MPP Super Sport vs Ohlins R&T review

Hi Guys,

I thought I would give a review of the following kits and my impressions on the street and track. I bought both kits and compared them in both street and track environments. I want to thank Jesse and Sasha at MPP for the help on the transition from Ohlins to MPP as they guided me through every step of the way with tons of technical explanations and detail.

Ohlins DFV:
-This kit uses 4 monotube dampers with rebound adjustment only
-Spring rates are 110N/mm front and 120 N/mm rear
-The kit offers ride height adjustment via preload and adjustable length shock bodies
-The quality of the kit is excellent and instructions are straightforward for install

MPP Sport Coilovers with SuperSport Springs (using lightweight rear spring arms)
-This kit uses 4 twin tube dampers with low speed rebound and compression adjustment
-Spring rates are confidential but they are stiffer than ohlins (especially in the rear)
-This kit offers ride height adjustment via preload
-The quality of the kit is excellent and instructions are straight forward for install

Ohlins:

Street ride:
-I found the kit very comfortable on the street, I set the rebound adjustment to 10 out of 20 and found that to be the best compromise between ride quality and spirited driving
-The kit uses DFV technology which creates a very ‘plush’ compression feel on the street
-Shocks soak up imperfections nicely and you can tell that there is significant volume in the dampers to let the DFV work properly.
-Unfortunately, the default compression setting was a bit too soft; this resulted in an imbalance when adjusting the rebound setting higher as the low-speed compression curve did not track the low speed rebound curve well enough. I found this prevalent on the rear shocks as motions where not kept in check and the car bobbed a bit too much and didn’t feel settled. The front wasn’t as bad but had the same issue. Therefore, I didn’t move the setting at all on the street, 10 really felt like the max I could run.

Track:
-I ran the ohlins at an autox, and got a very quick time but I would of liked more feedback and road feel. I found the rear squatted too much out of turns (needed more spring). As said previously, I found the car had too many vertical motions when I dialed up the rebound very high (4/20) and I could never find the setting that made the car settled and composed enough to inspire confidence.

MPP:

Street ride:
-This is the second most aggressive kit that MPP sells, which you think would be ridiculously stiff on the street and a compromise to live with, but I was amazed at how that was not the case at all.
-The kit was amazingly great on the street even at a very stiff setting (4fr rebound/3rr rebound with 2 compression fr/rr) and very compliant and motions kept in check.
-The adjustments were a piece of cake and take about 5min for all 4 corners
-The increase in spring rates matched the car loading very well. The rear now had enough spring to keep it loaded correctly and made power exiting turns a breeze with no squat.
-Incredibly neutral balance, especially for such a heavy car

Track:
-A completely different car, with the stiffer spring rates and proper shock adjustments the car was always compliant, stable and settled on all maneuvers.
-Transitions were incredibly stable with high-speed sweepers.
-Corner entry superb and power exit fantastic
-Absolutely excellent road feel, allowed me to position the car perfectly
-Confidence inspiring, allowing you to keep pushing the car harder not being worried that the car would get unsettled.

Conclusion:
-Comparing MPP to Ohlins felt like comparing a one size fits all off the shelf application to a custom engineered solution
-My initial reason to go to Ohlins was the DFV and ease of adjustment but unfortunately that came up short in the end: only having rebound adjustable was inadequate and the DFV made the road feel a bit too numb.
-I felt in the the end that the Ohlins kit needed re-valving and better spring choices for serious track duty.
-The engineers at MPP created I think a superior shock and spring solution. I was skeptical at first since I thought they would be like off the shelf KW V3s, but the valving on these shocks is fantastic.
-Spring rates chosen allow for a neutral car balance
-Every adjustment on the shocks is noticeable and precise allowing you to dial up the stiffness for spirited driving and back to normal for the street
-The MPP solution is definitely the better track solution with surprisingly good road manners.


Cheers to the MPP team and looking forward to many fun sessions at the track!

 

[MasterC17]

Great comparison! I've been waiting for someone to test both kits and report back. Unfortunately, most of us only have the time and money to invest in one or the other, so this is extremely insightful information.

