BC Coilover Review

[SSmoked]

well i figured i would right a review seeing im one of the very few who have these coilovers.

The coilovers:
first off the BC coilovers themselves are a superb product, the quality and fit and finish of them is asom. the price of the coilovers was VERY reasonable too. i paid 1200$ cash off peter at nextmod. now to the coilovers. with the Bc coilovers im able to adjust the ride height, the shock travel, and the dampending (30 levels i think). im not to sure about the hieght adjustment im thinking max 1.7in in the back and 2in in the front. another good thing about these coilovers is the adjustable front camber plates. im able to adjust the angle of my front wheels to where ever i like :chuckle, which is good cause i hydroplained into a curb 3months ago and totaly knocked out the front camber on my drivers side front wheel

The install:
well being a noob at installation i would problly give this a 6/10, 10 being the most difficult. the install went very smoothly and all the parts fit in with no issues whats so ever. the most difficult part of the install was tunning so to speak. getting the ride height and shock travel to the same level is very hard perosnaly.
for a quick idea of the install check out this link:
http://www.mazda3forums.com/index.php?topic=110060.0

the coilovers on the road:
this is were the bc coilovers shine. after seeting my dampening to 10 clicks from full soft, i took the car on the road and was waiting for a harsh ride. boy was i ever wrong. the coilovers at the level i set to was better than the ride of my pro-kits on stock shocks. not just a little bit better but almost to the point were it felt like stock suspension on 18inch wheels. but at the best it did not give up one ounce of performance the handleing is far superior to that of my pro-kit set up, and this is at a super soft setting. at a harder setting the car is a beast. best part is i can change the damper setting on the fly with the pillow ball adjustment thingy lol.
iv had these coilovers on for about a month or so and have ZERO complaintes as far as road quality.

the negatives:
well not that there is any but i do have one complaint. that is the coilovers dont go as low as i thought. the fronts could go low, but the backs at full lower only drop the car 1.5in, only a wee bit lower than my prokits in the back. also the travel of the shock is very minimal like i could get the wheels off my car with a couple pushes on a jack.

the positives:
-asom quality
-adujustable front camber
-1 year warrnety
-asom ride qulaity
-good adjustment settings
-reasonbly priced
-decent lowering

pics:
the first 2 pics aint mine. sorry never got around to taking pictures of the parts stilll in the box lol.

http://clickypow.smugmug.com/photos/551186502_3m2JE-L.jpg
http://clickypow.smugmug.com/photos/551186554_ZU8aJ-L.jpg

*i will get pics of my car tommorow my camera is outt batteries*

these coilovers are def underestimated and people should give them a shot.

thanks for reading:bana2

[stormin84]

that's good to hear that you like them....i still haven't put them on my car yet.

one question about your install how do you adjust the front camber...

[optiklenz13]

That's awesome. , I'm thinking of getting these too.

[SpeedBaby]

great write-up! those are indeed very good coilovers, i personally would recommend them over any other brand.

i currently have them on one of the cars and in comparison to the Tein SS on the other one, the BCs surpass Tein by all parameters: quality, performance, ride comfort and price. The only thing that Tein has on the BCs is the EDFC, but realistically, no matter how much you adjust them they don't compare to the BCs.

All in all, great product that i am very happy with.

[Nextmod]

Glad you liked them =)

yes def best bang for the buck especially when its on special right now

[bhrm]

How high and low can these go?

I'm not looking to 'slam' the car but more concerned with ride height and snow. Can these coilovers bring the 3 to stock height? ......or maybe even higher :)

[-RJ3-]

One thing for sure, is the tein basics arent even close to stock height when raised.. its too stiff to turn the settings up.

In looking at the threads its more then the teins... Im sure this will reach stock height.

[Nextmod]

Just a reminder that the BC coilover kits are on special still

last set instock =)

[SSmoked]

How high and low can these go?

