CLICK HERE all of you curious about suspension setups and their costs/reliability.

[ek forever guy]

paying for the name, the volks are good but they dont cost the thousand + that people pay for them. The US manufactures and US distributors mark them up really high (supply and demand). Learned this first hand after going to japan. Same with suspension, Zeal, JIC, HKS hipermax dont cost 1500-2000 dollars...they are properly priced like the Progress CS. We get stuck paying for the name here, whether if its a quality product or not

So what forged 11.1lb 16x7 +33 wheel would be a better buy? I got a great deal on my volks used for $1300, Mint condition sets like mine go for around $1500.

I totally agree on the coilovers point though, there are plenty of JDM coilovers with really soft rates and no damping adjustment that are more expensive than AMR or PIC. Two of the best suspension setups period for FWD cars.

 

[CHILD]

maybe you're not understanding me, im not saying there are even better wheels to purchase. All of your top end wheels will have specs and tolerances like your Volk's do. All im saying is, the $1300 you paid for them is about $500 above what they honestly cost. The price is hiked up simply because of the low supply here in america and the high demand. The prices remain high here because people are willing to shell out major bucks for them.

 

[ek forever guy]

maybe you're not understanding me, im not saying there are even better wheels to purchase. All of your top end wheels will have specs and tolerances like your Volk's do. All im saying is, the $1300 you paid for them is about $500 above what they honestly cost. The price is hiked up simply because of the low supply here in america and the high demand. The prices remain high here because people are willing to shell out major bucks for them.

You still didn't answer my question. I understand the concept of markups, but if they're so overpriced why aren't there a dozen other companies rushing to beat Volk at their own game by selling an equally performing product for $200 less? They'd still make $300 a set by your logic.

All I was asking for was a similar quality wheel with a much lower price as you mentioned. I can't think of any. RPF01's are really kickass for the money, and they are ~$500 cheaper but they don't come in nearly the same quality of finish, or durability from what I can tell. They are a nice, cheap, lightweight forged wheel that is probably one of the most competitively priced wheels there are. Having seen both and known people with both the volk is certainly higher quality, if only marginally. TONS of people in my autocross club have RPF01's.

The RPF01 is even cast from what I understand, it's just a really high quality cast. They're misleading on the website by saying it's a "flow forged" or some nonsense. Hot metal flowing into a cast, ultimately.

 

[CHILD]

Volk only sells their wheels at the high of a price here. why other companies arent trying to play the pricing game under volk is because people will buy them at the higher prices. business wise, they make good money without having to compete. Volk (rays engineering), work, ssr, bbs, and tons of other sell great products as well and depending on the market they are selling to, some are over priced and some not.
All im saying is, i wont buy volks or any other great product for 1300 when i can get a set for 800 from them directly. All that extra money is spent simply because its Volk in america. It didnt make it 500 dollars better than any other volk wheels. Spoon SW388's (desmond regamaster) sell for roughly 180/wheel in japan, but you'll easily see them for 400/wheel here as if they are more special or something.

i felt just the same as you before going overseas. It kinda slaps you in the face when you find out that you can get the same great products for a 1/4 of the price. I wouldn't pay more for great products if i dont have to

 

[itinkso9]

damn dude. you are a beast ekforeverguy. what part of GA are you from. I am a college kid myself. Your write up has pursuaded me to change my views from springs to coilovers. I was looking something cheap to fit my budget but now that you mention I think I'm gonna go with koni/GC setup. I've had a thread about this for the past couple of days. I definitely


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me too. lol i initially wanted a tokico blues/eibach pro kit setup...but after reading im leaning towards the Koni/GC setup as well. i don't really know how low i want to go that's why. but it is my daily driver and i want a good ride. not too bouncy but not too stiff. and i want to go as low as i can without the inconvenience of scraping and not being able to drive to some places because of bumps or roads and what not. thats why im leaning towards the koni/gc setup now so i can experiment, and they sound like one of the best setups for that price range. thanks dude!

 

[ek forever guy]

Koni/GC for the money can't be beat. Period. It's the most bang/buck than any competitor at any price range. Hence why it is widely the most recommended suspension for many applications from daily driving, autocross, road racing, etc. Lifetime warranty really goes to show how high quality the product is. It's really quite a bargain given the flexibility of the setup and the price.

 

[ek forever guy]

New Pictures from last Sunday:

 

[EkCoupe0195]

I just bought a Ek Coupe yesterday and ive decided to go with Koni/GC setup. Can anyone direct me where I can buy it?

 

[6thGenFtw]

Im thinking about getting the CS-II for my 2000 civic si

http://www.robearracing.com/pd-progress-cs-ii-series-2-coilovers-civic-integra.cfm

 

[pinoiballa14]

wish i read this before. i have function and form. i guess theyre good for now. im gona keep this for reference for my nxt set up haha.

 

[1999EM1]

ek forever guy, how low are you dropped on the Progress CS-IIs? I ordered and received mine already, they're sitting in the garage.

Can you recommend a drop height for a 1999 Civic SI? I don't want any gap, I was thinking 2.25"F/2.0"R. I want to be pretty close to slammed but not, if that makes sense lol.

 

[CHILD]

you shouldn't go that low on the CSII's

 

[1999EM1]

Funny because Progress says their coilovers are good for 1" to 3". They should be be able to handle 2.25"fine. I'm going to do it anyways.

 

[CHILD]

"This calibration rides well on uneven road conditions if set up at a reasonable ride height around 1.0" to 1.5" less than OEM"

comfort and handling fades beyond that. The coilovers can be adjusted 1"-3" and the combo can work at any height in that range, but they recommend that 1"-1.5" drop from OEM for the best performance.

That's why i said you "shouldn't" and not that you can't.

 

[1999EM1]

Damn, then it looks like i bought the wrong coilovers haha. EVERYBODY recommended these here, on Honda Tech, and on Civic Forums. I wanted an aggressive drop, 2" minimum.

Would you say that Progress are better than Skunk 2? My friends 99 LS Integra is dropped 2.75" on Skunk 2s and I love the ride/handling.







































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[speedygonzales]

its all a matter of opinion... some people love skunk2 others say the give you a harsh ride/are to stiff, some people love the cs-II's others say the spring rates are to soft for a good drop and that they don't drop enough. if you love your friends ride then I'm sure you'll love it even more on your car cause its yours lol. If you like the skunk2 but don't feel like droping that much cash try looking into function and form type 1's, from what I've read the spring rates are almost double that of the cs-II's meaning you can slam it without causing to many problems, and they are only like $100 more than the cs-II's if that

 

[1999EM1]

Unfortunately, I already bought and received the Progress CS-IIs. They're sitting in my garage and I'm waiting to throw them on. I'm still going to drop it 2" and if they break, I'll just throw the stock suspension back on and buy Neuspeed Race Springs or smt.

 

[speedygonzales]

would it be possible to return them?

 

[1999EM1]

Nope

 

[speedygonzales]

damn that sux, you could try reselling them on here, craigslist or even honda tech. just some ideas so you can get at least some money back to use towards a different set up.