Koni yellows or Koni FSD, its not that easy

[breakfasteatre]

Have the cpe rmm in, and soon the trz transmission mount. My car will be vibing, which i dont mind.

What i do mind is harshness over bumps.

Almost instantly my passenger side strut blew up and now i have some interesting handling characteristics even when leisurely driving to work.

Options:

~600 USD for used fsds

~670 USD for koni yellows that the shop has in hand, no waiting


Even at the softest setting, will the konis provide an even harsher driving experience?

[shu5892001]

I have koni yellows at 50%, I still think it's too comfortable and will have Jimmy dial to 80% stiff. So I say go ahead with yellows

[PearlM3]

I have the koni yellows and keep them at 60-75% stiff because anything lower is too floaty, I say your safe with the yellows

[n00bMeiSter]

if you are lowering your car, you cannot use FSD's.

[breakfasteatre]

zero interest in lowering

and i knew that about the fsds, anything more than 1.5" is not recommended

[Fack_Dude]

which shop are u refering too that has the koni yellows in stock? I will buy them in an instant.....

[fini]

if you are lowering your car, you cannot use FSD's.

why do you say that? considering koni and eibach partner together and sell spring/schock strut packages.
i can say from personal experience that the prokit fsd combo is a great one

[loki]

why do you say that? considering koni and eibach partner together and sell spring/schock strut packages.
i can say from personal experience that the prokit fsd combo is a great one

not for the mazdaspeed3

[fini]

not for the mazdaspeed3

as in they did not make that product for the ms3 ? or it is not good for the ms3?

[loki]

as in they did not make that product for the ms3 ? or it is not good for the ms3?

from what I have read/heard etc it does not work on the ms3. Something to do with the FSD shocks being too soft. So it would appear if you stick with the stock springs you can use the FSD's but if you go pro-kits you have to use the yellows.

[loki]

Almost instantly my passenger side strut blew up and now i have some interesting handling characteristics even when leisurely driving to work.



sounds like something that would normally only happen to fast_dude

we'll have to get him to do his rendition on how this could have all gone down, at the next meet! haha

[Fuyuzora]

OP: I had a similar concern as you a few months back when weighing my options for my Mazda3. (not Speed) In the end I went with the Koni Sports despite being somewhat apprehensive of the claims of "harshness"...

These claims of harshness are vastly overrated.

At 25% from full soft, the car is very close to stock in terms of comfort, albeit with very noticeable handling gains. I kind of wish I had set it to at least 50% to start, since the rears are a bit of a pain to adjust later. I can't even imagine how soft they are when set to full soft.

TL;DR - They're fantastic shocks and when set low are perfectly comfortable. Go for it. :thumbsup

[MajesticBlueNTO]

just note that the Mazdaspeed3/Mazda5 Koni Yellows (and FSD) are 20% stiffer than the regular Mazda3 Yellows (and FSD) to begin with

I have the Mazdaspeed3 Yellows set at 50% front and rear on stock springs and the ride is quite good. If you do get the regular Mazda3 yellows, run them at about 75% .... the rears are a PITA to adjust because the shock must be compressed completely to engage the adjustment cam so, get it right the first time.

[breakfasteatre]

picked up the konis, will be my 4th set of shocks/struts to install on my 4th car :)

659.99 cdn + duties when they arrive (ill do the brokerage myself ala http://trueler.com/2010/11/24/self-clear-shipment-cbsa-avoid-ups-brokerage-fee/)

was told the shop had 1 set on hand

[mazdathree]

picked up the konis, will be my 4th set of shocks/struts to install on my 4th car :)

659.99 cdn + duties when they arrive (ill do the brokerage myself ala http://trueler.com/2010/11/24/self-clear-shipment-cbsa-avoid-ups-brokerage-fee/)

was told the shop had 1 set on hand

Where did you get the konis from? and how much duties did you have to pay?

[n00bMeiSter]

breakfast: did you get yellows or FSD?




why do you say that? considering koni and eibach partner together and sell spring/schock strut packages.
i can say from personal experience that the prokit fsd combo is a great one

Amongst what other people say, it also says explicitly on their website not to use the FSD's if you're lowering your car. I also called to confirm it.