I'm not looking to 'slam' the car but more concerned with ride height and snow. Can these coilovers bring the 3 to stock height? ......or maybe even higher :)

the lowest these can go are a mild low. i have the backs at full lock and the top of the fender is 25.5in of the ground(on 18inch rims/40series tires), the front right now how i set them are 25.25in from the ground to top of the fender. at full low the front bumper could probly touch the ground lol.
as for how high it can go im not to sure yet. when i put my winter rim/tires on ill jack them up to full hight and dampen the shocks to full soft and ill take some picks of how it is. from what i can gather ill be close to stock maby a 1/4inch lower.

however i cant stress enought how great the car rides now. its 2x more comfy than with the prokits and 5x better performing than the prokits.

sorry for taken so long on the pics never had a chance to clean the car. sorry for the dirty undercar shots, the roads in my area are all under constuction and its been nothing but mud/rock for the last couple months.
take note of how much space is between the tires and front coilovers. thats right speed3 owners wider rubber!!!

side shot
http://i384.photobucket.com/albums/oo285/D0n0fri0/randoms.jpg

driver side front wheel
http://i384.photobucket.com/albums/oo285/D0n0fri0/randoms3.jpg

driver side rear wheel
http://i384.photobucket.com/albums/oo285/D0n0fri0/randoms7.jpg

passnager side front coilover
http://i384.photobucket.com/albums/oo285/D0n0fri0/randoms5.jpg

driver side front coilover
http://i384.photobucket.com/albums/oo285/D0n0fri0/randoms6.jpg

driver side rear coilover
http://i384.photobucket.com/albums/oo285/D0n0fri0/randoms8.jpg

camber ajustment screw/ pillow bolt screw.
http://i384.photobucket.com/albums/oo285/D0n0fri0/randoms2.jpg

[bhrm]

Awesome.

Now here's an interesting question:
Lets say I get these and don't lower it and keep it as high as possible, how does insurance react to that? Are they worried about ride height or the fact that I put something in that's not 'original'?

Also, is there a coilover sleeve thing to protect them year round so they don't seize up? or do you have them serviced each year to keep them fresh.

[SSmoked]

Awesome.

Now here's an interesting question:
Lets say I get these and don't lower it and keep it as high as possible, how does insurance react to that? Are they worried about ride height or the fact that I put something in that's not 'original'?

Also, is there a coilover sleeve thing to protect them year round so they don't seize up? or do you have them serviced each year to keep them fresh.

i cant answer question 1, but can say iv been lowered for over a year(previously on prokits) and insurance never said peep. i guess if u keep it to yourself nobody will know.

as for question 2. all im going to do is buy a ultimate car wash card from esso/petro. i pay $200 and get ultimited car washes for 5-6months. this way everytime its not snowing ima get a car wash to clean off all the salt

[-RJ3-]

Here's my review.

Hands down better shock / spring setup then Tein Basics I previously had.

Reason 1:
Not only adjustable, but dampening is adjustable.
Off the box I set it to 0 (softest setting) as I was concerned about my back issues. (Teins was a harsh ride) 0 Setting is tooo soft with a lot of rebound. Now I adjusted to 7 stiffness, and it is perfect!

Reason 2:
The way to adjust the coil over. Tein Basics you use two wrenches to unlock the collar. BC Coil-overs you dont bother. With the TEins when you want it lowered to the lowest setting, the top of the pillow mount gets very loose, and makes the spring wobbly. At times will not sit right, and had to guide it in.
The new system allows the travel of the spring secure and not making the springs loose.

The back is at the lowest setting, and tucks the wheels nicely. The front can be adjusted even lower which makes the car look more aggressive in stance. It is safe for this coilover to go this low... From the setting you saw in the meet at nextmod, I still have 1- 1.60 more to go before its slammed. (thread size)

I recommend this setup to anyone who wants their car to look aggressive, comfortable, and an all around coil over setup that is worth the money.

A+++++++

[Mty Mous]

Nice review man! Guess you snatched up the last set of coilovers from Peter eh?

[-RJ3-]

Thanks!!! He still has it on special.... PM him, or most likely he will reply to this thread.

[SSmoked]

yo rj mind taking a pic of the wheel gap of ur rear wheels. maby i installed wrong but i cant seem to get the rear end lower than what i have in the pictures.
btw good review, these coils are soo underated.

[stormin84]

This is a question for RJ and SSmoked how do you adjust the front camber

[-RJ3-]

When the car is off the ground and the wheels are off, the top strut has allen key screws that you can adjust the camber. The rear doesn't have camber adjustability but its cheap to purchase. Sssmoked Here ya go..

This is the lowest the back can go.

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a340/R_J_3/BC%20coilovers/IMG_6616.jpg

The back is slightly tucking.

