[numbah_wahn]

This might be a dumb question but as of right now, im running Megan Racing lowering springs for my 2016 Axela. Model Number : MR-LS-M314 on OEM shocks and im just seeing about possible to ways to improve the ride quality. would it be possible to run my lowering springs with either the FSD or Bilstein shocks or are there other alternatives?

 

[Moto-x_Mike]

Koni FSD's are designed to run with the stock springs or ones with a minimal drop. I'm running Racing Beat springs with mine, which result in a 1" drop. So it depends on how much drop the Megan springs give you.

 

[numbah_wahn]

Koni FSD's are designed to run with the stock springs or ones with a minimal drop. I'm running Racing Beat springs with mine, which result in a 1" drop. So it depends on how much drop the Megan springs give you.

i looked up the drops and theyre saying "Lower Rate: 32mm Front, 43mm Rear" so about an 1.25" fron and a a little under 2" in the rear.

 

[arathol]

im running Megan Racing lowering springs for my 2016 Axela. Model Number : MR-LS-M314 on OEM shocks and im just seeing about possible to ways to improve the ride quality. would it be possible to run my lowering springs with either the FSD or Bilstein shocks or are there other alternatives?

FSDs should be ok. I have FSDs with H&Rs that drop 45mmR/30mmF and no problems so far. The MR spring rates are quite a bit higher than OEM, so you are going to have a stiff ride regardless. Stock shocks will most likely not be able to handle those spring rates as well as they should. If you want ride quality closer to OEM lose those springs and get something that is not so stiff. Any particular reason you went with track oriented springs?

 

[numbah_wahn]

FSDs should be ok. I have FSDs with H&Rs that drop 45mmR/30mmF and no problems so far. The MR spring rates are quite a bit higher than OEM, so you are going to have a stiff ride regardless. Stock shocks will most likely not be able to handle those spring rates as well as they should. If you want ride quality closer to OEM lose those springs and get something that is not so stiff. Any particular reason you went with track oriented springs?

I had the car stock for a while and I just really wanted to get some mods done. Me being ignorant of a lot of of the nit grit, I just wanted a cheap way to lower my car. MR springs just happened to be the cheapest option i found. Do you have any other recommendations that would work better?

 

[arathol]

I had the car stock for a while and I just really wanted to get some mods done. Me being ignorant of a lot of of the nit grit, I just wanted a cheap way to lower my car. MR springs just happened to be the cheapest option i found. Do you have any other recommendations that would work better?

There is a sticky at the top of this subforum for springs and coilovers-
http://mazda3revolution.com/forums/...-handling/60801-springs-coilovers-thread.html

There are a few that seem to be popular. Racing Beat springs don't lower that much but increase spring rates about 20% over OEM. Yours seem to be somewhere around twice OEM rates If I remember right. CorkSport springs are close to OEM, only 7% increase but by some accounts they ride awful and are too low to be really practical. H&R springs seem to be progressive so its hard to set a spring rate and H&R isn't really forthcoming about the rates either. They do ride well, soak up bumps easily and give the car a nice tight feel without giving up much in ride quality.
The other option is coil overs, but unless you want to spent a bunch of money on a good set they really are not worth the effort.

 

[numbah_wahn]

There is a sticky at the top of this subforum for springs and coilovers-
http://mazda3revolution.com/forums/...-handling/60801-springs-coilovers-thread.html

There are a few that seem to be popular. Racing Beat springs don't lower that much but increase spring rates about 20% over OEM. Yours seem to be somewhere around twice OEM rates If I remember right. CorkSport springs are close to OEM, only 7% increase but by some accounts they ride awful and are too low to be really practical. H&R springs seem to be progressive so its hard to set a spring rate and H&R isn't really forthcoming about the rates either. They do ride well, soak up bumps easily and give the car a nice tight feel without giving up much in ride quality.
The other option is coil overs, but unless you want to spent a bunch of money on a good set they really are not worth the effort.

oooh okay. the roads where i live are absolutely awful. especially on the ones during my daily commute. it seems that every time i hit a minor bump on the road it sounds and feels like there isnt a spring at all. with being said it would probably be better to get a set of progressive springs instead of some linear ones like the MR ones..

what i was planning on doing was running either the koni Sport( or regular) FSD with the MRs but im not sure if theyre compatible

 

[arathol]

oooh okay. the roads where i live are absolutely awful. especially on the ones during my daily commute. it seems that every time i hit a minor bump on the road it sounds and feels like there isnt a spring at all. with being said it would probably be better to get a set of progressive springs instead of some linear ones like the MR ones..

what i was planning on doing was running either the koni Sport( or regular) FSD with the MRs but im not sure if theyre compatible

I would think that either one of those shocks would work but the spring rates are the problem. Proper shocks that are matched to the spring rates can help a lot but that only goes so far. If you want a decent ride on rough roads, you do need to replace those springs with something a lot less harsh. Springs with rates close to OEM and good shocks like the FSD might solve a lot of problems. I would stay away from the Yellows though as they are a performance oriented shock and as such seem to have a reputation for a being a bit stiff. Don't go too low either. Lowering the car gives you less suspension travel, which means you will be hitting the bump stops more often. That will greatly increase the harshness of the suspension.
That being said, when it comes to driving on bad roads there is only so much you can do.