[breakfasteatre]

got them on ebay :)

[fini]

from what I have read/heard etc it does not work on the ms3. Something to do with the FSD shocks being too soft. So it would appear if you stick with the stock springs you can use the FSD's but if you go pro-kits you have to use the yellows.



Amongst what other people say, it also says explicitly on their website not to use the FSD's if you're lowering your car. I also called to confirm it.

I don't know about MS3 applications. But for my A3, it is literally sold in a singular box FSD + prokits. So I don't see why they would tell you that if they are selling that product. So I'm surprised.
At least for the A3 application, it works really well after about 2 years

[MajesticBlueNTO]

I don't know about MS3 applications. But for my A3, it is literally sold in a singular box FSD + prokits. So I don't see why they would tell you that if they are selling that product. So I'm surprised.
At least for the A3 application, it works really well after about 2 years

apples to oranges

For the Mazda3, there is an FSD kit that comes paired with Pro-Kits:



Mazda 04-09 3 Sedan and Hatchback, incl Mazda Sport Susp, excl Mazda Speed 3 - 2150 FSD Lowering kit

Complete Kit
2150 4040
Retail Price: $1,320.00
KONI online Price: $990.00 per kit

FSD Eibach Suspension Kit. Lowers front 36mm, rear 30mm.

For the Mazdaspeed3, there is no such kit. Lee from Koni himself posted on MSF.org that the FSD's for the Mazdaspeed3 are not to be used with lowering springs.

[horto]

from what I have read/heard etc it does not work on the ms3. Something to do with the FSD shocks being too soft. So it would appear if you stick with the stock springs you can use the FSD's but if you go pro-kits you have to use the yellows.

++++1

what he said.



For the Mazdaspeed3, there is no such kit. Lee from Koni himself posted on MSF.org that the FSD's for the Mazdaspeed3 are not to be used with lowering springs.

and him.

also, my goddamn koni yellows have been on order for like 6 months now... :bang:complain (/rant)

[Fuyuzora]

also, my goddamn koni yellows have been on order for like 6 months now... :bang:complain (/rant)

Where'd you order from?

I got my Koni Sports in about two months from Northern Performance (ordered mid-April, installed mid-June), and they indicated I could have gotten them sooner if I had been willing to run the firmer (but otherwise same) MS3 shocks. (I stuck with the MZ3 shocks)

EDIT: And no sooner than I post do I realize it's probably because due to Gen.1 / Gen.2 order volume differences.

[horto]

Where'd you order from?

I got my Koni Sports in about two months from Northern Performance (ordered mid-April, installed mid-June), and they indicated I could have gotten them sooner if I had been willing to run the firmer (but otherwise same) MS3 shocks. (I stuck with the MZ3 shocks)

EDIT: And no sooner than I post do I realize it's probably because due to Gen.1 / Gen.2 order volume differences.


nextmod.

time to get my deposit back and order 'em from the states.

[Fuyuzora]

nextmod.

time to get my deposit back and order 'em from the states.

You might want to try giving John @ NP a call first, he might have some on-hand or be able to give you an estimate on turnaround time. The price I received was competitive to if I had ordered from the states, and also helped support a TM3 sponsor. (although admittedly, you tried to support a sponsor as well and that didn't go so well...)

Unless you're planning to have them delivered to Niagara and have them installed on the US side of the border?

[horto]

You might want to try giving John @ NP a call first, he might have some on-hand or be able to give you an estimate on turnaround time. The price I received was competitive to if I had ordered from the states, and also helped support a TM3 sponsor. (although admittedly, you tried to support a sponsor as well and that didn't go so well...)

Unless you're planning to have them delivered to Niagara and have them installed on the US side of the border?

emailed NP. thanks.

[cwp_sedan]

:thumbsup to Northern Performance!

