Don't kid yourself.. You pay for what you get when it comes to shocks.....

You can get JRZ's,Motons/Ohlins to ride better than any PSS9 or JIC kit out there.. You just need to find someone who knows about shocks to set the car up...

I am not trying to knock Pss9's or JIC-they are decent suspension kits.. Just dont ask them to do the job of a premium shock...

If you are tracking the car and running a sticky tire,depending on how much you are pushing the car you can and will over tax an off the shelf suspension kit like a PSS9 or JIC pretty quickly...........

 

While reading this post I get the feeling the general consensus is that JRZ's and other sophisticated dampers don't work well for everyday street driving and this is the furthest thing from the truth.

Fabryce is ABSOLUTELY CORRECT when he says "DON'T KID YOURSELF".

Think of the valving of a damper as the software of an ECU in the following analogy:
Lets say you have a stock TT and you put exhaust and K24s on it and you hear that all the fastest race cars are using a Motec ECU so, with only that information, you go and order the unit and your buddy that has a super fast race car that has a 8800 RPM redline, a pair of T35 turbo's on race gas and you're figuring if his car runs well with that program then it should REALLY work well in your car. You install everything only to find it doesn't perform as you expected. Would you then go to the Internet and start telling everyone that Motec units don't work on street cars????? Wouldn't that be a rather ridiculous accusation? Well, it's equally as ridiculous to say JRZ's don't work on street applications.

Here's an actual resent example. I just worked with a car that was built to compete in one of the shoot outs a while back. It's ownership has change hands several times since and the current owner wants it more for street driving. He'd been told the reason the car road like a Dump Truck was because it had triple adjustable "JRZ's" on it. He came to me and I had to changed the Length and the valving significantly and gave them back to him to install. When it went back together everything was fine other than the front still didn't feel pliable enough. I couldn't understand why this was and while I kept hearing all the negativity about the JRZ's being the problem, I wasn't listening to nonsense. I worked with the installation shop where the car was and they were super accommodating. I had them to do a small series of travel test to try and locate a problem. Without any springs installed they would cycle it through the curve, each time making a specific change. When it reached the point that they attach the front Anti Roll Bar, the problem was discovered, it was frozen in position because it had the wrong bushing on it. SO, as I suspected, it had absolutely NOTHING to do with the JRZ's yet I was told by the owner of the car that a different customer had seen them working on the car and asked what was going on. The shop only said they were working on a solution to make the car ride nicer and the on looker told the owner of the car that this was exactly why he wasn't going to buy JRZ's for his own car. Ironically the bad ride had nothing to do with the JRZ's yet, this person has listened to too much bad information. This car now rides very well now despite the fact it has all momoball suspension and the rear subframes that are mounted metal to metal.

Valving, internal bleeds and damper lengths are critical if you want proper performance. There is much more to it than what I've explained but, hopefully this helps get the point across that a great damper are just that and a "RACING DAMPER" utilize great dampers with specific lengths and valving. If you want better than just "good enough" you may have to work for it a little, educate yourself and spend a little more but, if you go to the right shop, your car will be untouchable by a car that just has "bolt on PSS9's" in every way include the ride which is MUCH better with a properly set up high end damper.

 

I have the RUF coilovers and use them with my 19" street wheels/tires, and my 18" track wheels. They are comfortable enough around town, and great on the track. I'm very happy with this set up.

 

I have the same setup as you with JIC Cross. call me to discuss setups if you want!

 

I think what these guys meant was the JRZ/Moton setups are overkilled if you are only using your car on the street.

 

I have FVD spec PSS9s. I think you would like it if you don't set them up too low.

I think the one thing that nobody speaks of is that Pss9s actually have a softer initial spring rate. They feel much smooter than stock for the 1st bit of travel and then stiffen up. This means that if you set it up too low and only have a little bit of travel, that travel is used by the softer of the two springs and then you bottom out and never see the benefits of the harder second (main) spring.

The bottom line is that PSS9s are good if you don't go too low. This has been said before.

Lower it too much and the car will become un-settled in bumpy corners when the suspension bottoms and you won't like it.

Some other brands allow you to lower the car a little further and not bottom out because they allow you to lower the shock body (Pss9s only allow for ride height adjustment at the expense of travel).

 

I hope I didn't go too crazy there... But, as long as you're saying over kill as in cost...I agree but, I heard comments about ride quality and for sure, the best ride you'll get is going to be with a properly setup high end damper. if you're not getting a good ride it's because they aren't set up correctly (valving) that's all.... that's for the comment

 

Cary is correct, it's in the set up. You can make JRZs/Motons ride perfectly on the street as long as they're set up correctly. They're way more compliant and sophisticated than any of the other stuff out there. Obviously the cost isn't as "friendly" but...

 

Cary
Yes mainly costs. Your takes on these high end set up is always fascinating and appreciated.

 

In the five different set-ups that I've tried, strictly in terms of comfort on bad public roads:

JRZ > PSS9 > JIC > Stock > H&R

Now in terms of handling, the ordering should be fairly obvious .

 

I really not trying to repeat myself or be a pain in the a** but, I have to disagree

I would only agree with the statement above if cost was the ONLY issue. If you really want the ultra ride, you have to go with a JRZ/MOTON level damper BUT, you also have to make sure they are "PROGRAMMED" (valved) for the spring rate and style of driving you plan to use.

So, with all that said and the question of "what is a less expensive damper and springs with decent ride quality" PSS9's clearly fit that category. However, the point I'm trying to get across is correcting the misconception that JRZ etc won't work on the streets... because they will clearly have the ability to have a great ride....ask ANYONE that has riden in my personal TT. They just aren't the least expensive solution.

 

Honest Question:

Say a car is equipped with the JRZs/Motons/Ohlins, with a valve setting and shock/rebound adjustments made to accomodate daily driving around town... Can the said car with the said settings go strait to the track with optimal performance? Or would the same suspension need to be "retuned" for a different application?
I would assume that the settings would need a change. But then even if you convince someone who rarely tracks their car to get these high-end coilovers, it is unlikely they will want to adjust their settings for a track day - thus defeating the purpose and versatility of the piece they paid a pretty penny for.
Please enlighten.
By the way, Cary, I gave you a +1 for your awesome feedback and insight thus far.

 

So who revalves Jic's for the street?

 

The versatility is just ANOTHER benefit of the JRZ/Motons. Properly set-up, the JRZ's ride BETTER than the PSS9's on the street (and poorly-paved streets at that) even at very low ride heights. So the higher price you paid gives you not only BETTER ride quality, but also MUCH, MUCH BETTER body control. This is speaking strictly from personal experience.

 

It's really very simple. Get the best suspension you can afford. Get it set up properly. The only argument supporting a cheaper suspension is the same argument Corvette owners use validating thier car purchase vs buying a Porsche turbo. The Corvette is an excellent car with great performance, but despite that, it's not a Porsche Turbo.