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      11-07-2018, 08:23 PM   #1
ashiohsiao
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Drives: 2012 F20 118i
Join Date: Oct 2018
Location: Taiwan

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My F20 FCM Elite Project

Just a quick heads-up:
This thread is to share with you my currently in-progress FCM Elite project - Fat Cat Motorsports custom-revalved Bilstein dampers. I will try to be as detailed as possible, but the contents will of course be limited by what I am allowed by FCM to share.

For those of you, who are curious about FCM and can't wait for more info, there is actually a very interesting (but also very long) thread on an E43 M3 forum: http://www.m3forum.net/m3forum/showthread.php?t=534318

Now a bit of personal history... Please bear with me...

Similar to EricSMG from the above thread, I've been on a campaign for years to find the absolute best suspension setup and it had proved to be a total nightmare for me...

On my previous car, I had been through lots of different suspension setups, including K-Sport, Koni Yellow, H&R, Eibach, KYB New SR, RS-R, and a few other local brands in my country (Taiwan)... I had also tested some friends' cars with "high-end" OEM or aftermarket suspensions like AMG, Ohlins, and KW... while a few of those setups felt "okay" on certain roads, or under certain situations, there was ALWAYS some situations that those setups would come short... and people around me, whether friends or auto-shops, all told me the same thing: "Ride Quality & Handling CANNOT Co-Exist!"

But... I have this compulsive syndrome that simply refuses to accept that saying... so I kept trying to learn more about how suspensions work and came across Fat Cat Motorsports' YouTube channel: Suspension Truth https://www.youtube.com/user/SuspensionTruth/playlists

It took me more than a few years reading about FCM, and watching his videos (again and again) until I fully (well at least 90%) understand his concepts about how suspensions should work (also because he's been releasing new videos along the way over the past years).

There are a lot of videos, so I will summarize a few crucial points here:
1. Pretty much all "sport" or "racing" suspensions out there in the market have a bias towards rebound damping (vs. compression damping), which gives you an "illusion of control" or "illusion or handling", but in reality, gives you "JACKING-DOWN" - worse ride quality, worse grip, worse ride safety...
2. Bump stops are a super crucial factor in affecting ride quality, as well as handling
3. Ride quality and handling CAN co-exist, with ride quality exceeding an OE luxury sedan setup while handling & grip surpasses sports cars setups


I had also previously done some experiments based on FCM's videos and found that FCM's concepts are indeed correct (though contrary to what most believe). About that, I invite you to watch this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8NklC0Nn9Ys&t=1s

Right now I'd ordered a set of Bilstein B6 from Germany and have them sent to FCM for revalving (just arrived today), and so I will update as the project goes along.

I will also be consolidating and updating more info about FCM's concepts to share with you.
Appreciate 0