my setup is as follows, 94 civic coupe completely gutted with 4pt rollbar, front/rear/upper/lower strut bars, itr 22mm rear swaybar, susp tech 25.5mm front bar. manual steering(looped ps rack), es and prothane bushings all around. b18c5 w/lsd. i daily drive it right now.

i have been using tein ra's 14/10k (height and damper adjustable. pillowball mounts) for the past year and i am more than satisfied with their performance but they are very rough on choppy streets... so a few months ago i picked up a set of zeal s6 12/8k which are also stroke adjustable, no pillowball uppers. i know the zeals will be softer on the street but i am concerned i will sacrifice performance if i install them.

this car will used only on the track with r-compound tires starting next spring. i could use some advice. thanks

btw, the handling is very neutral and predictable now. however around a bumpy corner i feel the teins can not keep good contact, the car bounces too much.

 

Hmm my Tein SS do the same thing around bummmpy roads..

LIke I've said your set up is sick...rough rates, I think the zeal'd suit you more for daily driving, thats why I picked up the SS.....

 

Honestly, it doesn't sound like the Zeal's are THAT much softer, but if it is going to make the difference for you then switch. You can always switch back when the car sees nothing but track.

 

Lee Grimes of KONI has made the offer several times on this board to run different brands of shocks on the dyno. He wants to do it to learn, and it will give you a chance to find out what the differences between the two shocks might be. He goes by "CRX Lee" on this board.

 

By my calculations converting Japanese spring rates to US spring rates requires multiplying by 0.05588. I assume that the Japanese measurement is grams/mm. So 14K = 14000 * 0.05588 = 782.32 lbs/inch in the front and 558.8 lbs/inch in the back.

Off hand I would say that these rates are gonna be uncomfortable on the street regardless of what kind of shocks you use. Add to that the fact that you have increased sway bar size which increases spring rate on uneven bumps side to side and you've got a real kidney beater. Lower spring rates are the only thing that's gonna fix your problem.

So if the Zeals have lower rates they will ride smoother. Also judging by what most guys are doing on the track then I would say that your Teins are a little too much spring in the front and a little too little in the back (but that is the whole Japanese vs US spring setup debate).

Regards,
Alan

 

Running the RAs w/o the pillowmount uppers would do a lot for decreasing impact harshness.

 

i actually did alot of sporty driving last night and i decided to give the zeals a try... i will keep you guys posted about the differences betwwen the two setups when i install them. i can always customize the rates of the swift springs if really needed. i think more shock travel will help in any condition street or track. thanks for the help

 

Yes, removing the cleverly named "pillow" ball upper mounts will go along way toward ride comfort. Does the Zeal come with upper mounts? If not, that is going to be your best bet.