Ohlins Time!

[onewhippedpuppy]

Well, sorta. My garage temps can be counted on one hand so I at least started putting these things together in my kitchen. They are really really high quality, I can’t wait to get them on my RX8. The rears use the OEM upper mount and spring seat and I am missing a couple of parts to final assemble, should get that finished up next week. The baseline settings will lower the car about 1.3 in, I’ll start with that and tweak from there. This is phase one for my little rotary, the next step is a set of 18x8.5 Kong Heliograms that will push out the wheel face another 25 mm to be flush with the fenders and save about 3 lbs per corner.

[masraum]

Ohlins are supposed to be outstanding. Congrats and enjoy!

[onewhippedpuppy]

I did a ton of reading, especially the NC Miata forums because the suspension is very similar. It was pretty unanimous that while PSS9s are good, the Ohlins are another step better. For another $600 it was an easy choice.

[aschen]

Bougie shock are usually worth it.

Had penskes on my old lotus and they were amazing

[fanaudical]

Shiny!

[911boost]

Nice!! I have Ohlins on the back of my Harley, they are awesome.

[look 171]

They are nice shocks if performance top of your list. I had PSS 10 on my Cayman S but one leaked so I now have Ohlins. I found the Ohlins to be a bit on the stiffer side for street driving compared to the Bilsteins. Other that, they are great. Dropped my car about 5/8"

[onewhippedpuppy]

The RX8 and NC Miata reviews were pretty consistent that they improve handling while also riding better than stock. Guess we’ll see. The stock RX8 suspension is what I would describe as flinty on low speed rough surfaces, it’s not happy at 20 MPH on a brick street for instance. Mine is low miles (30k) but still 19 years old, I’m sure wear and tear factor into that too. Guys who race with these go with a much higher spring rate than stock and sometimes custom valving as well.

[ted]

Ohlins on one car and Penske double adjustable shocks on the other race car.
Both have been on the shock dyno many times and both behave about the same now.
Find a good shock guy and get everything out of your Ohlins investment.
https://www.bryansracing.com/shocks-springs

Working with an engineer he tied down the front end on both race cars.
Soft front springs, max rebound and cushioned down stops with shims.
So much rebound it has to be dialed out before you put it in the trailer or the front end will jack itself down and loosen the tie down straps on the freeway.
The tied down front is not designed for curb hopping which is fine as I don't bounce the car off tall gators.

Working with the ex RCR engineer transformed both my race cars from shocks to all other components.
https://www.bryansracing.com/

[onewhippedpuppy]

There are several companies that specialize in custom Ohlins valving and spring rates for Mazdas, apparently the one or two people like to race Miatas. That might be a step more than I really need, this is a weekend fun and road trip car. I do plan to get it corner balanced once I find a setup that I like.

[ted]

Post up your results weather permitting.

I raced at K1 with the owner of this shop last weekend he was fast and he races a Miata too.
https://www.good-win-racing.com/Mazda/Miata-Performance-Parts.html?srsltid=AfmBOopdbrvKV1orNUlRdX24noEgVY7 ZRGQhYeL0fdmn5KHNKajpnvS6

[Cajundaddy]

Enjoy those Ohlins! I put a set of Ohlins RT on my dual-sport 2009 Cayman and had them dialed in for ride height, alignment, and dampening by a Porsche motorsport tech. They worked out pretty great. These were a world of difference better than the PSS9s I put on my 1998 Boxster.

[vash]

if ohlins I still had a sporty car.

[vash]

I swear that sounded way funnier in my head.

[masraum]

I remember years ago, some article, I don't remember if it was in R&T or Grassroots Motorsport or what, but I believe they tested a car on a handful of different shocks, from something basic like Monroes or KYBs to Bilstein/Koni to Ohlins to some sort of remote reservoir high end shock. And IIRC, the better the shocks, the better the performance right out of the box, both in ride comfort and lap times. But it's been probably 20-25 years, so my memory is foggy.

[onewhippedpuppy]

Originally Posted by vash

I swear that sounded way funnier in my head.

I got it!!!

[David]

Always been an Ohlins fan. Went on a tail of the dragon rally a few years ago that included a visit to Ohlins in North Carolina that was really cool.

So when it was time for a Cayman upgrade:

[onewhippedpuppy]

Originally Posted by masraum

I remember years ago, some article, I don't remember if it was in R&T or Grassroots Motorsport or what, but I believe they tested a car on a handful of different shocks, from something basic like Monroes or KYBs to Bilstein/Koni to Ohlins to some sort of remote reservoir high end shock. And IIRC, the better the shocks, the better the performance right out of the box, both in ride comfort and lap times. But it's been probably 20-25 years, so my memory is foggy.

I actually read that, pretty sure it was GRM. They did a nice job of trying to compare apples to apples with a Miata, same track, same driver. I recall they judged everything better than stock, and standard Ohlins narrowly beat out a custom valved Bilstein setup from Fat Cat Motorsport. Unless you already have a set of Bilsteins that need rebuilt, FCM is a more expensive option than the Ohlins and I’m not sure if he has data on the RX8.

[masraum]

Originally Posted by vash

I swear that sounded way funnier in my head.

I got it. The more I thought about it, the funnier it was.

[masraum]

Originally Posted by onewhippedpuppy

I actually read that, pretty sure it was GRM. They did a nice job of trying to compare apples to apples with a Miata, same track, same driver. I recall they judged everything better than stock, and standard Ohlins narrowly beat out a custom valved Bilstein setup from Fat Cat Motorsport. Unless you already have a set of Bilsteins that need rebuilt, FCM is a more expensive option than the Ohlins and I’m not sure if he has data on the RX8.

Yep, the extra details that you remember are all familiar. Same comparison.