I'm trying to choose shocks/struts/springs for the Fit and am curious what everyone thinks? It seems that there are a lot fewer options for the GD than the GE.

After looking at the cost of the Mugen set up or Tokico struts, I'm kind of thinking coilovers, but am interested to hear others ideas.

Use will be strictly street. That being said, I live in the mountains and drive roads like the Tail of The Dragon, Blood Mountain, Richard Russel Pkwy, etc regularly. In some ways, it puts more stress on the car than autocross because of the extreme elevation changes (car had less than 1,000 miles when switched brake fluid due to near total brake failure), the occasional bicyclist in the middle of the road in blind curves, and the duration of a sporty drive.

So, the car needs to work well, but also be comfortable for street use. Only suspension modification on the car now is a Progress RSB with Panducky hardware.

I've been out of the Fit world for quite some time so my current knowledge is very limited. Been playing with other vehicles.

Here's what I've found so far, but I'd love help in adding to this options list.

K-Sport Coilovers - $882 on Amazon, spring rates 375/291, 36 way adjustable
BC Racing DR Series Coilovers - $1150 on eBay, spring rates ?, 30 way adjustable
Buddy Club N+Coilovers - $1223 on Amazon, spring rates 7k/4k, 15 way adjustable
D2 Racing RS Series - $840 on Amazon
Form Function Type 2 - $850, spring rates 6k/6k
Skunk2 Pro-C - $1427 at King Motorsports

What am I missing from my list? Guess there's also Ground Control, but I think the cost would not make sense after adding quality shocks/struts.

I'm up for ideas!

 

I don't know what's available? I'd look into KW, Feal, Fortune Auto, Koni and Bilstein

Do some reading here about what he thinks of some of the brands you listed

Far North Racing - Home

 

Thanks for chiming in!

Sadly, Koni and Bilstein aren't available for the GD from what I've seen. I will check out Feal and Fortune Auto.

Edit: Nope. Neither Feal nor Fortune Auto make products for the GD. I'm starting to think the GD has fallen out of favor.

 

I'd look into Mugen/J's/Spoon shock/spring packages.

Nothing else will have the longevity I imagine you're looking for.

I love my HKS coilovers for my AP1, I know they make stuff for the GD.

 

If you have the budget for it and want absolute top quality, Ohlins Japan makes a setup for the GD. They pair their DFV dampers with Eibach springs. There is a month lead as they are built to order, FYI.

Of your list, the BC DR series would be my choice. IIRC their dampers can be rebuilt and revalved. Scratch K-Sport from the list, low quality with deplorable customer support.

 

Hmm. Do we know for sure that the Ohlins Japan will fit a USDM Fit? Tein specifically says their's do not fit USDM Fit's.

Strange thing on the Ohlins also is it says that there is not rear ride height adjustability. Not sure I'd want coilovers that could only adjust height in the front.

Thanks for the heads up on K-Sports!

 

Go ahead and scratch Buddy Club off the list as well. Their coilovers were a hit or miss in terms of consistency as well as there being a 7 to 9 month back order on some sets due to not being manufacture for the wrong market Fit (still GD just Asian or European spec, knuckles are different if I remember right).

In addition to that, their damper valving again was hit or miss. Some members have had good luck with their kits and dampening adjustments, others did NOT see any change in adjustment even with the Swift spring upgrade. So to be on the safe side, just say NO.

As for Tokicos... As much as I LOVE my HTSs with 50k miles, I will not buy them again if I had to start from scratch much like you are. Its about 1200 USD now for a complete set from the places that I've seen listing them as well as being difficult to source the just fronts (you'd have a better chance of spitting in a crowd and hitting a virgin) when/if one blows/fails/gets damaged. THEN ON TOP OF THAT... You'll likely want the Ground Control coilover sleeves and springs... Which when I bought was another 450... 4 or 5 years ago. Not sure if the price changed since then or if the kit is still in production.

With that said and looking at what's remaining on the list, I'd go BC Racing. They're rebuildable, you can specify your own spring rate (extra cost), upgrade to Swift springs (extra), and have the dampers revalved to work with your spring rates (and of course... extra). Add on some lateral locks to the front sway bar and camber bolts as well. Shoot for the -1.5 to -2 degrees if you want something mild enough to be good at carving those mount roads and streetable.

Edit: I also believe we can run CR-Z pillow ball mounts as an upgrade over the flimsy stamped steel and weak roller bearings that typically gets transferred over from the stock struts.

 

Thanks! Getting great feedback and I really appreciate it!

What's a recommended spring rate for coilovers on a GD for street use? Something firm, but not too bouncy is what I'd be after. Probably a tough thing to do with the short wheelbase. Plus, as I get older, I realize that high spring rates aren't necessarily the best plan on the street.

My quick google search shows that CR-Z pillow ball mounts fit GE's, but not GD's. I will have to research that further.

Fell down a rabbit hole researching Sprintex superchargers just to find out they are all for the GE also.

Adding Skunk2 Coilovers to the list. Thoughts?

I'm not ruling out the Mugen kit either. Not coilovers, but the other Mugen parts on the car are definitely quality items.

 

The pillow ball mounts should work via GD, GE, ZF1 and ZF2 (ZF = CR-Z). I've know of a GD3 owner running them but I haven't seen the car in person.

Skunk2s are discontinued... and if you're considering other options, maybe hunt for T1R's or J's dampers as well.

I'm not sure what most would define as a good street spring rate BUT I would gather that a 250 lb front, 325 lb rear spring would be good since its literally HALF of my GD's spring rate per axle. haha

I have a chart someone made a while back listing all the lower springs and their spring rates for the GD on one of my hard drives. Front springs were in the low to high 100s and rears were in the high 100s up to mid 200s... Except Skunk2, they were the odd ball around 300 in the rear I think. I'll hunt for it later.

 

If you're set on style and ease above pure performance and absolute quality, then scratch them. The rear height is non-adjustable WITH the supplied springs but they do not have to stay that way. Springs and perches can be replaced.

Previously the guaranteed fitment answer would be a yes if purchased from a US supplier (so I've read), but I believe that the new front strut housings are drilled for the JDM/ROW 12mm cross bolts, not the 14mm our USDM GD's require. This is small potatoes if you have a drill with a 9/16" bit, or know of a local machine shop, and well worth the minute effort for Ohlins dampers. If you've owned or driven anything with their parts, you'll know.

 

Cusco also makes GD spherical strut mounts.

 

Thanks for all the info!

Found the Cusco mounts. I seem to recall some people having problems with the welds on the strut towers failing. Was there ever a determination on what was causing those failures?

Would the upper mounts put more or less stress on the strut tower welds?

Last coilovers I purchased were for a different car long ago. They were JIC's and came with the upper mounts. Quality was very good, but I sold the car very shortly after to buy a diesel work truck.

 

What I saw from the post on here wasn't the welds failing but the seam sealer that was cracking, which is a known issue on the GD drip rails. Repeated abuse from a lack of bushing material on nearly any stock chassis' suspension pickups coupled with high spring rates and rough road/track will cause metal fatigue over time. So yes, running spherical upper mounts with high spring rates and without adequate load dispersion plates or bracing will put more stress on the strut tower welds and eventually cause the chassis to fatigue.