Just Received My Megan Coilovers

[jastylr]

Sorry, I've been off the grid for a couple of weeks with a wicked case of food poisoning. Unfortunately, I don't completely have my car dialed in right now. It needs a major alignment which my installer wanted to do after I drove the car for 500 miles to let the coilovers settle-in first.

I also don't know what I was thinking at the time but I never mentioned to the guys at the shop what damper setting I wanted and they left it at default which to me seems to be full soft or near it. I don't think you can adjust the dampening without dropping the coilovers as far as I know so it will need to be done when I finally get the car back in the shop.

I will keep you updated once I get these things taken care of. I haven't even driven in over a week!

 

[sooththetruth]

It is really hard to believe how little information that I consider reliable can be found about suspension mods. There is a lot of theoretical discussion, but not much hard information about suspension mods for street cars.

I want the holy grail of better handling and better ride, but I would settle for getting rid of the really uncomfortable unsettled feeling I get when taking a turn on rough pavement.

Also, I drive thru the mountains of W. Virginia 2-4 times a year, and my old 1998 GS 400 did far better taking those turns than does my 2010 Genesis 3.8. So does my 2006 Passat.

I really appreciate your reporting your results, but I can't believe how few people have tried to do what you are doing. The combo of coilovers with adjustable shocks seems to be a perfect "fix", but it's funny how BMW doesn't sell cars with adjustable systems, and no one is complaining about their set up.

I had a Phaeton with adjustable air shocks, and I considered it gimmicky. I ended up leaving it on the softest setting because the handling was not perceptively better on the harder settings.

Thanks for your reports. Sorry you've been ill, but I am looking forward to hear of your final impressions. Locally the suspension guys tell me coil overs will help the handling, but never the ride. I don't know if they're ignorant, or if I am just guilty of wishful thinking.

 

[Philth]

Megan Racing coilovers are generally not a "reliable" coilover. Google and search for yourself. KW Coilovers are pretty reliable, in my opinion, if you must go with a coilover, but they can be pretty pricey.

Also, pillow ball mounts, in general, transmit almost every single defect/bump in the road to the vehicle chassis, as the OEM upper mounts with rubber are now removed. It's definately a trade off with what you want.

 

[XLevel]

Megan Racing coilovers are generally not a "reliable" coilover. Google and search for yourself. KW Coilovers are pretty reliable, in my opinion, if you must go with a coilover, but they can be pretty pricey.

Also, pillow ball mounts, in general, transmit almost every single defect/bump in the road to the vehicle chassis, as the OEM upper mounts with rubber are now removed. It's definately a trade off with what you want.

Sorry, but that is just not true. You can always find someone who has had a problem with something if you look hard enough, but I can tell you I have sold their product for years. Literally hundreds of sets a year and have NEVER had a single return or warranty issue on Megan Racing coilovers. Not a single one.

When you compare a $900-$1100 Taiwanese coilover to a $1500-$3500 coilover from Germany, you are going to see a tremendous difference. If they were the same, the German ones wouldn't sell. As with most anything, you get what you pay for. The KWs Variant 3s are stainless steel, feature independent rebound and compression, etc. The Megans are steel and the compression and rebound is adjustable simultaneously, etc.

KW makes an excellent product. I have the Variant 3s on my S2000 and love them. If my budget wasn't what it was and I could only spend $900-1100 I wouldn't think twice about putting Megans on my own car. In fact, we don't sell any product we would not put on our own vehicles. That's a rule here. We want our customers to not only be happy with what they purchase, but to be safe as well.

You should also note that the Megan Racing coilovers for the Sedan do not have pillow ball mounts, but aluminum mounts with hardened rubber bushings. That being said, you are correct about pillow ball mounts.

I don't mean to sound defensive, but a lot of people on here, and every forum really, are new to this type of thing and any misinformation goes a long way. It's almost as bad as sales people at the dealership saying that any aftermarket parts void the warranty which is false and illegal. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnuson–Moss_Warranty_Act That's a whole different conversation though.

