Hey guys,

So, I've been doing tons of research over the past few weeks and I think I'm getting burned out from staring at the screen so much. I really need some advice.

Right now I'm on 350Z Tein H-techs and Tokico HP blues. My concern is slight drop under 1 inch, ride quality, and handling in that order. I don't need my vehicle to perform like a track car. This is a daily driver and I put on about 20K miles a year.

Research has led me to believe that it is possible to get close to OEM like ride quality with the right coilover set-up, but comes at a price. As those of you with a Kuruma Z bumper know...anything more than a 1 inch drop causes major scraping issues. This rules out most coilover set-ups as a 1 inch drop is the starting minimum drop for most coilovers. The Teins I have drop the front 0.9-0.8 inches and 0.6 in the rear if I'm not mistaken. I feel like I'm already pushing the limits in the front now. If anything I'd prefer a .75 inch drop all around with my aftermarket body parts.

From further research, it seems like the Tanabe Pro 5 is an ideal option for a coilover as reviews on this forum show OEM like ride quality and good handling. Does anyone have any more info on these coilovers as it seems there isn't that much out there really?

If not the Tanabe Pro 5, can anyone recommend another quality coilover that is not harsh, stiff, or will drop the car too low?

With all the information provided, if what I'm looking for would be more suited for just replacement shocks, I'm not opposed to that idea either. My current Tokico HP blues have over 70K miles on them and are in need of replacement asap, but maybe replacement shocks would be fine as I've probably come accustom to driving on worn shocks.

Thanks for the help.

Tony

 

The closest to stock that I've tried was KW (any variant). I'm not sure what the tallest setting is though. I've heard Tanabe is great too. My friend has them installed on his 06.

 

I've found from the forums here that the KW V3 are really good. The problem is I want to stay out of that price range as that close to $2.5-3K if I'm not mistaken. The Tanabes are right around $1500, so I don't want to spend more than that. Cheaper is an option as well. Thanks for the input so far.

 

Yea, I spent pretty close to that on mine. I love them though. Best money I spent when it comes to my suspension set up. I've read the Variant 1 is a solid set up and you can find it for around $1400-1500. All I've read is that the ride feels close to stock and I couldn't agree more.

 

I paid 1700 for my KW Varient 2's Ride Quality is amazing plus you have dampening settings and well as ajustablility

 

I'm actually in the same boat as you and looking for pretty much the same thing but at a lower budget. I have done tons of research so I wanted to share what I learned so far.

One common thread for all "comfort" coilovers is softer spring rates. Many popular coilovers for the G use 10k/8k (560/448) or higher spring rates (BC, Megan, Tanabe etc), which is stiffer than oem rate of 314/342 (5.6k/6.1k) non-sport and 314/427 (5.6K/7.6K) sport coupes. Shock valving has an impact on ride quality, but generally the stiffer the springs the harsher the ride will be.

Comfort coilovers use much softer rates, here are a few for comparison:
KW coilovers Variant's 1,2&3: Front 485lbs to 525Lbs and Rear: 240Lbs to 548Lbs (progressive springs) about 8.6k to 9.3k front and 4.2k to 9.7k rear
Bilstein B16 (PSS9) : Spring rates 370/240-420 (rear progressive) - about 6.6k front and 4.2k-7.5k rear
HKS III (not the Sport model): Spring rates 448/448 (8k/8K)
Tein CS: Spring rates 392/392 (7k/7k)

As you can see, KW and Blistein both use progressive springs which start quite soft, especially in the rear. Its no coincidence that these are widely considered as some of the most comfortable coilovers out there. HKS and Tein CS also have really good reviews and some of the best rides you can get on coilovers.

Tanabe Pro 5 and Tein CS are around the same price bracket, CS is a bit more. If you don't mind spending the money, than CS is probably the better choice for comfort. If you don't care about adjustable dampening, than Bilstein B14 comes with the same spring rates as B16 (PSS9/10) and offers one of the best rides you can get for around 1k. Their shocks are superior to almost everything on the market, "Germans always make good stuff!". I am leaning towards this setup myself.

 

i want these ohlins so bad but outta my budget

http://my350z.com/forum/norcal-marke...rms-tires.html

 

Thanks for the input so far. I do have some comments in reply though.

Are spring rates the major determining factor when it comes to OEM comfort/ride-like quality? The reason I ask is that I've read several posts where people say their set-up is OEM like, but the spring rate set-up they have are much higher compared to OEM.

Regarding the Bilstein B14s, I wanted to go with this set-up, but the minimum drop is 30mm or 1.1 inches which causes problems for the Kuruma Z bumper. If this wasn't the case I would have purchased these as the pricing is really good at $1K.

I think the KW's are a bit more than I'd want to spend. The KW v1 would be in the price range, but without adjustable dampening I've heard that the ride is rough. Then again that was based on a friend that drives a Volvo S40 with KW v1s.

I'm on the same page as Polishthrust for the most part.

I understand the whole point of going with stiffer springs the lower the car is dropped to prevent the car from being to bouncy and bottoming out and other issues. Since I've never had a suspension system with adjustable dampening, is the adjustable dampening able to provide an OEM like comfortable ride with stiff springs or are stiff springs going to be a harsh ride regardless of dampening control or not?

I was really leaning toward the Tanabe Pro 5's but I'll look at the Tein CS as well. Thanks for the advice.

