Ohlins Coilovers...

[J-Boy]

Yeah the coilovers that i'm looking at look very similiar to what ferni has posted...SK, ill try to get photos of them from all angles and post them up...

Ferni...how's the ride and handling of the set of coilovers that u have now? Cuz i think its the same spec that im looking at, fronts dont have that damper adjustment knob too...and hows the height adjusted on yer set? Any idea on the spring rate?

[Sydneykid]

Top? i dunno never had a look didn't know it would have a setting on top of the rears, i assumed the black knob was the only adjustment?

The fronts are hard to get a photo off without taking the wheel off - but they look the same except no black knob. same circlip adjustable hight, with an alen key under the bonnet on tops of the shocks. Do you want more info or photos?

DO you think i'll have an adjustment under my parcel shelf on top of the rears? i've tried to get my parcel shelf out before but it was way hard so i gave up (aftermarket parcel shelf).

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

The R32GTR Ohlins have both the front and rear adjusters on the top of the shock shaft, there is a nifty knob that screws onto the main shock shaft and allen keys into the adjuster. They have threaded sleaves and screw adjustable bottom spring seats. I will post up some pictures tomorow night.

I had heard (but never seen) that the R33GTR Ohlins had the adjuster at the bottom on the rears because the tops were very hard to get at. Unlike the R32 rear shock tops which are dead easy to get to. The fronts are the same as the R32, with the adjusters at the top.

What I hadn't heard (or seen) was that the R33's had circlip style height adjustment, like the Bilsteins I use in the Group Buy suspension kits.

I have swapped the springs on a couple of sets of R32GTR Ohlins to more sensible spring rates using Eibach coils. For example the standard Ohlins front spring rate is 650 lbs per inch, which is simply rediculous. I would never go over 300 lbs per inch in an R32GTR used on the road.

If you want to know what the spring rates are on yours there is a thread that I started some time ago, just post up your spring dimensions and I will work the rates out for you.

http://www.skylinesaustralia.com/forums/in...topic=79157&hl=

cheers

Edited September 29, 2005 by Sydneykid

[ferni]

J-Boy: I drive the car daily and the ride is fine, i have the damper settings(or is it rebound?) on about medium. If you tighten them right up you feel every stone/bump, on soft they aren't bad, i just left them on medium. I was told they are worth around 5k when i bought the car (with them in) but who knows.

SK: Yeah both front and rear have the circlip adjustments.

I can't imagine my springs being that hard, and to be honest i've been to lazy to look at my springs to check against your thread to see what rate they are. Can i do it by just taking off the wheel without removing the spring/shock? Because i really should do it.

So the black knob you can see in the photo - is that for dampening or rebound?

And the allen key on the top of my fronts? whats that for?

[J-Boy]

Hey guys...ive got pics up...hopefully they are uploaded properly...so can someone tell me exactly what the knob below adjusts, n the knob up top, and the 2 coilovers that have the knob below dont have the knob up top, but have the what seemingly looks like some adjustment thru alan keys, what does that adjust exactly? And those that dont have the knob below have the knob up on top...

I'm just kindda confused with their design...

And the height, is it adjusted thru the blue tread below? One problem is that i wont get it with any C spanner...will the workshops be able to adjust the height??

[Sydneykid]

J-Boy: I drive the car daily and the ride is fine, i have the damper settings(or is it rebound?) on about medium. If you tighten them right up you feel every stone/bump, on soft they aren't bad, i just left them on medium. I was told they are worth around 5k when i bought the car (with them in) but who knows.

SK: Yeah both front and rear have the circlip adjustments.

I can't imagine my springs being that hard, and to be honest i've been to lazy to look at my springs to check against your thread to see what rate they are. Can i do it by just taking off the wheel without removing the spring/shock? Because i really should do it.

So the black knob you can see in the photo - is that for dampening or rebound?

And the allen key on the top of my fronts? whats that for?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

If you take a look at the above link, it shows how to measure up the springs in the car.

