15+ Best Mazda RX8 Coilovers: The Ultimate Guide
Are you looking to buy Mazda RX8 coilovers?
If you are looking to make your Mazda RX8 look good and increase its performance, one of the best upgrades you can do is to install a set of coilovers.
While Mazda did design the RX8 to perform well from the factory, a good set of coilovers are going to give you a number of significant benefits over the factory suspension.
In this post, I’m going to cover what those benefits are, as well as things you need to know when selecting coilovers for your RX8. I’m also going to give you the 15 top coilovers for the Mazda RX8 available on the market today.
Let’s get right into it.
The Best Coilovers For the Mazda RX8
Right, now that I’ve convinced you that you need coilovers for your RX8, let’s get into the best coilover kits to buy.
Riaction GT1
Price: $1030
Best for: Street cars that will do some track days
The Riaction GT1 is a very impressive, highly customizable and upgradable coilover kit that comes at a very low price.
This is actually the cheapest kit I have found so far that is modular and can be upgraded to a higher spec. Not only that, but these coilovers can also be switched from linear to digressive valving and vice versa.
The GT1 kit is designed primarily for street use and features monotube dampers with linear valving to give you more ride comfort and consistent handling. They also feature 32 levels of dampening adjustment.
The ride height adjustment is done by the shock body and gives you 1-3 inches of lowering.
These coilovers come with a 2 year warranty which is very impressive for a $1000 kit. Riaction also have a great reputation for their customer support, so you can be sure they will look after you if any issues arise.
This kit is a fantastic choice for street cars that will see some track time, especially if you think you may need to upgrade in the near future. Certainly one of the best kits in this price range.
Features include:
- Ride height adjustment by the shock body
- 1-3 inches of lowering
- Modular – Can be upgraded to 2-way independent dampening adjustment, and switched to digressive valving
- Monotube dampers with linear valving
- 32 levels of dampening adjustment
- Custom spring rates available
- Swift Spring upgrade available
- Fully rebuildable
- Lifetime free labor warranty
- 2 year warranty
GET THE RX8 RIACTION GT1 KIT HERE FOR THE BEST PRICE
BC Racing BR Series
Price: $1195
Best for: Street cars that will do some track days
The BC Racing BR Series kit is one of the most popular coilover kits in the world for several good reasons.
The kit has a very good reputation, having proven itself to handle almost anything thrown at it.
Designed primarily as a street kit that can handle track days, these coilovers feature monotube dampers with linear valving designed to give a consistent and comfortable ride on the street while still offering responsive handling on the track. They also give you 30 levels of dampening adjustment which adjusts compression and rebound simultaneously.
Ride height adjustment is done by the shock body and will lower your car 1-3 inches, with an Extreme Low option giving you up to 4 inches.
They also offer a high degree of customizability with custom spring rates and valving, Swift Spring upgrade, Extreme Low option and more.
This is one of the best value for money kits out there, and with so many people using this kit, it has proven to be a reliable, high quality kit that will give you a great street ride as well as good performance on the track. Great for street cars that will be used for track days.
Features include:
- Ride height adjustment by the shock body
- 1-3 inches of lowering, Extreme Low goes up to 4 inches lower than factory
- Monotube dampers with linear valving
- 30 levels of dampening adjustment – Compression/rebound simultaneous
- Aluminium top mounts
- Custom spring rates and valving available
- Swift Spring upgrade available
- 1 year warranty
- Fully rebuildable (with parts for rebuild available for purchase)
GET THE RX8 BC RACING BR SERIES KIT FOR THE BEST PRICE HERE
Fortune Auto 500 Series
Price: $1799
Best for: Street cars that will be doing track days, especially where customizability and the option to upgrade is required
The Fortune Auto 500 series kit is a very impressive high quality and very customizable coilover that gives you maximum performance as well as ride comfort.
One thing that makes these coilovers special is that they are modular and can be upgraded to a higher spec, all the way to 2-way independent dampening adjustment with external reservoirs.
Fortune Auto also hand assemble every kit in the USA and have very strict quality control, testing every single damper on the shock dyno and ensuring all pairs are matched to within 3% tolerance.
This kit adjusts ride height by the shock body and gives you 1-3 inches of lowering, with the option to opt for a Super Low kit that goes up to 5 inches.
The dampers are monotube and feature digressive valving and high flow pistons designed to give you a high degree of driver feel and responsiveness while still maintaining street ride comfort. They also feature a special “blow-off” technology to soften the blow of large bumps and rough surfaces. They also give you 24 levels of rebound dampening adjustment.
These coilovers are highly customizable and can be ordered with custom spring rates and valving, Swift Spring upgrade, Super Low option and more.
