Aftermarket Springs - List and Comparison

[Philter25]

I notice that a lot of people have springs questions and there isnt a FAQ thread with comparisons of all springs in it. 6tech has one including shocks and coilovers.....

Tanabe 210 NF: Tanabe

6s: Lowers the car roughly 1.5/.7 inches. Evens out the fender gap from front to back. Personally, I think it lowers more in the rear but thats what the website says.
6i: Lowers 1.2 inches
Spring rate: 3.9kg/mm Front & 2.6kg/mm Rear
Springs were designed for the 4cyl and are the same ones used on the 6cyl, hence why there is only one set of spring rates and the drops are drastically different.

Tanabe 210 GF: Tanabe

6s: Rumored to lower the V6 more than the 4cyl.
6i: 1.2 inch front and rear.
Spring Rate: 4.9 kg front and 3.8 kg rear

Racing Beat: Racing Beat

6i: .75/.5 drop 20% spring rate increase
6s: .75/.75 drop 20% spring rate increase

Tein H Tech:Tein H Tech

6i: 1.7/.8 inch drop, 4.3kg and 2.6kg
6s: 1.5/1 inch, 4.5kg 3.3 kg
S Wagon: 1.8/1.1, 4.3kg and 2.6kg

Tein S Tech: Tein S Tech

6i: 2.3/1.4, with 4.7kg 2.9 kg springs
6s: 2.1/1.6, with 4.9 kg 3.6kg springs
s Wagon: 2.4/1.7 with 4.7kg 2.9kg springs

Espelir ASD:

1.18 inch drop
Spring rate: 20-30% increase over stock, 4.7kg -3.1kg

H&R: HR Springs
1.4/1.3 inch

Eibach: Eibach
Pro Kit: 1.5/1.4 inch
Sportline: 2.0/1.5 inch

Mazdaspeed: Mazdaspeed
5-Door 2.3L 22mm ft / 22mm rr
5-Door 3.0L 39mm ft / 24mm rr
Wagon 39mm ft / 41mm rr

4-Door 31mm all around

Increases spring rate 30% over stock.


Sprint: Sprint Springs
1.8/1.8

B&G B&G

1.6/1.6

Also, if anyone wants to posts pics of their spring install feel free. Hopefully we can get a collection of pics with all different springs on so everyone can get a good idea of what the springs look on different models.

Also note: Lowering springs will have a degenerative effect on your stock shocks. The stock setup has 2.5 inches of suspension travel. The amount that you lower your car reduces the amount of suspension travel your car has. Springs are a cheap and easy way to lower your car for looks, and gain performance in handling. If you are worried about shock life, I would suggest not going with a harsh spring. The mildest spring is the Racing Beats which will have the least amount of effect on your shock life, however the drop is very mild and does not even out your fender gap.

When dealing with springs, since you still must work with the stock shocks, its a give and take relationship.

Q: If I put on these springs, will my car rub?
Springs will NOT be the deciding factor if your car will rub or not. Springs will only increase the frequency of rubbing. The specs of your rims and tire size will determine if your car will rub or not. If you are on stock wheels or close to stock specs, putting lowering springs on your car will NOT make your car rub, it however will increase the frequency of your front bumper getting scratched up.

Q: How long will my stock shocks last with these springs?
Well that depends on a number of factors. Your driving style, the spring, and how much wear and tear is already on your stock shocks before going to an aftermarket spring. There is no exact science or formula to determine exactly how many miles you can get on your stock shocks that I know of. Just know that ANY aftermarket spring has a degenerative effect on your stock shocks. How strong that degenerative effect is depends on the spring you choose to put on your car and your driving style.

Q: Im confused..... I want to order Mazdaspeed Springs but I dont know what to order?

If you have a 6s V6 engine, sedan OR hatch OR wagon, get the HATCHBACK/5DOOR SPRINGS.
Members have posted pictures of each model with these springs on......... search for them. I even did a huge writeup why and posted pictures to back it.

If you have a 6i I4 engine, sedan get the 4CYL SEDAN SPRINGS.
If you have a 6i hatchback, I slightly recommend the sedan springs, but the hatchback springs are also an OK option.
Members have posted pictures of each model with these springs on......... search for them

Clarification: I have received a plethora of questions on the 6i hatchback so I will clarify on these springs.... there is only one set of springs designed for the hatchback/wagon, and thats designed for the V6 engine. The 4cyl front weighs less than the V6 front (about 200 lbs I believe), so the drop you see on peoples V6 hatchbacks will not be the same if they are put on a 4cyl hatchback. The 4cyl sedan springs have the correctly designed front for the 6i hatchback, but the hatchback rear has a little more weight than the normal sedan rear (about 100 lbs I believe). Because the few cars that I have seen with the 6i sedan springs on them were not saggy in the rear as compared to the saggyness of the V6 sedan springs, I would lean towards putting the 4 cyl sedan springs on the 6i hatchback over the hatchback/wagon springs on the 6i hatchback, although neither is a wrong choice. Its not a perfect or ideal solution, but when choosing between the two, I would lean towards the sedan springs being the lesser imperfection and due to the fact that the hatchback/wagon springs were designed for a V6 engine. Comparing the difference in weights to what the springs were technically designed for, there is a less difference in the rear (100 vs 200 lbs) so I would slightly side with the 6i sedan springs for a hatchback, although neither is ideal and neither is horribly wrong.