Maybe a bit of explanation may help first. There are 3 common dampening adjustments on shocks;

1. Rebound (sometimes called extension) adjustment. Rebound damping controls the spring. When you hit a bump, the spring compresses to absorb it. After the bump the spring then recoils back to its normal height. The rebound damping controls how fast that recoil happens. To little rebound damping means the spring recoils uncontrollably, think pogo stick. So the bouncing continues for some time after the bump (ie; one bump becomes 4 or 5 bumps). Too much rebound damping can mean that the spring doesn't have time to return to its full length before the car hits the next bump, this gives a very choppy ride. In extreme circumstances it can mean the the car gets lower and lower as it drives along. Because as it hits each bump, there is not enough time for the spring to expand back to where it was and the spring is gradually more and more compressed. Until finally the car sits on the bump stops and has no travel at all.

2. Compression (generally called bump) damping, is the reverse. It slows down the compression of the spring. Too much bump damping makes the suspension quite harsh and too little bump valving means the spring has to be too high in rate. Bump damping is very important in how much traction the car has. It allows the right spring rate to be used so the the spring is soft enough to follow all the little ripples in the road.

3. Combination of the above in one adjuster. This is tricky, as 1% more bump damping is a lot and 5% more rebound damping is not too much. So getting the ratio of adjustment right is very difficult to engineer.

The most common damping adjustment found on shocks is rebound (#1 above), most adjustable aftermarket shocks only have rebound adjustment. Some aftermarket shocks adjust both rebound and bump damping together (#3). The ratio of adjustments (ie; how much rebound = how much bump) is technically quite difficult to achieve, so the cost is quite a bit more. The more expensive shocks have separate adjustment for bump and rebound. Even more expensive are quad adjustable, where you can adjust the high and low frequency bump and rebound independently. There are some 5 way adjustable shocks, that add the adjustability for BIG bumps (ie; ripple strips on race tracks).

To answer your questions, based on what I have seen;

The allen key adjustment on top of the shaft on the Japanese Ohlins adjusts the rebound and bump damping, in a fixed ratio.

The knob on the bottom is just a way of getting around the access to the top problem on some models.

The last time I priced a set of Japanese Ohlins for an R32GTR (single top adjuster and screw thread adjustable lower spring seat) they were around $2500 for the set of 4 with springs and tops. Prices vary a lot though, some retail shops charge twice that. But it includes fitting, which is very expensive in Japan, where good mechanics charge like brain surgeons. The Swedish quad adjustable Ohlins with remote canister were around $3,000 each, that's just the shock, no spring or top.

Hope that helps

cheers

Edited September 29, 2005 by Sydneykid

[Sydneykid]

Hey guys...ive got pics up...hopefully they are uploaded properly...so can someone tell me exactly what the knob below adjusts, n the knob up top, and the 2 coilovers that have the knob below dont have the knob up top, but have the what seemingly looks like some adjustment thru alan keys, what does that adjust exactly? And those that dont have the knob below have the knob up on top...

I'm just kindda confused with their design...

And the height, is it adjusted thru the blue tread below? One problem is that i wont get it with any C spanner...will the workshops be able to adjust the height??

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I think the above post answered your questions, if not ask away. Measure up the springs and I will work out the spring rates before you have them installed.

cheers

PS; There is no problem getting to the lower spring seat and lock ring with a C spanner on a Skyline. The only tricky part is getting enough swing on the front with the upright in the way. The rear is easily accessible.

Edited September 29, 2005 by Sydneykid

[ferni]

http://www.skylinesaustralia.com/forums/in...topic=79157&hl=

for some reason your link to that thread didn't work.

[Sydneykid]

http://www.skylinesaustralia.com/forums/in...topic=79157&hl=

for some reason your link to that thread didn't work.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Thanks, it works again, for some reason the links stop working. Quick refresh (change nothing) and they work again, strange.

cheers

[J-Boy]

So main adjustments on this set would be thru the knob below, knob up top, the circlip blue thread fer height and the alan key adjustment on top?

What does the alan key adjustment do again? sorry but i just have never adjusted any coilovers thru an alan key..

And im still confused as to what adjusts wot on this set of coilovers...