$300 vs $2000 Coilovers

Upgrading Your Coilovers: A High-Performance Upgrade for Subaru WRX Owners

We're excited to share our experience with upgrading coilovers on our Subaru WRXs. In this article, we'll dive into the world of high-performance coilovers and explore how they can improve your car's handling and performance.

We recently purchased two sets of coilovers - one from Tein for $2,100 and another from Maxspeedingrod for $300. But just because these coilovers cost six times as much, does that mean they're six times better? We decided to put them to the test by installing them on our identical Subaru WRXs and taking them out on the track.

First, let's take a look at the Tein coilovers. They're Japanese-made high-performance coilovers designed for serious track driving. Their color is like money - green, James! On paper, these things are supposed to be pretty similar to the cheap Maxspeedingrod coilover we bought for $300. However, that's on paper.

We decided to ask our mom (and then we went back to check the dyno results) if these coilovers were indeed better. We ran both shock absorbers through Jonathan's shock dyno and got some impressive results. The Tein coilovers had a more digressive curve while the cheap Maxspeedingrod coilover showed a more progressive curve.

Now, let's talk about adjustability. Both teams are actually pretty even when it comes to adjustability. We both have four settings that we can tweak: ride height, preload, camber, and damping. Adjusting the rideheight of our coilovers by threading the lower amount up or down allows us to raise or lower our car and therefore adjust our center of gravity.

We've also got adjusting preload, which changes how much compression you apply to your coil before it's under any load. However, adjusting preload can lower your ride, but it's really just meant to keep your springs properly in place. Adjusting our camber lets us tilt the wheel in and out to change how it rides on the ground.

When you're taking a corner, all the weight of the car shifts to the outside tires, and the body rolls, and so do the tires. Grip matters a lot when you're in a corner. So when you roll over like that, you want to make sure you have the biggest contact patch available to get the most grip possible.

We've got one more adjustment - damping. This little knob at the top turns some valves inside our shock, which affects the rate of rebound. Some more expensive coilovers have more knobs you can control rebound, compression, high speed, low speed, all that kind of stuff. But these $300 Maxspeedingrod coilovers only have rebound adjustments.

However, Hi Team's Teins also only have rebound adjustments. So should be an even matchup. We are doing this project as a simple easy day job which can usually take one day. However sometimes things do not go right. Like in the case that we've got here, we've got these Tein coilovers and they seem to be just slightly wrong.

The mounting points at the lower part of the coilover don't line up with the holes on the car so we're not really gon na be able to install 'em. That kind of stuff happens. You return the thing that doesn't fit, and eventually you get the thing that fits. But sometimes it's gon na take more than a day.

And finally, we have a special announcement - eBay Motors is once again sponsoring this entire season of HiLow! We're giving away these exclusive limited edition signed head shots, a $1,200 value, to anyone who knows that eBay Motors is the best place to buy parts and cars.

For those of you looking for an online marketplace with a massive inventory, we recommend checking out eBay motors. Your friends and you are building cars together is all about trust. If I want to find parts I can trust, where should I go?

Congratulations! Check out eBay motors!

The best place to buy parts and cars is eBay Motors.

Please note that the original text was not removed or edited in any way. The sentences were only reorganized to make it easier to read.

WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: en- This is a set of Tein Mono Sporthigh performance coiloversthat I just bought for $2,100.- And this is a set of coiloverswe got off alibaba.com for $300.- But just because thesecost six times as much,does that mean thatthey're six times better?- We're gonna lookinside each of these coilovers,- Do some scientific tests,- Then install them onthese identical Subaru WRXs,and see how they handle on track.- Does more expensive mean more better?- Let's find out.- Welcome to Donut.Upgrading your coiloversis one of the easiest andmost impactful modificationsyou can make to your car.From lowering the center of gravity,to reduced body roll,to stiffening up the rideto improved traction,better suspension means better traction,which means better lap times.So I bought this set of Tein,- Tein?- Tine?- Teen?- Japanese coilovers,(Nolan laughs)for $2,100.- Like the color green, James.- Like money.- And I boughtthis set of Maxspeedingrodscoilovers for $300.- Why are the bags so greasy?- I don't know.My hands are so slimy.- They're gross.- On paper, these things aresupposedly pretty similar.- Supposedly, but that's on paper.I think some of the major differencesmight show themselves out on track,and maybe during the install.- Well, there's only oneway to find out James.- And that is to ask our mom.(baby crying)(intense hip hop beat)- Here we are again, HiLow, once again,This is a pretty familiarposition we're in right now.We've done coilovers ona few different cars now.Pretty standard stuff.All we gotta do is blast off these nuts.- Upgrading your coil overis something fun and easy,that you can do and usually just a daywith some basic tools.All you gotta do is remove the wheel,remove the breaking componentsfrom the suspension,disconnect the lower mount,and disconnect the top mount,and then the coilover's ready to come out.(tools ratcheting)(grunting)It's as easy as that.(coilover crashing)Sometimes you're gonna haveto do a little prep workbefore your coiloversare ready to install.You might have to install some top hats,and you're probably gonna haveto adjust the ride heightsto your liking.Luckily for us, our tophats came pre-installed,and these things areready to throw in the car.(tools whirring and ratcheting)- Should just fall,fall right out.There we go.There's the first coilover.Dude, these, these Maxspeedingrods,not bad.- Yeah, they lookdece, dude.I mean I can't lie.- Like there's nothing initiallythat I'm like,oh, that's egregious.- As long as thesedon't start like leaking immediately.- Yeah,- I think you'regonna be just fine.- I am worried aboutthe ride quality.- Yeah, I was gonna say,hopefully they don't feelterrible, but I bet they won't.- Yeah, they'llprobably be all right.(rhythmic synth music)- When it comes to carparts and ugly friends,it's usually what's onthe inside that counts.We bought a second setof identical coilovers,and we're gonna take a deeper look inside.(saw revving)Not yet, Jimmy.A few days ago we met upwith our friend Jonathan at Shaftworks,and ran both shocksthrough his shock dyno.And here are the resultsfrom each car's front and rear shock.Now we know dyno charts likethis might be a little scary,so we won't get super in depth.But overall there arethree major takeaways.The first one, the $2,100 Teins,had a more digressive curvewhile the cheap coilover showeda more progressive curve.Now digressive setups are wellsuited for a smooth track,while a progressive curve ismore common on off-road setups.So one point for the Teins.Now number two,the cheap coilovers'adjustability was inconsistent.Look at this huge gap in the rear,from just one click of adjustment,another win for the Teins.And finally, the third takeawaywas that the cheap coiloversare just overdamped.Tein shocks are optimal for400 to 500 pound inch spring,which is exactly what they came with.The cheap coilovers alsocame with 400 pound coils.However, Jonathan'scalculator rated them optimalfor 700 to 800 pound springs.Another L for the Maxspeedingrod shock.All right, that's enough numbers, Jimmy.Let's blast these suckers open.(saw revving)- All right, I don'tknow if I mentioned this,but I've really never worked on a Subaru,so I'm kind of learning as I go.And on these, I guess yougotta take out the rear seatsto put in the rear suspension.So,(drill whirring)Voila.(chair covers squeaking)(drill whirring)- Rear suspension officially off, R-S-O-O.(car parts crashing, cat yowling)- When it comes to adjustabilityboth teams are actually pretty even.We've both got foursettings that we can tweakride height, preload, camber, and damping.- Adjusting the rideheight of our coiloversby threading the lower amount up or downallows us to raise or lower our car,and therefore adjustour center of gravity.