[breakfasteatre]

btw, i got the yellows

why so many non ms3 guys post in ms3 section? 3/4 of this thread are dudes arguing about it because half are refering to ms3, the section in which i posted in, and the other half are reg 3 guys

[cwp_sedan]

btw, i got the yellows

why so many non ms3 guys post in ms3 section? 3/4 of this thread are dudes arguing about it because half are refering to ms3, the section in which i posted in, and the other half are reg 3 guys

lol this isn't a special little club. Anyone can post in the MS3 section as long as they give good, valid information. Unfortunately a lot of people don't check the section before posting but this thread also covered the details as to why you should use MS3 specific Konis, etc. So overall it has good info.

[Fuyuzora]

why so many non ms3 guys post in ms3 section? 3/4 of this thread are dudes arguing about it because half are refering to ms3, the section in which i posted in, and the other half are reg 3 guys

Heaven forbid owners of a different but similar vehicle try to offer some constructive input in a thread without very many replies. Shame on them. :rolleyes

The only "argument" of sorts I saw was the misunderstanding regarding the fact that there is a FSD+Prokit option for Gen.1 MZ3, but nothing for MS3 nor for the Gen.2 MZ3. Everything else was more-or-less on topic.

Hope you like the shocks.

[breakfasteatre]

lol this isn't a special little club. Anyone can post in the MS3 section as long as they give good, valid information. Unfortunately a lot of people don't check the section before posting but this thread also covered the details as to why you should use MS3 specific Konis, etc. So overall it has good info.

I sincerely appreciate the responses. edited. I do hope the post will provide valuable information for users searching in the future

[cwp_sedan]

I sincerely appreciate the responses but because i was inquiring about ms3 specific applications, comparisons between stock mazda3 suspension and mazda 3 specific koni applications isnt really relevant to my original questions. I do hope the post will provide valuable information for users searching in the future

You just need to be more specific in your title and or post. In this day in age when everyone skim reads everything and laziness is extremely apparent, you need to give people a bit of guidance. Next time throw the words "specifically for the Speed 3" in there an I'm sure you will get more specific responses more for the Speed 3. :)

[fini]

apples to oranges

For the Mazda3, there is an FSD kit that comes paired with Pro-Kits:

For the Mazdaspeed3, there is no such kit. Lee from Koni himself posted on MSF.org that the FSD's for the Mazdaspeed3 are not to be used with lowering springs.

That's what I was asking... Whether or not ther IS a kit designed for the speed3. If not, then obviously you can't use it.
I'm not making a comparison. I'm simply stating that if such a kit existed. It works well.

[Core]

Hey. Car is getting old so reviving an old thread! Was wondering if anyone has compared either FSD or the yellows in a car. Just wondering which would be best for DD with spirited outings once in a while. The FSD looks much more simple compared to the yellows. (IE. Won't be tempted to run the range of adjustments comparing results for the best ride.) There are the kits 2150-4040 for the FSDs and 1140-2281 sports which have the eibach springs. Or would either do for slightly 'tighter' control than OEM without sacrificing comfort as the city infrastructure collapses.

[breakfasteatre]

wow, i created this thread. EYE CREATD DIS TRED

[S.F.W.]

Hey. Car is getting old so reviving an old thread! Was wondering if anyone has compared either FSD or the yellows in a car. Just wondering which would be best for DD with spirited outings once in a while. The FSD looks much more simple compared to the yellows. (IE. Won't be tempted to run the range of adjustments comparing results for the best ride.) There are the kits 2150-4040 for the FSDs and 1140-2281 sports which have the eibach springs. Or would either do for slightly 'tighter' control than OEM without sacrificing comfort as the city infrastructure collapses.

If you pair the FSD with the right springs, for a daily driver, they are the better way to go. 75%+ of people buy Yellow's and never adjust them.

[zzz3]

FSD vs. Yellows (make sure to review graph and chart tab)
http://www.tirerack.com/suspension/tests/koni_fsd.jsp

FSD is the better choice. Yellows are unnecessary for most people.

[Core]

Thanks for the link. Very good article comparing. I think the chose is FSD! Local prices (Ottawa) with lowering springs is around 1100$ and online $900+ shipping+ duty?! Waiting for that Spring sale.