NC Coilover Install....OHLINS, JIC, etc...

[lobsternet1]

is this typically a DIY job for the shadetree mechanic or is it best to take it to a shop?

[Brian]

Decent shadetree mechanic with good metric tool set can certainly do the job...

[lobsternet1]

hey brian-

is there any concern with the aftermarket coilover/shock kits regarding snow/salt/ice beyond the normal spray it off regularly protocol? my mx5 is my DD. Thanks!

[Brian]

YES...can't suggest aluminum bodied units to anybody driving salted roads despite fact that corrosion protection on some is latest ISO9000 etc.

Eventually the salt makes a mess of the aluminum.

My customers in northern regions very often pick the KW or Bilstein PSS9 and PSS10 kits.

[lobsternet1]

Do you recommend the Bilstein or KW kits? Also, are they made of steel then? Thanks!

edit- also, with whatever kit you recommend, do you also have a recommendation for a set of complementary sway bars?

[Brian]

The Bilstein are plated and the KW are stainless steel. Customers have had good luck with the Bilstein but hard to argue wirth stainless steel.

Our Racing Beat sways are currently my favorite.

[Burton]

WARNING...you do NOT adjust height on the Ohlins or JIC by cranking the spring perches up against the spring tension and doing so can DAMAGE YOUR COILOVERS!!! Instead, you undo the lock perches and spin/twist the entire shock BODY into and out of the base coupler of the shock and then follow by spinning the perches up to put just light tension on the springs...just enough to keep them from banging around when the suspension unloads. In the front this is easy...in the rear this gets more complicated because you need to be careful to keep the travel centered.

My question concerns keeping the travel centered with the install of the rear Ohlins coilovers on my 2007 MX5. The units were assembled according to the instruction sheet supplied by Ohlins, with the required items transfered from the oem units. The preloaded spring length is 198 mm as specified in instructions - just light tension - but this required the spring perches to be 5 mm lower than Ohlins specified. The distance between the bottom of the lock nut for the spring perch and the top of the lock nut for the height adjustment is now 14 mm instead of the specified 19 mm. Unfortunately, I forgot to record my measurement of the length of the exposed shock shaft to the bottom of the bump stop. Installed on the car, I measured from a point on the underside of the top mount to a reference point near the bottom of the shock. This measurement differs by 56 mm between the car sitting with tires on the ground and with tires in the air. So, it appears that I have a little over 2 inches of droop or full extension travel. I do not know how much bump or compression travel I have. What is the total travel measure for the rear Ohlins shock? Is my travel "centered"? If I need to increase bump travel and decrease droop significantly, how do I do it without cranking the spring perch up against spring tension to the point that it may damage my coilovers? With 200 miles of driving, I am very impressed with the comfort and handling transformation that these coilovers provide.

[morrisg]

Sounds like you set the Ohlins up correctly with the 198mm measurement for the spring perch. If you are using the Ohlins supplied 4kg/mm springs for the rears, then you don't have to worry about centering the travel of the shock. This is determined by the spring rate and the rear weight loading of the car, both of which Ohlins took into account when they designed the shock/spring combination. In short, you're fine. Enjoy the shocks, they are great.

I have had mine for over a year now and the standard springs supplied by Ohlins worked very well for both street and autox use. I did a full fender roll and stuffed 17x9 RPF1s with 255/40x17 Toyo R1Rs on them, plus a set of Racing Beat sways for STR autox class. This is probably a bit much for the street, but the car looks and handles great. I set my Ohlins at -6 from full stiff for the fronts and -12 from full stiff for the rears when on the street. Very comfortable while still being controlled during large excursions. Truly love those Ohlins!

[Burton]

Thank you morrisg. This is what I wanted to hear.

[Woo]

Does anybody know the minumum amount of lowering with the latest Ohlins?

Or put another way, what is the maximum ride height, fender to hub centre, that you can get?

Lotsa rough roads here.

I'm referring to "New Ohlins Road and Track Miata DFV - OUR BEST MX5 MIATA COILOVER".

Thanks.

[Brian]

We had one customer report he set his car for just about a half inch of lowering, but it was not clear if he could have set it even higher.

[Chris Thompson]

Does anybody know the minumum amount of lowering with the latest Ohlins?

Or put another way, what is the maximum ride height, fender to hub centre, that you can get?

Lotsa rough roads here.

I'm referring to "New Ohlins Road and Track Miata DFV - OUR BEST MX5 MIATA COILOVER".

Thanks.

I have no numbers for you, Woo. I have new DFV's with race springs set at the absolute lowest I could get the ride height and it's not very much lower than stock but for me it's good where it's at. I'm sure with the either standard springs or race springs you COULD raise the ride height (with the Ohlins DFV adjustable body length) so high as to make the car look like a 4-wheel drive. With standard spring you could also get it slammed way low too if you wanted. The race springs don't sag much so that limits how low you can go.

[Curves]

This is from the Ohlins Manual I received with Ohlins for my NC.

Front - With both the preload and height adjustments in their standard positions, the vehicle is lowered 35mm when compared to the original suspension. The adjustment range is the standard position +/- 15mm.

Rear- With both the preload and height adjustments in their standard positions, the vehicle is lowered 35mm when compared to the original suspension. The adjustment range is the standard position -15mm to +10mm.

This translates to

Ohlin Ranges Min, Std, Max
Rear 20mm, 35mm, 45mm
0.79", 1.38", 1.78"
Front 20mm, 35mm, 50mm
0.79", 1.38", 1.97"

[morrisg]

woo: For rough roads, the Ohlins will be an excellent choice. With the standard 7k/4k springs, I would characterize the ride as very supple for the street. I have about half a block of severely patched asphalt with some potholes to get to my house and the Ohlins were great over that patch every day. I didn't measure the suspension travel using zip ties on the shock rods, but the Ohlins spring rates are higher than stock so you should not have any suspension bottoming with them if you haven't had any with the stock spring rates. If your question is more in the direction of "Do the Ohlins beat you up over bumps?" then my answer is No, they don't. I thought they were more comfortable than the stock suspension on the street. Hope this helps.

[JT12]

Brian - have a set of Tokico HTS and Progress springs coming. From looking at the pictures of those vs. the Ohlins here am I correct to assume that re-use of both the front and rear factory hat assemblies is needed in that case? So either get a new set front and rear, or a spring comressor?

Also - is the best way to get at the controller arm bolts to torque with the car on the ground to get an arm in the space between the tire and the fender down near the ground? Thanks.