hey everyone.
i think its time for me to change from the stock suspension to a better one. i plan to auto x and road course my car and ppl say don't cheap out on suspension and i agree. does anyone have any suggestions? i was thinking konis or teins coilovers? thnx

 

Consider your goals regarding autocross before you change your suspension.

The teins will make you ineligible for stock class if that's what you want to do. If you're interested in running STX or DSP, then it's a non-issue.

The koni's are great, but I don't have comparison to the teins.

 

Do not change your suspension until you can outdrive it.

Do not make the even bigger mistake of changing parts on your car in preparation of what you think you will "need" for something you do not yet know how to do.

 

Need more info on what exactly you want to do. If you are a serious autocrosser than it depends on what class you want to be in, otherwise it depends on how streetable you want it :P

 

well i dont' think i am really serious in auto x just want to have fun at the same time get the best from my suspension. i was just thinking somehting that would make my car handle way better on turns and higher speeds, and is adjustable. i dont want a rough ride on the streets cuz the roads are never smooth over here :P

 

The stock suspension fits the bill for all of your requirements.

 

Just a quick note regarding suspensions ad the comparison of Tein and Koni.
Last year I ran head to head with a stock ITR in auto-x and I had a 1-2 sec advantage over him over 7 events.
This year I put on my Koni 2way adjustable revalved shocks and stayed in D/S and he went with the Tein coilover kit ( which one I'm not sure but he paid as much as I did for my Konis), which put him into DSP.
Now I run Hoosiers and he runs Yoko 32's which explains the time difference but this year we have a 4-5 sec difference. I absolutely love these Konis and he hates the Tein experience.
BTW, the Konis at their lowest settings are slightly more harsh than OE and certainly streetable.
Also, what's the deal with Tein setup of hard front springs and soft rear...???? is this the Japanese way?

BBQman

 

"JDM preferred setups" are heavy front (higher rates up front) with smaller tires in the rear at times and unique camber settings. Us lazy americans just do heavy rear. pretty much the same effect with a lot less hassle and setup.

Be careful with the koni's if you want to run much higher (>500#) rates in the future, they'll need to be revalved to handle such rates correctly.

 

Speaking as someone with stock suspension, don't switch your suspension 'in preparation' for autocrossing and track days.

I have stock suspension and it is VERY capable.

Try it, you might find that you still have alot to learn from the stock setup. There is no sense in wasting money until you can outdrive your suspension (lots of body roll would indicate this) and know what you want to buy.

 

I'm gathering from your comments that you want the best of both worlds.

Know what?

You already have it in the ITR OEM suspension!

There's a widely known NASA-Virginia instructor named Willard Harris. His suspension is still completely stock, and he's lapping many cars on expensive custom suspensions.

If you are really not going to be tracking your car all that much, you could do something relatively inexpensive, like switching to Spoon Progressive springs. This will give you a firmer feel on the street, and you will find yourself driving a little more enthusiastically than you normally would.

However, if you are tracking your car a lot, you will outgrow springs like this because these normal "safe" setups will have you plowing hopelessly on sharp corners if you don't take your car to the next level w/different shocks, swaybars and camber settings.

On the other hand, one infers from your statements that you are not experienced enough for us to conscience recommending a classic USDM type racing suspension. Going heavy in the rear can get you in a world of trouble in an emergency if you don't know what you're doing, and you could easily also end up with a car that makes you uneasy when driven enthusiastically.

For example, the Honda Challenge champions all seem to be unhappy unless their cars are hanging the tails out on every turn. I'd hesitate to recommend those kinds of ratios for you on the street. It's fast...but it's dangerous if you don't know what you're doing.

The ITR Expo at Beaverun was the first time I had tracked my ITR with a heavy-rear suspension...and I was definitely uncomfortable. The kids loved it...but I ended up being very slow and cautious because the car seemed to be hunting for direction on the straights, and unpredictable (but quick) in the corners.

I finally got used to it and fiddled w/the alignments a bit, and was approved for Summit Point's Seat Time programme this past Friday (meaning I can just show up and drive without supervision). But in the beginning, that heavy rear was very disconcerting (and I am not exactly a completely inexperienced driver).

So...I mirror the advice of my friends above.

Get into driving your ITR w/the stock suspension first, and learn all about the dynamics of the ITR that way, before you waste a lot of money and give yourself a lot of headaches fooling w/spring rates and shocks.