[SSmoked]

^^ asom thanks for the photo.
did u happen to leave both locking collars on for the rear coils? or do u just have one in there tightened against the control arm. i have both and if i remove 1 im pretty sure my car would lower a good amount possible tucking or flush with the top of the tire.

stormin, if u look at the photo i posted of the top strut u will see a gold collered plate hidden. that is the camber plate. there are 4 allen key screws that need to be taken off to slide the strut to either have -/+ camber. i would totaly suggest u cut a bigger hole so u can easily change ur camber on the fly instead of jacken the car up and taken the strut off its perch which imo is a pain.

[-RJ3-]

^^ asom thanks for the photo.
did u happen to leave both locking collars on for the rear coils? or do u just have one in there tightened against the control arm. i have both and if i remove 1 im pretty sure my car would lower a good amount possible tucking or flush with the top of the tire.



THanks and no i didnt remove the collar.

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a340/R_J_3/BC%20coilovers/IMG_6600.jpg

I have a pic of the top strut as well,

ill post soon

[MRT_MS3]

Theres a thread on Mazda247.com about this coilover failing and breaking.

I'm not saying that this is a horrible product but it could have been just one bad part off production. I'm sure BC will sort this out and figure out why this happened. Some members think that he was running his setup way too stiff thats why his strut broke but then why build a product that the strut can't handle?

I was thinking about buying this set next year but after seeing this thread, I'm really second guessing myself.

A pic of his car dropped after the strut snapping.
http://i817.photobucket.com/albums/zz98/Listers/photo.jpg

Heres the pic of the actual strut.

http://i817.photobucket.com/albums/zz98/Listers/photo-3.jpg
http://i817.photobucket.com/albums/zz98/Listers/photo-4.jpg
http://i817.photobucket.com/albums/zz98/Listers/photo-5.jpg


I contacted PG and asked Ken about the warranty process and he helped with the contacts I needed for a replacement. Emails back and forth with BC lasted a few days and never came to a conclusion because of what happened on Aug 21. I kept driving on the blown strut thinking that the strut was structurally strong enough to function until i got the replacement. I've driven on blown struts(with other cars) before with no real issues.

So on Aug 21st I was on the expressway and I hit a small bump in the middle of a curve and I immediately felt that the steering was "loose" and not as responsive. The steering wheel was no longer aligned to be straight when the front wheels were straight. I took the first exit I could and I down shifted to about 30mph because i was approaching stopped traffic at an intersection. As soon as I put any pressure on the brake pedal I felt the car drop and dive to the RF side and it came to a halt quickly.

As soon as it happened I knew what it was. The strut had separated and the wheel was in my wheel well supporting the weight of the car on the tire. The strut split in half a little above where it sits in the sleeve(or base). It looks like the top part of the strut threads(about 4 threads) into the lower part and BC welds it at that connection. Upon removal of the damaged strut I also noticed that the "hook" that keeps the the strut from rotating and holds on to the pinch bolt was missing.

I was able to reinstalled the stock suspension without replacement of anything. I didn't want to deal with BC and stopped communicating with them about the replacement.

I understand that I was using a blown strut but really didn't feel the strut should've blown in the first place. Furthermore, I didn't expect the strut to fail structurally.

The puddle in the first pic is not from the car.


i was all the way stiff in the front (32/32 i guess) and about 18/32 in the rear

i know having it all the way stiff most likely contributed to it blowing

[karsia323]

The old saying... you get what you pay for

[-RJ3-]

My question is why put the stiffness all the way?????? its daily driven not on track setup.

Again in my review I wouldnt dare to add a stiffer setup more than 10.

What he failed to say was who installed, it and how his camber is setup.

A bad mechanic may have instALLED it incorrectly and didnt use the necessary tools.

This is 1% a bad review out 99%. Im sure its installation that may have caused this.


Thanks again MRT great find!

[S.F.W.]

As well, the guy continued to drive on a blown strut. That's just foolish.

[SSmoked]

interesting, that would have to be the first bad review iv read on the bc coils

so many facters involved in that story tho. like rj mentioned it could have been installed wrong from the get-go. the shock intself was probly never adjusted to the ride height of the spring. the dampening of the strut at the highest level is insane, running over a hair u would fell it. he could have hit a bigger than he described pot hole and bang there goes the strut that was under so much force to being with.

mrt ms3, when was that thread on the coil posted? recently or in the past?

