Hey guys.. I currently have a set of JIC's tuned by RRE. I love the performance, and the ride quality is not bad (definitely stiffer than stock) but the daily commutes are taking its toll.

I was wondering if I softened the dampening to make ride quality better, what can I do to help minimize performance loss?

Rear strut tower bar?
Swaybars?

any ideas are appreciated. Thanks.

 

sofetning the dampen may work but do it too much and you will have ricer civic type bouncyness that will drive you nuts. try a second set of wheel shod with a tire with a taller, softer, side wall than what you have now. as the tire rack guys what they think would be best.

 

Depending on how severe your ride is, helper springs may also help.

 

Have you asked RRE to see if they can do anything to give your set-up a better ride quality?

 

Somebody on this board - I think on the Thunderhill thread - suggested that the Ohlin supension is more suitable for street/track usage and JIC more track only oriented.

 

A change of tires can make a big difference. With a softer sidewall, you'll loose a little performance, but pick up ride quality. Many have experienced this with the "winter" tires for the EVO. I am very pleased with my Falken ZIEX 512's. They are a great high performance all season tires. Didn't loose that much handling, and picked up All Season & ride comfort.

 

That would be me.

However, I think you may have over simplified my thoughts (Or I may not have conveyed them properly).

The Ohlins really shine in their smoothness and stock like characteristics. They offer an improvement in cornering performance over stock, but the don't seem to make a significant sacrifice in ride quality for the street. I didn't get to have a lengthy test ride/drive on the street, but it was apparent that they made a good suspension kit for a street car while offering more performance. It is like what the car should have came with. A good road performing setup and even better handling.

JICs on the other hand, are also a very good combination of parts. The setup developed by RRE provides a huge improvement in handling on the track. The car is transformed into a wonderful machine that goes very fast on the race track. The setup is made in a way that it is also a very streetable system. But of course, having the ultimate handling setup comes with some small sacrifices on the street which I didn't think was so bad. No so bad enough that I bought a set.

So like anything else, guys will need to think about what they want and make the purchase decision for yourself. Take rides in other cars with similar setups and see how you like them. There are lots great of choices out there.

John at RRE was very responsive to my questions about the suspension. So I wonder why you're not calling/emaling him to discuss your concerns?

Ride quality is very subjective when you're just looking at one setup (as opposed to comparing 2). Some folks might even complain that the stock suspension is too stiff and hard to deal with on the street. So it may be a disservice to the hard work that has been put into your setup if you don't give John a call to discuss. I'm sure he'll give you the advice you need!

 

How about a custom set of delrin bushings? They should allow for easier suspension articulation, so small to medium bumps will feel smoother. The main downside, besides having to have them custom made, is they'll transmit more noise.

 

You have JIC's... See if you can get a softer spring rate.

Also, try tuning the dampening on the struts to change the ride. Another thing to check is the preload on the JIC Spring.

The spring preload is set by adjusting the spring until it touches the top spring perch so the spring isn't moving but it's not compressed. then screw in 3mm for proper spring preload. You should not have to remove the struts to do this adjustment.

BTW, you should confirm how to do the preload adjustment with RRE.

 

With my RRE setup John asked what I wanted..."full Race" NO concessions to street comfort...this is the setup Derek describes...the fact that it's streetable too is an added benefit... the point is if you want a "street sofa" it's within the JIC's range...but you will get your body roll back and transfer too much weight too soon...to perform on the edge at the track suspensions ALL suspensions are a compromise..You just need to choose what you can live with and articulate this desire to your suspension tuner...

 

Ok guys.. i just wanted to clear a few things up. For those that might have misunderstood me, this was not any sort of personal attack on the quality and technical experience of Road Race. They do an excellent job of setting up suspension due to a users needs.

I was merely stating my current setup, and wanted to get some feedback as to how the evo's suspension works. I know from experience that you just can't slap on a set of coilovers on the EVO and expect it to handle better than stock.

Being as how I am no expert suspension guru, I'm constantly trying to learn more about how our cars respond to certain changes in the suspension geometry and balance.

I have spoken with John personally, and he has been very helpful. For how well the evo handles, I AM SURPRISED at how it civil it remains on the street.

I'm sure you guys understand how much we love our evo's, and how we are always pushing to improve it. Whether it be power, handling, or the BEST possible ride quality without losing too much of either.

The purpose of this post was foster thinking as to how to make the evo an even better car than it already is. Thanks for everyone's feedback.

 

Altezza - did you get my PM about it the other day?

The helpers are a good idea as well, but not sure if they are compatible with the Evo setup (never tried it)

 

I have the Ohlins, and Derekw took a spin around T-hill with me (damn that was fun!) and his thoughts on the Ohlins are fairly accurate for such a short ride. Let me elaborate.... Ive ridden in a couple JIC cars - some good - some BAD. I havnt ridden in the RRE JIC's but I hear that they are much better than the standard issue coilovers. I'd bet that they spec a softer spring, and less low-speed compression damping (typically japanese coilovers have LOTS of low speed bump and really stiff springs - great for a glassy smooth surface, less than ideal for our roads/necks ). The Ohlins are not like stock.... the damping is soo much better. Every day I am amazed at how they do everything well.
Now for cars that live on the track ( or spend a fair amount of time there ) you might need the extra edge that the RRE's give you.....but when you are cruising down the 580 in Norcal its a totally different story.
robi's setup also allows extra cargo capacity! Ask him how much crap he can fit in his Evo...... you will be as amazed as I was

 

ogvw, the bad one must be mine I personally feel that the stock setup (10k(f)/9k(r)) is just too stiff, at least for driving on our freeways. On a smooth track is not too bad. I am currently experimenting some different spring rates on the jic's (should have gotten the cusco zero2r's that comes with softer springs ), and perhaps a different alignment setting with the softer springs. Will see how it goes.

 

Actually..... yours wasnt that bad, Ive ridden in a WRX with JIC's that was positively the worst riding car Ive EVER been in. It felt like the shocks were welded solid!