Monthly Archives: January 2014

Season Starts With A Win!!!

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Congrats to the Rally xD team for their efforts this past weekend (Jan. 24-25)!

The Sno*Drift Rally is never truly an easy race (is any rally race easy?), but they once again took the season opener with a 1st place finish! Their new driver, Matthew Johnson wasted no time in getting accustomed to the xD, and piloted the car to what seemed like an easy victory.

I was following whatever updates they posted on Facebook and Instagram to see race stats. Basically, it looks like they led the whole time.  Yeah, humble brag baby!!!

Here are some pics they shared from their Facebook Page

xd sno drift 3

Matthew Johnson has quickly taken a liking to the xD!

xd sno drift 4

Hot shoeing through the cold snow. The xD held the lead in their respective class for the whole rally.

xd sno drift 2

The crew that keeps the xD in tip-top shape worked late nights and early mornings to make sure they kept the competition at bay.

Read more about the event here at Rally America

Once again, big congrats to these guys for their hard work and determination! We definitely look forward to the next race!

OVERHAUL PISTON ROD CHANGE

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We have received many overhauls over the years, a lot of the times we Highly suggest to change the piston rod out due to scratches, dents, pinhole damage. Below you will find the images of why we highly recommend to have them changed.

inspec_0708_2Above is the Microscopic view of a Pinhole damaged Piston Rod. As you can see if the piston rod is reused like that, that pinhole can rip or damage the new seal, and gas can leak from where the pinhole contacts a portion of this seal due to improper sealing.

See on the image below how it can have multiple damages that would require to highly change the piston rod for a new one.
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The image below is of a Microscopic image of a Linear Scar on the piston rods. This would need to be changed due to that deep liner scar. Same problems can happen where the dust seal may be damaged from contact with this scar, and gas leaking past the seal since the scar creates a gap (improper seal).

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Scratches on the piston rod are one of the most common. Below you will find the Microscopic image of the scratched area will give you a better understanding as to why we would need to change the piston rod for the rebuilt.

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Last but not least would be the Microscopic Image of the Dents, these dents can be done to the piston rods from any rocks or debris on the road.

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This is how it would normally look on the piston rod without the microscopic image.

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As you can see why we would highly recommend to have these type of piston rods changed. All of these could have been one of the major problems that might have blown your dampers initially.

If you have any questions regarding our overhaul services and/or pricing, please feel free to contact us.

 

 

Okuyama/Carbing! More Than Just Tower Bars

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Okuyama/Carbing is one of TEIN’s larger product lines we distribute in the Japan and the U.S. They are well known for chassis bracing such as strut tower bars, lower arm bars, and frame braces. What they may not be to well know for would be other products which can be used in and outside of the car such as…

– Pedal Sets

Carbing Pedals

– Radiator Hoses

– Oil Catch Cans

Carbing_Oil_Catch_Tank2-Custom

– Floor Board Plating

– Flip-up Tow Hooks

Carbin Flip Tow Hook

– Meter Hoods

– Battery Box

Carbing Battery Box

– Mud Flaps

-Shift Knobs

Carbing Shift Knob

– Quick Release Hood Latches Kits

– Eyering Bolts and Couplers

– Blow-by Separator Tank

And much more….

Although the majority of the parts would be a special order item from Japan, the wait is well worth it. Whether its an engine blow-by separator tank  for a track ready racer or a polished pedal set for that weekend cruiser your looking to personalize, Okuyama/Carbing can help you out. For further info on some of the items listed above, please visit http://carbing.co.jp/international/article/articleshort.shtml .

 

Rally xD Team- Same Great Car, New Driver

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We’re catching up with our friends, the Rally xD team, to see what’s in store for their 2014 campaign. But it seems that as soon as we do, they’re right back out there racing again.

Sticking with last year’s competitive chassis, the team has  made a few upgrades in a quest to be a reliable gravel spitting machine. We’re glad to be on board once again as their suspension provider. In fact, they’re using the same suspension they used last season.

rally xd 2014 (dampers)

 

All we did was clean them up and checked them out. Fortunately, their custom Group N. dampers got a clean bill of health and ready for more abuse. Or racing, rather.

Also in store for the team is a new driver! Read about him in the link below

Matthew Johnson

Being that the upcoming Sno* Drift Rally kicks of this weekend, the crew has already started enjoying their Winter wonderland in Atlanta, MI and doing some shakedown runs.

rally xd 2014

Best of luck to these dudes. Oh, and happy birthday to their Crew Chief, Philip Chase!

Be sure to follow the Rally xD team on their Facebook page

EDFC ACTIVE…. PRO??????

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Just when you thought that something cool couldnt get any better, an even better version comes out. TEIN Japan has taken the already insane EDFC Active and added even more features bringing it to the mind blowing level.

EDFC Active Pro image

The new EDFC Active Pro controller would offer the same standard functions as the standard EDFC Active, but would add the following features in..

  • Four Wheel Independent Adjustment- Allow for a never before individual corner adjustment for even finer tuner reference.
  • Built-In Longitudinal and Lateral G-Sensor – Allows for both longitudinal and lateral movement adjustments where it was only longitudinal on the standard EDFC Active.
  • An addition of Two External Signal Input Ports for Adjustment- Allows for the another signal to be used in conjuction with the controller such as a Brake Signal or a Universal Signal.

Although it may not seem like much, this would take this kit to a whole new level. The EDFC Active Pro is expected to be released early January in TEIN Japan, and probably around mid March in TEIN USA. Pricing has not yet been finalized but is expected to only be a few hundred more which I feel is worth it. Check back with us on our websites “New Applications” section for up to date info on the release of this new kit.

EDFC II

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HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!!

Here to introduce a new product for the 2014 year. Well it’s a redesign of the EDFC but now with some minor modifications.

The New EDFC II

EDFCIICNTRLR

It now uses a white LED instead of the old Green light it used to have and it is also comes with a new affordable price.

“EDFC II” brings the convenience of in-car damping force adjustment system to the hands of more people than ever. If you are not going to be doing much adjustment or need to fancy high tech EDFC Active then this is the Electronic Dampening Force System for you.

Main EDFC II Features

  • 3 Presets to Easily Store & Recall the Preferred Damping Force Settings
  • 2 Damping Force Adjustment Modes (16 levels / 32 levels)
  • Adjustable Display Backlight Brightness & Buzzer Volume
  • Lock Function to Prevent Operation Mistakes
  • Self-Diagnostic Function

edfcII

2014. A Year With a New Start and Some New Ideas!

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Happy  New Year to you all!

We’re excited for what’s to come this year. TEIN Japan has a fresh slate starting their operations in a brand new factory (still in Yokohama).

TEIN JP New Factory

It doesn’t end there, though. Of course we always want to add something new to the TEIN line, so we’re looking forward to the release of the TEIN Mono Sports coilovers (two types: Sport & Sedan) and another EDFC Active addition- EDFC Active Pro! We’ll add more details on these products as they become available. So far, one staff member has already posted about the Mono Sport dampers.

There are other developments within the TEIN group that are super big, and super confidential for now.

In any case, be assured that TEIN is continuing to grow to be a leader in performance suspension!