I really hope you'll consider the Megans if you are in the market for suspension because the value and quality is very good.

 

[jnc2000]

Without being SS, us Northern guys might be up a creek with the salt, brine, overall northern weather.

Just an observation...

 

[Kamkaze]

A ton of subaru and evo guys up north run Megan's (and love them) they are a great entry level coilover.

 

[sooththetruth]

From Megan Racing site, regarding the very same coilover suspension recommended for the Genesis Sedan:

Megan Racing Coil-Over Dampers are the ultimate upgrade to your track or street car. Featuring 32 levels of damper force adjustment, separate spring perch height and shock length adjustment allowing you to retain full suspension stroke and to fine tune your suspension characteristics. These damper kits are then perfectly matched with front and rear Pillow Ball upper mounts, including camber plates integrated with the upper Pillow Ball mounts on strut-type suspension applications.

Compression and rebound settings are easily adjusted through a single damper adjustment knob which is built-in at the top of the damper mount for easy access. Adjustments are simple to tune according to your style of driving and desired comfort level whether you are a professional certified mechanic or an automotive enthusiast with amateur mechanical skills. All of our dampers are capable of handling a +2kg/mm or -2kg/mm change in spring rates to further tune your suspension to your desired handling characteristics.

Height adjustments are made with separate CNC-Machined locking spring perches for accuracy and smooth adjustment with separate damper shock length adjustment to retain full-stroke and allows for precision suspension tuning. The wide range of allowable ride-height adjustment allows you to retain the factory ride-height for OEM appearance with performance handling, drop your car all the way down for an aggressive stance, or fine tune your suspension for the race-track to lowering your center of gravity to gain full potential of your vehicle's handling capabilities.


So it seems that pillow ball mounts ARE part of this coilover system. So I have a call into them, but I should call the fellow above that was "talking up" the Megan's.

I was willing to spend $3K for the RW's, variant 3, or Variant 1's. Unfortunately, I was told that there was no set up for the Genesis sedan.

Very disappointing. I like the car a lot, but the suspension drives me crazy, but on another thread I noted that the new 2012's feel heavy and sluggish to me, and YES i noted that if you FLOOR the accelerator the car will move....but I don't like the feel. I need to fix my 2010. I was hoping there would be some new report on the Megan shocks, but I may be getting my own. Worried about the Pillow ball transmission of shocks.

I did call Xlevel in Indy, and asked for a call back to discuss options

 

[krazyfiend]

jastylr,

How are the megan's running for you in the past few weeks?

As for the poster above asking about pillow ball mounts, if you look at the pictures of these megans on page 1, you can see that they are not on the one's made for the sedan...the megan literature you are quoting is just their generic material and they do build various sets/configs of the SS's depending on what it required to make it work best for the application. This set for the Genesis is a unique one.

I know this because i have pillow ball mounts on the megan ss's that are on my accord coupe..and yes the do translate to a lot of 'feel' of the road, but luckily the dampening can be easily dialed on from the top of the coilover in my case... even w/ those CV1's vossens and low profiles...i do well on most of the streets we have here in indianapolis. I do take the rims off for late fall until early spring. I have the megans gone over by my trusted mechanic (he's very familiar with modded out performance cars) to make sure they are in good order, torque the primary nut in the top hat to spec... I do this after being exposed to the salt/grime of winter.

By no means are they as spotless (mainly the U arm that connects at the bottom to the suspension has shown some light rusting..not apparent even behind my 20's.. but the cylinder and threading have stayed rust free) as they would be if I was down in Corpus Christi (where I grew up), but they have not seized, they perform like they did on day 1 and I can easily adjust ride height on my own. I did have a bit of noise once and it wasn't even the coilover, it was just the rear deck (lots of plastic) of the accord creating a creak near the rear curtain airbag. A little felt tape from my buddies audio shop I attained in bulk and back to normal.

