Project Five: Handling and Grip
Last spring, we changed the front page of evolutionm.net, and had a bit of an issue with data migration. During that time, a few articles were lost. To that end, I’m rewriting some content. There have been quite a few project cars on the site over the years, and as this is my fifth Evo, I thought Project Five was an apt title.
Lets rewind a couple of years where this car’s story began as a base 2013 Evo X GSR. After exhaust modifications and tuning were completed, I wanted to address handling and grip.
My experiences with aftermarket suspension weren’t positive on my prior Evo X, a 2008 model. Lowering springs on stock shocks could provide the aesthetics I wanted, but gave poor ride and handling characteristics. On that car, I went straight to cheaper Japanese coilovers, assuming they’d be a decent upgrade over lowering springs. I do think they are a better choice than springs over the long term, but still far from quality. They performed well enough at speed, but were a little bouncy around town, and prompted complaints from my passengers. The gravity of how bad they actually were wasn’t apparent until I removed the upgrades to trade it in, put the stock suspension back on, and the car instantly became not-a-piece-of-crap.
I had 18×9.5 Enkei RPF1 wheels on that car, but due to their offset of +15, I had to run OEM sized rubber to prevent contact with the rear fenders, as I didn’t really want to roll them. 245 wide tires stretched onto 9.5″ wheels just looks silly to me, and out of place on an Evo.
Back to plotting the upgrades for the 2013, I had considerable experience of parts I didn’t want, but only a concept in my head of what I did. I’d best define that as neutrality, steering precision, and ridiculous amounts of grip. Seeing successes CBRD has had in this arena, I called Chad Block and asked him to figure it out for me.
In the air, coilover swap in progress.
We settled on Ohlins R&T with higher spring rates in the rear to match those in the front. The rates are 10k/10k. For a small fee, CBRD can set up the coilovers for you.
Ohlins R&T with DFV technology
Ohlins vs. OEM front
They were shipped to me that way, ready to bolt in, and the installation was a snap.
Stock rear vs. Ohlins. Perrin rear bar and endlinks.
In addition to the Ohlins R&T, CBRD recommended a Perrin 25mm rear swaybar and endlinks.
Rear suspension and bar installed.
I settled about 35% from full stiff on the Ohlins for the best handling and ride compromise. Though much stiffer than stock, the low speed control was better than anything I have tried as well as the bounce eliminated. Turn in was much better with the new bar, the rear of the Evo follows the front instantly, as if the car was hewn from a piece of granite.
Perrin rear swaybar. I started with the outer setting, than eventually settled on the middle setting.
I lowered the car very minimally to maintain good suspension travel as well as ground clearance.
With the suspension goal achieved, it was time to look at wheels and tires. It was at this point I hit a small snag: The offset of the stock wheels with the mild drop looked sunken in. My aim was to put the widest of both possible without having to roll the rear fenders.
265/35/18 Michelin Pilot Super Sport tires.
The X will accommodate 18×9.5 +22 wheels on 265/35/18 tires without contacting the rear fender liner. I chose Michelin Pilot Super Sport tires due to the fact they’re the best summer tire that can take some mileage. Discount Tire got these in for me within one day, price matched the competition, installed, and balanced them.
RavSpec sourced Rays Gram Lights 57Xtreme wheels.
I’ve bought all my Evo wheels from RavSpec, who is also a vendor here. They’re extremely knowledgable about fitment, ship quickly, and have great prices.
Wheels and tires mounted, the extra rubber took it over the top and exceeded my goals for handling and grip. The limit is substantially higher than stock. Driving confidence is increased in corners, and the quality obliterates everything I’ve tried before. The old adage, “You get what you pay for”, especially rings true here. Do it once, do it right.
Special thanks to: CBRD Speedfactory, Ohlins USA, Perrin Performance, RavSpec