Ideally, a 6i hatchback needs the 6i sedan fronts and the hatchback/wagon rears, which is not offered by mazda as an individual set and therefore you would need to purchase 2 sets of springs.

Q: But I still dont get it, I need someone to explain it again..... I have a V6 sedan, why should I order the Mazdaspeed 5door/wagon springs?

When the Mazdaspeed springs were originally designed and came out, the rear spring sagged a lot in the sedan. The springs offered the same drop ALL around and therefore did not even out the fender gap. The drop in the front was good, not too slammed and still gave you a little suspension travel, but the drop in the back sagged and made the car look horrible. Mazda went back and made the hatchback/wagon springs which accounted for a little more in the rear springs. The front springs, IIRC for the Sedan Springs (H14) and the wagon/hatchback springs (H15) are the same exact spring, the difference is in the rear......

I have had these springs on my V6 hatchback the longest and I am very happy with my decision. The fender gap between the front and the rear is dead perfect, they took me a few months to settle but once they did the ride looks great. A bunch of people then jumped on board and bought the Hatchback springs for their Sedan as a recommendation and suggestion by some of us and they found that the difference in weight between the hatchback and the sedan, which is like 100 lbs, didnt really do anything noticeable on the drop and that the drop on the Sedan, after the springs settled, also was almost dead on perfect between the front and back fender gaps.

Here is a picture of SkippyRock's car. He has a V6 Sedan and the Mazdaspeed Sedan springs. Look at the rear.

And here is Philter25s (V6 Hatch) car in when they settled....

And for fun, here is Nashirak's V6 Sedan with the hatchback springs on

4cyl sedan with the 4cyl sedan springs

Mazdaspeed Hatch Springs on 6i hatch

[leftyrev]

good post definetly a sticky . this should be like the members wheels thread . and just post pics and description of the drop . i wopuld PM DAVECOYNE , and see if he will pin it ,. on the bottom add links to our sponcers that sell these products

[mmarfan]

You forgot the Sprints:



~1.8" all the way around.

[leftyrev]

Tanbe NF on mazda6 5-door , tends to sag more in the rear the Tanabe NF's were made for the 4cyl sedan and being the 5-door is 6cyl and weighs more than either the 4cyl or 6cyl sedan . the springs are soft ride is almost like stock . tanabe says the srings lower to 1.2 on the 4cyl sedan , on the 6 cyl its more like 1.5 in the rear and more for the front .

on stockers :


on 18" kyowa kr206 wheels with 225/40/18 tires :



here is a link of my before and after pics right after i installed the springs . so in the pics they havnt settled yet . they are a little lower now .

before and after shots

[Philter25]

Originally posted by mmarfan@Sep 14 2005, 07:47 PM
You forgot the Sprints

[snapback]508276[/snapback]

I couldnt find the springrates for them...... any info with a link?>

Also lefty,
On the tanabe's, I had them on my 2004 also and I agree. I just posted what the website says. Since they were designed for the 4cyl, I dont think the specs are entirely accurate. The front definately drops more than the rear and I think the rear does drop more than .7 inches.

Here is my tanabe 210nf front of my car:

[mmarfan]

Originally posted by Philter25@Sep 14 2005, 07:54 PM
I couldnt find the springrates for them...... any info with a link?>

[snapback]508280[/snapback]

Not at the moment. Did a google, came up empty.

[leftyrev]

Originally posted by Philter25@Sep 14 2005, 07:54 PM


Also lefty,
On the tanabe's, I had them on my 2004 also and I agree.* I just posted what the website says.* Since they were designed for the 4cyl, I dont think the specs are entirely accurate.* The front definately drops more than the rear and I think the rear does drop more than .7 inches.

Here is my tanabe 210nf front of my car:

[snapback]508280[/snapback]

well thats because we have the hatch , there is more weight on the rear tires

[AzMz6]

eibach pro kit in the house...

[bgr6]

tanabe nf, v6 hatch

[raptorX]

thanks a lot for this post! i was tryin to figure out what springs to get. it's nice to have them all listed in one spot for easy comparison, and pics too!