Tires/Setup Questions

[JamesTCallaghan]

I am having a dilemma of sorts, my oem offset is 50mm, and I am debating if I should try to find something with a 55mm offset to try and bring the grip a bit wider for autocross.  Does it make that much of a difference? Most of the rims Im finding have a 45mm offset, if I want to retain the 50mm offset there are some previous gen Mazda 3 rims that were 17x7 with a 50mm offset.   Im sure I am probably just nit picking over nothing and should probably just worry about that loose nut behind the wheel lol.

***edit***

I think I may have found my compromise for an autocross only wheel, NC Miata wheels, 17x7 5x114.3 and 17lbs.......anyone have a set laying around?

Going from a 50 to a 55mm offset would actually make the track narrower, a 45 offset wheel would make it wider and potentially be more beneficial.

[Midnightsky]

Thank you for clarification on my failed understanding of wheel offset lol.  I will definitely be seeking out a 45mm offset then.

[Midnightsky]

Moving forward with my understanding of vehicle setup, my next thought is struts for next season.  What Im wondering is what members here know of the Koni FSD struts versus the koni yellows.  As I understand it the FSD's have some new technology that allows it to be a variable dampening rate that adjusts itself as your driving.  They are geared more towards an improvement over the super soft oem struts that is soft when needed and firms up if it feels the demand for it.  To me that sounds fishy, would that not create chaos? How can it possibly know the corner I am approaching is better soft or firm? To me the Koni yellow sounds like my best option, it allows me to adjust front and rear independently as I feel the need to go soft or firm before my run starts.  Another oddity on my Mazda 3 is that the rear strut and spring are completely separate, is that an advantage or Mazdas way to make a more comfortable daily ride on various driving conditions/surfaces?

I also want to say thank you to all the members who have given me advice during this process of sorting out my setup. I greatly appreciate your input and can't wait to make it out for a full season with a proper setup so I can chase Cam/Murray

[MurrayPeterson]

All shocks have a force that varies with frequency (speed).  Sounds like those FSD shocks have a mechanism that reduces the shock force at higher velocities, which is a bit backwards compared to normal shocks.  Anyway, they have nothing to do with racing needs.  Get the adjustable Konis.

My advice?  If the car's handling is acceptable, don't sweat the Konis (and the cost) until you get more seat time.

[Reijo]

All shocks have a force that varies with frequency (speed).  Sounds like those FSD shocks have a mechanism that reduces the shock force at higher velocities, which is a bit backwards compared to normal shocks.  Anyway, they have nothing to do with racing needs.  Get the adjustable Konis.

My advice?  I

f the car's handling is acceptable, don't sweat the Konis (and the cost) until you get more seat time.

Second that.  Your best money spent is on the loose nut behind the wheel.  The skills learned in a school also transfer from one car to the next.  Parts do not (typically).

R

[JamesTCallaghan]

Third that. I've never felt the need to change shocks (except my BRZ and I went with fixed rate Bilsteins) because I am too inexperienced of a driver and not knowledgeable enough to tune them properly to help me.

[MurrayPeterson]

Nathan, I am going to be brutally honest here -- shocks should be the last thing on your mind right now.  If you must spend money on car prep, then buy the best tires you can afford.  A set of RE-71Rs or Rivals will do you more good than any other prep item, regardless of cost.  Spend your money where it counts -- tires and entry fees.  Get in your seat time!

[PedalFaster]

What Im wondering is what members here know of the Koni FSD struts versus the koni yellows.  As I understand it the FSD's have some new technology that allows it to be a variable dampening rate that adjusts itself as your driving.  They are geared more towards an improvement over the super soft oem struts that is soft when needed and firms up if it feels the demand for it.  To me that sounds fishy, would that not create chaos? How can it possibly know the corner I am approaching is better soft or firm?

It sounds like you're assuming more intelligence in the FSD system than it really has. There's no computer making decisions on your driving style -- it's just a fancy mechanical valve that softens the damper when there's high-frequency piston movement (i.e. if you're driving over a bumpy surface). This results in a shock that's relatively firm on smooth surfaces, and relatively soft on bumpy ones.

You're right that Koni Yellows/Sports are a better choice for performance applications. Having said that, while Konis are the closest thing there is to a standard autocross shock, I've had back luck with their reliability -- three failures in the past five cars I've driven, including two shocks that failed on Cam's car within a few weeks of being installed.

[94boosted]

Another oddity on my Mazda 3 is that the rear strut and spring are completely separate, is that an advantage or Mazdas way to make a more comfortable daily ride on various driving conditions/surfaces?

I wouldn't say that's odd, most fwd cars will have a rear suspension where the shock and spring are separate (your Cobalt was like this too) most commonly arranged in a torsion bar style suspension. Though I think your Mazda 3 uses some sort of a Ford designed multilink suspension in the rear.