Fortune Auto also gives you a 5 year warranty on their coilovers which is one of the longest in the industry and shows how much they believe in their products.
For street cars that will be seeing the track, especially where you think you will need to upgrade to a more track focused setup in the future, this kit is a fantastic choice and is very competitive on price when compared with other high end coilover options.
Features include:
- Ride height adjustment to the shock body
- 1-3 inches of lowering, Super Low kit goes up to 5 inches
- Monotube dampers with digressive valving and high flow pistons for driver feel and responsiveness
- 24 levels of rebound dampening adjustment
- Modular – Upgradable to higher spec
- Aluminium top mounts
- Premium chrome silicone springs
- Spring rates: 10 kg front, 6 kg rear
- Custom spring rates and valving available
- Swift Spring upgrade available
- Hand assembled and shock dyno tested in USA
- 5 year warranty
- Fully rebuildable
GET THE RX8 FORTUNE AUTO 500 SERIES KIT FOR THE BEST PRICE HERE
BC Racing ZR Series
Price: $2835
Best for: Track cars
The BC Racing ZR Series is specifically designed to give you maximum performance and adjustability for the track.
This is BC Racing’s ultimate kit and features 3-way adjustable dampening with external reservoirs and Swift Springs as standard.
These dampers come valved to match your chosen spring rates and are made to suit your car’s exact setup to give you the best performance possible.
Ride height adjustment is done by the shock body, and the dampers are monotube with a twin piston design and independent adjustment for rebound, low speed compression and high speed compression.
Each kit is tuned and tested on the track and are designed specifically for race use.
If you are building a track car and want uncompromised performance, these coilovers are a great choice. They are also very well priced compared to other track specific kits that offer similar features.
Features include:
- Ride height adjustment by the shock body
- 1-3 inches of lowering
- Monotube dampers with twin piston design and external reservoirs
- 3-way independent damping adjustment, 30-level rebound, 15-level low speed compression, 12-level high speed compression
- Front and rear pillowball top mounts
- Swift Springs standard
- Custom spring rates and valving available
- Fully rebuildable
- 1 year warranty
GET THE RX8 BC RACING ZR SERIES KIT FOR THE BEST PRICE HERE
Ohlins Road & Track
Price: $2290
Best for: Road cars that will do a lot of track time
The Ohlins Road & Track kit is one of the highest quality coilover kits you can buy and is designed specifically for road cars that will do a lot of track time.
Ohlins have developed a special Dual Flow Valve (DFV) system which gives you very responsive handling like that of a track spec kit while still maintain very good road comfort, especially over bumps and rough terrain.
This kit gives you ride height adjustment by the shock body, which means you retain full suspension travel at all ride heights, and also features 20 levels of dampening adjustment from the monotube dampers.
This kit has also passed the ISO9227 salt spray test standard which makes it an excellent option in harsh climates that will not rust or seize.
This kit is an excellent choice for street cars and daily drivers where road comfort is still a priority, but you want excellent performance at the track.
Features include:
- Ride height adjustment by the shock body
- Monotube dampers
- 20 levels of dampening adjustment
- DFV valve for perfect balance of comfort and performance
- Salt spray tested to ISO2997 standard
- Rebuildable
- 2 years warranty
TEIN Mono Sport
Price: $1710
Best for: Street cars that will see a lot of performance driving and track days
The TEIN mono sport coilovers are a performance based kit designed to give you excellent ride quality while being tuned for performance.
This kit gives you ride height adjustment by the shock body, with monotube dampers that have been tuned for maximum feel and responsiveness while still being comfortable for street use. They give you 16 levels of dampening adjustment and are compatible with TEIN’s EDFC electronic dampening control system.
TEIN are well known for their high build quality, and these coilovers feature TEIN’s special powder coat and ZT coating which is designed to handle even the harshest weather and not corrode or seize.
These are also rebuildable and can be custom valved to suit your requirements.
If your RX8 is going to primarily be a street car that will see a lot of track days and performance driving, this kit is an excellent choice.
Features include:
- Ride height adjustment by the shock body
- Lowering up to 3 inches front and 1.9 inches rear
- Monotube dampers
- 16 levels of dampening adjustment
- Special damper oil designed to remain consistent at all temperatures and is resistant to foaming, making it suitable for intensive driving
- TEIN no sag springs
- Spring rates: 10 Kg front, 7 Kg rear
- TEIN patented powder coat and ZT coating for corrosion protection
- Dampers rebuildable and custom valving available
KW V3
Price: $2884
Best for: Street cars where comfort is a priority but will also be doing track days
The KW V3 kit is a very highly regarded and popular coilover kit for several good reasons.
