Impossible to find decent suspension for Forester STi
Discussion
Can anyone help me solve my suspension woes with my suspension?
I have a Forester STi SG9, which is an import and since I've had the suspension has never been right.
I keep receiving different conflicting advice from various dealers.
So far I have had AST 5100 fitted which was faulty - leaking and clunking. I may have been unlucky with that particular set as I drove a Litchfield Forester with AST and it felt good. The aftersales has been poor and I am reluctant to go back to AST but might consider something higher in the range.
BC BR coilovers were recommended - I asked for quality over low price but the garage convinced me that these would be the best. I wish I had trusted my instincts and avoided they are junk. Already leaking and they haven't been abused whatsoever.
All I want is good suspension that performs well on the road and I probably will appreciate the nuance and quality of a good setup. I want to avoid gimmicks and cheaply made components that won't be reliable. I have been told the OEM suspension isn't very good, nor can I find it anyway.
I have been looking at Öhlins, which are not available apparently. Nitron R1 or R3, but the dealer seems hesitant to recommend them and nobody wants to take an order for them. There's EXE-TC, but they were disinterested and these might not be the right choice anyway.
I have also been advised that some makes are suitable for track only. Road surfaces seem more demanding and uneven, hence I would expect to require a more advanced setup. Wouldn't higher end suspension, perhaps with more adjustment be better for this reason?
All I want to do is have suspension fitted to my car that is reliable, good quality and performance orientated and I really can't fathom why this is so hard to achieve. I am at the point where I can see no other way than to sell the car, which would be a shame as I have already spend a lot on it (Alcon brakes etc).
Can anyone help me find a solution please as I'm at a complete loss as to what to do next and the car is gathering dust?
I have a Forester STi SG9, which is an import and since I've had the suspension has never been right.
I keep receiving different conflicting advice from various dealers.
So far I have had AST 5100 fitted which was faulty - leaking and clunking. I may have been unlucky with that particular set as I drove a Litchfield Forester with AST and it felt good. The aftersales has been poor and I am reluctant to go back to AST but might consider something higher in the range.
BC BR coilovers were recommended - I asked for quality over low price but the garage convinced me that these would be the best. I wish I had trusted my instincts and avoided they are junk. Already leaking and they haven't been abused whatsoever.
All I want is good suspension that performs well on the road and I probably will appreciate the nuance and quality of a good setup. I want to avoid gimmicks and cheaply made components that won't be reliable. I have been told the OEM suspension isn't very good, nor can I find it anyway.
I have been looking at Öhlins, which are not available apparently. Nitron R1 or R3, but the dealer seems hesitant to recommend them and nobody wants to take an order for them. There's EXE-TC, but they were disinterested and these might not be the right choice anyway.
I have also been advised that some makes are suitable for track only. Road surfaces seem more demanding and uneven, hence I would expect to require a more advanced setup. Wouldn't higher end suspension, perhaps with more adjustment be better for this reason?
All I want to do is have suspension fitted to my car that is reliable, good quality and performance orientated and I really can't fathom why this is so hard to achieve. I am at the point where I can see no other way than to sell the car, which would be a shame as I have already spend a lot on it (Alcon brakes etc).
Can anyone help me find a solution please as I'm at a complete loss as to what to do next and the car is gathering dust?
Give Steve at Grinspeed a call. He set mine up.
https://www.ycwsuspension.com/shop/dampers-parts/c...
https://www.ycwsuspension.com/shop/dampers-parts/c...
Thanks for the suggestion and I will consider them; they seem to sell the right size but I'm deterred by the low prices.
Naturally I would love to save money, but I can't figure how it can be sold at a low price without a compromise on quality but I'm prepared to be proved wrong. Öhlins and Nitron etc. cost 2-3K for example.
I had doubts about the BC BR suspension that was recommended, very cheap and it clearly shows in the quality - leaking after 1000 miles tops.
Others have recommended Tein and similar, which may well be good, but I can't understand how it can be made so cheaply, when it's less than £1k taking into account the retailer's cut and distribution.
I always thought that the budget coilovers are good for the occasional track day but don't last long.
What would a new Porsche or BMW M3 use for example or even the new WRX STi?
I have the Alcon brakes on my car with the two-piece rotors and I can really appreciate the quality - I want the damping to be in the same league and reliable of course. I want the very best for fast road use and possibly some track days.
Naturally I would love to save money, but I can't figure how it can be sold at a low price without a compromise on quality but I'm prepared to be proved wrong. Öhlins and Nitron etc. cost 2-3K for example.
I had doubts about the BC BR suspension that was recommended, very cheap and it clearly shows in the quality - leaking after 1000 miles tops.
Others have recommended Tein and similar, which may well be good, but I can't understand how it can be made so cheaply, when it's less than £1k taking into account the retailer's cut and distribution.
I always thought that the budget coilovers are good for the occasional track day but don't last long.
What would a new Porsche or BMW M3 use for example or even the new WRX STi?
I have the Alcon brakes on my car with the two-piece rotors and I can really appreciate the quality - I want the damping to be in the same league and reliable of course. I want the very best for fast road use and possibly some track days.
MDMA . said:
Give Steve at Grinspeed a call. He set mine up.
https://www.ycwsuspension.com/shop/dampers-parts/c...
Thank you - I have send an enquiry.https://www.ycwsuspension.com/shop/dampers-parts/c...
Do you know if coilovers offered for the Impreza fit the Forester considering they are so similar aside from the body shell?
Would these work well?
https://pedders.co.uk/pedders-ezifit-sports-ryder-...
