Anybody tried BC Racing BR Series Coilovers?

[ULEWZ]

I want better handling on my P3D (too boingy in the twisties), but would prefer not to sell a Kidney just to get some quality coilovers. Saw the BC Racing BR series coilovers on a google search and thought it might be a good option. Not very expensive at $1250, but also monotubes, so may not be as plush on the highway. Anybody ever bought these for another car or a Model 3 and what did you think?

 

[Performance]

I dont think they are making the model 3 kits yet.

 

[ULEWZ]

I dont think they are making the model 3 kits yet.

17-UP Tesla Model 3 AWD BC Racing Coilovers - BR Type

 

[Performance]

I think this is mislabelled for model s kit.
Until it is on their site I doubt they make them.
Plus 16k front 6k rear. no thanks.

 

[MasterC17]

MPP Comfort Coilovers. Yes, they are a little more expensive, but you get what you pay for.

BC Racing is basically a "high-quality" eBay Coilover.

 

[MountainPass]

I have BC Racing coilovers on my MR2 track car. Despite it being a summer only car, they are rusting and the powdercoat is chipping off. They have also gotten progressively noisier. - Jesse

 

[ULEWZ]

MPP Comfort Coilovers. Yes, they are a little more expensive, but you get what you pay for.

BC Racing is basically a "high-quality" eBay Coilover.

Comfort coilovers are probably too soft as the name suggests for what I am looking for. Stock I find to be extremely comfortable, just does not handle well with too much pogo-ing.

 

[MasterC17]

Comfort coilovers are probably too soft as the name suggests for what I am looking for. Stock I find to be extremely comfortable, just does not handle well with too much pogo-ing.

I have them on my wife's car and find them to be quite nice. On my car I have MCS 1WNR's with 800/1000lb springs and I wouldn't say there is much of a noticeable difference on the street other than the significantly increased NVH with the MCS's.

If you are not planning to track the car I don't think the Sports Coilovers would offer you too much more beyond adjustment if you're concerned with the price difference. Just my two cents.

 

[Clivew]

The one major thing I have learnt over 35 years of driving modified cars on road and track is don’t fit budget coilovers. If you can’t afford high quality coilovers, fit quality uprated replacement dampers, along with lowering springs.

Most ‘budget’ coilovers have poor, inconsistent damping, and wear out very quickly. To get any damping control, they end up very harsh, and wound soft for any sort of comfort, you end up with a bouncy underdamped car.

Quality dampers give you great suspension control and comfort, combined. Buy once, buy right. Suspension isn’t an area to skimp on, especially on a car with a great chassis, like the Model 3.

 

[ULEWZ]

I have them on my wife's car and find them to be quite nice. On my car I have MCS 1WNR's with 800/1000lb springs and I wouldn't say there is much of a noticeable difference on the street other than the significantly increased NVH with the MCS's.

If you are not planning to track the car I don't think the Sports Coilovers would offer you too much more beyond adjustment if you're concerned with the price difference. Just my two cents.

I have always spent money on a quality shock for my sportbikes, but cars are a different story. I actually know the value of a good suspension, I just have a finance minister to deal with. I still am hesitant to try the "comfort coilovers". I owned three different corvettes, all with Bilstein shocks, and that suspension never bothered me and they all handled great in the twisties. The stock suspension would hop to the side when hitting a bump in a turn, until the Bilsteins were installed. That is what I am looking for. For comfort, we take the wifes RDX A-Spec. Price wise, the Comfort Coilovers are spot on and will keep me out of trouble, but I don't want to settle. I need to find somebody in Los Angeles with them that I can feel in the twisties, but with this Corvid thing........

 

[lbowroom]

So if MPP called them super duper best coil overs ever, you’d give them a try?

 

[MasterC17]

I have always spent money on a quality shock for my sportbikes, but cars are a different story. I actually know the value of a good suspension, I just have a finance minister to deal with. I still am hesitant to try the "comfort coilovers". I owned three different corvettes, all with Bilstein shocks, and that suspension never bothered me and they all handled great in the twisties. The stock suspension would hop to the side when hitting a bump in a turn, until the Bilsteins were installed. That is what I am looking for. For comfort, we take the wifes RDX A-Spec. Price wise, the Comfort Coilovers are spot on and will keep me out of trouble, but I don't want to settle. I need to find somebody in Los Angeles with them that I can feel in the twisties, but with this Corvid thing........

Well I can tell you with confidence the MPP Comfort's (built by KW) are going to be a step up from soft Bilstein's for sure. If you were happy with Bilstein's, you will be happy with the MPP's. IMO Bilstein's are at best an OK OEM style damper. "Comfort" is also a relative term. They are still "stiffer" than stock, it's just that a genuinely good damper can do both ends of the spectrum well. By "Comfort" they are not insinuating it rides on a cloud or like an SUV.

 

[ULEWZ]

Well I can tell you with confidence the MPP Comfort's (built by KW) are going to be a step up from soft Bilstein's for sure. If you were happy with Bilstein's, you will be happy with the MPP's. IMO Bilstein's are at best an OK OEM style damper. "Comfort" is also a relative term. They are still "stiffer" than stock, it's just that a genuinely good damper can do both ends of the spectrum well. By "Comfort" they are not insinuating it rides on a cloud or like an SUV.

Interesting, my Bilsteins were the Sport model and were not soft. I guess I will have to try them out. Have you taken the Comfort shocked vehicle in the twisties and if yes, how did it feel? And thank you for your useful posts.

 

[MountainPass]

So if MPP called them super duper best coil overs ever, you’d give them a try?

There is only one way to find out

 

[ULEWZ]

There is only one way to find out

Then you would loose the crowd looking for more comfort over stock.