For starters, KW are known for their extremely high build quality and extensive engineering and testing on all their kits.
KW have a 7 post testing rig which is used by Formula 1 cars, to develop and R&D their kits. Each coilover kit is specifically tested and tuned to the particular car model that it is made for in order to ensure maximum comfort and performance.
Another thing KW coilover kits are famous for is their extreme resistance to corrosion. They use a special INOX-LINE stainless steel shock body and polyamide composite spring perch will have passed a 220 hour salt spray test and will not ever rust or corrode. KW backs this up with a lifetime warranty, which is seriously impressive.
The V3 is designed to give you a comfortable street ride while still giving you excellent performance, and feature twin tube dampers which give you 2-way independent rebound and compression adjustment so you can fine tune the ride and handling to your exact requirements.
Ride height adjustment on these is done by the spring perch, which means you lose suspension travel the lower you go. This kit will lower your car up to 2 inches, so if you are looking to go very low, this may not be the best kit.
Overall, if you are looking for a high quality coilover kit for your road car that’s going to give you excellent ride comfort while still performing very well at the track, these are a good choice. They are a bit more expensive than other similar options, but if that doesn’t bother you and you want the benefits these offer, then they are a good buy.
NOTE: These use the OEM top mounts, so be sure to order new ones to replace yours when installing this kit.
Features include:
- Ride height adjustment by the spring perch
- Lowering up to 2 inches in the front and 1.8 inches in the rear
- Twin tube dampers with KW’s TVC-A and TVR-A adjustment technology
- 2-way independent dampening adjustment, rebound and compression
- INOX-LINE stainless steel shock bodies
- Composite polyamide spring perches
- Specifically tuned for each car model
- Lifetime warranty
- Rebuildable
Silvers Neomax
Price: $1299
Best for: Street cars that will do some track days, especially if customizability and the option to upgrade is required
These Silvers coilovers are another highly customizable and modular coilover kit that allows you to order your perfect setup. These coilovers are actually very similar to the Fortune Auto 500 kit with some minor differences.
Like the Fortune Autos, these are also modular and can be upgraded to 2-way dampening adjustable with external reservoirs.
They are also hand assembled and each damper is tested on the shock dyno, and any that are not within a 5% tolerance are scrapped, ensuring a very high standard of quality.
The Neomax kit gives you ride height adjustment which is done by the shock body and goes 1-3 inches lower than factory, with a Super Low option that will go up to 5 inches lower.
These are designed primarily for street use, with monotube dampers that feature a special “hybrid” linear piston with digressive valving, designed to be the perfect balance between ride comfort and handling. They also give you 24 levels of dampening adjustment.
This kit can also be ordered with custom spring rates and valving, Swift Springs, Super Low option and rear adjustment extenders.
Overall this kit is very similar to the Fortune Autos, except that it is a few hundred dollars cheaper and comes with an 18 month warranty, which is still decent.
If you don’t quite have the budget for the Fortune Autos, these are still a fantastic option at a great price.
Features include:
- Ride height adjustment by the shock body
- 1-3 inches of lowering, up to 5 inches on the Super Low kit
- Modular – Can be upgraded to 2-way independent dampening adjustment with external reservoirs
- Monotube dampers with “hybrid” linear piston with digressive valving
- 24 levels of dampening adjustment
- Carbon steel shock body with electroless nickel plating for extreme corrosion resistance
- Hand assembled and shock dyno tested
- Custom spring rates and dampening available
- Swift Spring upgrade available
- 18 month warranty
- Rebuildable
Tanabe Sustec Pro CR
Price: $1190
Best for: Street cars where comfort is a priority
The Tanabe Sustec are a high quality coilover kit from Japan designed for comfortable street use.
Tanabe are known for making “the quietest coilover on the market” and this kit is designed to give you ride height adjustment while maintaining a high degree of ride comfort (The CR stands for Comfort-R).
The dampers used in these are made by KYB and are a twin tube design that gives additional road comfort over monotubes. Unfortunately, they are not dampening adjustable.
The springs used on these are the same springs used in JGTC GT500 cars and will give you a high degree of handling performance.
While I would personally opt for one of the other feature rich kits in this price range, if you are looking for a simple street setup that you can bolt in and go, and will give you a high degree of ride comfort, these are a good option made by a reputable company.
Features include:
- Ride height adjustment by the spring perch
- Lowers up to 2 ¼ inches both front and rear
- Spring rates: 8 Kg front, 6 Kg rear
- KYB twin tube dampers
- Made in Japan
Yellow Speed Dynamic Pro Sport
Price: $995
Best for: Street cars and budget builds that will do some track time
Designed as a performance kit, these coilovers have a great reputation from people using them both on and off the track.