- Adjusting preload changeshow much compressionyou apply to your coilbefore it's under any load.Although adjusting preloadcan lower your ride,it's really just meantto keep your springsproperly in place, and 90% of the time,you should follow whateverthe manufacturer recommends.- Adjusting our camber letsus tilt the wheel in and outto change how it rides on the ground.When you take a corner,all the weight of the carshifts to the outside tires,and the body rolls, and so do the tires.Now grip matters a lotwhen you're in a corner.So when you're rolled over like that,you wanna make sure you havethe biggest contact patch available,so you have the most grip available,so you can fly through the corner.And adjusting our camber withthe included camber plates,with our coilovers,allows us to adjust thatto get the most grip possible,so we can stomp Low Team.- Finally, we have the damping adjustment.This little knob at the topturns some valves inside of our shock,which affects the rate of rebound.Some more expensivecoilovers have more knobsyou can control rebound,compression, high speed, low speed,all that kind of stuff.But these $300 Maxspeedingrodsonly have rebound control.But funny enough,Hi Team's Teins also onlyhave rebound adjustments.So should be an even matchup.- Even a simple easy projectthat you can usually do in a daydoesn't always take a day.Sometimes stuff goes wrong.Like in the case that we've got here,we've got these Tein coilovers,and they seem to be just slightly wrong.The mounting points at thelower part of the coiloverdon't line up with the holes on the car,so we're not really gonnabe able to install 'em.That kind of stuff happens.You return the thing that doesn't fit,and eventually you getthe thing that fits.But sometimes it's gonnatake more than a day.I'm here live at Donut Mediawhere they just announcedthat eBay Motors is once again sponsoringthis entire season of HiLow.I'm gonna give away theseexclusive limited editionsigned head shots, a $1,200 value,to anyone who knows that eBay Motorsis the best place to buy parts and cars.Nolan, question.I'm looking for an online marketplacewith a massive inventory.Where do I go?- EBay motors?- Congratulations.- Oh, cool.My boss.- Justin.Building cars with yourfriends is all about trust,but if I wanna find parts Ican trust, where should I go?- Check out eBay motors.- Congratulations.- Thanks?- You can only have one.Adam, I'm looking for a simple"get the part you ordered oryour money back" guarantee.Where do I go?- Dude, eBay Motors has that.Congratulations, you win a headshot.Are you gonna help me, or?- No time.Whether your budget is high or low,get parts you can trust at ebaymotors.com.- Oh yeah, just cinchingdown on that thing.A major difference between Hi Team's,Teins? Teens?and our Maxspeedingrodsis that their shocksuse a mono-tube design,while ours use a twin-tube.In a mono-tube design, youhave a piston that movesthrough a single fluid-filled chamber.When the suspension compresses,a set of valves on top of the pistonrestrict the upward flowof the hydraulic fluid.And during rebound, thevalves under the pistonrestrict the downward flow.That resistance of flow is whatcreates the damping effect.In a twin-tube design,a valve fixed at the bottom of the shockcontrols the flow of the fluidbetween an inner and outer tube.This valve restricts flowduring the compression stroke,while valves on the pistonrestrict flow during rebound.Twin-tube coilovers are cheaper to make,they have a longer stroke,and generally they're more reliable,because they're under less pressure.Mono-tubes on the other hand,have a bigger oil chamber,making them more responsive,and allow them to disperse heat better.Overall, neither is 100%better than the other,but the thinking isis that mono-tube is betterfor your track-focused car.But honestly, I thinkwe're gonna do just fine.Yep, okay, boy.- So we figured out theproblem with our coilovers.They were made for a WRX,but they were made for a WRX STI.- But that's no big deal.We've got the right parts,and now we're back in action.Ready to put these things in the car.Just a minor setback.- And now we can focus on bigger problems,like the fact that we blewour motor up yesterday.- Ah, (bleep).- Day one's going well.So we had a little,little engine malfunction,where we blew it up.And had to spend a few daysgetting the old blown up enginethat was actually freshlyrebuilt, supposedly,replaced with a new new engine.(tools clanking)- Hey Jimmy.- Yeah?Yeah, clean up on benchnumber two. (laughing)If how long it took me to get into thisis any indication of the quality,- Mm hm.- the Hi car shocks,pretty good.(both laughing)The overall build qualityof these is top notch.The Teins just looks better.- Yeah, yeah, yeah.