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Springs vs coilovers



  Clio Sport 172
appart from the clear price difference is there really such a massive difference.... i want my 172 to sit a little nicer and dont fancy paying 600+ for coilovers and also dont want it to handle like s**t on springs...... what do you guys think?
 
  53 Clio 172
Sportlines will make a difference and I had them on mine before I bought some Coils from Ktch.

Springs improved look and handling but the coilovers have made a huge difference in looks and handling!! I def wouldn't go back to springs
 
  Clio Sport 172
yea thats what i would expect but im not earning massive money right now as im still a trainee, so to me i cant see the sense in paying all that money if i could afford it then yes 100% sportlines...... but for now if springs will do the job i might take that option..
 
Stick with quality springs like Eibachs. Don't be a muppet like half the children on this site and buy some cheap s**t coilovers. You're talking £700+ before you get to anything worth having so if your budget is only £150-200 a decent set of springs will be far better than the bargain basement coilovers. One thing I will say though is if your shocks are old/tired then you might want to look at sorting them before modding anything. I'd have a check over them, look for leaks etc before ordering the springs.
 
  172 Ph1, Lupo GTI
The Eibach sportlines are very good for a daily car. My 172 is driven down some silly small country lanes at a brisk pace and the Eibachs (Pro-kit on mine) soak up the bumps and the tyres keep good traction.
Coilovers will upgrade the damping as well, but its a step up again. Not entirely necessary but only more vital if you head out on trackdays or want to get it lower still.
 
  53 Clio 172
Stick with quality springs like Eibachs. Don't be a muppet like half the children on this site and buy some cheap s**t coilovers. You're talking £700+ before you get to anything worth having so if your budget is only £150-200 a decent set of springs will be far better than the bargain basement coilovers. One thing I will say though is if your shocks are old/tired then you might want to look at sorting them before modding anything. I'd have a check over them, look for leaks etc before ordering the springs.

Everyone has different budgets my friend and it doesn't automatically make you a muppet if you don't buy H&R's

I have Ktc coils on mine and they are MILES better than the sportlines I had on previously and I would consider them as budget coilovers.
 

Fletcher

ClioSport Club Member
Stick with quality springs like Eibachs. Don't be a muppet like half the children on this site and buy some cheap s**t coilovers. You're talking £700+ before you get to anything worth having so if your budget is only £150-200 a decent set of springs will be far better than the bargain basement coilovers. One thing I will say though is if your shocks are old/tired then you might want to look at sorting them before modding anything. I'd have a check over them, look for leaks etc before ordering the springs.

^^^This TBH.
 
  CBR1000RR Fireblade
I have been thinking about this for a long time now. I currently have v maxx coilovers (they came on the car) and they are going to be replaced with solid too mounts and Koni 35mm kit.

The reason being that this will be an awesome handling set up and the only way I can think of improving this set up is to replace the Koni springs with eibachs.

That's my 2ps worth
 
  dci1.5 look RS
you want better handling just with springs?

pls put the complete kit, springs and lowering dampers like konis or eibach b8..
 
  350z, Subaru Legacy
I have been thinking about this for a long time now. I currently have v maxx coilovers (they came on the car) and they are going to be replaced with solid too mounts and Koni 35mm kit.

The reason being that this will be an awesome handling set up and the only way I can think of improving this set up is to replace the Koni springs with eibachs.

That's my 2ps worth

Still interested to hear where you go with this, on Vmaxx sitting low atm and not really that happy with the damping.
 
  MK3 GTI golf 16v
ap's ive found very good. made by KW or H&R cant remember who, its their cheaper make. they are really good, 2nd hand for the win if your trying to save money.
 
  CBR1000RR Fireblade
Still interested to hear where you go with this, on Vmaxx sitting low atm and not really that happy with the damping.

ill let you know bud, the car sits nice now but the ride is horrible and the suspension is far too soft when driving hard.

hopefully the koni kit will be a massive imrpovement
 
Everyone has different budgets my friend and it doesn't automatically make you a muppet if you don't buy H&R's

Buying cheap tat does IMO. I'm not being a snob about peoples budget but the fact remains people will insist on doing mods which they clearly don't have the cash to do.

Do it once and do it right, if you can't afford a decent set of coilovers then stick to springs, if you have a little extra cash get uprated dampers and springs. I'd personally not bother with cheap coilovers (yes I have tried/bought some to be open minded and frankly they were s**t) as for your money you'll get much better spring and damper kits.

The reason so many on here buy cheap coilovers is because they want the car on the deck or the bragging rights of "my car's running coilovers" to their equally poorly informed mates.
 
I wasn't impressed with the damping on FK's if I'm honest and I've not had any experience of the AP's. Gaz were abysmal for example and some people consider these as mid range or ok. I wouldn't fit a set to my car if I was given them FOC after owning a set in the past.
 
  172/1.2/E30
FKs aren´t bad imo, APs either (own(ed) both). But it is also dependent on the usage of the car imo. And for road driving the FKs and APs are more than capable. Quality wise there is no difference to H&Rs or KWs (APs are KW V1s). No sense in slating reasonable coilovers if you have no experience with them but that are only my 2p...
 
