inconsistent failed product out of 1000 is not enough to black mark a company forever. Promise me TEIN, KTS, or HKS hasn't EVER made an error before you tell me that they are perfect.

Stay classy, my friend .

You know, no matter how much you guys preach or post up threads about these things, people are still going to buy what they're going to buy. I have my fair share of jdm parts, but I have my fair share of cheaper brands too. Some works for me and some didn't. Everyone's just going to have to learn for themselves.

I feel as if quality reviews are few and far between because people in the tuner community (or scene or whatever faggy name you'd care to call car enthusiasts) are afraid of hindering their image. A lot of people here have big egos. This meshes with the generalized philosophy of "make your car unique, make your care you" (not that everyone here feels this way).

It doesn't help that every positive review thread ends up getting s*** on and locked. If people were more objective and reasonable, I feel more people would invest in the currently absent middle market of car parts. Eventually that section of the market would grow and enable people on a strict budget to afford quality parts that aren't essentially taboo in the community.

[Hoffman5982]

Would you care to explain why most people here condone buying used higher quality coils? There's nothing safe about that either. You don't know how long they've been used, how hard they've been beat on. Yet it's thrown around consistently with "safe a few hundred more and get brand_x or brand_y."

Ummm...What? Nowhere in the paragraph you quoted from me, or any paragraph of mine in this thread, did I mention buying used coilovers. Try actually reading it.

No you don't. In most cases you either pay entirely way too much for peace of mind or pay too little and end up regretting it. There is a middle ground to be had, hence the point in my interest in these coilovers. People are polar here, and it's like I'm reading the same regurgitated opinion in every post.

You are right, there IS a middle ground, which is what we are advising you buy. The OP didn't choose a middle ground. He bought a $300 set of coilovers. He dove straight down to the bottom, which backs up a statement that YOU made: "pay too little and end up regretting it."

I honestly don't know if you can be taken even the least bit seriously after multiple fu** ups in one post

[krash]

There are dyno sheets from coilovers that are above the price range of these coilovers (Ksports) that showed the horrible quality of the shocks.

I'm not sure what you're trying to convey here, except "you get what you pay for" by drawing the conclusion that if higher priced coilovers of the same class are bad, these much be much worse.

So you'd choose an iPhone knock-off over an iPhone? Same thing.

Shocks are carefully designed things.
You can barely buy decent set of shocks for a stock car for $500, how low does the quality have to go to have an adjustable coilover set that's priced at $500?

You're not paying for R&D when you buy coilovers, you're paying for quality control, and dramatic markup. Performance car parts will rape your wallet. I'd expect the occasional dud to fall through with cheaper coils, or premature failure, but not to the degree you would have me believe. Which is less relevant when you consider ALL brands of coilovers fail.

You ARE paying for R&D. Before you argue back, you should find out how shocks are made, what makes them different from each other, and what makes shocks improve handling (mechanically). If you know the answer to these questions, then it becomes much more prevalent why cheap coils are not a good plan. Again, I'm not hating on you or whatever, just trying to help a fellow member. Here's a simple video on the basic design of a hydraulic shock:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vcSH2z70 ... re=related[/youtube]

obviously if all were the same, then it wouldn't be competitive. So companies that actually want to provide a performance part (the companies us "fanboys" like ) spend the money and the time to develop a system that works to greatly improve the handling, and last.

These cheap coils are from companies that just want to make a buck, not provide the community with a performance part. Get some cheapo shock that isn't suited for stiff springs and is made poorly, throw some adjustable springs on it, paint it yellow blue red whatever, $$$ profit.

Brand loyalty makes me sick. There're a lot of fanboys here, I can smell them.

If using parts that improve my car instead of slapping on cheap crap that makes me low and herrafrush ASAP makes me a fanboy, then I guess I am.

I miss the days when people really appreciated a car with a stock body, some performance tires, a nicely built and finely tuned motor, and a finely tuned suspension.

I think us 240 people have a lot to do with it, since most 240 people just want to go low and drift, they eat up these crap parts like theres no tomorrow. If you're going to build a car, build it right.

[supersayianjim]

^^awesome vid. saved to favorites..

[supersayianjim]

thnk you alms for your testimony. i was actually going to get k-sports before these popped up., now i know the k's suck. and if they croak then i'll go pbm or megans..

Lmao, your logic kills me

wtf are you talking about?? press #1 for english.

i get the cheapo ones. actually start a thread/have experience with them first hand instead of the he/she said b.s.

then if/when they fail i upgrade. what part of this don't you understand?

[krash]

Yea I'm actually glad you started this thread. No matter how much we argue, people are still going to buy cheap coils because of the price difference. At least this way they can see your experience and better understand the situation.

[super240sx7185]

My gf has had those cheap coils on her dd s13 for 2 years now and there are no leaks, creaks or probs. They have been on 2 cars now lol

[OutToWinPAHC]

[quote="Hoffman5982"

wtf are you talking about?? press #1 for english.

i get the cheapo ones. actually start a thread/have experience with them first hand instead of the he/she said b.s.

then if/when they fail i upgrade. what part of this don't you understand?

