Question about suspension upgrades

[bTwix]

Nice. Everything I've read says they should be a little firmer than stock. Do you agree with that?

Yes but not how I expected. The B6 are more composed, taught, but not harsh at all. I did end up refreshing all suspension bushings/arms with OE (aside from aftermarket rear upper camber arms and left subframe bushings as-is) and did spoon rigid subframe collars and generally feel the comfort / NVH is better:

Pros:
- absorbs all potholes Seattle can throw at it
- expansion joints on freeways are greatly reduced NVH and soft low short dull thuds
- can take speed bumps faster and it’s very composed vs bouncy/whiplash
- speed bumps taken faster are smoother with less movement
- less front to back movement with spirited accelerating and breaking (stays level)
- much flatter around corners (rsb helps a lot too)
- wife friendly — she hasn’t really noticed apart for preference to take the speed bumps with both wheels more evenly, says it feels more like a tank/solid
- overall anything near the limit is just way more controlled and the foam bump stops on all 4 corners likely help a lot there with progressive engagement.

Cons
- speed bumps are better taken with both wheels evenly vs just one wheel (more side to side motion especially for the wheel not going over the bump
- a little more side to side movement over large uneven pavement (not just potholes but large changes like taking a speed bump on one side. front sway bushing were refreshed so that may be contributing as well.

Alignment is setup for shared daily use with my wife so it’s more predictable for her while still being more fun for me even with her and the pup in the car (pup has a seatbelt harness line and a rubber exercise mat in the back seat for traction, but with this new setup don’t think she needs it unlike before where she could get tossed around more easily. Now she’s able to keep her head out the window as we’re taking corners and braking and acceleration don’t throw her off balance.

The event that pushed me to the B6 is my wife’s dad was in town and we hit a speed bump too fast and car got really bouncy and everyone had sore necks for a bit, and now with the B6 it’s way more locked down, stable and less harsh overall and especially near the limit.

Will give a longer term update once it’s fully settled in but very promising so far.

 

[N7turbo]

Cons
- speed bumps are better taken with both wheels evenly vs just one wheel (more side to side motion especially for the wheel not going over the bump
- a little more side to side movement over large uneven pavement (not just potholes but large changes like taking a speed bump on one side. front sway bushing were refreshed so that may be contributing as well.

This is the effect of stiffer sway bars. You lose some left/right independence, in a way.

Overall it sounds like the B6's are a good upgrade in terms of body control. Unfortunately they are too long for lowering springs.

 

[Lazy2.5]

Wheels are Enkie 19 x 9 48mm, spun forged

I was worrying about how close a 17x8 et50 wheel would get to the inner strut assembly. I'm imagining that wouldn't be an issue.

 

[N7turbo]

Nah, that's only about 17.7mm in from stock. My crude finger measurements tell me you can go something like 30mm before worrying about that.

 

[AL Cx5]

I was worrying about how close a 17x8 et50 wheel would get to the inner strut assembly. I'm imagining that wouldn't be an issue.

We changed the offset ever so slightly. But there is plenty of room with an OEM offset.

I ordered: Enkei GTC02 19x8 +45mm Hypersilver 5x4.5

 

[Lazy2.5]

We changed the offset ever so slightly. But there is plenty of room with an OEM offset.

I ordered: Enkei GTC02 19x8 +45mm Hypersilver 5x4.5

Nice! Okay. I am putting some Fast FC04s on in 17x8 ET45, so will be the same fitment as yours.

 

[AL Cx5]

Nice! Okay. I am putting some Fast FC04s on in 17x8 ET45, so will be the same fitment as yours.

Sharp looking wheels!! They look light. I'm sure you will like getting those OEM boat anchor wheels off.

What color?

How much does a wheel weigh? Ai suggests a weight savings between 16 and 18 pounds per wheel. That's like the Enkie on our CX 5. Handing and braking was improved.

Fast Wheels FC04 17x8.0 5x108 ET45 72.6 Metallic Black

 

[Lazy2.5]

Sharp looking wheels!! They look light. I'm sure you will like getting those OEM boat anchor wheels off.

What color?

How much does a wheel weigh? Ai suggests a weight savings between 16 and 18 pounds per wheel. That's like the Enkie on our CX 5. Handing and braking was improved.

Fast Wheels FC04 17x8.0 5x108 ET45 72.6 Metallic Black

The exact FC04's that I got are in a titanium finish. I opted for this over black because you can actually see the design of the wheels, and it will suit my liquid silver paint beautifully.

the wheels are 16.20 lbs according to the Fast website. Someone on Mazda6club online claims they verified the OEM 17's for my car at 25.8LB...

Over 38LB of unsprung weight removed sounds fantastic to me. Also a 225 width tire will fit a bit tighter on the 8" wheel, further improving handling, and ET45 is going to be a bit more sporty than OEM ET50 while still respecting engineer-intended scrub radius..

