Well, technically not a daily driver. But it'll never see a track, just spirited to/from work duties a few times a week. This is for my 2000 Showa equipped 130k mile OEM suspension.

I had the FM stage-1 springs/Tokicos + FCM bumpstops 4+ years back on my last NB and they were just about perfect for the kind of driving I'm planning on doing. I noticed the Illuminas are discontinued now, and FM offers Koni in their package instead which makes me hesitant.

I've read the giant Bilstein thread, I'm wondering if using my stock springs with the B6 Bilsteins and aftermarket bumpstops would be comfortable for daily duties while providing better street performance than the worn out base level shocks. Would it be better to pick up a set of FM springs to go with the Bilsteins?

Things don't have to be dirt cheap, but the car will pretty much certainly never see the track so Xidas are probably overkill for this application.

Thanks for any suggestions!

 

loved my illumina/fm setup, can't go wrong there.
or billies with your choice of springs (i'd steer away from oem springs cause they'll be a bit too floaty. fm2 or something custom like the qa1 many people run seem to work well). fcm billies are nice too, but too much money. fm vmaxx a bit overdamped for dd IMHO

 

Agree with you on this. If FM still carried the Illuminas I'd order the same stage-1 kit and call it good based on my previous experience. But the Konis... ehhhhhh.

VMAX seems like it might be okay, but I've read a few comments similar to yours that they can be a tad harsh on rough streets.

 

I run a Bilstein setup with 35mm bumpstops and 450lbs/in front, 300 lbs/in rear spring rates on my NB2 with NB Top Hats. Super comfortable and composed at stock ride height. A little bit harsher than stock at 12.25" Front and 12.75" Rear measuring from the hub to fender. I plan on going to extended top hats front and rear and maybe helper springs in the future as that will bring back the super comfortable ride and give me some droop travel.

 

I don't understand why FM went with Konis when the Illuminas stopped being available. With their volume they probably could have gotten Bilstein to provide custom valving and ended up with something truly excellent for street use at a decent price.

 

For my '94 DD, we just put some new Excel-Gs w/ new 46mm bump stops on it.
Cheap, easy and was so much better than the old worn out Showas and disintegrated bump stops.
If you want spirited driving, throw a bigger front bar on it.

 

I wonder what an NA with Sensens, R-pkg springs, and MCU bumpstops would feel like. Might make a good cheap DD setup for an NA.

 

Thanks guys for the suggestions/ideas.

After spending the past few days catching up on 4 years of suspension updates (since I last kinda researched things), it pretty much looks like Xidas are the no compromise solution, Budget Bilstein / FM V-Maxx is kinda a middle ground, and everything else is a compromise or worse.

I'm thinking about going the Bilstein route like crispyBYM suggests, 450/300 seems to be the universal street-driven choice based on random internet comments. I'd probably get new B6-HD Bilsteins as they're the most readily available.

Decisions decisions...