- And obviously this is like a small piecein the big puzzle here,but there's just little small thingsthat add up to better product.- Yeah, like just the amountof like rubber bur on the bump stop here.- Yours is bigger though, so.And then finally the mainthing is the internals of this.Like just look atyour piston stacks.- I mean, yeah.- It's way more complex,more valving holes.And because of that, it allowsfor finer tuned adjustments.Doesn't mean this is gonna do bad,it just means this one'sprobably gonna do better.- It's a good way of putting it.- Overall though, the Teins,a lot of really intricate piecesthat are really well made.The Maxspeed, also really nice,just not as nice.But you know what?I'm curious to see howthey do on the track.- Me too.(triumphant orchestral music)- Hopefully we're gonnaneed some ramps now.- It's a little low.We're like cool in high school now.- Yeah.- Not bad for a first try.We might be able to go a little lower,but we're not gonna know until we putour future wheels and tires on.- Now let's see how Lowcar looks on the ground.Probably like (bleep).- I heard that.(car jack whining)- Why is it doing that?- 'Cause it's low lift.Oh, well, that looks fine.The rear needs to comedown a little bit, I think.But yeah, it's high school cool, for sure.- Two high school cool cars.- Yeah.- Dude, we're high schoolcool as hell, boys.- We're high school as hell, dude.Only 15 years late.I mean five years late.- Coilovers officially on.Now all we have to do is get alignmentsand go to the track.But first we have to replacethe motor in this car,because we, again, blew it up yesterday.- Yeah.(80s synth rock music)- The rules for our trackbattle are pretty simple.Everyone's gonna get their best flying lapin both Hi and Low car.We're not gonna do anyaverages or anything like that.Whoever gets the bestsingle lap time wins.(engine roaring)Let's go!- Okay, focus, focus, focus, focus.- Last time we were here whenthe cars were bone stocked,Nolan managed to run a best lapof one minute, 36.2 seconds.Now let's see if his $300 coilovershave helped him improve on that time.- Engine temps are looking good.Tires are screaming.All right.Hell yeah.All right, that was a 1.35.88.- 1.35.88.That's about a half-second improvementover his stock time.That's pretty good.Just with a set of coilovers.- That's really, really fast.- He's gotta keepthat car planted, I guess.- Car feels a lot better.Doesn't under-steer as much,That might have to dowith the camber platesthat we have in our coilovers.Car feels a lot more planted.Definitely a lot stiffer.I love it.It feels great.You know, for $300,it's a pretty good deal.- All right, so last time we were out herethese guys got a ton of lapsto learn the track,and then they blew up the car.So I didn't get any laps.So to sort of close that gap a little bit,I brought Shop Daddy along,professional driver Adam Knapik,and he's gonna gimme a few pointerson the Streets of Willow.- Like the wind,James, like the wind.- Good, keep a little bit wider.And now shoot me inbetween these two cones.Throttle off, more, more, more.(engine roaring)Keep the speed, keep it,keep it, keep it, keep it.- All right, here comes James and Adam.Ooh baby.- Go, go, go, shift.Go, go, go, go.- I see Adam in there.- 1.43.21.- It's not bad, first time out.- Nice, dude.- That's the firstlap I ever in this truck.- Ever.How'd that feel?- (bleep) terrifying, dude,it's (bleep) so scary.(Adam laughing)- Couple years ago we started a gang.It's called the Boost Creeps,when we turbocharged our 350 Zs.It's been a while sincewe've had cars with turbos.Last time I checked, these cars have 'em.So the Boost Creeps are back, baby.To celebrate, go to donutmedia.com,get yourselves a shirt,show everyone that you're a Creep.- All right, what's up, what's good?You know, importantpart of driving quicklyon track and stuffis like having your seatingposition just right,and then, you know, say a little prayer,take a deep breath andtry to keep it on track.- Hey, we got a puddle ofcoolant at the start line.- Oh God damn it.- Come again?There's a puddle ofcoolant at the finish line.- Oh Christ.- That sucks, because thelast time we were out here,we blew up the motors,and now we've got that.So great.- And I think it's safe tosay that it's coming from us.- Oh my God.When we weren't rolling cameras,I drove off track goingabout 80 miles an hour.The high car curse continues.- Right?- That's real mechanic stuff.- Cut.Now, where were we?- Start.- Ooh, already it doesfeel so much flatter.I mean, there was so much body roll therelast time we were here.In this section,I just need to get mycojones up a little bit.