1 - He said she said BS is proven, just with the better know of the cheaper brands. I think the odds are in favor or issues, but I'm glad your giving it a shot.
2. - If the do fail, you get better ones and I hear that loud and clear. I have done it myself, but when analyzing the situation I often wish I would have gone for the better out the gate.

[supersayianjim]

^^i understand this, but sometimes you roll the dice,then upgrade, like the poster before you said he had them for x2 years on his womans car and no problem.

If i do windup having these for x2 years than yea... if not well it happens.

[supersayianjim]

My gf has had those cheap coils on her dd s13 for 2 years now and there are no leaks, creaks or probs. They have been on 2 cars now lol

kool. did this car see any track time??

[Hoffman5982]

wtf are you talking about?? press #1 for english.

i get the cheapo ones. actually start a thread/have experience with them first hand instead of the he/she said b.s.

then if/when they fail i upgrade. what part of this don't you understand?

You and Mercury must have done poorly in Reading class. How is my Engrish bad? The only gramatical mistake I see is I forgot a period at the end. And I didn't say anything about not understanding you. I said your logic kills me, meaning I understand your mindset, but it's so naive and stupid that it's hilarious. You don't have enough first hand experience. 5k miles. Big deal. Basically you've had them on for 1 oil change(using higher quality oil, which after seeing this I doubt you use).

[Razi]

I'm not sure what you're trying to convey here, except "you get what you pay for" by drawing the conclusion that if higher priced coilovers of the same class are bad, these much be much worse.

Of course MDUs will be much worse.
The majority of $1k coilovers are not that great, and the best you can ever get with 1k coilovers are "decent".
With MDUs, you'll get ones a level of quality where the shocks can blow in a year.
That quality might be on par with riding on cut springs and stock shocks.

A friend of mine bought a used set of Godspeed coilovers, the ride quality is horrible and the "clicks" on some of the shocks didn't work, the knobs just spun freely.

How is buying a used set of coilovers (especially when you fail to mention how used) in any way indicative of the new product? This is what I'm talking about with firsthand experience. It's always "my friend" or "my aunts dogs friends owners wife's stepson". Define "horrible ride quality", because as far as I'm aware, most people would consider even a premium coilover set to be horrible ride quality. This is all very opinionated and devoid of hard evidence. Some people don't need 10,000 way adjustability.

I don't need to eat glass myself to know that it won't be pleasant.
What we're looking for in car parts are not advertisement catchphrases about how many adjustments it has.

In the case of coilovers, you get what you pay for.

No you don't. In most cases you either pay entirely way too much for peace of mind or pay too little and end up regretting it. There is a middle ground to be had, hence the point in my interest in these coilovers. People are polar here, and it's like I'm reading the same regurgitated opinion in every post.

$500 eBay suspension is not a middle ground.
KYB shocks and lowering springs is a middle ground.
The other folk regurgitate the same opinions as well. "If it holds up, it's good enough."

Jim should just look at this set as a temporary setup to replace your previously blown shocks.

Why not use it in the long term, if it holds up? That's an extremely biased thing to say.

Perhaps we both want different things out of our suspension.
What you seem to want is something that hopefully won't break.

Here are some sheets of crappy shocks. (In this case, Ksport.)

Note how the same settings are have different rebound rates.
The minimum setting of one shock is almost as stiff as full stiff on the other.
Same with the rear.

Now, these are coilover that are priced at a ridiculous $1k.
Even in the $1k range there are bad options like these Ksports.
But in the instance of Fortune Auto coilovers, they have their shocks valved for the specified spring rate in their shop, and are dyno'd to make sure they all perform the way they should.
What does MDU do?
Even with what Fortune Auto does, their shocks will not be up to par as shocks from companies like Koni or Bilstein.
That's why, one day I'll try to gut my current coilover tube out and fit Koni or Bilstein shocks inside the coilover body.

I'm not against trying to find the cheapest option.
What I am against are low quality products.
I don't blame you for considering a cheap set of coilovers, and whether or not they blow in 6 months does not affect me.
Meanwhile my coilovers are slightly over a year old and have not leaked out all it's vital fluids and has a ride that even my mother doesn't complain about.

[mixeds14]

why is everyone still crying about this, so he bought some cheap a** coilovers, let him do hes review on them n then b**** at him when they blow.. not everyone has 1g+ to spend on coilovers, people have bills to pay n kids to feed.. if hes taking them to the track and dd, than that cant be to bad, yeah they might blow within a year or so but if not then hes goin to prove a lot of u wrong..

if they happen to last, than that would be a good startup coil for people on a budget, a lot of people dont even dd their 240s, this could be good for some track fun atleast, hell i dont even put 10k miles on my 240 a year, hence y i dont want to buy some awsome expensive a$$ coils. ...

hes not comparing them to any other coilover and im pretty sure he has an idea on the difference of this coils and high end ones, he just took a chance and given this a try, give the guy sometime n let him do his review...

