Truth about K-Sports?

[Jeff@Tri-Point]

Brand New out of the Box.

The Adjustment is for Rebound...

http://www.ksportusa.com/asp/coilovers_detail.asp?product_id=cd01

"36 levels of dampening adjustment allow you to fine tune the ride to your handling and comfort needs. The dampening adjusts compression and rebound simultaneously for ease of adjustment."

I don't see any adjustment in compression (uhm)

In case no one understands, the forces labled at the Bottom of the graphs are the shocks at Full Soft and Full Stiff Settings.

If you were to have one shock on full stiff and the other on full soft, the rears would almost match, but the fronts are out of control and just completely wrong.

/Discuss

 

[Pirana]

I wish I could really understand....thanks for the info.

 

[melicha8]

Thank you thank you thank you. What a perfect way to expose what absolute garbage people are putting on their cars these days. It seems anyone that can machine some aluminum and put some pretty anodized colors on them are all of a sudden suspension experts. I wish we could make an official thread to expose these crap parts. I think many will be surprised or even feel indignation after exposing the suspension they thought was so super awesome as super worse than stock. Can you get some more samples on the dyno? How bout some teins, JIC's, and other jdm coilovers.

 

[Pirana]

Well we dont have to go to that extreme...I do use the Ksports and truthfully I dont do any autocross or run any type of solo events...but you have to also figure out that not everyone can go and get the best that is offered. Sure, I could have gone for TEINs or JIC, at the time I got this I didnt vision my car to be "all decked-out" and using the best I could find...but also they have done what I asked for. To stiffen the suspension and to give me the stance that I looked for. I have had them for over 12 months and have not had any troubles. Sure they may not stack up to the top suspension manufacturers but they probably where never meant to be, but at the same time they give options to people that couldnt get any of the expensive set ups.

On a side note...some of those JDM coilovers people drool over, are made on the same factory in China...some have 3 letter words.

 

[melicha8]

Jeff question: Did you just go from what they specified as full soft and hard or did you test each set point on the shock? Testing each set point may be even more interesting.

The main problem I have with these is that they make them adjustable because of a bigger is better type of attitude. They could have just made it non adjustable and valved it(with a simpler valving mechanism) to work with the spring they provide and it would have worked better. I suppose flash is in.

 

[mountjonas]

so ideally, the graph should look like is has two lines, or two pairs of lines, each pair being real close each other?

 

[low_psi]

so ideally, the graph should look like is has two lines, or two pairs of lines, each pair being real close each other?

Yes, the Mins and Maxs should be almost identical! I'm glad someone finally dyno'd these because I think the Ksports are junk and this proves it.

Ditto to the adjustment for the sake of adjustment comment... what else is there to say, the graph says it all!

 

[melicha8]

Here is a graph I'm more familiar with. It has velocity as the x axis. These buddy clubs look pretty good!

 

[Bala]

what else is there to say, the graph says it all!

I'm sure there is a wide variance that hits the streets. Some have been happy with their setup, others (myself included) went nuts trying to dial them in before I yanked them and replaced them with some tokicos and espelirs.

 

[TheMAN]

if I'm understanding this correctly:
bound rate (line at the top bit of the graph, above 0) is fixed and is pretty much flat across the board regardless of piston speed hovering at around 145lbs

for rebound, you're exerting a negative force... meaning you're pulling on the piston... force to pull the piston increases (ideally in a linear fashion IIRC) as it travels a certain distance

 

[TheMAN]

Here is a graph I'm more familiar with. It has velocity as the x axis. These buddy clubs look pretty good!

yup, definately a more familiar graph... the buddy clubs do look like their bound adjusting and not both or rebound though

 

[TheMAN]

on a different note, I would definately like to see how the following perform:
stock MP3
stock MSP
tokico HP
tokico illumina
JDM mazdaspeed a-spec adjustable (by tokico & KYB)... the only ones in this list which I have advertised rates on, which would be interesting to see on a dyno

 

[low_psi]

I'm sure there is a wide variance that hits the streets. Some have been happy with their setup, others (myself included) went nuts trying to dial them in before I yanked them and replaced them with some tokicos and espelirs.

Its all about consistancy within the set. Setting 1 should be the same on all 4 struts, etc, etc. Are there better matched sets floating around? Possibly...

 

[Bala]

Its all about consistancy within the set. Setting 1 should be the same on all 4 struts, etc, etc. Are there better matched sets floating around? Possibly...

I agree ... and yes, that's my theory.

 

[TheMAN]

the variances between those 2 shocks are enough to cause weird handling effects when the car is driven at its limits

 

[Jeff@Tri-Point]

These are what my off the shelf Koni's looked like. It's not to bad, i've seen better.

After we revalve/rebuild them, they are within 10% range usually. Our Computer dyno is very accurate though, if you were to use a mechanical dyno it could show closer but regardless the ranges on the K-sports are unacceptable...

Wonder why the ride is stiff on Ksports? The shocks are to stiff, not the springs.

 

[Jeff@Tri-Point]

Jeff question: Did you just go from what they specified as full soft and hard or did you test each set point on the shock? Testing each set point may be even more interesting.

The main problem I have with these is that they make them adjustable because of a bigger is better type of attitude. They could have just made it non adjustable and valved it(with a simpler valving mechanism) to work with the spring they provide and it would have worked better. I suppose flash is in.

It was a min and max test, there wasn't really a click option.

 

[Jeff@Tri-Point]

if I'm understanding this correctly:
bound rate (line at the top bit of the graph, above 0) is fixed and is pretty much flat across the board regardless of piston speed hovering at around 145lbs

for rebound, you're exerting a negative force... meaning you're pulling on the piston... force to pull the piston increases (ideally in a linear fashion IIRC) as it travels a certain distance

The top is bump forces and you are correct the bottom is rebound.

 

[BradC]

Thank you for taking the time to do things like this and actually test parts.

 

[jmv]

hmmm. thats good to know. so is there any good suspension setup to be had without spending $2,000+????