 

[MountainPass]

Then you would loose the crowd looking for more comfort over stock.

Don't worry, we won't rename our Comfort Coilover to MPP Super Duper Best Coilovers. It would be confusing.

 

[MasterC17]

Interesting, my Bilsteins were the Sport model and were not soft. I guess I will have to try them out. Have you taken the Comfort shocked vehicle in the twisties and if yes, how did it feel? And thank you for your useful posts.

I'm trying to figure out the best way to describe this. Bilstein's are (again, my opinion) a low-quality, high-volume, OE-style shock. What I mean by that is you drive with your Bilstein Sport's and the lowering springs and they feel harsh. And you think, well these feel so stiff, they must handle well. When, in reality, they handle like absolute turd. I've run several BMW's with Bilstein's. I used to think the same thing. Then I bought quality dampers on those same cars (Moton, AST, MCS, KW, etc) and WOW, was I wrong. A suspension shouldn't feel like it's hard and working to break your back and knock your teeth out. Hard does not equal good. In fact, because they are so stiff they actually suck at absorbing road imperfections (which is basically the whole point of them) and make the car extremely unpredictable at the limit (due to oscillations and bump steer) and crap to drive at all other times. A real quality damper can provide both a comfortable ride and incredible handling characteristics. That is why, even though I have ridiculously stiff springs on my MCS Coilovers (we're talking 3-4x stiffer than stock), they actually ride as comfortable as the stock dampers and springs. There is added NVH due to all the spherical bushings/bearings, but that is to be expected on a setup designed for the track.

So the question is, where does MPP/KW land in all of this? I'm not going to say the Comfort's were designed for the track, because they weren't. However, they prove to be nicely composed, balanced, and predictable on the track. I've pushed the Comfort's pretty hard and was pleasantly surprised. Sure, they aren't the fastest setup in the world, but they are a big upgrade and are a notable step up over stock when pushing them; otherwise they ride as nice or better than stock. All the above is the reason I strongly recommend against just throwing springs over dampers. The stock dampers are OK at best (which is true of basically any car from the factory), and not at all designed for a lowering spring. Even then, most damper and spring options out there weren't really designed to be run together which is why a true full coilover with a damper valved specifically for the springs it is going to use is the best setup every time.

My understanding (perhaps @MountainPass can chime in here) is that the comfort's run a lower spring rate with fixed rebound and compression settings that would fall somewhere in the middle of the adjustment offered by the Sport's version. In theory the Sport's could be adjusted to be a little softer than the Comfort setup or noticeably stiffer.

TLDR; A truly good suspension setup is both comfortable and provides excellent handling characteristics (they are not mutually exclusive).

Hopefully that helps; suspension is an extremely complex system even though it looks simple on the surface!

 

[ULEWZ]

I'm trying to figure out the best way to describe this. Bilstein's are (again, my opinion) a low-quality, high-volume, OE-style shock. What I mean by that is you drive with your Bilstein Sport's and the lowering springs and they feel harsh. And you think, well these feel so stiff, they must handle well. When, in reality, they handle like absolute turd. I've run several BMW's with Bilstein's. I used to think the same thing. Then I bought quality dampers on those same cars (Moton, AST, MCS, KW, etc) and WOW, was I wrong. A suspension shouldn't feel like it's hard and working to break your back and knock your teeth out. Hard does not equal good. In fact, because they are so stiff they actually suck at absorbing road imperfections (which is basically the whole point of them) and make the car extremely unpredictable at the limit (due to oscillations and bump steer) and crap to drive at all other times. A real quality damper can provide both a comfortable ride and incredible handling characteristics. That is why, even though I have ridiculously stiff springs on my MCS Coilovers (we're talking 3-4x stiffer than stock), they actually ride as comfortable as the stock dampers and springs. There is added NVH due to all the spherical bushings/bearings, but that is to be expected on a setup designed for the track.

So the question is, where does MPP/KW land in all of this? I'm not going to say the Comfort's were designed for the track, because they weren't. However, they prove to be nicely composed, balanced, and predictable on the track. I've pushed the Comfort's pretty hard and was pleasantly surprised. Sure, they aren't the fastest setup in the world, but they are a big upgrade and are a notable step up over stock when pushing them; otherwise they ride as nice or better than stock. All the above is the reason I strongly recommend against just throwing springs over dampers. The stock dampers are OK at best (which is true of basically any car from the factory), and not at all designed for a lowering spring. Even then, most damper and spring options out there weren't really designed to be run together which is why a true full coilover with a damper valved specifically for the springs it is going to use is the best setup every time.

My understanding (perhaps @MountainPass can chime in here) is that the comfort's run a lower spring rate with fixed rebound and compression settings that would fall somewhere in the middle of the adjustment offered by the Sport's version. In theory the Sport's could be adjusted to be a little softer than the Comfort setup or noticeably stiffer.

TLDR; A truly good suspension setup is both comfortable and provides excellent handling characteristics (they are not mutually exclusive).

Hopefully that helps; suspension is an extremely complex system even though it looks simple on the surface!

Great post, by the way, no normal springs on a Vette, they are transverse leaf springs. If you were able to push on the track and it was noticeably better than stock, that is good news. If the setting is in the middle or the Sport version, that would be great also. Now I need sport springs on comfort shocks. That should satisfy the body roll issue without having to get sway bars and have it be in the correct price range.

 

[Bill Foster]

"You get what you pay for"

BC coil overs are trash.

 

[rotus8]

I had BC Racing RM series coilovers on my Mazdaspeed 3. They were not bad though not as good as the ones from mazdaspeed racing. I had those and they were good but self destructed and could not be repaired. The BC needed some maintenance, and I needed to replace a few things but parts were always available. RM series are a step above the BR.