Wholesale Suspension & BC Racing Coilovers

[smythie]

The only problem with them seems to come from people incorrectly adjusting the height by turning the rings holding the spring

That'd be the spring preload adjustment. Silly people.

[GTSPECB STI]

I dont believe these are the same coilover as the ones being purchased and reviewed on legacygt.com. I asked the question of Luke from WS and He also tells me these are NOT the same as the http://www.importimageracing.com/mm5/me ... y_Code=853
those are 30 position adjustable and the ones being offered here are 32 position adjustable. Also different colour.

[Hotwire]

I dont believe these are the same coilover as the ones being purchased and reviewed on legacygt.com. I asked the question of Luke from WS and He also tells me these are NOT the same as the http://www.importimageracing.com/mm5/me ... y_Code=853
those are 30 position adjustable and the ones being offered here are 32 position adjustable. Also different colour.

The first two lines of the item description are:

** BC - BR is the PREMIUM Coilover from the BC Range - Many Differences from the Entry Level Red " V " Series.

** BC - BR GOLD PREMUIM is NOT Available from the Entry Level Red " V " Series Dealers.

The second point I think is the Key. With over 3600+ positive feedback, I'd say these items are what they are stated. It would be interesting to try contact the BC Factory to see what the difference is between the red (Whoelsale Suspension product) and the Gold (PerformanceGuru product)

[adhar]

+1 on finding out the difference between Gold and Red.

I didn't even know there was a Red, i've only seen the Gold coloured ones!

So are we thinking the Gold is better than the Red or the other way around?

[Hotwire]

Well I found contact details for the Taiwan Headquarters and have sent them an email asking the difference between the two offerings. Will post up the response if/when I get one.

http://www.bcec.com.tw/index.htm

[adhar]

After doing some searching on the web it seems that the VA series (Red) ones are supposed to be superseded, but there was another post which said australian delivered stock was still the VA series.?? It seems that the BR series (Gold) is the one to get, but it is from overseas. The old VH series (Red/Pinkish) stopped being sold in the US late 2007 as it was replaced by the BR Gold series.

Until i hear otherwise i reckon that i'll be looking at buying the Gold ones instead of the Red; but you have to get the Gold ones from overseas. The Gold BR series gets compared to Tein Flex in performance.

[Hotwire]

After doing some searching on the web it seems that the VA series (Red) ones are supposed to be superseded, but there was another post which said australian delivered stock was still the VA series.?? It seems that the BR series (Gold) is the one to get, but it is from overseas. The old VH series (Red/Pinkish) stopped being sold in the US late 2007 as it was replaced by the BR Gold series.

Until i hear otherwise i reckon that i'll be looking at buying the Gold ones instead of the Red; but you have to get the Gold ones from overseas. The Gold BR series gets compared to Tein Flex in performance.

That's pretty much what I concluded, but the only concerning part is WS claim 32 position adjustment, whereas the HQ website states that the V1 is still only 30 position. WS are the only ones to claim 32 and that's what I have queried BC Taiwan about also.

However, JustJap seems to be the Australian distributor and have the V1 series for all other models for $1199 +$30 delivery. So seems that WS are slightly high priced for V1's. I also wonder if Just Jap can get the Golds yet?

[GTSPECB STI]

I know someone who works at Wholesale Suspension, can get you a better price on some stuff.

Clarence is there any chance you could speak with your contact at WS and get the story on there bc coilovers?
thanks Dave

[tangcla]

If you were going to go with these, I'd recommend doing so through Wholesale Suspension. Their customer service is great, and if you have any issues with them, they would be willing to help.

[tangcla]

Clarence is there any chance you could speak with your contact at WS and get the story on there bc coilovers?

Will do. I asked him to join the forum here too, apart from this thread, he may have some suspension bits that we might all be interested in.

[Hotwire]

Dear Lee,

Thanks for your email and interests in BC Coilovers.

The BR coilovers utilize larger pistons and shock cartridges, providing larger range of damping adjustment.

Although V1 coilovers do not use as large pistons as the BR, the damping adjustment and great handling provided by V1 is also much appreciated and widely used for drifting and daily use all over the world.

In our point of view, both are superior to many other branded coilovers. If you live in Australia, V1 series is highly recommended as you can get the most direct technical support and aftersales service from your domestic dealers, and vise versa.

Regards,
Kyle
International Sales
Taiwan Bor-Chuann Enterprise Co., Ltd.
Tel:886-4-23399693 Fax:886-4-23399193
http://www.bcec.com.tw
Email: bc@bcec.com.tw
No. 34-9 Sihde S. Rd., Wufong Township,
Taichung County 413, Taiwan

[Hotwire]

And a little more info from the Taiwan Factory when I queried further about the 30 or 32 steps of damper adjustment and also difference is shock cartridge (and piston size):

Hi Lee,

We used to state V1 has 32 steps of damping adjustment, but as you may know, there is a tolerance which may result the damping adjustment in 30 steps, 31 steps, 32 steps, or even 34 steps. Customers not realizing the tolerance may think it is a faulty damper if they find it less than 32 steps, otherwise, they think it a bonus if they find it more than 32 steps. In order to prevent any misunderstanding, we then always state that it has 30 steps. It is just like how many slices a pizza is divided.

Let's get back to your another question about the length of the shock cartridge and shaft as well. They both are in the same length but in different sizes, which results in different damping force. BR still use a larger piston. BR and V1 use the same part number for the same car model.

Just like what I said, either of them is good and will definitely meet most people's needs. You may consider which retailer or distributor gives you the best aftersales service.

Best Regards,

Kyle
International Sales
Taiwan Bor-Chuann Enterprise Co., Ltd.
Tel:886-4-23399693 Fax:886-4-23399193
http://www.bcec.com.tw
Email: bc@bcec.com.tw
No. 34-9 Sihde S. Rd., Wufong Township,
Taichung County 413, Taiwan

[tangcla]

Kyle has good English..!

[smythie]

yes, it is good for a Taiwanese national. Plenty of Australians can't spell to save themselves

[Hotwire]

And my last piece to the puzzle to help others make up their own mind:

My Question

Hi Kyle,
Your help has been much appreciated. I have one more question which I hope you will be able to answer. In making my choice, having comfort as well as performance is most important to me, and therefore I am still undecided which would be better for me.

Would the V1 coilover have enough adjustment to be able to provide me with an almost factory firmness at a lower height (say around 20% firmer); while still giving me the ability to increase the stiffness for when I attend track days?

Or would it be worth getting the BR series coilover, as you state that due to larger piston gives greater adjustment. Is this greater adjustment in both soft and hard directions, or only hard direction being the larger piston?

And the response:

Hi Lee,

Both V1 and BR are firmer than OE factory damping by more than 20%, and you can run on 16 steps from the full hard for daily city use, and 8 from the full hard for track day, or you can even try a full hard for track day though it will be very stiff if with full hard.

The greater adjustment is only in hard direction. There is no big difference in compression.

Best Regards,
Kyle

So - for those wanting a good ride without too much firmness, the Australian Available V1s will be fine. Also, the BR series cannot be ordered without pillowball tops, whereas the V1s (in VM spec) can be had with rubber top mounts for the front reducing NVH. However, I dont know if these are available from WS - perhaps Tangcla's contact can help us out on that one?