KW Variant 3 Coilovers ULTIMATE Review! 12 years ~95,000 miles on street & track!
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- Опубликовано: 24 июл 2024
- It was time for new dampers so we went in-depth after pulling the 95,000 mile / 12 years old KW Variant 3 off of our '92 NSX. Detailed inspection of wear & tear, threw them on a shock dyno to see if they were still actually doing damper things, and covered some design changes that the V3s have seen in the past decade. Enjoy what may be the most thorough coilover review on RUclips.
KW Automotive (not sponsored):
www.kwsuspensions.com/
Shorty's Motorsports:
/ shortysshocks
KWs purchased from Science of Speed (not sponsored):
www.scienceofspeed.com/
Billy Johnson on NSX handling (no affiliation):
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0:00 Intro & Contents
1:00 What they've been through
1:38 Physical Condition?
2:36 One Leak
2:54 Bushing deg
3:32 Spring wear?
4:35 To the backup car!
5:10 Damping Condition?
6:17 Expert Opinion!
6:53 Design Changes
7:28 Subjective stuff (Performance & Ride)
8:41 Overall conclusions
Disclaimer:
Due to factors beyond the control of Lap of the World/Richard, I cannot guarantee against improper use or unauthorized modifications of this information. Lap of the World/Richard assumes no liability for property damage or injury incurred as a result of any of the information contained in this video. Use this information at your own risk. Lap of the World/Richard recommends safe practices when working on or driving vehicles and or with tools seen or implied in this video. Due to factors beyond the control of Lap of the World/Richard, no information contained in this video shall create any expressed or implied warranty or guarantee of any particular result. Any injury, damage, or loss that may result from improper use of these tools, equipment, or from the information contained in this video is the sole responsibility of the user and not Lap of the World/Richard. 
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One of the best reviews I have seen for a car part ever. The fact there is no corrosion on the coilovers is amazingly impressive. Great informative video.
Yeah, I always read stuff like that "unlimited lifespan" or anything that is touted as _____-proof with a healthy dose of skepticism, but in this case, it seems as legit as I could test and observe.
Finally, an actual, legitimate long term review of a product, not just "I feel qualified to comment on long term use and reliability because I have owned this for 6 months." Thank you!!! I've had KW in the past on a couple of cars but really didn't want to spend almost $3500 on them (after tax and shipping) for my 540i. This has (almost guaranteed) changed my mind.
I've had my KW V2 for almost 20 years and they are good as new. V3 was not available for my model at the time.
Incredible quality, well worth the 1,300 Euros I paid back then. It completely transforms the car's road behavior.
This review is pure awesomeness. This is the type of coilover review I really appreciate.
Finally a decent review about coilovers. I genuinely did not expect them to be rather decent after so many miles, good purchase
Hi Richard, great review. Thanks for taking the time. I’m considering a set of Street Comfort KWs for my 2016 BMW 640D Gran Coupe. It sounds like they will do the job. Thanks again
Cheers! Thanks for this review, I found it helpful as I research potential suspension upgrade for my 128i.
Yeah very informative video. I've got a few things to inspect closely on my coilovers when j swap to summer wheels in a few weeks, grazie!
Nice review! i just bought my V3 about a year ago so it's very reassuring to know that they will last a long time.
An impressive amount of use on that kit, and it held up really well!
I honestly expected worse but aside from the one leak, I couldn't really find much else wrong. Most OE spring/dampers don't last this long with heavy use...
@@LapoftheWorld The neat dust shield probably helper alot, leaky piston seals is pretty typical with normal coil over kits. But most kits have pretty much no dust and grime protection
I just ordered a set of KW V3 for my 370z so naturally, while I'm waiting for them to arrive, I'm now looking at various reviews to justify my purchase :)
You did an excellent job of reviewing these and I'm really happy to see that my purchase was probably really good. Can't wait to put them on the car and test them!
Did I see well, did that NSX do 305.000 miles? Wow!! That's so impressive and so good to see such a beautiful car being driven as it was meant to. Hope you continue to have it for many many more years and miles.
🙌 Thanks for the kind words! The NSX is now at 321,000 and the new set of KWs is still just like new. Hopefully your luck with them will be as good as mine.
@@LapoftheWorld That's just incredible, you are obviously taking good care of it. Well done, and thank you.
Running V3s for a couple years now, and this gave me warm fuzzies.
Yeah, the super short version would be to check the adjustment points periodically for leaks and inspect the lower bushings every season but otherwise send it.
Great video! Good to know there is some good coil overs for the NSX. The new adjustment button seems to be a big improvement for sure.
