I want to hear what you guys feel is just too (stiff) Im talking track and street, better yet a car that is mostly on the street but see's track time as well.

I know its been covered before but this is advanced tech so we can go furthur with this.

Of course the dampers, bushings, camber plates, and spherical bearings all play a role in the comfort/feel, but, I'd say (from experience) that 550f/650r is about the true limit of comfort: That is what I have and I'm completely ok with it and have no regrets. After that, you might still have a "quality" ride, but it will be really firm.

I see you live in Glendale. If you ever want to feel how my car rides personally, I'd be happy to give you a cruise.

thanks for the reply... reason i made the post... i ordered coilovers (silk road) and they speak zero english so i assume they misunderstood me and send me incorrect spring rates... 16kg/14kg... i dont mind the harsh ride however on the street, taking quick turns causes the rear to "hop" instead of sliding. Im looking into changing the rates.

I'm at 12kg frt and 14 kg rr. It's now at the point that the car is definitely not very comfortable anymore. 10kg frt and 12 kg rr had good balance and the street ride was good. Those rates pretty much correlate with Smogrunner's experience (10kg = 560 lb/in, 12kg = 670 lb/in).

a lotta "too stiff" also comes from overdamping. the stock springs are not super hard... but hte overdamping makes them nearly unbearable to some.

also for the track there is nothing too hard, i know the aspec car runs 20k springs (i know that's nuts).

but to achieve that happy medium i think what has been said is what to go by. that said make sure your damping is appropriate.

I installed the new Ohlins R&Ts back in Janurary and first ran them with 571f/457r then upped the rear to 500lbs.

Street setup: the previous setup (571/457) wasn't too bad for the street but the newer setup is worse. I generally set the dampers somewhere between 10-14 clicks out. Next time I take the car out I'm going to go full-soft and see if it's too undamped. I also have pillowball mounts front and rear and the rear lower-control arm polyurethane bushings. I'm considering switching to 500f/457r to improve the street ride quality.

I disagree that nothing is too stiff for the track. It depends on the track and the tires. I ran several events on street tires and the car was too stiff for the tires - it wasn't using the tires effectively.

yeah i guess i should qualify the too stiff thing. on bumpy tracks it's definitely a bad thing with the tires hopping around. but for smooth tracks... it's better to have too stiff than too soft.

Glad to see that someone else has the same thoughts that I have. Unless you have a true track car, high spring rates will make for a stiff ride on the street no matter what magic valving you are using.

Some subscribe to the idea that how the dampers are valved can make up for the stiffer springs (like the Vishnu/chronohunter setup). I am not sure what the Vishnu spring rates are as that info may be secret. I suspect that they are in the 500lb. - 600lb. ballpark. From what some have posted the ride and performance is quite good. Obviously there are at least a few competent suspension tuners. Some coilovers are also pretty good out of the box.

For a pretty good read (if you can get past the trash talking) check out these threads:

Ohlins or DMS 50 - https://www.evolutionm.net/forums/sh...d.php?t=186761

Vishnu Olins "Gerrard" Spec setup - https://www.evolutionm.net/forums/sh...d.php?t=175597

Most people that I have talked to feel that the 500-600lb range is a good compromise for street/track.

Vishnu recommends 450f/550r for their Ohlins. I went with a little more aggressive setup with 550f/650r.

^ yah paul let the spring cat out of the box, i don't think that's the most secret part. i think the valving he is. well.... i know the valving is hahaha.

I currently run 525f/600r without the gerrard spec valving. My ride quality is ok, I don't want to increase the spring rates without a revalving.

So if your setup is aggressive at 550f/650r, what will chronohunter feel about a 600/700 combo?


If the valving can support it, I am going to try. Anything to try and prevent the inside rear lifting during a typical autocross corner.

wheel lift is a bit difficult... even f1 cars lift wheels. it's all a matter of grip vs stiffness. at any stiffness there is a level of grip that will make you lift, and the more stiffness you have the faster you break away from your maximum grip threshold :\

Not doubting you my friend, but are you sure that the dampers are too stiff causing the stiff ride. If that is the case, then what stiffer spring rate can the stock dampers handle?

I would love to go with stiff springs that will drop the car by not more than 1 inch and still use the stock dampers. If the car handles better and rides better, it is a win/win situation.

im suprised you feel the valving supports what you have now.
i'm running 425/525 on the same shocks and feel like i'm running out of dampening on the stock valving.
i think the stock springs on the rt's are around 280 or there about. so double that and i don't think there is enough valving left.
even at full clicks it still seems under dampened. granted i run at laguna, sears, and t-hill so there is a bit more elevation change going on than at some tracks but still.

as far as the inner wheel lift issue, are you dropping rear bar thickness as you go up in spring rate?
i would think that you have to to get the rear wheels working more "independent" of each other.
and as your rates go up the car will stay flatter on it's own without the need for so much bar, right?

Slightly OT, but I have noticed that is the US there seems to be a distinct trend towards firmer sprin rates on the rear of the EVO whereas justa about everything out of Japan has the front sprung heavier than the rear.

Just interested in what you guys have discovered with this setup as it goes against the general trend out of Japan.