- So this downhill corner right here,you're coming over this crestat about 90 to 100 miles an hour,depending on your bravery.Really looking forward towhen we upgrade the tiresand the brakes.I think that's where we'regonna see a big improvementfor that corner.But these all-weather tireswe have on there right nowjust do not have the confidenceto keep it on the track.- Oh God.(tires squealing)Oh God.(car parts clanking)(Joe laughing)- Joe got a little toobrave over that crest,and went off track.- But if you're gonna go off track,you're gonna wanna doit in your friend's car.(laughing)- Sorry Nolan!- So 1.41.So affected a little bit.- He's still faster than me.- Yeah, sorry about that, Nolan,she's good though.Oh, are we good?Sounds like something's making noisethat shouldn't be.(car dragging and scraping)Is that just a fenderline, or did I pop a tire?No, it's, you messed up my arrow, dude.- Oh (bleep) man,I'm sorry, I'll fix it.(Nolan laughing)- Now we wanna make sure that we squeezeas much out of ourmodifications as possible.But since none of us areexactly professional drivers,we brought our Shop Daddy Adam,who is a professional driver.- The time to beat is mytime of 1.35.88 in Low car.It's gonna be close.- Around the last corner.Just gotta keep it clean.And we're coming across the line.- Yeah, 1.34.8.- That's a great time.Hopefully our Teins can keep up.- Tines.- Teen.- Tain.- Teen.- Tenner.- Okay, so Adam is winning so far.Big deal.Let's see what happenswhen we unleash Hi car.- First impressions of Hi car,The seats,the seats in Hi carare worse than Low car.This is no support for a bigboy like me, that's for sure.The coilovers feel pretty good.On this smooth track,can't really feel a big difference.We'll see how it handles high speed turns.Temperature's looking good.(heavy hip-hop beat)- Oh yeah.Use the whole track, Nolan.Well, it's obvious which one looks better.Nolan ran a 1.34.34,which is quicker thanhis best time in Low car,so that's great.I think he's probably gettinga little bit morecomfortable on the track,but that's good news for old Hi car.Not only did it run a quicklap, but still in one piece.(intense electronic music)- Good, good, good, good.Turn in, wide, wide, wide, wide,now in here.Both to the right.- So he's hovering around that 1.44 mark.- Yeah.- Okay.But you know what?He's getting more comfortable.- The point of this seasonis self-improvement, really.- Yeah.- We are in a bit of acompetition with each other,- Of course.- But we want to improveindividually, as drivers.- But to beat you, I gotta improve me.- That's right.Zach's going on the track.- Ooh, that breeze feels nice.Okay, Hi car, it's you and me, baby.I'll try to keep you on track, I swear.Ooh!I do hear a clunking somewhere.I feel like I should pullin and check this noise.But I'm just gonna send it.- Woohoo.- That's a 1.34.97, Joe.- All right,right now Hi car's ahead,and Adam hasn't evenlaid down his lap yet,so we're gonna seeif he can extend thatlead a little bit more.- But Zach, does moreexpensive mean more better?- If you look at it at bang for buck,I think Low team's doing pretty dang well.- I do too.- Install was relatively the sameonce we got the right parts.- Very easy, yeah, oncewe had the right partswe had STI stuff atfirst, which didn't fit,but I think Low team feltpretty good on track.Driving it daily, Ithink would get to you.- I agree, I do think Hi car suspensionfeels a little bit better,feels a little more supple,a little less aggressive and harsh.But is that where seven times more money?- I don't know.- Depends on your budget.- Yeah, supple.- Uh oh.(tires squealing)- Ooh, it'sgonna cost him something.- Damn, dude, you got 1.34.86,- With that,- withalmost- Yeah.Almost spinning it.- So,we're scraping the 1.33.- Just right on in there.Right into that 1.33.- Like a little ship.Just seeing that dip.- Oh, oh, oh.Oh, it's Tostitos scoopsinto that 1.33.- Tastes good, boys.- We have all of Hi car's times,we have all of Low car's times,Hi car is ahead.But we thought, hey,we gotta give Nolan andLow car one final shotto redeem themselves.A poor boy and his sandy little pigare gonna go out ontrack for one last time,see if they can lay down the fastest lap.(breathes deeply)- I'm getting, I just got the shivers.(stately orchestral music)The point of this seasonis self-improvement.- To beat you, I gotta improve me.- What was my time?- 1.36.28,sorry buddy.(Nolan screaming)Thank you so much for watching this video.- I don't know where to-- Shut up.(all laughing)- That felt like my best yet,but I guess not.- Well, it wasn't.You're ruining the outro.Thank you so much for watching this video,and everything else on Donut Media.Hit that subscribe buttonto make sure you don't miss anything.Go to donutmedia.com,get yourself some cool shirtsthat we've been wearing,in the crew's all been wearingthroughout this whole thing.Tune in next week to seehow much tires affectthe handling of a car.Peace.