Definitely helps remember where you left them settings-wise without having to pull out the log-book or dig through the archives for installation notes.
I was about to get racelands for My mk4 Jetta, going KW instead worth to save for an extra months, ty for the video
Excellent and extremely interesting video, thanks very much.
Excellent review - thank you! :)
Excellent content!
Great review, thanks!
Wow, very informative: REAL CONTENT! I notice that KW is one of the few companies using twin-tube technology rather than monotube. I wonder why.......
One explanation would be that monotube gives generally a harsher ride.
And if you have only one car that you daily drive, and occasionally have some track days with it, I guess you wouldn't want to go bouncing around!😊
Great review.
I’m currently debating on what coilovers to get on my MK8 Fiesta ST, this video has made up my mind easily… just wow
@@youtuber-cc8sx no I actually ended up going for the V1 and not the V3 as I wasn’t planning on taking the car on track so I thought it was pretty pointless to spend money over £1000 more, the V1s are incredible though so I’d highly recommend, unless you’re planning to track the car then I’d say go for the V3s👍
yes its better, a very noticable difference imo @@youtuber-cc8sx
I watched your installation vid first and found it very helpful this one as well. I'm replacing the stock suspension on my 97. I know long over due. I'm not to concerned how long the new coilovers will last, let's just say I hope I last as long as they probably will. My only concern is ride quality. I don't track the car but will want it to feel a bit aggressive for when I take it out for spirited but legal drives in North Georgia.
At least at my current age and spine condition, I feel like you can get close to the best of both worlds within the adjustment range. I'm a "set it and forget it" person so I have it just a smidge softer that probably what's ideal for track use, and just leave it there. They're perfectly fine on all but the worst roads, and still have the body well under control for track use. Again, my basis of comparison is admittedly not auto-journalist-broad with respect to what's possible, but I know "comfortable" when I feel it 😁
O my !!! That that Nsx !!!!
Amazing video. Wow wow wow.
underrated video
How does it only have 28k views, as a twelve year review of germany‘s favorite suspension. There is literally nothing else we talk about in the reich
'Tag Andreas! Maybe I should attempt some German subtitles? (Although I have yet to meet a German whose English wasn't WAY better than my German).
Is there KW coilovers for Infiniti Q60 with DDS feature?
Great review! I'm starting to feel the effects of my stiff Quantum suspension so I bought the NSX-S suspension. How do these compare to the S suspension?
So I've never ridden in an NSX with S/Zanardi suspension. I'm familiar with stock USDM suspension which is downright cushy, and KWs (outside of other cars entirely). My educated guess is they'd still be a bit stiffer than than the S suspension, but with the KWs on the 343# springs that they come with you can dial them pretty soft while still maintaining good damping control. They won't get to full rolling-sofa, but with the stiff-leaning adjustments they recommend they still don't kill you on bad roads.
@@LapoftheWorld Thanks you answered a concern of mine here.
I’m returning to this video after my current set on my e36 m3 had its swaybar mount ovaled out due to a loosening nut (my fault) on track. Really struggling with getting these or clubsports or mcs. This it a dedicated track car, but I really don’t have the seat time to justify anything past v3’s. Currently have a cheap set that came with the car.
That's where I landed with getting the replacement set. I'm sure someone could potentially get more/better balance out of the clubsports, but I don't have a sufficiently calibrated butt to get the most out of them, and I'm an order of magnitude of subscribers short of being able to afford my own race engineer, lol.
@@LapoftheWorld I hope you get there one day! You’re an inspiration and a great source of knowledge and experience. Glad to have your time responding to my comment on an old video. Have a great day. ✌️
🍻
Great video, great history with awsome content. Beautiful car too. I am in the market for KW V3 or Fortune 510/510 but KW seems to have top quality.
I can't profess that KW is "the best" thing out there as I don't have experience with enough of a sample size, but I don't think you can go too wrong with them given what I have seen first hand.
What settings are you running on your KWs? Would be interested to hear about your experiences in dialing them in for your uses.
I shared some baseline settings in the install video I published last week. I hope to hit up an autocross soon-ish as a test/validation setting so may cover it again there.
@@LapoftheWorld Thanks, I'll check it out.
Durable Products? Nice
How responsive would you say the settings can be adjusted for daily driving on unpredictable roads like Los Angeles? I bought my M2 that came with the AST 5300 and it’s still pretty stiff on the lowest setting. I want to change it out but Bilstein b6 is in back order until March and I don’t know what else to get. Budget isn’t a concern. Just want something like stock OEM suspension but better
I'm sure the damping may be different for different applications but at least on their NSX versions you can dial them pretty soft. Maybe not quite as cushy as OE, but I've driven on some pretty jank roads and didn't feel like I needed new kidneys.
