I don't see anything there about progressive spring rates, and Rishie's the guy who told me that they're linear (If I remember correctly).
I'm no suspension guru, but here's a pic of what I believe to be a progressive spring. ..A set of Teins

See how part of the spring is coiled more tightly? That's 2 diffeent springrates on the same spring..or progressive spring rate.

RS*R springs are wound the same all the way through the spring( for our cars, at least). That's linear.


Progressive springs are better for the street because they'll soak up some of the bumps, and still perform well because once that 1st inch of travel is used up, the spring rate changes to a more agressive rate.
Linear spring-rates are better for the track because of the predictability, quick turn-in, etc. That's why you don't see too many coilovers with progressive spring rates..because they were designed and built for the track.
heh, I may be talking out my ***, because I really don't know much about those two brands of springs. I DO know that Rishie usually sells out RS*Rs pretty quickly when he gets 'em in.
Anyway, that's how I always thought spring rates worked.

 

Too bad they don't show the front springs, if I still had them off the car, i'd take a pic.

 

You're right about progressive springs, I know how they work, but since apparently no one here actually owns rs*r springs for an FC... they've also never actually seen the front springs which I happen to have personally installed on my car less then two weeks ago... *LOOK* progressive. As for the one guys comment, I assumed he was rolling his eyes at the spring rates, since they are really high for non-coilover springs. but meh... I digress.

 

Agreed.
I've only seen RS*Rs on the shelf. Whatever the case, I think they're some of the best, if not THE best Japanese springs you can buy.

 

I have RS*R Race springs on my FC they are linear. They are very sweet too.

 

and you can take my dick out of your ***
where does it say progressive?

 

Lol!!!!!!

 

These RS*R Race springs are most definately NOT progressive.

 

I had the Tanabe setup with AGX's and had friends with the RSR setup from a driver stand point the ride and feedback I get from the Tanabe's surpass the ones of the RSR's

 

This is sooo frustrating. One minute people tell me the RSR Race springs are awesome, then the next moment they're "too stiff" the next moment, someone tells me that the RSR Down's feel a little soft and also have a higher spring rate than the Tanabe's, then someone tells me the Tanabe's are great. Ugh, decisions, decisions............

 

no updates???

 

Well if it's any consolation I've been struggling for a few years to make up my mind on what's the "best" suspension for me. A suspension is a very personal thing, as different people have different priorities, expectations and experiences. An inexperienced person saying that some suspension is great is a largely useless thing, as they'll have little to no basis of comparison, so it's simply the best they've tried. Some people want looks, so a big drop is good to them, others want performance, so handling is what's good for them, and others want comfy street cruising, so a soft comfy ride is good for them. That's why you see so many differing oppinions on any given suspension setup.

I'm quite into the performance aspect of things and I've decided that none of the stock type replacement springs meet my needs, as they all lower the car too much, have too soft spring rates, or both. They also don't offer the flexibility that a coilover setup has.

That leads me to coilovers, and they're much more expensive, but better for hardcore performance use. A good middle ground is Ground Control, you can spec what rates you want (that's a whole other issue), and the spring length, then you can set the ride height somewhere in about a 2" range.

Basically with the shocks you've got there's no real hardcore handling setups, as they'd all overpower those shocks (so will the RSR race springs). Any of the RSR's of the Tanabe's will probably be a big improvement for you, so you just need to decide what rates and drop you want.

Good luck making up your mind, I hope you will be happy with whatever choice you make.

 

Hey Black91n/a, I really appreciate your response, but I can't afford coilovers whatsoever. Mostly, I was really wondering about what's better to go with. Either the Tanabe's or the RSR race springs. This will be for street use, but I hate a soft ride. Any comments??

 

Go with RS*R's and never look back.

 

here:

http://www.tanabe-usa.com/springs/

trust me you cant go wrong with Tanabe and they are affordable

 

yes

 

Rotary Racer, how did you deal with the camber in the rear?

 

get rear camber adjuster?

i am leaning very close to rs*r myself because of higher spring rate = harder ride = less body roll?


but.. im still deciding... tanabe is very high quality... all their stuff.... damn.

 

HKS camber plates

 

The thing is that those springs alone aren't the deal they seem to be, as they all lower the car more than an inch, and at that point you start to get issues with camber, especially in the rear. So you'll either end up with vastly increased tire wear, costing you money for having to replace tires that die before they should, or you'll have to buy expensive parts to correct the camber issues. When everything is considered, those springs, plus the alignment parts will cost about the same as a ground control setup. With the GC setup you can set the ride height to nearly stock levels, eliminating the need for the alignment parts.

 

^i dont know i have blues and rsr's and i dont notice any extra tire wear...

and from his original post he is considering blues with rsr springs.

from my personal experience they are great for city driving and more than enough for some spirited driving.... assuming he doesnt track the car full time i dont see why he needs to invest in coilovers

most of these posts (mine included) are based on personal experience and most people will be biased to what they have. all i can say is that i am happy with the blues and the rsr springs and dont intend to change that until after i turn my car into a track only car.

one thing i can say for sure is that handling is improved over stock and i can tell you this 95% of the people on this forum (including me once again) can not even bring our car to our full potential in terms of handling on stock suspension so whatever you get you will most likely enjoy. since you cant afford coilovers get what you can afford and get good tires, tires imo will have a much more noticeable effect

 

i do my own alignments and all labor on me all i need is parts... i dont know about gc set up as im am skeptical about height adjustments. with the ground control kit, is the spring interchangable with what you want to use? or its just the eibach springs only.? idk... not familiar with g/c stuff.

 

people wit rs-r race, are they supposed to look like this?
looks progressive on the back.

 

The thing with the GC kit is it uses standard 2.5" diameter Eibach linear race springs that are available in many different lenghts and rates (NOT the pro-kit springs, they're entirely different). They are a threaded collar that goes on top of standard type shocks and include the necessary top plates to allow the narrower spring to work with the stock shock tops.

Doing your own work does save money, but the FC can only have it's toe adjusted from the factory, to adjust camber in the rear will be at least another $100, and then for the front at very least you'll need some crash bolts (~$30?).

With the car lowered and camber not corrected the inside edges of the tires will wear faster than the rest of the tire, causing them to be worn out on the inside with usable tread left on the outside.

From what I've read, 1" is about the limit for lowering if you're not wanting wear issues or increased tire wear.

 

just buy a camber adjustor from mazdatrix for the rear. It solves the camber issue. The thing I like about it is it bolts right in place of the stock one and can be adjusted without removing it.