They offer shock body ride height adjustment and will lower your car up to 2.5 inches, as well as 33-level dampening adjustment from monotube dampers.
Yellow Speed are actively involved in motorsport, which is always a good sign from a company that makes performance parts and allows them to test and tune their own products.
If you are building a car on a budget and want to do some track time, these are a decent choice. They also come with a 2 year warranty which is one of the best in this price range.
Features include:
- Ride height adjustment by the shock body
- Up to 2.5 inches of lowering on most applications
- 33-level dampening adjustment
- Monotube dampers
- Steel construction with electroplating and anodizing for corrosion protection
- 2 year warranty
Ksport Kontrol Pro
Price: $1232.50
Best for: Street cars and budget builds that will do some track time
The Kport Kontrol Pro is another decent coilover that is designed to give you good performance at a relatively low price.
These feature all the things you’d expect from coilovers in this range, including ride height adjustment by the shock body, monotube dampers with 36 levels of dampening adjustment and aluminium top mounts.
Ksport were involved in motorsport for a number of years which allowed them to test and tune their suspension setups for good performance on the track.
While I would personally either opt for the BC Racing BR Series or the Silvers Neomax in this price range, these coilovers are another decent option with good reviews if for some reason you don’t want one of the other two.
Features include:
- Ride height adjustment by the shock body
- Monotube dampers
- 36 levels of dampening adjustment
- Shock bodies electroplated with zinc for corrosion resistance
- Spring Rates: 9.8k front and 9.0k rear
- Aluminium parts for weight reduction and rust resistance
- 1 year warranty
D2 Racing RS Series
Price: $1105
Best for: Street cars and budget builds that will do some track time
The D2 Racing RS Series are another relatively cheap coilover kit that is going to give you a decent ride and good performance.
The RS Series are specifically designed for performance street cars that will see occasional track use, and feature monotube dampers with 36 levels of dampening adjustment.
Ride height adjustment is done by the shock body and will typically lower your car 1-3 inches.
These are serviceable and rebuildable in the USA which makes them a decent option if you live in America and want a kit that you can quickly get rebuilt or serviced.
Again, at this price level I would personally go for the BC Racing BR Series kit, however there’s nothing wrong with these and they have a good reputation. You can read my full D2 coilovers review here.
Features include:
- Ride height adjustment by the shock body
- Lowers 1-3 inches
- Monotube dampers
- 36 levels of dampening adjustment
- Anodized shock bodies with Teflon coated threads for rust protection
- 1 year warranty
- Serviceable in the USA
TEIN Flex Z
Price: $759.95
Best for: Street cars with the occasional track day
The TEIN Flex Z coilover kit is, in my opinion, the best coilover kit you are going to get under $1000.
Despite the low price, this is actually a very high quality kit that TEIN has put a lot of engineering into.
One thing that makes these special is that TEIN actually makes them to the specific to the region they are being sold to, in order to ensure that the customer gets the best coilover for their needs.
They feature twin tube dampers designed to give you a more comfortable ride, with damper oil that is durable and remains consistent even in high temperatures, which makes them suitable for intensive driving sessions. The dampers are also 16 level dampening adjustable and are compatible with TEIN’s EDFC system.
The dampers are also designed as replaceable inserts, which work out quicker and cheaper to replace than if you had to send your coilovers in for a rebuild. TEIN will also custom valve the replacement dampers to suit your requirements.
The ride height adjustment on these is done by the shock body and will lower your RX8 up to 3 inches in the front and 2.4 inches in the rear.
TEIN is well known for their high build quality, their no sag springs, patented powder coat and ZT coating that is extremely resistant to corrosion, and the great ride and performance of their coilovers.
For road cars that will occasionally see the track and are being built on a budget, this is the best kit you are going to find in this price range.
Features include:
- Ride height adjustment by the shock body
- Lowers up to 3 inches in the front and 2.4 inches in the rear
- Twin tube dampers designed for ride comfort
- 16 levels of dampening adjustment
- Special damper oil designed to handle intensive driving
- EDFC compatible
- Aluminium top mounts with reinforced rubber bushes
- Spring rates: 8 Kg front, 5 Kg rear
- TEIN no sag springs
- TEIN’s patented powder coat and ZT coating for maximum resistance to corrosion and seizing
- Replaceable damper inserts that can be custom valving
- Made in Japan
- 1 year warranty
Megan Racing EZ II
Price: $749
Best for: Street cars and budget
If you are really on a tight budget, the Megan Racing EZ II’s are another good option with a decent reputation.