It's a similar, albeit opposite experience to what I had with the MCS 1WNR. They were far too stiff for the chassis and the NVH was too much for a road-going car. I ended up moving to the MPP Sports (and eventually to the SS springs) and couldn't be happier. Despite being quite a bit cheaper, the MPP solution was a much better fit for me compared to the MCS.

 

[stevehifi]

Great comparison! I've been waiting for someone to test both kits and report back. Unfortunately, most of us only have the time and money to invest in one or the other, so this is extremely insightful information.

It's a similar, albeit opposite experience to what I had with the MCS 1WNR. They were far too stiff for the chassis and the NVH was too much for a road-going car. I ended up moving to the MPP Sports (and eventually to the SS springs) and couldn't be happier. Despite being quite a bit cheaper, the MPP solution was a much better fit for me compared to the MCS.

I think the car could probably still use more spring all around since it's such a heavy car, but like you said there's an eventual compromise on the every day driving aspect. I was actually considering MPP's KW competition 3EXR setup (monotube) but my concern was the rebuild interval... which was a no-go.
The MPP solution is I find a really good balance with the shock settings and packers and a combination of playing with swaybars adjustments and tire pressures it's plenty of tools to make this car go fast.

 

[DownshiftDre]

Thanks the review. Great perspective.

Any commemtary regarding the MPP damper shaft is kind of exposed vs the Ohlins damper shaft has a runner boot that gets zip tied around? Longevity issues? Dirt dust?

 

[stevehifi]

Thanks the review. Great perspective.

Any commemtary regarding the MPP damper shaft is kind of exposed vs the Ohlins damper shaft has a runner boot that gets zip tied around? Longevity issues? Dirt dust?

That would be useful if you’re going off-road but I don’t think you would be doing that with a model 3

 

[MasterC17]

Thanks the review. Great perspective.

Any commemtary regarding the MPP damper shaft is kind of exposed vs the Ohlins damper shaft has a runner boot that gets zip tied around? Longevity issues? Dirt dust?

There's a dust seal on the damper shaft. The dust boot doesn't do a whole lot. It's not like the damper is sucking in dirt and debris. Take a look at dirtbike dampers, for example.

 

[buckets0fun]

There's a dust seal on the damper shaft. The dust boot doesn't do a whole lot. It's not like the damper is sucking in dirt and debris. Take a look at dirtbike dampers, for example.

One could say that any amount of prevention would be best for the seals. Many of us run shock covers, especially on road cars that see many seasons(winter and the salt trucks being the worst).

It’s cheap insurance.

 

[MountainPass]

One could say that any amount of prevention would be best for the seals. Many of us run shock covers, especially on road cars that see many seasons(winter and the salt trucks being the worst).

It’s cheap insurance.

I've had customers email us for some dimensions so they can run these: ISC COILOVER COVERS

 

[dsgerbc]

Thanks the review. Great perspective.

Any commemtary regarding the MPP damper shaft is kind of exposed vs the Ohlins damper shaft has a runner boot that gets zip tied around? Longevity issues? Dirt dust?

Were there any reports of MPP shocks leaking?
Asking for a friend. Since my rear Ohlins have just started seeping oil after 30k street/autox miles.

 

[sagax]

How often either Ohlins or MPP comfort coilovers need rebuit?

 

[MasterC17]

How often either Ohlins or MPP comfort coilovers need rebuit?

In my experience with KW's - for street use only I wouldn't bother unless you find something clearly wrong like a leaking damper. They should easily exceed 100k miles.

For track duty, probably every 25k miles or so is a good rule of thumb. That being said I've got about 20k street/track miles on mine and have no intentions of rebuilding them any time soon.

 

[DownshiftDre]

Interesting. There is a new review video out by ZEVCentric. Says the Ohlins R&T suspension is too hard and harsh comparison. No comfort at all which is different than what the review in this thread. Also compared to same MPP Sports with Supersport springs.

 

[SBD47]

I watched the video, and I’ll be the first to say that this is not a comfort kit, but I don’t think it’s as bad as they made it out to be. I drive around at 7 clicks from full stiff(Sometimes 4 clicks) and my wife has never once complained that the ride was too harsh. In the video they kept talking about being at the softest setting(20 clicks) and being scared to go any stiffer. I actually think that this kit rides better at 7-10 clicks from stiff. I think it may have to do with damping the higher spring rate. If you’re looking for a performance oriented kit, after ~7k miles, I still think the Ohlins R&T kit is a good option.

