OK, so I've been having quite a debate amongst a few friends about things to do with my S2K. I'm pretty well convinced the car is awesome as it sits. All I planned on doing was an AEM v2 CAI, and eventually a mooncraft hardtop. But some people constantly pester me about getting coilovers. I think the car sits pretty low as is, and putting on any extra suspension would just make the ride not handle as well. Low does not automatically equate to better handling. On top of that, I'm sure the ride would become that much more harsh.

But these same people keep making claims that I should get some Buddy Club coilovers, and some wheels at the very least. I'm really really not convinced to get anything....but I figured I might as well ask the veterans of the forum. I feel like this is a car that if I was going to mod, I'd have to go ***** to the wall. I really don't think anything other than a CAI and some wheels are necessary....feel free to correct me if I'm wrong..

Thanks for any and all input.

 

What are your handling goals? Track days, Solo, or just hard parking?

 

I'm guessing there are no goals since none were mentioned.

I'm not even sure he wants the car to be lower.

I think he's getting coilovers because people are telling him to?

 

If you just want to lower it I would suggest springs rather than coilovers. I know some people that don't like the idea of aftermarket springs on OEM struts but then again some do it and have no problems. If you plan on doing a lot of tracking then I think coilovers would be good for you. As far as the intake goes I wouldn't do a CAI on an S2000. Thats just me though. Its well designed as it is however I am considering doing a Spoon snorkel for mine

 

My apologies for not clarifying my off-road events. I do track days, and the occasional auto-x. It's not all that common these days...work really has me tied down. But I do attend those that I'm invited to. I've just been hearing mixed reviews about really upgrading the suspension unless making the car a serious track car. I wouldn't mind having the car a few hairs lower...but I really don't want to mess up the balance of how the car handles. As of the moment, I use the car as a daily until I finish fixing my other daily....

I hope this helps clarify in how people express their opinions for my circumstance. Please let me know if I let anything else out that may be an assisting factor.

brandon, my parts guy was trying to convince me to get some cooling plate instead of a CAI...it doubles as a CAI and a radiator cooling plate...I may just end up with that then.

 

3 words- adjustable dampening/rebound

go to town.

 

My KW V3s are awesome. They ride SO comfortably that you wouldn't believe how well they control body roll at the same time. You also probably wouldn't believe that the spring rate was ~9-10kg/mm all around. They ride NICE.

I also track the car pretty often.

They are rebound and bump adjustable seperately. I haven't messed with the KW factory damping settings yet since it seems to be very very very well set up right out of the box. Ride comfort is not quite as nice as stock, but it's very controlled with no harshness. It eats up bumps but controls the chassis very nicely.

My car is not my daily, but I do drive it a lot during the summer. Even with Recaro Pole positions that have much less padding than stock seats, the car is comfortable enough to drive around all day without being annoyed with it. There are some gnarly *** bumps around here too.

They're on the expensive side, but I'm totally 150% satisfied. The quality of the damping is very good also. I believe they come with a lifetime guarantee. KW dampers come stock on some sick *** cars. Viper ACRs come stock with adjustable KWs, for example.

My friends are all in love with the suspension too. I have 2 friends with S2000s. One of them is about to sell the car. The other one wants KWs. Another friend wants to buy a S2000 and the KWs is what he wants as well.

 

If you do go the cooling plate route there are cooling plates that will work with the spoon snorkel as well so that you can have both. And as far as the KW v3's I have never heard anyone complain about them. Expensive though they are I think everyone loves them when they get them.

 

i would just get a set of springs for now... swifts are your best bet... they only lower the car an inch, they handle almost like stock (just a bit more aggressive), and they are the best bang for buck... theyre the most expensive spring on the market ~$250 but def worth it... the only reason i sold mine was that i bought bilstein coilovers...

 

how do you feel about the bilstein coilovers? they were pretty awesome on all the porsche's i put them on (depending on the model of course..), but all of those cars were setup strictly for track.

 

If you are happy with the car as it sits, then don't worry about what anyone else says.

Off-Topic... Skip on the intake... Spend that $$ else where.

 

kwiky... the bilsteins are amazing... they make the car handle soooo much better... id def recommend them to anyone...

 

I bought some KW V3 coilovers have a few friends that track and that is what they run.Also after riding in their cars and then getting back in mine I can tell a huge difference.

 

And here I was thinking that the intake was an OK bang for the buck...now I'm starting to hear overall "don't touch the intake, headers, or exhaust". Which I won't complain about as it will certainly save me money...but kind of a bummer that it takes away from bolt-ons. I haven't heard any mention of fly-wheels or cams though...