I definitely plan on hitting up JT at XLevel for my future mod needs to see what's up. The 'other' option locally, Tru Moto for one, have been a pain for some of my friends to deal with and I always went with vendors out of state. One really amazing shop locally is EP Werks, but the mainly stick to VW, Audi, and Porsche..however they are willing to work on other makes...top notch service, workmanship, and some beautiful builds come out of their shop.

 

[sooththetruth]

As for the poster above asking about pillow ball mounts, if you look at the pictures of these megans on page 1, you can see that they are not on the one's made for the sedan...the megan literature you are quoting is just their generic material and they do build various sets/configs of the SS's depending on what it required to make it work best for the application.

I know this because i have pillow ball mounts on the megan ss's that are on my accord coupe..


I appreciate this information. I may be ordering the Megan's myself, now.

However, I admit that I want to gain control of the "unsettled" feeling over rough pavement, and to gain that planted feeling through turns, as sometimes the tires of my Genesis seem to "chatter" through a turn, not evoking any confidence. But I still want to have a better highway ride for long trips.

Achievable, realistic with the Megans? Or ar these really just for handling? Lowering? I really have no desire to lower the car for looks. I really want the ride and handling improvement. I will accept lowering if it gets me both.

Finally, I even looked at Bose Suspension for the car: http://www.bose.com/controller?url=/automotive/bose_suspension/index.jsp
Unbelievable video. I have already messaged Bose. They are trying to get OEM contract, and will not offer this suspension after market. Of course, the reliability is a question mark, but it is a "no compromise" suspension. Oh, except for the cost. I suspect it would have been $5-10K aftermarket.

 

[XLevel]

Just got back into town from Import Alliance last night and catching up. I'll check my messages and give you a call tomorrow after my meeting with another customer. My new business has me a bit behind with everything. On that note, check out my new apparel line at www.On3StreetGear.com Thanks!

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[brfatal]

I don't mean to sound defensive, but a lot of people on here, and every forum really, are new to this type of thing and any misinformation goes a long way. It's almost as bad as sales people at the dealership saying that any aftermarket parts void the warranty which is false and illegal. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnuson–Moss_Warranty_Act That's a whole different conversation though.

Being new to this forum I know it's bad of me to start this way with one of my 1st posts and I apologize in advance. It's more of a rant in general about misinformation being passed off as fact. I've been a primary advice giver on one of the largest auto forums on the internet for 10 years, and it very frustrating to combat.

I'm sorry but the part of your post above is exactly what's going on your post. Your post is a great disservice and is either misleading or outright wrong in every regard. All it is is a sales pitch. Now I don't know your level of experience of how much motorsports experience XLevel has, but your post makes you come off as a drop shipper, not an experienced shop. You don't sell anything you won't put on your own cars, but your site lists some of the junkiest brands available (Stance and Ksport coilovers for example).

Megans have long been regarded by most communities as cheapo budget "you-get-what-you-pay-for" coilovers. By very design they are going to be unreliable. I'm not talking about snap in half like Raceland or Godspeed. But the dampers are not valved correctly for any of the applications they have. They are over sprung and under damped, which puts added stress on the strut and will eventually wear it out quicker than something that was designed properly (ie your KW V3s). This same design flaw (rather, lack of RnD) also means that they will never ride quite right. They will always have a bounce to them that can never quite be tuned out. People who suffer from motion sickness are quicker to notice it. There is a false perception out there that coilovers are supposed to ride hard and stiff, be uncomfortable. But if you ride on some of those higher dollar coilovers (AST, Ohlins, etc) these people would be shocked and amazed on how well the ride. Being valved incorrectly also is bad for handling. Another problem? Lack of suspension travel. Want to see how this is bad, I suggest you read this thread (esp pay attention to the video in post 22): http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1926619 The coilovers in the 1st post are Megans.

