[BillLee]

I don't know much about suspension systems, but i hope my review can help a few people out on which coilovers they want. First off these coilovers were shipped to me super quick! I decided to switch out my OEM sport suspension at 40,000 miles to these Sonic tuning S1 coilovers because i love the way lowered BMW's look. At first i was thinking about purchasing the KW V1's, but these coilovers were priced reasonably well i just couldn't pass up the deal.

I have no idea what the settings are on, but the ride quality is not bad at all. a bit bumpier/stiffer then before but overall it's still a good ride. The handling is very responsive and there is very little body roll, the car stays almost flat going into turns or corners (it is much more fun to drive).

The rear is at its lowest I believe. Since Houston roads aren't that great I will leave it as is right now, but I will lower the front once i feel more comfortable.

Wheels are AluFelgen CS7 wrapped in Falken FK452.
F:19x8.5 ET35 225/35/19
R:19x9.5 ET30 265/30/19

great quality!






Before:


After:

[BillLee]

will post more pictures soon.

[shockin330i]

Looking good!

[bpsu07]

Would love to see a comparison in height, I don't think those pics do that much justice =/

Overall, that is very nice, I like car's that are nice and simple! Would you consider these coilovers a smooth ride?

[shaizada]

I'd really like to know more about the ride quality if possible. Did you have a sports suspension package before? Also, to really show the difference in ride height, it would have been much nicer to get the shots from the same angle. Car looks absolutely awesome. Very clean and very VERY nice.

Any reason not to go for the S3 version with the camber plates?

[BillLee]

Yeah, i'll post better pics soon. I had to oem sports suspension before. To me these feel like the oem sports suspension, just a little more bumpier.

[shaizada]

Really? What about handling? My OEM sports suspension is too bloated for me. Car feels more like a boat than a handling machine. I need the coilovers to have the car feel more like it is on rails with predictable turning patterns and solid connection with the road.

For me the OEM sports suspension doesn't connect me and I don't feel comfortable at ALL pushing it in the corners. My Toyota MR-S is completely connected all the time and is a road carving machine.

Hope my questions don't bother you. I'm about to get these coilovers so just want to make sure my driving experience gets a major upgrade. Can you also share what settings you have for dampening, height and any other adjustments you have already made?

I will do a thorough review once I get these coilovers as I'm sure others would like to know the same things. Also. in the end, these are just words trying to express a driving experience which I think is very hard. I mean it is a driving "experience" which is VERY hard to translate into words. Your answers will help me know if I'm stepping in the right direction as suspension is crucial in these cars to get the most out of them. Power is good....but suspension is ahhhhhhhhhh beautiful!

[BillLee]

yeah i didn't like the way the oem sports suspension handled either, but i think the S1 handles great. i wouldnt say the car feels like its on rails now but it sure feels close to it. However, someone else may think different. Just an opinion. overall i'm very happy with these coilovers. i'm not sure if you read my little paragraph up there but...."I have no idea what the settings are on, but the ride quality is not bad at all. a bit bumpier/stiffer then before but overall it's still a good ride. The handling is very responsive and there is very little body roll, the car stays almost flat going into turns or corners (it is much more fun to drive)."

[ALUFELGEN]

Morr pics!!!

[BillLee]

I will! just waiting for some spacers cause my wheels rub against the springs in the front when i lowered it today.

[MassBimmer]

Such a huge difference, looks great!

[Hellrot Sachin]

BillLee..

thinking of dropping my e90 on this setup.. Now that you've had them for 3 weeks or so, any more impressions on the ride and handling? Did you figure out where you were on the settings? How hard are the settings to adjust?

Sachin

[jaza45]

Im glad you like yours, cuz Im not too happy with mine.

[Hellrot Sachin]

jaza - will you elaborate?

[jaza45]

Originally Posted by Hellrot Sachin

jaza - will you elaborate?

They are too generic, looks like they took an universal kit, and made it fit an e9x, plus adjusting the rear is PITA

[I335]

Originally Posted by ******

They are too generic, looks like they took an universal kit, and made it fit an e9x, plus adjusting the rear is PITA

That's an interesting complaint. Do they perform well or not? Aside from electric adjusted shocks I think they're all a pain to adjust in the rear... (or are they a pain in the rear to adjust?)

[Hellrot Sachin]

that's my question too.. how do they ride and handle? As I understand it, the shock doesn't need to be removed to be adjusted..

[jose_sonictuning]

Originally Posted by ******

They are too generic, looks like they took an universal kit, and made it fit an e9x, plus adjusting the rear is PITA

Jaza,

Can you elaborate little bit more? I am not sure what you are referring to.

The spring rate is calculated to support the weight of the car in this case E90/E92 ( we have different spring rate for M3s), while the strut handles the damping.

There isnt an universal kit for every car since the spring rate, lower mount setup, and even the suspension setup is all different.

Rear of the E90 | E92 is a little pain since the spring and the strut is separate, usually it takes us 45mins-1 hr to adjust the backside.

Good thing is once the coils sits, go back to it once and you never have to go back to it again.

[Fraggy]

Originally Posted by jose_sonictuning

Jaza,

Can you elaborate little bit more? I am not sure what you are referring to.

The spring rate is calculated to support the weight of the car in this case E90/E92 ( we have different spring rate for M3s), while the strut handles the damping.

There isnt an universal kit for every car since the spring rate, lower mount setup, and even the suspension setup is all different.

Rear of the E90 | E92 is a little pain since the spring and the strut is separate, usually it takes us 45mins-1 hr to adjust the backside.

Good thing is once the coils sits, go back to it once and you never have to go back to it again.

Jose,
Can you elaborate more on a few things.

1. What the spring rates are for these?

2. Where the adjusters are for the damping? Top of the shock in the rear, underneath in the front, etc.

3. What is the lowering range?

Thanks man, these look really interesting and I do appreciate the emphasis on comfort.

[boosted.e92]

I did some research on these since they looked like an attractive alternative to the other suspensions for our cars. It turns out that these coils have been sold under various names and are available for a number of cars ranging from Scions and Subarus to Audis and BMWs. The other names I found for these coils include "STD" and "Kido Racing" if you want to find more information.

Although these coils are sold for many platforms, the only real review I found was from a Scion xB owner who liked them. Most other posts related to these coils were from people trying to find out more information on them. For all I know, they could be great, but it seems like a lot of people are sticking with the brand name suspensions.

[Fraggy]

Originally Posted by ******

They are too generic, looks like they took an universal kit, and made it fit an e9x, plus adjusting the rear is PITA

Where do the shocks adjust from?

[DimSum]

Where is sonictuning made?