But anyway, back on topic with the suspension. I'm guessing the Bilstein's aren't super harsh then? The setup on my old P10 from B+G was near bone shattering...I'm trying to stay away from that anymore. Considering how many lateral components there are on this car, I see no excuse for having to have such high spring rates to compromise the comfort of the ride so much.

 

High spring rates aren't a huge issue if you have good dampers. Usually, you're paying for the dampers when you buy coilovers. Anyone can make springs.

 

anyone can make springs, but only a few companies can make springs well...

the bilsteins arent harsh, perfect for daily driving and improve handling greatly...

 

So I guess stay away from Buddy Club? I guess it makes sense the more $$ dropped, the more I would get for my money. I just don't want to end up with ridiculously awesome handling coilovers that are meant to last all of 1 year or something...

 

Buddy club makes some solid products. However, I don't think they are as refined as KW or Bilsteins.

 

i personaly think the s2k ion stock trim sits a lil too high i mean compared to other cars its not bad but the wheelgap kills the look of it. I first went with springs and they were great i loved everything about them. but i got to the point where i felt like i have out grwon them and needed more so i came up on a crack head deal on some tein flex coilovers and so far so good

p.s. plz dont get a filter on a stick its bs if u want sa lil more functionality out of the intake gutt the box get a k&n drop in and any snorkle. a header and exhaust is good too but nly if ur willing to break the bank and go deff singles make the most power and are the loudest sometimes mine pisses me off(buddy club spec III) but i still love it lol

 

I have installed everything from springs to motons.

The Bilstein IMO are JUNK. You cannot get anywhere near slammed with them. They are also not a true coilover IMO. They are a koni/ground control setup. Basically a sleeve setup. They only allow for preload adjustment, so when you get anywhere near lowering the car, the spring is loose in the perch when the car has no weight on it. Plus Bilstein require use of the OEM top hat. It doesn't sound like the OP wants to go very low, so these might be okay for him.

The KW are very nice.

The buddy club are also very nice, nothing wrong with them.

Tein are very nice.

Just stay away from D2 and K sport style junk.

 

interesting inputs....very interesting.

i'm surprised more people haven't said anything about the tein setups. i've almost never heard any complaints from any tein products at all..

 

If your goal is improved handling and to give the ap2 a more crisp feel like an ap1, then the Bilstein PSS9 coilovers are excellent for the money. They do adjust jounce & rebound with one ****. They are a good choice for mixed duty.

The KW v3 coilovers are a good bit more expensive, but do give separate jounce/rebound adjustment.

Neither the KW or PSS9 have adjustable shock bodies. The lowering is done with preload.

I've definitely found that slamming the s2k is not good for handling. I have KW v3s set as high as they go (about .75" drop) and that's given me the best handling yet. I've tried as low as 2" and that was utter crap.

If the PSS9s are out of the price range you were looking to spend, take a look at the BC Suspensions coilovers (not Buddy Club...BC). They do have adjustable shock bodies so you can set ride height without using preload. Not sure why someone dissed the K-sports...they are pretty well respected in the 240sx drift community as an entry level shock and also have adjustable shock bodies. Both the BC Suspensions and K-sport adjust jounce/rebound with one **** like the PSS9

 

I figured lowering the car too much more would result in poor handling. I feel like most enthusiasts that do end up slamming their car only claim that their car handles "10x better" because it feels "10x different"...and in most cases, different = better to inexperienced track drivers.

That was mainly why I was concerned about upgrading the suspension. I'd like to have a bit of the AP1 crispness, and my friend (ex drift racer) keeps telling me to try Buddy Club. I do trust his judgment, but I'd much rather consult a community where track day "regulars" isn't uncommon. I would like to go with a full coil-over setup if I do end up changing out the suspension...I don't wanna waste time with "just springs". Coilovers and sway bars are probably as far as I would need to go...or so I would think?

 

K sport is respected in the drift community because it is cheap and reduces body roll, which is exactly what a high spring rate will do. Drifters don't care if the suspension is good, just that it is stiff.

 

Meh...my car is lowered around 1.75-2'' (on KWs) from stock and it definately handles better than stock. There's people that will just slam their cars just to slam them. They don't care about handling. But 2'' is not really that low. I still have about 1 finger gap all around. I don't really like the SLAMMED look.

Not sure why 2'' from stock would be "utter crap" like someone else said. I def. know the difference between better and different.