 

Spring rates are definitely a major factor. If you run a super stiff spring than no dampener will make it ride like oem. Softer springs offer better contact with the road. Dampening definitely makes a big difference, but it can only do so much for the ride. I came across a good review of coilovers which gave some insight on typical coilover dampening curve for most mainstream coilovers out there. Have you noticed that most people who run coilovers have them set somewhere a few clicks from the middle? This is why adjustability can only take you so far:

There is also the "mono tube vs twin tube" debate. Generally speaking, twin tube is better suitable for street use and offers a more comfortable ride. Mono tube is good for track use. Tanabe uses twin tube for comfort so that's a nice plus. Check out their new coilovers, the Sustec Comfort-R. No adjustability but it may meet your needs.

Each person's perception of ride quality is different. I have a non-sport coupe which is pretty soft. After driving my friend's sport coupe I realized that his oem ride is really stiff and bouncy, I really didn't like it but he thought it was just fine.

Keep us posted on what you go with. Its always nice to get validation from a person who has comfort as a priority.

 

On a side note.
I have also been considering BC coilovers with custom spring rates. I might go with 7k/7k like Tein CS for half the price.

If you want .5" drop all around with OEM ride than you can do what I have right now. I have oem 350z springs in the front and I cut the spring mount in the back (oem 350z springs dont lower Gs in the back). I cut mine .75" to even up the oem rake. Pair with some KYB shocks and you got OEM ride with slight drop.

 

Hey Polishthrust, thanks for all the input. Ever since you mentioned the Tanabe Sustec Pro Comfort-R's I've been trying to do some research on them. Apparently, they were released this year. B2autodesigns said they just got them in November so there isn't much feedback on them yet. I overlooked them since I thought they were the same as the Tanabe S-0C, but they are totally new.

What interests me about these Comfort-R's is that they are comfort related, but I don't see how they are any different compared to say the S-0Cs. I emailed Tanabe so hopefully I will get something soon. My theory is that maybe the Comfort-Rs are possiblly a Tanabe Pro 5 that is set all the way to soft and left that way. Then sold as a Comfort-R, but with all the dampening control taken away. Also, the spring rates are exactly the same as the Pro 5 and S-0Cs. If anyone can chime on this please do.

Thanks for the tip on the OEM 350Z springs, but I have something similar at the moment. I have 350Z Tein H-techs at the moment, but without the spring mount mod. The shocks are Tokico HP blues, but the shocks are over 70K now and its noticeably ready to be changed. I was looking into just getting some Tokico D-specs, but now its getting close to coilover range so that's where I'm looking now. If I can spend less that what the Pro 5 cost, that would be better for me. The Tanabe Comfort-R is the one I'm going to try to research now. That seems like something that would suit what I'm looking for, but I need to get more feedback on them. I'll look into the BCs with custom spring rates as well. One of the vendors here said that between BC and Tanabe he gets the most complaints about BC whereas Tanabe he doesn't get any complaints. Must be a good thing the way I see it.

 

I'm curious about this too, let me know what they say.

 

So, I was able to contact Tanabe on Friday over the phone. I asked the tech the questions that were brought up in this thread and this is what I was told.

The Tanabe Comfort-R are basically the new version of the S-0Cs, therefore the same results could be expected. Additionally, I asked about the comparison to the Tanabe Pro 5's and from the research on this forum. I told him that the research on this forum revealed that the Pro 5's were as good or better in the comfort department compared to OEM. Tanabe told me that the Pro 5 line was geared toward performance do to compatibility with the EAS unit. The tech did not say whether or not it would be as comfortable compared to the Comfort-R though or compared to OEM quality. Instead, the tech said that the Comfort-R was made more for street and comfort in mind, whereas the Pro 5 was performance geared.

After all that, I asked about spring rates as spring rates seem to be the same for the previous S-03, the Pro 5, and the new Comfort-R. Because the spring rates are the same, I did not see how the Comfort-R could be comfortable. Tanabe told me that difference between the Pro 5 and Comfort-R, despite the same springs being used, had to do with the internal valving of the dampers. Since I'm going for more of a quality ride with just a minor drop, compared to OEM, it seems that the Comfort-R would be a better fit and the savings is almost half that of the Tanabe Pro 5. Anyway, that's all for now.

 

It's disappointing to hear that its the same coilover, just rebranded. Seems like they didn't even bother improving the comfort at all, they just changed the name. Springs might be the best option for us given the small drop, I'm still on the fence.

The appeal for me was the pairing of shocks to the spring rates, but its hard to justify the price tag on the higher end coilovers for such a small drop.

 

Polishthrust, I may pull the trigger on these a buy a set. I actually already have the 350Z Tein-H techs and I feel that my drop is where I want it to be right now. If anything I would raise my front a bit due to my lower Kuruma Z bumper.

I was leaning toward a set of Tokico D-specs for the adjustable dampening, but if these Tanabe Comfort-R coilovers will provide the comfort I'm looking for, with some adjustability on height then that will work. It sounds like the valving is really good and when I start reading on the myg37 forums, it seems that despite the higher 10kg/8kg (560/448lbs) spring rates over OEM, members are commenting on ride quality being close to OEM. Maybe the stiffer spring rates only come into effect and become noticeable when the car is pushed. It's just unfortunate as what each of us consider as comfortable is different. From the vendors here I can get a set around the $850 mark shipped. If there is a better offer please let me know. This frees up some money for me to do other things with.

The other option are, like you said (Polishthrust), the BC coilovers. Custom spring rates with matched valving seem like a nice feature. This is what appealed to me with the Fortune Auto's, but the minimum drop with the Fortune Auto is 1inch and I need less due to my Kuruma Z. I'm still open to ideas though so if there are other options to consider, please chime in.