  172 Ph1, Lupo GTI
partly its the ride with cheap coilovers, but the other thing to consider is how well they will last. We have been selling FK as well as KW, weitec and bilstein for some time.
FK is cheap and it seems to have the most returns. Enough that we are winding down our stock and removing it from our site to focus on other brands.
It is a massive inconvenience to have to remove suspension and ship it back for testing and replacement. You are not covered under warranty for any labour costs you incur for the removal. It just ends up costing the customer and businesses like us more money. All suspension companies have issues now and then but the better brands have fair less.
I'd steer clear of rokkor, v maxx, raceland, FK and go for AP and Weitec as a decent mid range brand.
Kev
 
  172/1.2/E30
Driving my FK Highsports for about 50k miles and they are still spot on. But i did not slam it on the bump stops.... I´ve also seen H&Rs leaking after a year.
 
  MK3 GTI golf 16v
glad i got the ap's to be fair. was i right in thinking there owned by a better company anyway ?
 
FKs aren´t bad imo, APs either (own(ed) both). But it is also dependent on the usage of the car imo. And for road driving the FKs and APs are more than capable. Quality wise there is no difference to H&Rs or KWs (APs are KW V1s). No sense in slating reasonable coilovers if you have no experience with them but that are only my 2p...

I disagree on the FK's and my contact with them was for road use. As Kev says it's not a question of handling (something which in itself is subjective tbh) damping/ride quality which not only effects how easy they are to live with but has an effect when the car is driven hard, you can't drive quickly if a car is bouncing, skipping or crashing over every imperfection in the tarmac.

I didn't comment on the AP's as I said I've not had contact with them. That said my opinion comapring H&R's to KW's or AP's may differ to yours though.
 
  172/1.2/E30
Dunno how the FKs were set up, but mine are great handling wise. But I still got some suspension travel and not riding permanently on the bump stops. And as far as i know there are even some track-heads on here who ride the FKs. Don´t like lowering with springs on standard unshortened shocks tbh, makes the ride to harsh imo. But i guess suspension modification depends strongly on taste, budget and the purpose of the car. Why would you for example put some 3xxx Pound fully adjustable super shizzle coils on a 1.2!?
 
Personally I wouldn't, but nor would I fit cheap coilovers I'd sooner have fixed matched springs and dampers for the same budget. The closest comparison I can make is mountain bikes. I'd always prefer a £1000 hardtail to a £1000 full sus set up, you'll get a better frame, gearset etc for your budget.

The fact Kev feels the need to remove them from sale due to the amount of hassle he has had speaks volumes.
 
  172 Ph1, Lupo GTI
Every manufacturer will have returns and failures. What you want is a low percentage. Off the top of my head Supersprint run under 0.1% failure rate.
In our experience the FK own branded products have been less than satisfactory though interestingly mostly Citroen C2 seals have been going in less than a year. It might be 5-10% failure rate with that car and the pictures of these cars have not looked like they were running as low as possible. We are not big enough to sustain losses from failures, or to loose customers from bad experiences so end of the day I have to choose products that are going to work and leave a smiling punter. We dont always get it right and it can be costly to us but we need customers to be happy with the service and the quality of products so they will return and buy other things.
Maybe its our roads giving them a harsher life. Maybe theres lots of happy customers in europe, but business is hard enough without this kind of issue.

Kev
 
  53 Clio 172
Personally I wouldn't, but nor would I fit cheap coilovers I'd sooner have fixed matched springs and dampers for the same budget. The closest comparison I can make is mountain bikes. I'd always prefer a £1000 hardtail to a £1000 full sus set up, you'll get a better frame, gearset etc for your budget.

The fact Kev feels the need to remove them from sale due to the amount of hassle he has had speaks volumes.

This I agree with but once again it is personal taste with any set up whether it be a car or even a bike.

I just don't see how you can slate cheaper coilovers when I can quite obviously get round a corner faster than when I had my uprated springs but I have a feeling we won't agree so I will agree to disagree ;)
 
  172 Ph1, Lupo GTI
I dont think anyone is disagreeing with that. A stiffer damper and spring will allow higher cornering speeds within reason, but thats not what you are paying for in a more expensive kit. Better quality dampers give better damping control, steering control, better comfort, more adjustability, allow stiffer springs to be used, better durability, lighter components etc etc.
I used to laugh at how heavy the raceland/rokkor coilover bodies are, but hey...I wont sell them either.
Coilovers tend to be stiffer than road springs as there is less compromise needed to get the car low, Springs like the Eibachs are progressive so very soft initially so there is more roll than fixed rate springs on a coilover body too.
 
This I agree with but once again it is personal taste with any set up whether it be a car or even a bike.

I just don't see how you can slate cheaper coilovers when I can quite obviously get round a corner faster than when I had my uprated springs but I have a feeling we won't agree so I will agree to disagree ;)

You could also argue lighter, better made, better damped more expensive coilovers would allow for even greater cornering speeds ;) I'm just not a fan of cheap tat I'd sooner select a sensible option for my budget so would opt for decent spring and damper kit over a low end coilover kit. People don't seem to select their mods according to their budget, I'd sooner buy second hand quality parts than cheap new ones.
 
  172 Ph1, Lupo GTI
Well look at Stock Hatch for example. The cars running Gaz simply are outpaced by the ones fitted with AST suspension...
 
  53 Clio 172
You could also argue lighter, better made, better damped more expensive coilovers would allow for even greater cornering speeds ;) I'm just not a fan of cheap tat I'd sooner select a sensible option for my budget so would opt for decent spring and damper kit over a low end coilover kit. People don't seem to select their mods according to their budget, I'd sooner buy second hand quality parts than cheap new ones.

Tbh I know where your coming from and agree that more expensive coils are MORE expensive for a reason but even my Ktc ones I am impressed with as I picked them up for just under £200 new!
 


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