Strut choices for ProKit Drop?

[Nomad]

I'm looking to add struts with the Prokits when i do it. I'm a beleiver in the importance of good struts with aftermarket springs.

I know the 5 way adjustable Illuminas are good but this car will be a daily driver for my wife so the adjustability would probably be overkill.

What are the opinions on:
Tokico nonadjustables
KYB (haven't researched if they are available) adjustable or Gr2
Koni
Any others?

 

[mountjonas]

i believe the stock struts are kyb's. the tokico blues are nice. i have them with the prokit and the ride is definitely stiffer, but i like it. and i have no idea about koni's. i don't think they make any struts for our cars.

 

[AznXstazy]

yes i can voach(dont no how to spell) for those tokico blues. i have them stock on my mp3, great ride... when i go over the bumps i can accually hear the gas in them bein pushed around. i dont know if thats a good thing or not, but i love them takes corners good and all. i think people have gotten up to 70k out of them... if im not mistaken. i mean no one really post about their stock struts. and thats as far as i seen miles go on mp3s.

 

[Katya4me]

I had the MSP struts which are similar to the Blues and now I have the Illuminas. The Blues weren't bad and probably a good choice for daily driving. Most people say that the 3 setting on the Illuminas is about equal to the Blues. Tokico is the only aftermarket strut manufacturer for the 3rd gen Protege, otherwise you have to go to full coilovers.

 

[Roywhitep5]

tokicos are basically it, but they are quite nice

 

[Nomad]

And a reputable vendor for Tokico's at a good price?
Thanks for the responses. I'm thinking I may want soem adjustable ones to be able to go softer than stock if wanted.

 

[viVid]

I am running my Illuminas at 2 for daily driving... and I actually liked it better at 1. The adjustability is nice, even if you only use it once.

 

[Katya4me]

Xshocks
$475 shipped, arrived in less than 1 week.

 

[Nomad]

So basically most seem to agree that the Tokico blues are a mid-range damper? They work with much higher spring rates and last so they must have a decent amount of damping ability. This often translates to ride harshness however over road irregularities. This gets old on long trips and such.

I'm thinking that even with a higher spring rate, the lowest setting on the Illumina would help make the ride compliant for daily use. Then crank it up on the weekends...

Thoughts?

 

[maitai92]

I vote for the Tokico blues too. Nice combo w/ pro kit. Illuminas are nice because of the different settings to adjust but you may want to think twice on how much pain in the a** to adjust the rears......

 

[Pretzellogic]

So basically most seem to agree that the Tokico blues are a mid-range damper? They work with much higher spring rates and last so they must have a decent amount of damping ability. This often translates to ride harshness however over road irregularities. This gets old on long trips and such.

I'm thinking that even with a higher spring rate, the lowest setting on the Illumina would help make the ride compliant for daily use. Then crank it up on the weekends...

Thoughts?

From experience I can tell you that the tokicos are fine for long trips. They are great on the highway.

 

[ssmp5]

Are the Tokico's shorter so they don't bottum out or are they the same length as the stock struts? I'm lookin' at replacing mine soon.

 

[capnsavem]

if you're a G you can find those green mazdaspeeds... ho-ly s*** those are ill!

 

[Roywhitep5]

???

 

[Katya4me]

I vote for the Tokico blues too. Nice combo w/ pro kit. Illuminas are nice because of the different settings to adjust but you may want to think twice on how much pain in the a** to adjust the rears......

Piece of cake on the P5. I can show you on Sunday if you're going to be at Ripken. You drill a small hole thru the rear seatbelt mounts, and then you can just pop the plastic covers off and insert a screwdriver to adjust them.

 

[Nomad]

From experience I can tell you that the tokicos are fine for long trips. They are great on the highway.

WHich Tokico's are you talking about? The HP "Blues"? What would an honest description of the stiffness increase be, for instance if you were going to buy these for your grandmother? (eek2)

 

[capnsavem]

from corksport:
The Mazdaspeed adjustable struts are a direct replacement strut offers adjustability in rebound and dampening to make you car handle the way you want it to. The struts are 4 position adjustable and adjust rebound and dampening. The fronts adjust from the top of the strut and the rears adjust from the side. The struts are made to work with ABS and non ABS vehicles. We recommend installing the Mazdaspeed struts with performance springs to get the most from the struts.

???

 

[ssmp5]

Are the strut pistons the same length as the stock struts?

 

[Ilikemazda]

Which is a better choice for custom rated ground controls around say 450 all around, the hps or the illuminas?

 

[xelderx]

Which is a better choice for custom rated ground controls around say 450 all around, the hps or the illuminas?

Illuminas will always be the better choice of the two. Remember that you can go too stiff on the springrate for a certain strut and cause weird suspension movement if everything doesn't work well together. If the strut isn't valved stiff enough for the springs you are running the car will bounce when the suspension gets upset under load. Basically the strut can't control the spring. Suspension tuning is a black art, but there are several helpful people who have done lot's of goofing around with the Protege suspensions. You also need to take into account what you want to do with the car. My car is a dedicated Auto-X/track car and it's sprung accordingly. I still drive it to events and running around town, but I wouldn't make my grandmother ride in it for very far. Springs and struts are only half the equation. Tell us what you are going to be doing with the car and we can probably give you a good idea of what you are going to want to do and how to budget it out so that you get the most important stuff first and you don't spend hundreds of dollars trying something that others have already found to be the wrong thing.