BC Racing Coilovers (Install DIY and Review, lots of pics))

[4DoorForte]

Hey everyone, i I don't post much, but I lurk everyday. I recently got the opportunity to test fit this Forte Kit from BC Racing Coilovers.

BC Racing - North America

At my job, we have had nothing but great results from BC Racing. We have a kit on every shop car (2 Mazdaspeed 3's, 1 Mazdaspeed 6) and we sell them for Mazdaspeeds very frequently with zero complaints.

They have had this Forte kit overseas for a year, and haven't brought it to the states yet. When i heard they had a kit available, I had to jump on it.

I am posting here to let you guys know how it looks/feels and provide a DIY. I heard they are going to stock them in the US now (out of FL) so you can get them quick.















The ride height is adjustable (about 3-3.5" drop, maybe more) and the stiffness of the shock is adjustable as well.

All the way soft on the knob is stiffer than stock i can tell you, and there are 32 clicks to all the way hard. I am set on 16 clicks on all shocks right now.

The How to will be in the next post.

[4DoorForte]

I did the front of the car first and the rear after the front was done.

1. Get the front of the car on stands. Remove wheels. You should see this.



Remove the not at the top of the endlink (17mm nut) on left side of the shock
Remove the (2) 12mm nuts on the right side holding the brake line and speed sensor
Remove the to large nuts holding the shock to the wheel hub (2) 19mm nuts

Then it should look like this.



Next, pop the hood and find the 3 nuts holding the assembly to the strut tower.



Remove these nuts, they are 14mm. The sturt assembly should fall down as you remove them, hold the assembly with one arm as you remove the nuts, then remove assembly.

Place it next to the new assembly (they are labeled R for right and L for left)



Measure the stock strut from the hat down to the bottom. Note the length.



Next, do the same for the BC. Note the length.

The difference in height will be your lowered amount. I chose to go 2.5" lower.



To adjust ride height, loosen the bottom most retaining ring with the matching supplied wrench, and raise the ring up the strut, and then twist the strut mount up to it.



Tighten the ring once you pick your height, and go back to the car and install by reversing the steps.



***INSTALL EVERYTHING BACK EXCEPT THE SWAY BAR END LINK. YOU NEED TO HAVE THE OTHER SIDE DONE AS WELL THEN DO THE SWAY BAR LAST. IF YOU INSTALL THE END LINK ON ONE LOWERED SIDE AND NOT THE OTHER, GETTING THE OTHER ENDLINK OFF WILL BE VERY VERY DIFFICULT AND MAY DAMAGE IT***

Make sure you 14mm nuts on top are tight.



Do the same for the other side, and you can now lift the sway bar and attach the endlinks back to the strut easily.

Put the wheel back on and your done!

NOW TO THE REAR!!!!!

[4DoorForte]

Now for the rear!

Remove wheels. you should see something like this behind the car.



Take a jack and raise it to support the spring cup right underneath the spring.

At the bottom of the shock, you will see a 19mm nut. Remove this nut to separate the shock from the rear axle.

Next, the top nut for the strut is located in the wheel well, it is 17mm. Both of these are really tight, make sure you have a good breaker bar.

Next, do the same for the other side. The shocks should pull right out.



Use the same method for the front to lower the shock. I chose to lower the rear all the way. Loosen the retaining ring, spin it up, then turn the bottom until you want to stop. I turned it a few turns until it stopped.

Tighten the ring, you can see here how much lower they are versus stock.





Next, take the springs out. I decided to leve them be and not mess with the pre-load on them. I transferred over the lower spring mount for the cup from the stock spring to the new one.



Next, put the springs back in. then install the shock with the top bolt first.

next, raise the axle back up with the jack until you can insert the lower shock bolt.

Then you are done! Make sure you set your shock stiffness with the dial too!





All done!!!

I have done coil installs before on other cars, and this was the easiest by far!!! I took about an hour and 15 mins and that was taking these pictures.

I'd say for a newb, about 3 hours.

[4DoorForte]

The car handles so WELL now!!!! It hugs the road and feels like it is on rails.

I am one of those guys who sacrifices comfort for performance, so depending on how stiff you set the shock, the car is a little bouncy on big bumps.

other than that, it rides very comfortably. when i finished install last night i took the car out and it felt amazing. No noises or creaks either.

I am very surprised to see the rear fenders have no lip on the to be rolled. There is literally NO wheel gap in the back and i did not rub one single time through the nasty construction zones on the highway, and i am on 19x7.5" wheels with a 45mm offset.



I will be taking daytime pictures today after i lower the front a little more. stay tuned

[ShaksForteSX]

Nice man! How much money we talking for these?

[Goose]

Excellent write-up with nice pictures. Very helpful.

Did you reinstall the dust covers on top of the new front struts? Would they fit over the adjustment knob?

[4DoorForte]

The kits are only $1000! You get a lot for the money, can't go wrong at all.

They do fit but i left them off.

Also, my kit does not have camber plates on the front hats. I am pretty sure all the kits they start bringing in with have adjustable camber plates up front.

[fas93]

IT IS ON... I'm totally getting these. This will work for the 4dr and koup correct?

[SX FORTE]

Nice write up, any pics of the whole car and how it sits?

[arinesmith]

Originally Posted by fas93

IT IS ON... I'm totally getting these. This will work for the 4dr and koup correct?

Willing to negotiate purchase of Eibach springs on anyone that goes from them to the coilovers.

[SX FORTE]

Where's the pic of the whole car?

[arinesmith]

When and Where will these be available, ARK releases today for $1500

[4DoorForte]

i dont have a nice camera, but we do have one at work, so i'll take nicer pics this week. These are from my iphone.

[fas93]

Aiyeee, looks amazing. I can't wait to SLAM my car.


If things go as planned, yes I will be selling my springs with my stocks struts on them.

[AutoItKing]

SWEET!!!!! Must be a great improvement over the crappy LX/EX suspension! I want these... so bad.

Now you just need some stabilizer bars and stuff, and you'll be riding like a dream!