 

[AL Cx5]

The exact FC04's that I got are in a titanium finish. I opted for this over black because you can actually see the design of the wheels, and it will suit my liquid silver paint beautifully.

the wheels are 16.20 lbs according to the Fast website. Someone on Mazda6club online claims they verified the OEM 17's for my car at 25.8LB...

Over 38LB of unsprung weight removed sounds fantastic to me. Also a 225 width tire will fit a bit tighter on the 8" wheel, further improving handling, and ET45 is going to be a bit more sporty than OEM ET50 while still respecting engineer-intended scrub radius..

Titanium color for sure!! Thats a nice unsprung weight reduction too.

For me, after all of the expense and time modifying the suspension and better wheels, it's still a top heavy SUV. It handles and looks much better than when stock but still...

 

[Lazy2.5]

Titanium color for sure!! Thats a nice unsprung weight reduction too.

For me, after all of the expense and time modifying the suspension and better wheels, it's still a top heavy SUV. It handles and looks much better than when stock but still...

I am very excited to have these mounted on the car. Just haven't found tires for it yet. That will happen in spring once my OEM winter-duty clunkers can come off.

I got to drive the cx-5 turbo demo car when my 6 was in for a recall repair, and briefly test-drove an mx-5 with a manual transmission.

I gotta say, i'm really impressed with how good the steering and handling was, even on the cx-5. It's fantastic that mazda values good handling across their lineup, even for something like a cx-5.

As for the Mazda 6, the handling is quite good from the factory, but the open differential is a real letdown for real performance driving. there is too much body roll when you push the car to the limit. there is a lot of grip. you can hardly get the tires to squeal unless you are pushing the car to the limit.

with a LSD, some sway bars and possibly camber plates to dial in front neg. camber for aggressive cornering, you can probably get away with the stock strut/springs and have true sports sedan handling. my gen of mazda 6 only weighs 3200lb.

 

[GFrosty]

The exact FC04's that I got are in a titanium finish ... Over 38LB of unsprung weight removed ...

Nice.

I haven't made any wheel changes on my own CX-5. But, on a Miata I had years ago I nixed just over 7lbs per corner and the car felt nimbler and more-responsive as a result. Over rougher roads, even "just" that 7lbs (28lbs) made a noticeable improvement.

Haven't yet weighed the 2016.5 CX-5 GT's 19" rims. So I'm not certain just how much I'd shave by going to a different combination.

Have often mulled going to 17x8.5's (instead of the factory 19's). Might, at some point. Wouldn't quite be a suspension change, though unsprung weight reductions surely help the suspension be more capable of doing its job.

 

[Lazy2.5]

Nice.

I haven't made any wheel changes on my own CX-5. But, on a Miata I had years ago I nixed just over 7lbs per corner and the car felt nimbler and more-responsive as a result. Over rougher roads, even "just" that 7lbs (28lbs) made a noticeable improvement.

Haven't yet weighed the 2016.5 CX-5 GT's 19" rims. So I'm not certain just how much I'd shave by going to a different combination.

Have often mulled going to 17x8.5's (instead of the factory 19's). Might, at some point. Wouldn't quite be a suspension change, though unsprung weight reductions surely help the suspension be more capable of doing its job.

Cx-5 2021 -19" WHEEL WEIGHT - Mazda Forum - Mazda Enthusiast Forums

Mazda CX-5 - Cx-5 2021 -19" WHEEL WEIGHT - Does anyone know how many lbs. a 19 wheel,(No tire) on the 2021 CX-5 weighs? This would be the multi-spoke wheel on the USA Special Reserve, Turbo model. They're a gray color.

www.mazdaforum.com

Guy from this link claims 32lb per wheel. That is nuts.

nearly 16lb per corner is huge.

With a CX-5, I would be tempted to go down a size in aspect ratio for a smaller overall diameter, like 225/60R17 instead of the OEM 65.

But, if you get an 8" aftermarket wheel, a 225 section tire will fit much better, and the weight savings will be dramatic.

For a CX-5, I may even consider going 18's, for a slightly tighter aspect ratio, but 17's are the best choice.

 

[N7turbo]

The current-gen 19" turbo wheel is 28lb.

 

[AL Cx5]

The current-gen 19" turbo wheel is 28lb.

These are almost as heavy as my 2500 truck wheel. What a tank. Hurts FE, braking and handling. It's so strange that Mazda uses these wheels.

Insult to injury, they are a pita to clean.

 

[Lazy2.5]

These are almost as heavy as my 2500 truck wheel. What a tank. Hurts FE, braking and handling. It's so strange that Mazda uses these wheels.

Insult to injury, they are a pita to clean.

But they literally don't bend.