Just out of curiosity, what are your tire pressures? My car was delivered with 60 psi all around and the car rode like crap. Set the tires to 36 psi if you have not already done it.

 

[numbah_wahn]

I would think that either one of those shocks would work but the spring rates are the problem. Proper shocks that are matched to the spring rates can help a lot but that only goes so far. If you want a decent ride on rough roads, you do need to replace those springs with something a lot less harsh. Springs with rates close to OEM and good shocks like the FSD might solve a lot of problems. I would stay away from the Yellows though as they are a performance oriented shock and as such seem to have a reputation for a being a bit stiff. Don't go too low either. Lowering the car gives you less suspension travel, which means you will be hitting the bump stops more often. That will greatly increase the harshness of the suspension.
That being said, when it comes to driving on bad roads there is only so much you can do.

Just out of curiosity, what are your tire pressures? My car was delivered with 60 psi all around and the car rode like crap. Set the tires to 36 psi if you have not already done it.

as of rn, I believe they're all around 35-40 but that makes a lot of sense as well. ig the biggest thing for me now is finding a good set of springs close to OEM but offer a good amount of drop.
you mentioned H&R, but would there be a difference in spring rate between the sport and super sport? because aside from the amount of drop, there wasn't too much information on the springrate/stiffness. eibachs are another option too, but the only amount of drop ive seen here that people get is around only 1"

 

[Moto-x_Mike]

If you're looking for a smoother ride, you shouldn't be going with a big drop. That's counter-productive.

 

[arathol]

as of rn, I believe they're all around 35-40 but that makes a lot of sense as well. ig the biggest thing for me now is finding a good set of springs close to OEM but offer a good amount of drop.
you mentioned H&R, but would there be a difference in spring rate between the sport and super sport? because aside from the amount of drop, there wasn't too much information on the springrate/stiffness. eibachs are another option too, but the only amount of drop ive seen here that people get is around only 1"

Yes, there is a difference between sport and supersport. Supersport is stiffer. As I said above, H&R doesn't seem to publish spring rates.
Eibachs give you a drop of about an inch, that is how they are designed. "OEM rate lowering springs" are not performance oriented, they are "tuner" garbage. They are for appearance, not for function. Eibachs and Racing Beat are performance oriented springs, offering small rate increases and only about an inch drop because that is what works.

If you're looking for a smoother ride, you shouldn't be going with a big drop. That's counter-productive.

This ↑↑

You can't drop the car two inches on OEM rate springs and expect it to ride good. You need to use higher spring rates to compensate for loss of suspension travel. Once again, if you don't, you are on the stops all the time. There are work-arounds for this, but unfortunately they don't seem to be available for this car. So, you need to compromise and work with what the aftermarket gives you. You can drop the car into the weeds and ride like a truck, but you'll look cool.:rice 1:
Or, you can leave it at a reasonable height and have a car that rides and handles better than stock. Not as cool, but then again neither is high centering on a speed bump. :shocked013:

 

[numbah_wahn]

If you're looking for a smoother ride, you shouldn't be going with a big drop. That's counter-productive.

Yes, there is a difference between sport and supersport. Supersport is stiffer. As I said above, H&R doesn't seem to publish spring rates.
Eibachs give you a drop of about an inch, that is how they are designed. "OEM rate lowering springs" are not performance oriented, they are "tuner" garbage. They are for appearance, not for function. Eibachs and Racing Beat are performance oriented springs, offering small rate increases and only about an inch drop because that is what works.



This ↑↑

You can't drop the car two inches on OEM rate springs and expect it to ride good. You need to use higher spring rates to compensate for loss of suspension travel. Once again, if you don't, you are on the stops all the time. There are work-arounds for this, but unfortunately they don't seem to be available for this car. So, you need to compromise and work with what the aftermarket gives you. You can drop the car into the weeds and ride like a truck, but you'll look cool.:rice 1:
Or, you can leave it at a reasonable height and have a car that rides and handles better than stock. Not as cool, but then again neither is high centering on a speed bump. :shocked013:

okay, now all of it makes sense. now with that being said, because im happy with the drop that my MRs give me and im prolly going to stick with them for a while, is there any justice in me getting some FSDs for them? or am I better off with keeping the stock shocks?

 

[arathol]

okay, now all of it makes sense. now with that being said, because im happy with the drop that my MRs give me and im prolly going to stick with them for a while, is there any justice in me getting some FSDs for them? or am I better off with keeping the stock shocks?

Well, with those spring rates the FSDs will be better than what you have now. I'm willing to bet that the MR springs won't stay around long though and the FSDs work great with the H&Rs.....:smile2:

 

[numbah_wahn]

Well, with those spring rates the FSDs will be better than what you have now. I'm willing to bet that the MR springs won't stay around long though and the FSDs work great with the H&Rs.....:smile2:

oh yeah, most definitely now. you pretty much sold me on some H&Rs so i can look forward to those now.
really preciate the help!