Most comfortable street ONLY suspension setup?

[E46m3zcp]

I'd say either new sachs (stock) or bilstein b6 (replacement for stock) paired with stock spring. Refresh bushings and ride on 18 inch tires (higher sidewall makes ride much better imo)

[02_lsb]

So how did this story end? What did you end up getting?

[Projecte46m3]

Another vote for TCK DA

[gntrobo]

i went against TCK's "recommended" spring setup on their site (which i think is 500F/400R) --- and went with 300F and 600R for a more OEM-ish (dare i say flat-ride) setup[*]unintentionally backdoored my way into a PSS10-esque setup anyway in terms of spring rates, of course TCK is linear unlike the billys, but nonetheless[*]if I had to do it over again, i'd change nothing. while I don't know what it felt like in brand new in 2006, car is dialed-in in 2026!

hope this is a helpful anecdote and good luck with the program

sd561, thanks for providing your thought process. Went ahead and ordered TCK's SA set with 300f and 600r springs to replace my +20 year old GC SA coilover with 400f/500r springs. If the TCK set doesn't work for me I can always reinstall the GC set after it's rebuilt.

[bigjae46]

KWs are all brutal. The opposite of comfortable.

TCKs will work but I would use the flat ride calculator for the spring rates. My TCKs were tolerable on the street with 600/700 springs. Went to flat ride and it was great! For me the best setup was 400/700 but my car was about 700 lbs lighter than stock the last time it was on the street. You might want a little more front spring but use the calculator.

[LSB4Me]

sd561, thanks for providing your thought process. Went ahead and ordered TCK's SA set with 300f and 600r springs to replace my +20 year old GC SA coilover with 400f/500r springs. If the TCK set doesn't work for me I can always reinstall the GC set after it's rebuilt.

Awesome—glad this thread helped others. Let us know what you think of the new setup.

My car is still in time out, but I am going to send it to the guy who set up my e92 on Ohlins (that was a really comfortable ride and an excellent build) next week for a once over and to increase ride height to the greatest extent possible within reason. If he doesn’t find anything out of order and the ride is still not to my liking, I’ll be switching to TCK DAs in a spring rate on the soft side to be determined.

[Obioban]

The key with the Ohlins is not setting high, it's setting them were they can actually operate. They only have 92mm (3.6") of travel up front. Optimally you want somewhere ~60% of that to be bump travel. That means 55mm (2.2") of bump travel. And, ~3/4" of that is bump stop, so really ~1.5" of bump travel before it gets harsh.

So, if your ride height is optimal, you have 1.5" of bump travel before you're in the bump stop (gets uncomfortable). If you're 1" too low, that's .5" of bump travel and horrible. If you're 1" too high you have .5" of droop travel and it's horrible. You really need your ride height to be EXACTLY optimized around bump/droop travel with the ohlins.

The TCKs are a pretty good setup. But, they get to punch above their pay grade because they have travel for days-- so everyone ends up having plenty of bump/droop travel, unless they're actively stupid. As a result, a good experience with them is the norm.

[9kracing]

Ohlins Road and Track are their entry level setup.

If you truly want the best setup you can get for the street, it's probably the TTX.




Bring your wallet.

[Obioban]

Ohlins Road and Track are their entry level setup.

If you truly want the best setup you can get for the street, it's probably the TTX.

Bring your wallet.

... do they make a TTX setup that isn't 100% track/race focused? Even in that picture, you can see them replacing rubber bushings with spherical bearings-- not something I want on the street!

[9kracing]

No they do not.

Sphericals are OK for the street as long as you accept the trade-offs and understand that they are a consumable part.

IDK that I'd go full spherical for a street car, but I think the RTABs and shock mounts can be gotten away with.

[Obioban]

thread topic: "Most comfortable street ONLY suspension setup?"

[9kracing]

lol fair enough.


Then that would be stock.

[nuc1]

The key with the Ohlins is not setting high, it's setting them were they can actually operate. They only have 92mm (3.6") of travel up front. Optimally you want somewhere ~60% of that to be bump travel. That means 55mm (2.2") of bump travel. And, ~3/4" of that is bump stop, so really ~1.5" of bump travel before it gets harsh.

So, if your ride height is optimal, you have 1.5" of bump travel before you're in the bump stop (gets uncomfortable). If you're 1" too low, that's .5" of bump travel and horrible. If you're 1" too high you have .5" of droop travel and it's horrible. You really need your ride height to be EXACTLY optimized around bump/droop travel with the ohlins.

Would this optimal ride height be the 13.5" F / 13.0" R we always see here on the forums? I have a set of Ohline road/track sitting in the garage so curious.

Mike

[Obioban]

Would this optimal ride height be the 13.5" F / 13.0" R we always see here on the forums? I have a set of Ohline road/track sitting in the garage so curious.

Mike

Depends what camber plates you have, etc. as a general rule, no.