Megans have also been very prone to having their adjustments seize during the winter months. They are very high maintenance in needing to be kept religiously clean to avoid problems. All coilovers are susceptible to this, but budget coilovers, including Megans, are especially problematic. Many users opt to uninstall them altogether every winter and reinstall them in the spring.

All of the above issues show how Megan is cheap. When you cut corners like this on a product, it's hard to call it a good value no matter how inexpensive the part is.

A ton of subaru and evo guys up north run Megan's (and love them) they are a great entry level coilover.

As a Subaru guy, I assure you we do not. We unfortunately have a lot of "stanced" cars in our community. They care nothing about quality, ride, or handling as long as they can slam their cars for pennies on the dollar. These are the only people you will find praising them. When you get to motorsports enthusiasts and regular drivers, the reviews change.

 

[jnc2000]

Well said sir....

Which is the reason why I'm still waiting for a something better to come to market.

 

[XLevel]

Being new to this forum I know it's bad of me to start this way with one of my 1st posts and I apologize in advance. It's more of a rant in general about misinformation being passed off as fact. I've been a primary advice giver on one of the largest auto forums on the internet for 10 years, and it very frustrating to combat.

I'm sorry but the part of your post above is exactly what's going on your post. Your post is a great disservice and is either misleading or outright wrong in every regard. All it is is a sales pitch. Now I don't know your level of experience of how much motorsports experience XLevel has, but your post makes you come off as a drop shipper, not an experienced shop. You don't sell anything you won't put on your own cars, but your site lists some of the junkiest brands available (Stance and Ksport coilovers for example).

Megans have long been regarded by most communities as cheapo budget "you-get-what-you-pay-for" coilovers. By very design they are going to be unreliable. I'm not talking about snap in half like Raceland or Godspeed. But the dampers are not valved correctly for any of the applications they have. They are over sprung and under damped, which puts added stress on the strut and will eventually wear it out quicker than something that was designed properly (ie your KW V3s). This same design flaw (rather, lack of RnD) also means that they will never ride quite right. They will always have a bounce to them that can never quite be tuned out. People who suffer from motion sickness are quicker to notice it. There is a false perception out there that coilovers are supposed to ride hard and stiff, be uncomfortable. But if you ride on some of those higher dollar coilovers (AST, Ohlins, etc) these people would be shocked and amazed on how well the ride. Being valved incorrectly also is bad for handling. Another problem? Lack of suspension travel. Want to see how this is bad, I suggest you read this thread (esp pay attention to the video in post 22): http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1926619 The coilovers in the 1st post are Megans.

Megans have also been very prone to having their adjustments seize during the winter months. They are very high maintenance in needing to be kept religiously clean to avoid problems. All coilovers are susceptible to this, but budget coilovers, including Megans, are especially problematic. Many users opt to uninstall them altogether every winter and reinstall them in the spring.

All of the above issues show how Megan is cheap. When you cut corners like this on a product, it's hard to call it a good value no matter how inexpensive the part is.


As a Subaru guy, I assure you we do not. We unfortunately have a lot of "stanced" cars in our community. They care nothing about quality, ride, or handling as long as they can slam their cars for pennies on the dollar. These are the only people you will find praising them. When you get to motorsports enthusiasts and regular drivers, the reviews change.

I probably come off as a drop shipper because I do drop ship a lot of products. If someone thinks that's bad, I will be happy to explain why it's not. That hardly makes me inexperienced or unqualified on the subject. I owned a portion of a local shop for years before I started XLevel and I could easily open a shop and do the same work now. I choose not to.

I'm not sure what you think is misinformation in my post. I am completely upfront with my customers and I tell them exactly what they are getting. I don't tell people they are getting KW, Ohlins, etc. quality when they purchase Ksports or Megans. Most of them will never see a race track and hardly need or want a set of independently adjustable rebound and compression, fully stainless, German made coilovers. Selling them something they don't need and may not be able to afford would be a disservice.