However I'm really confused as to the advantage of OEM style strut type (non-adjustable) opposed to adjustable coilovers.
I take it that these would be more reliable and less likely to leak?
I might buy these if they have been designed and tuned specifically.
https://pedders.co.uk/pedders-ezifit-sports-ryder-...
However I'm really confused as to the advantage of OEM style strut type (non-adjustable) opposed to adjustable coilovers.
I take it that these would be more reliable and less likely to leak?
I might buy these if they have been designed and tuned specifically.
SamuelP said:
Thanks for the suggestion and I will consider them; they seem to sell the right size but I'm deterred by the low prices.
Naturally I would love to save money, but I can't figure how it can be sold at a low price without a compromise on quality but I'm prepared to be proved wrong. Öhlins and Nitron etc. cost 2-3K for example.
I had doubts about the BC BR suspension that was recommended, very cheap and it clearly shows in the quality - leaking after 1000 miles tops.
Others have recommended Tein and similar, which may well be good, but I can't understand how it can be made so cheaply, when it's less than £1k taking into account the retailer's cut and distribution.
I always thought that the budget coilovers are good for the occasional track day but don't last long.
What would a new Porsche or BMW M3 use for example or even the new WRX STi?
I have the Alcon brakes on my car with the two-piece rotors and I can really appreciate the quality - I want the damping to be in the same league and reliable of course. I want the very best for fast road use and possibly some track days.
ZF Sachs, Monroe/Tenneco.Naturally I would love to save money, but I can't figure how it can be sold at a low price without a compromise on quality but I'm prepared to be proved wrong. Öhlins and Nitron etc. cost 2-3K for example.
I had doubts about the BC BR suspension that was recommended, very cheap and it clearly shows in the quality - leaking after 1000 miles tops.
Others have recommended Tein and similar, which may well be good, but I can't understand how it can be made so cheaply, when it's less than £1k taking into account the retailer's cut and distribution.
I always thought that the budget coilovers are good for the occasional track day but don't last long.
What would a new Porsche or BMW M3 use for example or even the new WRX STi?
I have the Alcon brakes on my car with the two-piece rotors and I can really appreciate the quality - I want the damping to be in the same league and reliable of course. I want the very best for fast road use and possibly some track days.
Unless you plan to alter height setup or corner weight the car for different tracks, adjustable coil overs offer little over a traditional fixed perch unit. You'll also find that performance orientated coil overs will be designed for track use and be too stiff for the road (unless you can specify the spring rates but of course you need to know the ideal rates first). Ditto any JDM suspension.
Why don't you ask on Scoobynet? Lots of FSTi owners on their.
Why don't you ask on Scoobynet? Lots of FSTi owners on their.
i have bc on one fsti , blitz on the other and tein on the third , basic cheapest set up that works well for road use would be Tein basics , which is the one i would buy if replacing , i had them on my sti jdm wagon , next level would be the Tein fully adjustable ones , all cars handle slightly differently but no regrets with any of the above brands , you don’t need to go silly on dropping it , pedders are ok good but the xa kit upwards is where i would be on that , i have that on another car but not a fsti
A colleague has a forester STi and when his standard suspension needed replacing he went for AST coil overs and is pleased with the result. He wanted compliant road suspension (has other cars for track days etc) and did not specifically want coil overs. Maybe you were just unlucky with yours.
The Ast suspension on a similar site did not have good reviews , suspension can be horses for courses , it’s always going to be firmer than standard it’s one of the pay offs for better handling , i want better handling so don’t mind a bit firmer , on the fsti i keep settings 10 or so out of 30 , 30 being the firmest setting
Thanks for all your replies.
I have ordered a fixed perch unit from Peddlers which is based on manufacturer settings and hope that this will be more reliable.
I really thought that the coilovers would be better but now understand that they are too track focused and I am probably overcomplicating things.
I was getting frustrated with the whole thing and could have easily wasted a lot more money with the thinking that it must be better if it costs more or that the regular struts would mean a wallowy ride.
The ASTs were good in a car a tested, but I was not so lucky with mine and they broke down fast, the same with the BCs, which I'll be returning.
This car has been an education if anything else.
I have ordered a fixed perch unit from Peddlers which is based on manufacturer settings and hope that this will be more reliable.
I really thought that the coilovers would be better but now understand that they are too track focused and I am probably overcomplicating things.
I was getting frustrated with the whole thing and could have easily wasted a lot more money with the thinking that it must be better if it costs more or that the regular struts would mean a wallowy ride.
The ASTs were good in a car a tested, but I was not so lucky with mine and they broke down fast, the same with the BCs, which I'll be returning.
This car has been an education if anything else.
suspension is very easy to fit , just needs a decent set up after , i did not want to say bad things about stuff i have not tested , but on another site not good things heard about ast , it’s not local but richard at FB tuning is very good and worth the drive to there , some chap from your way goes there too
When I had my FSTi I had a similar problem, I had STi knock and wanted to replace the suspension but didn't want to have coilovers because I wanted fit and forget. With that I went with Pedders Sport Ryders and was very happy. Lowered from standard, harder but not uncomfortable.
https://pedders.co.uk/pedders-ezifit-sports-ryder-...
Few pictures, after the wheels were done, when I sold it and a before/after.
Wheels refurbed
For sale photo
Before / After
https://pedders.co.uk/pedders-ezifit-sports-ryder-...
Few pictures, after the wheels were done, when I sold it and a before/after.
Wheels refurbed
For sale photo
Before / After
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