At first I was like ,"whatever" because all coilovers feel more or less the same. Then I rode in a car with DFVs and was like, "Ooooooh". I dunno what they do different, but dang.

 

It's the DFV valve. Got to see it at SEMA a few years ago. Really cool stuff. Takes a difressive piston to the next level by having a valve the opens with higher shaft speeds, letting fluid bypass the primary piston/valving and sends it to a secondary piston/valving which is called much softer. Allowing for very digressive damping as shaft speeds go up. Something you just can't achieve with a single piston.

 

I have the FA 500's and they have been great! Many will tell you the FA is a good starting point and Ohlins are the standard and so on. With the new model FA's you are getting close to the price of Ohlins and Ohlins are awesome. I've been lucky to drive on them as well and BC coils and Stance. BC were okay I didn't have anything bad to say about them. I'm used to the FA's and they serve me well. There is many threads about this on the forum. In fact I recall it coming up every week, someone wanted to know what to put on their car. It seems budget will be the deciding factor for most. If you can swing Ohlins, it's a great way to go.

 

Because you claim they are equivalent to chinese garbage which is silly lol. The R&D and quality is there at a very reasonable price. Again Im not saying they are objectively better than Ohlins, Im not comparing the two manufacturers at all but at the price point I think the FA offer better cost vs reward.

 

Is 15% increase in comfort worth $800 though? Thats the question. Maybe to you yes, but I think to most who are looking to save some $ no.

 

How did you measure 15%?
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I gave a hypothetical 8.5/10 FA vs 10/10 Ohlins, sure its not scientific but I would bet its realistic.

 

I have FA510's. MSRP with swift springs I think comes out to 2200. If paying lets say a couple hundred on top(a couple hundred on top of 2200 for different springs and revalve) of that would net me same performance plus 15% comfort. I would easily pay the difference. ONLY thing FA had the upper hand in recently was rebuild service cost. That isn't the case anymore since rebuild service cost went up 300%.

 

Comfort comes from the shock valving more than the spring.

 

I was comparing the 500 series which is $700 cheaper than the 510 and more comfort focused.

 

Don't forget tires too! Put some soft tires on the car and all is good. I would recommend the new Nexen NFera Sur4G's as they are like riding in a Cadillac compared to any other 200 treadwear tire.

I have this setup and it's a dream to drive on the street or autocross as I primarily do.

 

Great feedback, after reading it all I decided to go for ohlins from square one. Hopefully the hype proves to be true!

 

I was going to go with the RE-71R's, the nexen's look interesting, had never heard of them.

 

The RE-71R is an amazing tire. It won't last as long as the Nexen or the RS4 by Hankook.
The top tires in the 200 treadwear catagory tend to be:
BFG - Rival S 1.5
Bridgestone - RE-71R
Nexen - N FERA SUR4G ( my top choice !)
Hankook - RS4

There is other tires that could be added to the list but they just don't compare. You can go to 100 tread wear tires too but those are more track ordinated. If you do consider getting a competitive tire for your Evo, any from the list above will improve the driving experience and put a grin on your face for a very long time.

This is a suspension thread and sorry to have gotten off topic.

 

I did compare with the Chinese stuff. Because they were a little better when I drove them.

You're the one that came up with 15% difference. It's bigger than that. It's one of those things you'll never get until you try it.