[supersayianjim]

thank you for that graph razi. so where do you think megans fall?? i know u did ksports.

[supersayianjim]

wtf are you talking about?? press #1 for english.

i get the cheapo ones. actually start a thread/have experience with them first hand instead of the he/she said b.s.

then if/when they fail i upgrade. what part of this don't you understand?

You and Mercury must have done poorly in Reading class. How is my Engrish bad? The only gramatical mistake I see is I forgot a period at the end. And I didn't say anything about not understanding you. I said your logic kills me, meaning I understand your mindset, but it's so naive and stupid that it's hilarious. You don't have enough first hand experience. 5k miles. Big deal. Basically you've had them on for 1 oil change(using higher quality oil, which after seeing this I doubt you use).

well hoffman i use only mobil 1. and i don't cheap out on my car just cause i got some affordable coilovers??

so it's stupid that iam trying products on the market to see how reliable they are?? stupid buying things and being a consumer right??

[Hoffman5982]

No, stupid for cutting as big of a corner on one of the most vital parts of your car. Once again, there is a difference between affordable and down right cheap. Can you guess which one you chose? I'll give you a hint, it isn't the affordable option. After seeing this thread, I can't really take your word as to whether or not you cheap out on other aspects of your car. Should you care? No. Also, since you felt the pathetic need to comment on my English, I won't feel so bad when asking you if you know what capitalization is. See how much of a pathetic cheap shot that is?

[Hoffman5982]

After that last post from Razi, this thread is over.

[Razi]

thank you for that graph razi. so where do you think megans fall?? i know u did ksports.

No problem!
I doubt Megan would be any better, but at least they aren't $1k and I've never seen the newer ones failing.
I'm not sure how much Megan's are these days, but you can buy a Fortune Auto set for little over $1k at ImportImage.

[idreamofs13's]

I'm not sure how much Megan's are these days, but you can buy a Fortune Auto set for little over $1k at ImportImage.

and about the same at fortune-auto.net. They offer rebuild service too, which I find comforting.... and for the sake of the argument here, a 1 year warranty

Dunno if I'm allowed to post that or not. Delete if needed.

[badbob2121]

After that last post from Razi, this thread is over.

i completely agree, and if some members werent so naive in defense of their own cheapness... this should of died when it started

[supersayianjim]

mr hoffman seems mr hostile. lighten up bud. this is a DISCUSSION!!!

[Hoffman5982]

How am I hostile?

[krash]

mr hoffman seems mr hostile. lighten up bud. this is a DISCUSSION!!!

Its 240 gen, what did you expect?

[Armstec_S13]

Dunno wh everyone is bashing, I'd buy them for that price, hell people spend about the same on lowering springs and struts so why not buy some coilovers for the same price and I can lower my car?

Who cares if the OP hasn't had your name brand coils to compare with, it's better than stock and you people saying they won't last a year, please show us some receipts for the same or other cheap coils you bought and show us pics of what happened to you.

These "they're not gonna last a year" claims are hearsay, why do you say it? Because you heard someone say they were only going to last a year?
Show your proof to validate you claim.

OP, please let us all know every thing you experience with these
I have some Emotor coilovers I bought for $350 new and they felt just like my tein coilovers on my prelude, and after three years of use with the Emotors and they're still solid nothing seized or blown, I thought I cheaped out because I bought my teins for 2k and only paid $350 for Emotor coilovers I would buy another set because they're cheap and they both feel and work the same.

Let's see how many of you can argue with my actual experience with cheap coilovers??

[krash]

hell people spend about the same on lowering springs and struts so why not buy some coilovers for the same price and I can lower my car?

So now we know who got absolutely nothing out of this thread...

[supersayianjim]

Dunno wh everyone is bashing, I'd buy them for that price, hell people spend about the same on lowering springs and struts so why not buy some coilovers for the same price and I can lower my car?

Who cares if the OP hasn't had your name brand coils to compare with, it's better than stock and you people saying they won't last a year, please show us some receipts for the same or other cheap coils you bought and show us pics of what happened to you.

These "they're not gonna last a year" claims are hearsay, why do you say it? Because you heard someone say they were only going to last a year?
Show your proof to validate you claim.

OP, please let us all know every thing you experience with these
I have some Emotor coilovers I bought for $350 new and they felt just like my tein coilovers on my prelude, and after three years of use with the Emotors and they're still solid nothing seized or blown, I thought I cheaped out because I bought my teins for 2k and only paid $350 for Emotor coilovers I would buy another set because they're cheap and they both feel and work the same.

Let's see how many of you can argue with my actual experience with cheap coilovers??

now thats the testimony i was going for. comparing a 2g coil to a $350 coil(with experience with both).

more of these would be welcomed.