NC owners - What suspension are you running?

[sammm]

ast 5200
/tread

$3200
/ast

[slowchildmiata]

5200s are only $3200?

[johnwag]

AST 5200
/tread

A 4100 is all he would need. 5200 would be overkill and very pricey.

$3200
/ast

more like $4500

Sammm, talk with Matt or Terry at Vorshlag. 4100 kits are in the $2000 range.

[slates]

Hi Sam. Congrats on the NC. Make sure you talk to MER about suspension and shocks. They wrote the book on the MSR package. I have the same package as the General, however I have double adjustable Sachs shocks off of the Playboy Cup cars. If you go the MSR route you won't believe the difference in the car.

[jrj512]

A 4100 is all he would need. 5200 would be overkill and very pricey.

Agreed. No need for double-adjustable unless you really want to get into fiddling, which I doubt Sam does.

I have old 3100s (single-adjustable) and still love them.

I still think Sam should go with the previously-enjoyed Enduras from McShane. They are comfy on the street and will service Sam well on the AX course.

[sammm]

Thanks guys...it's not a great pic, but it's all I have for now.

Here it is, freshly washed.

[Titus]

Looks great! Any surprises yet?

[sammm]

Looks great! Any surprises yet?

Thanks! Not really...I'm very happy with it, just needs a little TLC.

[sammm]

What Bilstein's are these...can anyone tell? There are 3 flavors from what I've read...OE, Sport & HD.

[OZMDD]

Can't answer your actual question, but I can offer the useless observation that those are factory tophats and dust boots!

[sammm]

Here's what I'm thinking about getting -

Bilstein Sports-
http://performance.importrp.com/bils.../i-223464.aspx

Eibach Springs/Sways (Eibach=Mazdaspeed in this case) -
http://performance.importrp.com/eiba.../i-286851.aspx

[Nails]

I don't know that vendor but don't trust them since they can't get product descriptions correct, spelling as well.
There are no bump stops and helper springs and you shouldn't ever need them with the ProKit Spring. The NCs don't ride on the stops like the previous generations. Also, it's of popular opinion that the factory bilstiens are softer damped than the factory tokicos. However that may be a good thing for your autocrossing to allow faster slaloms. For track, heavier bars and stiffer damping work better for sweeper curves. In a slalom, the heavier bars can release too much energy suddenly causing the car to step out.

[sammm]

it's of popular opinion that the factory bilstiens are softer damped than the factory tokicos.

That's probably true, but those are the factory installed Billy's. The Sports and HD's are not the same.

Thanks for the vendor warning, but I did check them out on resellerratings.com
http://www.resellerratings.com/store...lacement_Parts

[Nails]

I have no first hand experience w/ Bilsteins on an NC so I don't know if they'll be too soft. Are the HD ones the factory installed? If so, aren't they valved the same just a tad longer shaft than the Sports? BTW, Tire Rack has the bars/springs package you want for 399 and the same shock for 105 but I don't know what shipping and taxes come to.

[POS Racing]

Wouldn't Koni's be more better than Bilstein's??

[Nails]

I think Miatamoto or RPM Chris tried Koni's w/ Hypercos early on but not sure. Maybe they can help.

PS. I think the Bilstein and Koni difference is that Bilstein has a lifetime warranty.

[POS Racing]

Koni's are also adjustable aren't they??

[altiain]

Konis have a lifetime warranty as well, and excellent customer service. Good thing, since I've had Konis I four different cars and had to return at least one shock on three of those cars.

[Nails]

Yeah they are adjustable making them almost 80 bucks a piece more than the Bils.

[POS Racing]

Yeah they are adjustable making them almost 80 bucks a piece more than the Bils.

No worries Sammmm drives an NC now so he is a ballar.