sub 2k suspension advice
 

I previously was considering the FCM bilsteins and even talked a bit with Shaikh, but now that I see Emilio is pushing out sub 2K XiDA's i'm really considering going that route.

The car will generally be a street car but I want it to be very capable on the track for lapping days. Am I going overkill here?

I really can't find anyone's review of the Xida ClubSports anywhere and was hoping someone could chip in to help me figure out what I actually need.

Thanks,
Joe Mauch

Both our rental car and my black car are on Club Sports. Easily the best coilover package you can buy for under $2k. Get the helper springs with them, you won't regret it.

Since we're talking about sub 2k suspension, can anyone say something about the FM level 2.5?

I had those. they were ok for track days/daily driving, but I'm happier with FCMs.

Is it safe to say in the nutshell the FCM's are better for a daily driver and the Clubsports are better for track days?

How would you compare them the FCMs for solely street driving?

Not at all. I bet Shaikh makes a great shock, and I have no experience with them. I have 700/400 springs on my AST's which are very similar to Xidas and the ride is incredibly smooth on the street. I even have poly control arm bushings, metal lower mounts, and spherical upper mounts and the car is smooth as hell on the street, no sharp pain on cracks in the road, rhythmic bumps don't exist. Highspeed valving is comfort on the street, and the highspeed valving in the Xida's is soft because the spring does the work. I'd like tog get another set of AST or Xidas for my daily driver and I'd run 600/450 springs on it.

A general rule of thumb, smoother ride means the damper is doing work properly, and that also means its faster on the track because the damper is keeping the tire loaded on the road hopefully with critical damping.

A good example of how well these shocks work became clear when I switched over to them and ran at ECR. Everyone, and I mean everyone, complains about severe rhythmic bumps in threshold braking in 4 places, I never noticed them and it does not affect threshold braking in my car...the tire is always loaded on the ground.

I keep saying this but with Xida's you literally get the same part list and the same technology as you see on TV in Grand-Am, in $500,000 cars for $1800 on your shitty Miata. These shocks destroyed the BMW shock market, then the entire CMC/AI field in NASA, Miatas are next. Everyone runs them for a reason. Emilio was a smart man when he decided what supplier to go with and spec out his own shock from them.

Well damit.. now I know where my next 2 grand is going.

+1. That was a hell of a review, Hustler.

I've been in Hustlers car on a crappy exp-joint freeway and his 700/400 felt like 450/350 on bilsteins. There is a lot of control over bumps with the Xida's. I also have been offroad in his car and feel that he could run the Targa Newfoundland in these. :)

My old 450/325 Bilsteins were far worse, they made me dizzy on short trips.

That was a fairly interesting trip we took, but it lived to race another day.

the shock body's of AST's are aluminum right? for a daily driver you'd think they're less durable to rocks and such getting thrown up damaging the body. I know the XIDA's are new but I'm not so sure about their longevity.

How many miles do you think you can put on XIDA's before they need a re-valve? Also do you need to re-valve before every track season?

If the aluminum shocks can withstand racecars going through gravel pits (been there, done that) then they can survive the street.

Lots and lots of miles, maybe years. AST said to consider a revalve after 3-5 years on the track with cars that eat lots of curbing.

I should probably get a ride with someone with a really good setup on a bumpy road. I have a feeling my ride is stiffer than it should be at 450/300. Over some bumps/dips on the freeway, it feels like my rear is catching air. :vash:

Seemed to do this after I got ES bushings all around...

Lifetime warranty on Xidas

Wait, seriously?

My purchase of Illuminas and springs is continuing to look worse and worse :(

Not the kind of thing I would joke about.

To be fair a set of XIDA CS's fully optioned (hats, helpers, shipping) comes to well over $2,000. With that said, they seem to be the best suspension available for anything near that price range.

Wonder how FM's AFCO suspension is selling...

Do the XIDA CS's come with shock dyno charts? I remember reading that the 12 step adjustment on the CS's is custom fabbed by/for 949 instead of sourcing the tops of the shocks from AST ($$$).

The reason I ask is I wonder how accurate the steps are with the custom 949 tops, like if I set all the shocks to 9, would some act like they're set to 4 or 12? I'm not sure when combining non AST parts with an AST shock what kind of compromises you can encounter.

I'm not bashing the XIDA's, i just want to learn the most I can before I vote with my wallet.

You don't need to see the shock dyno, any shock company can make dyno's look similar to another, the beauty can't be seen on paper.

I've seen the dyno in use at AST-USA, all shocks are dead-nuts identical on valves. The guys making these dampers take their jobs very seriously, it's not a communist, authoritarian factory, it's enthusiasts who are very serious about their work. Disregard all preconceived notions about damper quality if you've only owned 3rd-world products.

The upper mounts don't have anything to do with adjustment, the valve is still adjusted through the rifle-drilled rod, the knobs come off the adjusters with a little allen wrench.