 

[stevehifi]

20 clicks is essentially fully open (full soft). I agree with the video that the car didn’t feel settled enough with ohlins damping but I think they should of went with at least 5-10 clicks open to allow the damping to control the springs better and provide better review.

 

[famoruwa]

I just had Ohlins DFV Performance Sports Coilovers, Redwood Motorsports Front and Rear Sway Bars, FPX Adjustable Rear Camber & Toe Control Arms, and alignment done, all by Redwood Motorsports in Fremont, CA.

First impressions compared to stock damper/eibach pro-kit springs are:

1) Much less body roll, with a much more neutral ride. Very flat cornering. Turn-in feels much more precise.
2) Very smooth ride across street perturbations. The setup absorbs bumps much moreso than I can remember even when stock.
3) Able to accelerate through turns much more confidently without the tendency of the rear to lag/want to catch up with the front. The car seems to rotate much easier.

I am still running stock M3P wheels on MP4S (20") for now.

I highly recommend a setup like this if you're looking for a comfortable yet sporty suspension upgrade from either stock, or stock + springs.

Once the suspension settles, hope to provide more feedback.

Cheers to Redwood Motorsports!

 

[The Other Dan]

I think there's a little bit of apples to oranges comparison here.
When ever I look at suspension for enthusiast cars, I look at 2 things, who is the OEM manufacturer of the suspension, and 2ndly, who is the tuner/company/shop that's customizing it? In this case your comparing KW to Ohlins. Both excellent suspension companies.
Next is the shop that's customized it. This is a bigger deal than one might think. Theses typically are the enthusiast companies with deeper knowledge of the car and its flaws, and the they have the time to improve it correctly, or at least give it a more custom tailored improvement. Not that the OEMs are wrong, but they are targeting a more generalized improvement. Which frequently leaves a bit on the table.
So in this case your comparing MPP which is taking a "we want perfection" approach, to Ohlins, which is taking a "good enough" approach.

I know when I was involved in the Subaru world, the suspension shop I was close to, had a Bilstein offering where they worked directly together to create the perfect package. The owner went to CA and spent a couple days with Bilstein engineers working on it. They had a WRX on a shaker rig as well as on-road playing with valving and springs to get the right proprietary set-up.
I use that as an example of how deep some of the enthusiast companies go to create their packages, so us consumers can buy them and praise them or complain about them.
There's too many vehicles for the OEMs to do that.

 

[tm1v2]

Just for everyone's clarity, the Redwood Motorsports Ohlins DFV Performance Sport coilovers that @famoruwa just posted about, are a different product from the Ohlins R&T coilovers that the OP (@stevehifi) was using.

To @The Other Dan's point, I think apples-to-apples in that sense would be KW V3 compared to Ohlins R&T, *or* MPP Sport compared to Redwood Performance Sport.

However people will cross-shop all of these coilovers. As they should. @The Other Dan I am in agreement with you though.

 

[canasion35]

Thinking about getting a more aggressive setup - i had the KW V3's but felt it was a bit overkill for spirited driving and went for the the Tein Flex Z's (got them for $700 shipped brand new, couldn't pass up the deal).

Fast forward about a year, and 17k miles later and I often find myself regretting the switch to the Tein's due to the spring rate. I feel i went too far on the other side of the spectrum now. Despite having the Tein dampers 4 clicks open from full stiff, i still feel like there are massive amounts of body roll on initial turn-in and the rear end generally feeling unsettled.

For those that have the MPP coilovers, are you finding them to satisfy your needs and give the M3 a more plated feel? Seeing that they are more tailored to the car as opposed to the one size fits all KW V3's and Ohlins, I'm hoping i have better luck going this route.

 

[Mash]

SuperSport springs have massively improved my KW. Its better on the road and on the track, no downsides for me at all. Those springs made it close to bmw m2 from 2018 in terms of speed (still slower, but close). But I'm running out of stock valving for the track with them. I believe those should be default for MPP Sport.