All coilovers are "you-get-what-you-pay-for" coilovers. You pay more, you get better RnD, design, quality materials, build quality, warranty, etc. While Ksport had some issues years back, I can tell you that their issues have been solved and their quality and service is much improved. I have been selling them for about a year and a half. I have been selling Megans since their introduction years ago. Between BOTH brands, I have had ZERO returns or warranty claims. I don't believe that to be a "junkie" coilover. I always believed a record like that to be pretty good.

The suspension travel on the Megans, Ksports, etc. are not bad for what they are being used for and the separate lower bracket design ensures you can keep the most travel possible with their setup. As for damping, if someone understands the valving and are concerned with it, Megan Racing now posts their shock dyno results on some applications.

If KW, Ohlins, etc. offered a setup for the Genesis sedan, I would gladly offer them.

Also, if you were to compare a suspension designed for a certain purpose, ie. Ksport Rally Spec-AR vs Ksport Slide Kontrol you would notice they are designed for what they are used for and the suspension travel coincides with that use. Not only would I put these coilovers on our own cars, we do and so do the people at Megan and Ksport. In fact, Ksport races on theirs and do very well.

It's clear you know what you are talking about as far as motorsports and the technical aspects of a suspension. I just don't think you are taking everything into consideration and you have a bias against cheaper suspensions. If you had a Genesis sedan, less than $1500 and only planned to daily your car, what would you recommend?

 

[XLevel]

Just spoke with KW. They have no plans to release a Genesis sedan coilover.

 

[XLevel]

Just spoke with Ohlins. They also have no plans for the Genesis sedan or coupe.

 

[XLevel]

Just spoke to Tanabe. They have no plans to release a Genesis sedan coilover. Their next R&D session is this fall and they will give an idea of what they will be working on next. You can keep an eye here. http://www.tanabe-usa.com/news/

 

[jnc2000]

Spoke to my contact at Uniq -- Genesis sedan Coil Overs are possible from HSD. HSD has the designs, and can manufacture. Looking at 1600 from Japan (fast boat over) -- slow boat would be ~1400 with duties, taxes, shipping etc..

http://uniqperformance.ca/products-page/suspension/

Just also want to note: HSD's spec adjustable camber and pillow ball mounting w/ progressive springs.

 

[XLevel]

We also offer HSD, but as jnc2000 mentioned, they are not in stock in the US. I spoke with the HSD distributor a couple weeks ago and they were 4-6 weeks out then. I will be happy to price match for you.

From what I've been told, they may better quality coilover than the Megan Streets, but it is a new line for us, I haven't done much research on them and therefore we have no customer feedback.

 

[brfatal]

I probably come off as a drop shipper because I do drop ship a lot of products. If someone thinks that's bad, I will be happy to explain why it's not. That hardly makes me inexperienced or unqualified on the subject. I owned a portion of a local shop for years before I started XLevel and I could easily open a shop and do the same work now. I choose not to.

In saying that you came off as a drop shipped I was implying that you could be selling products that you never see or test 1st hand.

I'm not sure what you think is misinformation in my post. I am completely upfront with my customers and I tell them exactly what they are getting. I don't tell people they are getting KW, Ohlins, etc. quality when they purchase Ksports or Megans. Most of them will never see a race track and hardly need or want a set of independently adjustable rebound and compression, fully stainless, German made coilovers. Selling them something they don't need and may not be able to afford would be a disservice

I highly agree with the bold statement. Which is why I would never recommend coilovers for a car that's DD'ed and not competitively tracked on a regular basis. Who needs to spend that much on that level of adjustability to drive to local YMCA? How are they over coming the negatives of the purchase if they are never truly taking advantage of them? And people think coilovers are set-and-forget when they aren't.

Also, if you were to compare a suspension designed for a certain purpose, ie. Ksport Rally Spec-AR vs Ksport Slide Kontrol you would notice they are designed for what they are used for and the suspension travel coincides with that use. Not only would I put these coilovers on our own cars, we do and so do the people at Megan and Ksport. In fact, Ksport races on theirs and do very well.