[stormin84]

here you go....

http://www.mazdas247.com/forum/showthread.php?t=123754871&highlight=bc+coilovers

[baymoe]

My question is why put the stiffness all the way?????? its daily driven not on track setup.

Again in my review I wouldnt dare to add a stiffer setup more than 10.

What he failed to say was who installed, it and how his camber is setup.

A bad mechanic may have instALLED it incorrectly and didnt use the necessary tools.

This is 1% a bad review out 99%. Im sure its installation that may have caused this.


Thanks again MRT great find!

This is a serious cause for concern.

The dampening setting the OP used prior to failure is irrelevant. The product had the option to adjust dampening to that level. Running it at whichever setting is a personal choice.

There probably isn't even 100 members here sporting the product, that's a little presumptuous in your numbers don't you say?

The OP have mechanical know-how to install the stock strut/spring back on his own, I'm sure he would have caught it if it was installed incorrectly. Camber lending to a complete failure of the strut? You're kidding right?

Although many know that driving on a blown strut is "bad", I don't think many of us have access to an alternative vehicle to use. Hence driving on a blown strut is a regular occurrence for the majority of us.

[MRT_MS3]

This is a serious cause for concern.

The dampening setting the OP used prior to failure is irrelevant. The product had the option to adjust dampening to that level. Running it at whichever setting is a personal choice.

There probably isn't even 100 members here sporting the product, that's a little presumptuous in your numbers don't you say?

The OP have mechanical know-how to install the stock strut/spring back on his own, I'm sure he would have caught it if it was installed incorrectly. Camber lending to a complete failure of the strut? You're kidding right?

Although many know that driving on a blown strut is "bad", I don't think many of us have access to an alternative vehicle to use. Hence driving on a blown strut is a regular occurrence for the majority of us.

+1 well said bro.....totally agree with you. Im just waitin what BC will do to resolve this.

[-RJ3-]

Ask me this, would you run those rubber band of a tire? with all that stess and not a lot of contact on the road with that profile tire it would tend to stress the frame of any car, dont you think?

Until I experience this happen to me (knocks on wood it doesn't) Im keeping my review as is.

[SSmoked]

There probably isn't even 100 members here sporting the product, that's a little presumptuous in your numbers don't you say?


that number may be true if ur talken about mazda3 guys. but bc coils range all over the auto industry. before buying mine i read reviews of these coils on subaru's, neons, calibers, mini's, s14, 8th gen civics, g35's, and lexus just to name a few.
and if u dont belive here are some of the reviews i read on.
http://www.clublexus.com/forums/suspension-and-brakes/450100-bc-coilover-review-and-install.html
http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1137420
http://g35driver.com/forums/brakes-suspension/243130-bc-racing-coilover-complete-review.html
http://www.mazda3forums.com/index.php?topic=156805.0 (this is a recent one)
http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1270540

my review still remains the same im 3.5months down the road with these bad boys, and i couldnt be happiers. my next update review will come sometime in the winter when i jack these coils all the way up with some winter rubbers.

[shu5892001]

any updates and problems? I am thinking about gettin these in the spring

[SSmoked]

any updates and problems? I am thinking about gettin these in the spring

no problems as of yet thankfully. just a clunk in the rear when i go onto my driveway. ill have that looked at when i lower it in the spring.

heres how she is sitting now with the coils on there highest setting. the ride quality feels the same, just a wee bit nicer with the snow tires. havnt got to realy test them this winter as weve only had a hand full of snow storms.
http://i384.photobucket.com/albums/oo285/D0n0fri0/snowfun.jpg

[Nextmod]

that number may be true if ur talken about mazda3 guys. but bc coils range all over the auto industry. before buying mine i read reviews of these coils on subaru's, neons, calibers, mini's, s14, 8th gen civics, g35's, and lexus just to name a few.
and if u dont belive here are some of the reviews i read on.
http://www.clublexus.com/forums/suspension-and-brakes/450100-bc-coilover-review-and-install.html
http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1137420
http://g35driver.com/forums/brakes-suspension/243130-bc-racing-coilover-complete-review.html
http://www.mazda3forums.com/index.php?topic=156805.0 (this is a recent one)
http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1270540

my review still remains the same im 3.5months down the road with these bad boys, and i couldnt be happiers. my next update review will come sometime in the winter when i jack these coils all the way up with some winter rubbers.

