D2 RS Racing Coilover Review
04-19-2012, 07:11 PM
#1
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: PA
Posts: 11
D2 RS Racing Coilover Review
My goal was simple, lower my 2011 Mustang GT to eliminate the wheel gap and improve handling without a big compromise in ride quality. In short, I achieved all of my major objectives. I chose a coilover over a set of lowering springs for two reasons: ride height and dampening tuning, and the shock and springs were engineered to work together.
Installation of the D2 RS Racing Coilovers took about 12 –14 hours mainly because of my lack of familiarity with the install process and the very poorly written instructions. My saving grace was the responsiveness of D2 here in the U.S. in answering all of my questions via email prior to the installation.
My coilovers were installed 3 weeks ago, so I had the opportunity to live with them before writing this review. The install process had its frustrating moments, but a little ingenuity and persistence became the tool of choice. Calibrating the ride height of the D2 coilovers requires more than simple, quick adjustments. For the front, you must lift the car, remove the wheel, sway bar links and spindle before you can make the adjustment to the coilover. In the rear, you must lift the car, remove the tires, sway bar links, brake line support and the bottom of the shocks before you can remove the springs to adjust them and the shocks.
I measured the ride height from the ground to the highest point of the wheel well for both the front and rear. The lowered front height was 27 1/4” and the rear was 27 ¾” compared with stock at 28 ¾” and 29 5/8”, respectively. That equates to a drop of 1 ½” up front and 1 7/8” in the rear. Some considerations when deciding on ride height are the general quality of the roads in your area, driveway curb height, and use of car (daily driver vs. show car).
Once I installed and adjusted the coilovers (height and dampening) I took the car out for a ride. The seated position is more sports car than sedan, as is the case with the stock ride height. On smooth to slightly rough roads the car drove as comfortably as stock. I noticed the ride was more high-strung than stock over peaks and valleys in the road. Not that it was uncomfortable, but you were aware that you were no longer driving grandpa’s mustang.
I took the car over some ‘twisties’ and opened her up a little. There was no body roll around turns. Left-to-right and right-to-left turning transitions were smooth and compliant, and left me feeling like the car was much more capable (watch out M3, this is the upgrade to finally beat the pants off of you). In addition, the car no longer lunged forward under hard braking or rose up under heavy acceleration. The whole experience was elating, and all I wanted to do was find a Camaro to play with.
Fast forward three weeks and I noticed the car settled a little bit, which meant one last height adjustment. Also, there was a little bit of spring creak coming from the front driver side. When I complete the final height adjustments I will look over the spring noise to see if anything loosened up.
Overall, I am very pleased with the purchase, especially given the price point of these coilovers versus other coilovers with the same adjustability, and can honestly recommend them.
Email me for a picture...I cannot figure out how to paste one here!
Installation of the D2 RS Racing Coilovers took about 12 –14 hours mainly because of my lack of familiarity with the install process and the very poorly written instructions. My saving grace was the responsiveness of D2 here in the U.S. in answering all of my questions via email prior to the installation.
My coilovers were installed 3 weeks ago, so I had the opportunity to live with them before writing this review. The install process had its frustrating moments, but a little ingenuity and persistence became the tool of choice. Calibrating the ride height of the D2 coilovers requires more than simple, quick adjustments. For the front, you must lift the car, remove the wheel, sway bar links and spindle before you can make the adjustment to the coilover. In the rear, you must lift the car, remove the tires, sway bar links, brake line support and the bottom of the shocks before you can remove the springs to adjust them and the shocks.
I measured the ride height from the ground to the highest point of the wheel well for both the front and rear. The lowered front height was 27 1/4” and the rear was 27 ¾” compared with stock at 28 ¾” and 29 5/8”, respectively. That equates to a drop of 1 ½” up front and 1 7/8” in the rear. Some considerations when deciding on ride height are the general quality of the roads in your area, driveway curb height, and use of car (daily driver vs. show car).
Once I installed and adjusted the coilovers (height and dampening) I took the car out for a ride. The seated position is more sports car than sedan, as is the case with the stock ride height. On smooth to slightly rough roads the car drove as comfortably as stock. I noticed the ride was more high-strung than stock over peaks and valleys in the road. Not that it was uncomfortable, but you were aware that you were no longer driving grandpa’s mustang.
I took the car over some ‘twisties’ and opened her up a little. There was no body roll around turns. Left-to-right and right-to-left turning transitions were smooth and compliant, and left me feeling like the car was much more capable (watch out M3, this is the upgrade to finally beat the pants off of you). In addition, the car no longer lunged forward under hard braking or rose up under heavy acceleration. The whole experience was elating, and all I wanted to do was find a Camaro to play with.
Fast forward three weeks and I noticed the car settled a little bit, which meant one last height adjustment. Also, there was a little bit of spring creak coming from the front driver side. When I complete the final height adjustments I will look over the spring noise to see if anything loosened up.
Overall, I am very pleased with the purchase, especially given the price point of these coilovers versus other coilovers with the same adjustability, and can honestly recommend them.
Email me for a picture...I cannot figure out how to paste one here!
04-19-2012, 07:29 PM
#2
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: PA
Posts: 11
D2 Racing Coilover Notes
Just wanted to add that each of the front coilovers was 8 lbs less than the weight of the stock strut. The rear difference was 6lbs for stock versus 5.5lbs for the D2 combination of shock/spring...so 1/2 pound savings each in rear for a total weight savings of 17 lbs from stock. Not bad! Performance gain and weight loss where you need it most, up front!
04-20-2012, 03:26 PM
#5
1st Gear Member
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: NM
Posts: 93
Nice write-up, thanks for sharing! About how much did it end up costing (if you don't mind me asking)?
Check this out for a how-to on posting pics.
Check this out for a how-to on posting pics.
04-20-2012, 07:06 PM
#6
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: PA
Posts: 11
Total Cost for coilover with shipping was about $1K. I had all of the necessary tools but for an 18mm wrench which you will need. I also recommend an adjustable panhard bar to make final rear end adjustments. I chose Hotchkis for the panhard bar and that cost me just under $200. I will add other Hotchkis suspension components in the near future (sway bars, and upper and lower control arm(s).
By the way, Sand4U thanks for the tips on adding pictures!
Before Coilover Install
After Coilover Install
By the way, Sand4U thanks for the tips on adding pictures!
Before Coilover Install
After Coilover Install
04-21-2012, 08:24 AM
#8
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: PA
Posts: 11
Entaille, I was also a little skeptical about the coilovers, and, believe me, they are far from perfect. I actually found someone with a similar mustang that installed theirs in October 2011. It wasn't until after I spoke with him that I decided to proceed. His reference helped me decide to go forward. While I understand that 7 months is not exactly long term, he was not experiencing issues with the coils. By the way, one other issue with the coils is that you must pull the top of the coilovers to access the camber plates...makes for more expensive alignments. Ingemar1