I'd be curious to see how the rebuild older model stacks up to the new models. Will you swap them out without concern if one of the new ones has a failure?
I'll be curious how the rebuild process will go, but that's the idea is that I'll have the re-built ones ready to go back on in case any of the new ones start to have an issue. Zero down-time etc. which could be logistically important if we do something more ambitious travel-wise in the future. I think the real tell-tale will be how the new ones hold up compared to the old. Is what they're making now just as resilient.
I have 12 y.o. KW-V1s on my 2008 BMW 335xi. Bump stops and dust shields blew off after too many potholes 8 years ago. Threw on the OEM bump stops - starting to feel harsh over small bumps so I am exploring my options. Any suggestions?
If you bought them new, you could look at the warranty terms. They're pretty generous albeit void with track use and some other stipulations. From talking to my damper expert here the harshness is probably just the oil degradation (assuming no leaks) probably exacerbated by cold weather. As for non-KW options for a bimmer, I'd imagine the world is your oyster between Bilstein, Ohlins, etc. I don't have any 1st hand experience there, but maybe others will chime in.
Heyyyy DCTC showing up! :-)
Fun track! Bumpy...but fun 😅
@@LapoftheWorld so close to home that I can't dare to criticize it! I am going to make the trek north to Brainerd for a track day this summer though too.
I noticed you said Chattanooga... are y'all in Tennessee? I'm in Nashville and looking to get my CLS 550 changed over.
Yup! We are Knoxville area.
It seems like the newer ones aren’t built like your old one was. Lots of failures with the KW V3 for the 2020+ Supras, specifically struts shafts breaking away from the strut body.
Wow. I guess "ymmv" is universal. Still for this application at least it's so far so good after a few thousand miles and 3 events on the new set. I'll definitely report anything that does crop up. This was in no way sponsored so it's not as if I owe KW anything at this point.
Is your old set being sent back to KW for a rebuild going to be covered under their limited lifetime warranty? If yes, even the non-leaking ones?
Oh, I've thoroughly voided the warranty between the track use and up-rated front springs. I'll fill out the form, but I fully expect to pay for the rebuild. If something else happens I'll report back. The return/rebuild process might be worth a video for those curious about how that works.
@@LapoftheWorld Yes, that would be nice to see a return/rebuild process video. Will there be one planned in the future?
@@Sleetui I do plan to document the process. I've had some other priorities but the old ones are stripped and in the box for when I have time in a month or two to deal with the paperwork and logistics.
How did you get different spring rates for the V3s? All 4 corners?
Rears are the "stock" V3 rates, but I went stiffer in the front to mirror NSX-R ratio. You just need to know the correct length and diameter and you can order from KW, Swift, whoever. Worth noting that it does void the warranty (or did per my literature) but track use does that anyway so it made no difference to me. It wasn't a drastic change and the valving seems to handle it fine.
Up from what to what?
@@gbass7328 Stock rates are 343# I went to ~$450# Front. So overall still fairly compliant, but with a little more front bias.
So I guess that an extra 30% did the trick.
hows the KW comparing to JRZ?
Hopefully someone else can respond who has experience with both. Not sure I've heard anything bad about JRZ, but I haven't driven on their stuff to have an opinion.
Mine V3 rear ones started to leak after 1000 miles
Did they warranty them? Or voided with track use?
@@LapoftheWorld warranty is for 24 months from purshase, passed 26, so no warranty, no track use
@@mindaugelis21 And were you running now ?.
These are nice but I just cant justify the price at 3k they cost 3x as much as other brands and for that price you could get a fairly decent used car...
So a crappy suspension maker is dissing the KW (probably best suspension brand in the world) most famous product the V3 by saying that "it's not bad"? Wtf 😂😂 what comes to my mind is that time Conor Mccgregor said "who the fook is that guy?" 😂 unbeliveable
No diss, you just have to know the type. I take, "Not bad", from a guy who builds/tunes race shocks for a dozen late model teams (Ohlins, Penske, etc.) as a low key compliment for any off-the-shelf product. He'd definitely seen much newer shock in worse states of wear.
Shit brand of coilovers. Had 5 sets of kw before. All leak within 1.5 years. And kw doesnt service them. They just ask you to replace the whole set
Thanks for the data point. If you don't mind, were they V3 or a different model? Also, are you in the US? KW USA does rebuild these dampers. I'll update that process as well once I've sent my take-offs in. I wonder if available services may differ by model or location?
@@LapoftheWorld i have v1 2 3 and dcc
@@LapoftheWorld im in asia. And they do not rebuild. Very bad