Ksport does not use off the shelf product in their cars or the cars they are the primary sponsor for. They use custom specs. And they can replace them on a whim. BC Racing does the same thing. Meanwhile both their readily available BC BR and BC ER lines tend to fail when pushed (at least Subaru ones). Some avid autocrossers have found that they aren't even lasting a full season before needing to be rebuilt.

It's clear you know what you are talking about as far as motorsports and the technical aspects of a suspension. I just don't think you are taking everything into consideration and you have a bias against cheaper suspensions. If you had a Genesis sedan, less than $1500 and only planned to daily your car, what would you recommend?

Just joining into this community I'm not in a position to make a brand or product recommendation. For nothing but a DD I wouldn't be recommending coils myself considering all the above and the fact that coilovers are less reliable and higher maintenance than springs and struts. I would normally say springs but I don't know what the offerings are for the Genesis nor how well the stock struts/shocks can handle being lowered and increased spring rates.

 

[XLevel]

I get the distinct impression that you have a strong opinion that unless you spend big money on a top end coilover system and race your car, you have no business running coilovers. This is where we disagree.

In saying that you came off as a drop shipped I was implying that you could be selling products that you never see or test 1st hand.

While drop shipping is the majority of my business, it's not the only part. We do stock and install parts occasionally. I have several friends who are veterans in the sport and give me constant feedback as well. We sell to customers all over the US and over 35 countries including a professional drift team (champion) that runs off-the-shelf Stance coilovers.

I highly agree with the bold statement. Which is why I would never recommend coilovers for a car that's DD'ed and not competitively tracked on a regular basis. Who needs to spend that much on that level of adjustability to drive to local YMCA? How are they over coming the negatives of the purchase if they are never truly taking advantage of them? And people think coilovers are set-and-forget when they aren't.

Many drivers prefer to find the right height for their situation/style and damping to get the feel they desire. Everyone has a different "feel" for the car they are driving. The cost of a good set of springs and shocks often nears or surpasses the cost of a lower end set of coilovers. I don't see how filling the needs/wants of my customers with that product is a negative. Once they find a sweet spot, why would they not be "set-it-and-forget-it?"

I know I don't get the opportunity to take advantage of the full features of my KWs, but that hardly makes me regret the purchase. Lots of people over-build their cars. Some for different reasons. The important part is that my customers understand exactly what they are getting, why they are getting it, and that they are happy in the end.

I don't understand the question in bold.

Ksport does not use off the shelf product in their cars or the cars they are the primary sponsor for. They use custom specs. And they can replace them on a whim. BC Racing does the same thing. Meanwhile both their readily available BC BR and BC ER lines tend to fail when pushed (at least Subaru ones). Some avid autocrossers have found that they aren't even lasting a full season before needing to be rebuilt.

So, you want us to believe that professional racing teams and the company employees who use them on their personal cars (with no promotional decals on their cars), all use an inferior product just to promote a brand? Or that the product is ok after changing the specs? "Some avid autocrossers" are pushing street coilovers to the point where they need rebuilt. Assuming that is true, what percentage of the total coilovers sold does that small sliver of the market represent? Coilovers are the largest part of my business. Of the brands I carry, no returns, no warranty claims.

Just joining into this community I'm not in a position to make a brand or product recommendation. For nothing but a DD I wouldn't be recommending coils myself considering all the above and the fact that coilovers are less reliable and higher maintenance than springs and struts. I would normally say springs but I don't know what the offerings are for the Genesis nor how well the stock struts/shocks can handle being lowered and increased spring rates.

Based upon my experience and customer feedback, I don't believe coilovers to be any less reliable or higher maintenance than shocks/springs. As I mentioned before, the Megan Streets and HSDs are the only options available at the moment. Again, while I do not have experience with the HSDs yet, If I were a Genesis sedan owner, I would not think twice about running the Megan Streets on my daily driver.