These coilovers are designed for street use, however they have numerous good reviews of performance at the track and HPDE events.
They give you ride height adjustment done by the shock body, and feature monotube dampers with 15 levels of dampening adjustment.
While I would personal opt for the TEIN Flex Z’s at this price level, these are another decent budget option that have good reviews and will give you decent performance.
Features include:
- Ride height adjustment by the shock body
- Monotube dampers
- 15 levels of dampening adjustment
- Aluminium top mounts
- Spring rates: 8 Kg front, 6 Kg rear
- 1 year warranty
Godspeed Mono SS
Price: $675
Best for: Street cars being built on a budget
If you are really on a tight budget and looking to lower your daily driver or street car, the Godspeed MonoSS coilovers have proven to be a good option.
As far as budget coilovers go, these have a surprisingly long list of features, and a decent reputation.
While Godspeed claims to have designed them as street and track coilover, personally I wouldn’t bank on them for regular track use. However, they certainly seem to get the job done for street use, giving you a relatively decent ride considering the low cost.
The dampers on these are monotube and give you 16 levels of dampening adjustment. Godspeed claims they use a “high spec race oil” in the dampers which is supposed to be higher quality than oil used in other budget coilovers.
The ride height adjustment is done by the shock body, and typically gives you 1-3 inches of lowering.
While I would personally stretch for the $100 extra and get the TEIN Flex Z’s, for street cars and daily drivers being built on a very tight budget, these coilovers will get the job done.
Features include:
- Ride height adjustment by the shock body
- 1-3 inches of lowering
- Monotube dampers with “race spec” damper oil
- 16 levels of dampening adjustment
- Cold bent SAE9252 steel springs
- Anodized shock bodies
- Aluminium parts for weight reduction
- 1 year warranty
What Are the Benefits of Installing Coilovers On the RX8?
While the Mazda RX8 was designed as a sports car and does perform well in its standard form, installing a good set of coilovers are going to give you some significant advantages.
Adjustable Ride Height
One of the biggest reasons people install coilovers is to be able to lower their car and set the ride height exactly where they want it. Due to the way coilovers are designed, they allow you to raise or lower the car either by winding the spring perch, of the whole shock body up or down.
Unlike factory suspension or lowering springs where you are stuck with whatever height they sit at, coilovers allow you to freely adjust the ride height as much as you like down to the millimeter.
Handling Performance
No matter how well factory suspension has been designed to perform, it is always made to be soft and comfortable enough for the average person. For car enthusiasts looking to improve the performance of their car, this is not good enough.
Coilovers were originally designed for use on racecars to offer the maximum amount of handling performance and response, and they offer similar benefits when installed on your RX8.
While the design and components of the specific coilover kit you are looking at will play a significant part on the handling characteristics you will get, pretty much any decent coilover kit is going to handle better than factory suspension, just by the nature of lowering the ride height which lowers the center of gravity, and reducing body roll.
Dampening Adjustment
Most coilovers on the market today also give you the option of adjustable dampening, which allows you to quickly change the settings of the dampers from soft to stiff.
This is particularly useful is you are picky about ride comfort and want to be able to fine tune it to your liking, and it’s also going to make a big different to the way your car handles.
Being able to adjust the damper settings allows you to fine tune the car’s handling and quickly change the settings, which is great for cars being used on both the street and track. You can set the dampers to soft for the drive there, stiffen them up for the track day, and then set them to soft again for the drive home.
Some Things to Consider When Selecting RX8 Coilovers
Selecting the right coilover that’s going to give you the results you expect depends a lot on what you are going to use the car for.
If your car is specifically for track use, don’t expect to buy a budget street kit and then wonder why your car doesn’t handle as good as the others.
Similarly, if you spend a lot of time driving the car on the road, it makes sense to go for a kit that is more comfort oriented and will give you better ride quality while sacrificing a good bit of performance.
More expensive kits will often do a good job of both and give you a good balance of comfort and performance, but just be aware that the cheaper you go, the more you will sacrifice one or both of these factors.
With each of the coilovers listed below, I will tell you what they are good for so that you can make the right decision based on your needs.
Conclusion
I hope that this has helped you to select the right coilover for your RX8. If you have any questions or comments, or would like to suggest another coilover kit to be included, feel free to post in the comments below.
To see the full range of RX8 coilovers, click here:
SHOP ALL MAZDA RX8 COILOVERS HERE
Cars owned: Mk2 Golf with 1.8T swap, BMW E28 with M30B35 swap, BMW E36 328I Mtech, BMW 750IL, Nissan 300ZX, Honda Civic EF
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