Help with suspension choice!
05-25-2017, 11:32 AM
#1
Thread Starter
Help with suspension choice!
Hello, thanks for taking the time to help me out! My mechanic told me my suspension is sweating and will need to be replaced soon, its a 2001 AP1 with the oem suspension at 136k so i'm not too surprised. I'm just wondering about my options, i heard that cheap coilovers are not the way to go and i do take the S to the track from time to time, but it is also my daily driver(at the moment).I was thinking about getting CR shocks until i saw the price at https://hardtopguy.com/store/218/11/193 almost $2000! do you think its worth it to buy the CR shocks over something like the HKS Hipermax IV GT Coilovers ($1300) ? or should i buy a higher quality coilover? what are the pros and cons?
05-25-2017, 06:38 PM
#4
The advantage of most coilovers over CR (besides tbe obvious adjustability, ride height, corner balance, damping), is rebuildability.
When the CR shocks wear out, you throw them in the trash. When something like the Ohlins DFV wear out, you send them out for rebuild.
The big reason why Ohlins is such a solid choice is its a rock star on track, yet still as comfortable or even more so than stock. There are other valid choices, some a bit cheaper. But none will be as competent in both street and track.
If there is a downside, besides initial cost, its that these will wear out faster than stock, and faster than more street only focused aftermarket options (koni, bilstein). But not any faster than anything else that is as competent on the track.
When the CR shocks wear out, you throw them in the trash. When something like the Ohlins DFV wear out, you send them out for rebuild.
The big reason why Ohlins is such a solid choice is its a rock star on track, yet still as comfortable or even more so than stock. There are other valid choices, some a bit cheaper. But none will be as competent in both street and track.
If there is a downside, besides initial cost, its that these will wear out faster than stock, and faster than more street only focused aftermarket options (koni, bilstein). But not any faster than anything else that is as competent on the track.
05-25-2017, 07:43 PM
#5
Ive got about 150k miles on my mid level Buddy club race spec coilovers. Still no leaks. At roughly $1400 give or take $100-$200 depending on deal you can find, they are a really solid option for the price point. I think value wise they are really hard to beat in a single adjustable. Performance wise, they have a wide damping adjustability range making them quite compliant on the street as well as very firm for the track. I think the high speed valving is not as good as ohlins as Ohlins are more digressive, but that I find is icing on the cake rather then anything detrimental to fast laptimes. The thing that really stands out to me about these buddy clubs is again the longevity and overall performance in damping range and ability to run the standard 10k springs all the way up to 14k without any re valving, which i have taken advantage of for the last 50k miles or so of their life so far.
Id be interested to hear how many trouble free miles people have had with their coilovers before rebuilding.
Koni yellows with a moderate lowering spring like Eibach pro kit or the like is another good option thats half the cost of Ohlins which many of taken advantage of over the years.
So there are some good options and less good in a cost range, depending on how much you want to spend.
Id be interested to hear how many trouble free miles people have had with their coilovers before rebuilding.
Koni yellows with a moderate lowering spring like Eibach pro kit or the like is another good option thats half the cost of Ohlins which many of taken advantage of over the years.
So there are some good options and less good in a cost range, depending on how much you want to spend.
05-26-2017, 04:55 AM
#6
Moderator
Save your money...get Ohlins. The S deserves quality coilovers 
05-26-2017, 05:44 AM
#7
If you go the OEM CR route, I would recommend buying the shocks from an online retailer such as majestichonda or Hondapartsunlimited. It would be a lot cheaper to buy just the shock, and reuse the top hat, bumpstop, sleeve cover, ect from your existing, high mileage unit (buy new nuts and rubber spring isolators). That would save several hundred. This route would also allow the purchase of better springs such as Swift Spec R initially instead of paying for the CR springs and then paying to replace them. This route should come out around 1k, maybe a little more.
That being said, I would agree on the Ohlins as a great option.
That being said, I would agree on the Ohlins as a great option.
Trending Topics
05-26-2017, 06:29 AM
#8
Usually plenty of used S2000 shocks on Ebay, some in complete sets. OEM springs and sway bars as well. Without dragging my parts list out I believe the shocks are the same the entire run of the car other than the CR. Should work fine for a daily driver.
-- Chuck
-- Chuck
05-26-2017, 08:51 AM
#10
IMO, if the suspension feels like it's working properly and the damping feels fine, let it "sweat"... A little visible oil seepage is not, to me, reason to replace your shocks or go to coilovers.