[Terry Johns]

Its great to have you in the club 

[Midnightsky]

RE71R's on separate rims are definitely in my plans for next season.  I wanted to hear about the FSD's as it was a little confusing in my head, thank you for clearing that up, as well with the rear suspension.  Top of my list for next season is seat time seat time seat time want to spend as much time behind the wheel as I can.  The Koni yellows will be a bonus next season if I can afford it.  My swaybar and endlinks have arrived, just scrounging the last few dollars to go have them installed.  Hopefully the weather co-operates and I can make the final Oct 15th event with my new swaybar.  That will probably be all the tread I have left anyway, then its onto studded winters and looking towards Ghost Lake

A big thank you again to everyone here for the help/advice/info, I greatly appreciate the support it means alot to have that

[kaho]

RE71R's on separate rims are definitely in my plans for next season.  I wanted to hear about the FSD's as it was a little confusing in my head, thank you for clearing that up, as well with the rear suspension.  Top of my list for next season is seat time seat time seat time want to spend as much time behind the wheel as I can.  The Koni yellows will be a bonus next season if I can afford it.  My swaybar and endlinks have arrived, just scrounging the last few dollars to go have them installed.  Hopefully the weather co-operates and I can make the final Oct 15th event with my new swaybar.  That will probably be all the tread I have left anyway, then its onto studded winters and looking towards Ghost Lake

A big thank you again to everyone here for the help/advice/info, I greatly appreciate the support it means alot to have that

Did you buy the sway bar online? How much did it cost you?

[Tuna]

RE71R's on separate rims are definitely in my plans for next season.  I wanted to hear about the FSD's as it was a little confusing in my head, thank you for clearing that up, as well with the rear suspension.  Top of my list for next season is seat time seat time seat time want to spend as much time behind the wheel as I can.  The Koni yellows will be a bonus next season if I can afford it.  My swaybar and endlinks have arrived, just scrounging the last few dollars to go have them installed.  Hopefully the weather co-operates and I can make the final Oct 15th event with my new swaybar.  That will probably be all the tread I have left anyway, then its onto studded winters and looking towards Ghost Lake

A big thank you again to everyone here for the help/advice/info, I greatly appreciate the support it means alot to have that

If the sway bar is anything like my Focus I can do it for beer. And teach you how to wrench on your own car for nothing.

[Bitters]

And if it's anything like MY focus you should clear at least the whole afternoon 

[Midnightsky]

RE71R's on separate rims are definitely in my plans for next season.  I wanted to hear about the FSD's as it was a little confusing in my head, thank you for clearing that up, as well with the rear suspension.  Top of my list for next season is seat time seat time seat time want to spend as much time behind the wheel as I can.  The Koni yellows will be a bonus next season if I can afford it.  My swaybar and endlinks have arrived, just scrounging the last few dollars to go have them installed.  Hopefully the weather co-operates and I can make the final Oct 15th event with my new swaybar.  That will probably be all the tread I have left anyway, then its onto studded winters and looking towards Ghost Lake

A big thank you again to everyone here for the help/advice/info, I greatly appreciate the support it means alot to have that

Did you buy the sway bar online? How much did it cost you?

Online yes, eBay for the endlinks as per recommendation on the Mazda 3 forum Im on, swaybar was direct from Progress.  All in, between the endlinks, swaybar, shipping, UPS ripoff duty/customs, $444 has been spent to date.  Almost a set of RE71R's, but then I still need a 2nd set of rims, a jack, torque wrench, Im too poor for all that right now.   Over the winter I should be able to acquire it all piece by piece and be ready to rock in May/June for my first full season.

If the sway bar is anything like my Focus I can do it for beer. And teach you how to wrench on your own car for nothing.

I may take you up on that, might be able to make the Oct 1st event then if that works out.  The parts I was warned about on the Mazda forum was to ensure the provided bushings are properly greased or suffer from I think clunking noises.  I have worked on my vehicles in the past and overall do not have the best track record so I have been going to shops I trust for the majority of my mechanical needs.  Also being a brand new car with only 13,000km on it I am overly cautious about doing any work myself.  I managed to figure out the rally armor mudflaps and they haven't fallen off yet so at least I got that right.  Beyond that I have not done any else to the vehicle myself.  The exhaust was done by Cam and he did a fantastic job.  My oil changes are being done by Mazda so as to not complicate my warranty.  I know how to properly document it ect and could do it myself, but prefer to leave it to Mazda.

And if it's anything like MY focus you should clear at least the whole afternoon 

Its about a 2 hour job according to the guys on the Mazda forum who have been very helpful and informative.  There is a DIY posted there for the rear swaybar install.