[Ben]

I installed the TEIN Super Street Coilovers with EDFC (electronic dampening force control) today. I've only had them on for a few hours, but so far I can make some comparisons and observations.

First off, much to my surprise, they appear to be very well manufactured and the quality of the entire set was better than I expected. I've heard all kinds of rumors about TEIN's being cheap, low grade, etc. This is not the case.

Second, I've also heard mixed reviews about ride quality. I would like to set the record straight. The Super Streets (not the FLEX, I have not tried them) have a pretty nice ride quality for the street / freeway. They are certainly firmer than stock but they are not bouncy, harsh, or choppy, like some of the rumors I've heard. I have a set of whiteline group 4 coilovers on my 04 wagon and they are very similar as far as ride quality goes. On the softest setting -- which is 16, not 0! -- they are very comfortable on the street. I didn't pay attention at first and actually rode home for 40 minutes on the freeway with them set to "0" rather than "16" and even then the ride quality wasn't bad. "16" definitely feels more compliant on the street than "0" but neither of them feel uncomfortable on the street, and I'm fairly sensitive to these kinds of things. I haven't had a chance to play with the EDFC much other than just trying out full stiff and full soft, but I plan to mess around with it more tomorrow. Perhaps "12" might be better than "16" on the street... who knows

Another plus is the pillow ball camber plates that come with the coilovers. The max camber is about -3 degrees front, -2 degrees rear. If you plan on going to the track, camber plates are your friend

On to the EDFC. All I can say is...how cool! I thought the whiteline's were nice because they had top adjustable dampening. Being able to change it while driving is just too much fun. It takes about 2 seconds to go from full soft to full stiff or anywhere in between. You also get 3 presets so you don't have to mash the up and down arrows on the unit to go from one setting to another.

Overall, I'm very satisfied. Quality engineering, good ride quality, free camber plates, the ability to adjust dampening in car, and a very affordable price make these coilovers very appealing. I will be testing them some more tomorrow on the street and in about 3 weeks on the track. I will let you know how they do, but I can tell already that they will be great on the track.

Attached are a few pictures. 1 of the coilovers, and 2 of the car after the installation (dropped about 1 3/4 inches). I'll post some pictures tomorrow of the EDFC unit and of the stuts on the car, etc.

[05SilverSTI]

great write-up. i was wondering why when i drive around on 16 it was still soft. now i need to play around with the edfc more. also i drive around on the street with the edfc set to 13. thanks for the help.

[gixxer6]

nice writeup looks like a good choice for coilovers the edfc would be really nice also

[choppstix]

sweet...

[HKS_Scooby_STi]

Nice!

[taliano95]

i just got my tein ss this saturday. I cant wait to put them in. Nice write up, makes me feel good about my purchase. I didnt get the edfc yet, but i did get the pillow ball mounts with them.

[UA_STI]

Hey Ben

Did you get to try them on the track? How are your impressions after driving for a while now?

Thanks in advance for the info.

[TRM]

very curious as to how they are on the track. and if you still like them 6 weeks from now too.

[Ben]

Just went to the track today, they did great The ride on the street is still awesome, and yes, I still like them lol

A quick comparison to the whiteline group 4's on the track:

The goup 4's on the stiffest setting were still a bit too soft to be ideal for the track. Even with a good half inch higher gap than I have now, the front tires would actually rub the top of the wheel well on some turns. The TEIN's on 13 out of 16 (3 off of soft) were firm enough to never rub and the car is really low (1 finger gap in the front, if that). I'm just really impressed that the TEIN's are able to have a ride that is as comfortable as the whiteline's and be so much firmer. This is definitely my favorite coilover I've tried for this car and the EDFC is just an awesome bonus.

TEIN SS: Great for the street on about 13 / 16. Good for smooth tracks on 0 to 5 / 16, and tracks with bumps on about 6 to 13 / 16. (16 is the softest) I couldn't imagine wanting it any stiffer than the SS's set to all the way stiff, even on the track.

Whitelines: Good on the street at about 5 to 7 / 14 (0 is the softest). Could stand to be stiffer even set at 14 / 14 on the track.

[Alex_Morales]

im looking to pick these up...not sure if i should install them myself....shop is looking to get $1500 for SS-p + $500 to put them in.....any comments....?

[crypsatir]

put em in yourself, save 500 bucks and go get cornerbalance and alignment

[KingofImports.com]

with or w/o edfc?

[Alex_Morales]

i went with the ss-p setup without edfc.....

went up to xxtuning who gave me a great deal on the parts and installation. i also picked up a perrin rear sway and perrin endlinks. I'm very happy with the setup and im glad that i had everything done. im usually all for installing most of my mods myself but these coil-overs would have been a PITA.

xxtuning rocks!

[inevitable]

ben, if u don't mind me asking. how much u pay for ur coilovers?

[alphaSTI]

does the Tein SS-P have camber plates for both the front and rear?

from what i have researched, it seems the adjustable camber plate is just for the front.
the rear is just a pillow ball upper mount.

or am i wrong? and the rear includes camber plates as well...

any info would be very helpful.