glad you still love them =)

[Nextmod]

oh for those 2010 drivers. we have the BC coilovers for both sedan and hatch instock already =)

[-RJ3-]

no problems as of yet thankfully. just a clunk in the rear when i go onto my driveway. ill have that looked at when i lower it in the spring.

heres how she is sitting now with the coils on there highest setting. the ride quality feels the s

e, just a wee bit nicer with the snow tires. havnt got to realy test them this winter as weve only had a hand full of snow storms.
http://i384.photobucket.com/albums/oo285/D0n0fri0/snowfun.jpg

Same review here.... Right now my drop is at prokit level and so far the comfort is the same... The mazda3 rear end especially 04 has this clunking sound.. It happens when its very cold. Not an issue with the coil overs.

You will not be dissapointed with this purchase!

[optiklenz13]

I think it's time I place a review on the BC's. I had the coils for over a week now and all I can say is awesome!!!

Last night, I went to pick up a part in Brampton and decided to go to the forks with my buddy. He was running skunk2 full coilovers w/dampening (civic 8th gen). He was rubbing like crazy because of his wheels.

Now on to my BC’s. I must say, they handle very well on the twisties, I can feel it really pushing the car down on the ground on turns, less body roll, still have some, nothing like a full suspension, sway bar and everything can’t fix. I had it set to somewhat hard setting and it handles very well. I get better traction with the BC’s as well.

The ride comfort is awesome as well as I don’t hear the wifey complaining whenever she’s in the car. :chuckle

I’m really glad to have picked up this part.

[Dave_The_BMXER]

Quick and dirty on the BC's I will do a full review once they settle and I tweak some more.

Initial thoughts, not as low as I wanted, right now with the front seemingly all the way down and the back all the way down my car looks identical to the sport lines. I have a finger gap up front and basically half to no finger out back.

This is with everything all the way down. I am happy with the rear as I wanted my tires at the top of my finders but not with the front as I want my tires with the top of the fenders there as well.

APH said I can go lower but my springs might make noise. I am going to take some measurements and play with the setup some more on the weekend (left my wrenches at APH) and see what I can do regarding my OCD about ride height

However these drive exceptionally better than my previous sport line/koni combo. The ride is much better (smoother) and the handling is superb. I have the shocks at just over mid point right now and obviously have a lot more range to play with.

I could not be happier with how they perform the feeling is quite honestly night and day.

Finally I have already been in contact with BC about going lower (I know I am crazy but I have no finger gap in the front in mind) and I can get shorter front springs to meet my needs for $133 shipped.

Again full review coming soon.

Oh and they are GF approved.

[mEtH]

You could probably also machine down the perch to gain a little more drop. I know it was something that I was looking at doing with my Teins.

[Dave_The_BMXER]

The only thing about machining is I don't want any reason for them to void a warranty at any time. If I get springs from them then I should be fine.

Paid too much to void anything :)

[bhrm]

bump

how are these so far?

[rmcat]

bump

how are these so far?

+1,how they hold up?

[Dave_The_BMXER]

I recently did a winter track day on mine. Went fine.
when i go to put on my summers I will see if they still adjust.

[Dave_The_BMXER]

Put my stock wheels on Thursday, Inspected and cleaned the coils. they still adjust, the black coating on the bodies is still intact, there was slight rust on the bottom of the springs where they contact each other but other than that they seemed to have survived their first winter with no issue.

[Hives]

Put my stock wheels on Thursday, Inspected and cleaned the coils. they still adjust, the black coating on the bodies is still intact, there was slight rust on the bottom of the springs where they contact each other but other than that they seemed to have survived their first winter with no issue.


Did you use white lithium grease on them a few months ago to keep them lubed up?

[Dave_The_BMXER]

I used a synthetic lube as per BC's recommendation. I can check the brand a bit later.

[Hives]

I used a synthetic lube as per BC's recommendation. I can check the brand a bit later.

Hey Dave, did you get a chance to look into this? Also, where did you get it from, crappy tire?

[Dave_The_BMXER]

Crappy tire ya, I think just generic Synth lube. It's an aerosol.

[DreCyrus]

Bump, how are these holding up for some of you guys really interesting in purchasing them button 100% sure on which brand