We’re In The Anime Business Now!

Posted on January 9, 2015 by Paul P.

No, not really. I’m just kidding.

But, we did put a short cartoon out regarding our EDFC Active Pro. In the cartoon, it shows the benefits of active damping force while going around a long sweeper.

Although it is a very short video, what it is trying to explain is how our EDFC Active Control Unit will make adjustments based on the vehicle’s dynamics. Within the controller we have an accelerometer that adjusts damping based on g-force loading. There is also an available speed-based damping force setting using either the optional GPS Kit (especially for the EDFC Active) or by obtaining the speed signal from the vehicle’s ECU (this feature is available on the EDFC Active Pro only).

In the video, the driver who starts falling behind complains about roll understeer. Initially, he believes the leading car has their suspension tuned only for low-speed damping (which would mean a compromise in high speed damping force control). However, with EDFC Active/EDFC Active Pro, we’re able to negate the side effects of such one-setting tuning. Now you can have a suspension kit fully adaptable to your driving conditions!

We’ll be putting out more videos to show the other benefits of our system and why a racing enthusiast such as yourself may find our product suitable for you!

In the meantime, if you have any questions regarding our EDFC Active and/or EDFC Active Pro, please give our sales staff a call at 562-861-9161 or email us at tus_sales@tein.com for assistance! We’ll be glad to answer any questions you may have!

Geoff Stoneback Heads to Formula Drift Rd. 5

Posted on August 20, 2014 by Paul P.

Here are a few words from our good friend, Geoff Stoneback, and his adventures at Evergreen Speedway for Formula Drift’s Rd. 5 race!

“On Thursday July 18th, my crew and I arrived at Evergreen Speedway for Round 5 of the 2014 Formula Drift season. We had double duties with Pro 1 & Pro 2 and were very eager to attack this aggressive course. Coming off of Round 4 and not qualifying, we had to mentally focus and prepare to go out for qualifying.

Thursday practice went well for us! The first time that we drove the course we realized how long and hard the bank was. Our alignment wanted us to push down further from the wall, but with the amazing crew that I have they stiffened the driver side to allow us to stay up in the outer zone and filling the touch and go area. We had a solid four hours of practice, until we needed to be at our Pro 2 meeting.

We had an hour of Pro 2 practice until it was time for qualifying. Our first run was the better of the two landing us in 4th place with a 74. Friday we had a long day of driving and meeting the fans. It started with a Pro 1 practice and into Pro 1 qualifying, but before qualifying we smashed up our third and fourth gear slider on our transmission taking us out of practice on Friday. Luckily, we borrowed some parts from Chris Forsberg and the guys at R/T Tuning got the transmission out and fixed in no time. We did a couple more practice laps and headed into qualifying.

On our first run we landed a 69 putting us in 27th place. Our second run we put down a 74 putting us in 17th place, our best qualifying spot yet. I was really excited to qualify so well until we heard that we were up against Daijiro Yoshihara. Although he was in a new vehicle, he is a former champion and in no way considered an easy win. Taking our momentum from Pro 1 into Pro 2 is always a great experience. Having that extra seat time on the track was our biggest advantage. After the top 16 ceremonies, we first faced Will Parsons in his Corolla AE86. I thought this could be an easy win as long as I do not take myself out. In our lead run I made the mistake of tapping the wall off the bank, sending me off course and giving him the advantage. On my follow run, Will tapped the second out zone wall in the power alley sending him off line. Knowing that I was at a huge deficit, I passed Will going into the inner clips giving us a OMT (One More Time). On our OMT run, I applied the pressure on him where it mattered and kept it consistent. We got the win and our next battle was against Jeff Jones.

Jeff was looking pretty solid, but his runs were inconsistent. On my lead run going into the power alley, I hit a bump and it caused me to correct my steering giving us a OMT. On my lead run in the OMT, I got too caught up in Jeff’s weird line off of the bank, almost hitting him so I backed off and ended up in his line of smoke and transferred into the outer clip 20 ft too early giving him an easy win. We ended up finishing Pro 2 in 4th place and tied in first with Dan Savage.

Heading into top 32 on Saturday, the team and I went over how we could make the car even better for Pro 1. We dialed in some more grip, knowing the competition was going to be fierce. We put down solid runs in practice, however at the end of practice we noticed our clutch slipping. We were literally the last run in top 32 practice and we were also the second battle so we had no time to get it swapped out. We adjusted the pedal so it would hold and hopefully last until we had time to fix it during the top 16 break. The first battle was against Dmac and Tony Angelo. On the first run, Tony followed and put his car into the bank giving them a 5 minute call. We were called to the line and hoped the clutch held throughout this battle. On my lead run, Dai did a little flick up to the bank to surprise me out, however I applied the pressure and put up a great follow. On our lead run, my clutch was slipping when I floored it down the straight away. I backed off the throttle and it hooked, but when I went to initiate, our car had so much grip it would slip in 4th gear. I bobbled twice and downshifted into 3rd where it held a bit but we didn’t have 100% in it. We finished the lap but since we drove straight for half of the bank we gave an easy win to Dai. Although we got knocked out in top 32, Dai came up shook my hand and said “you are really good and I’m glad your clutch slipped because you had me.” We laughed a bit and honestly it felt amazing hearing that from a former champion. We hung out and watched the rest of the field battle it out.

At the end of the weekend we are tied for 1st for Pro 2 and we are in 23rd place in Pro 1. We are still leading in the Rookie of the year race. After the abuse the car took in Seattle, we brought the rig home to make sure the car is 100% for Round 6. We had a great time meeting new fans and signing autographs and look forward to making better progress in Texas!”

Sounded like a pretty fun weekend overall! Car problems will always happen. At least we know Geoff and the GS Drifting crew will do whatever it takes to get the car back on the track and put on a good show for the crowd, as always! Best of luck in Texas, Geoff!

Toyota Team Thailand Race at Nurburgring

Posted on July 21, 2014 by Paul P.

Recently, Toyota Team Thailand attended the 24 Hours of Nurburgring. We were fortunate to work with them as their suspension supplier (even though this car is riddled with Bilstein Stickers; Bilstein was an event sponsor), and they even put our EDFC Active Pro to use for this endurance race.

Endurance racing brings a lot of concerns. As you can imagine, running a vehicle for 24 hours straight is bound to take its toll on some components, especially the drivers and team members. But definitely, equipment is put to the ultimate test.

Suspension components are every bit as critical. Dampers go through tens of thousands of cycles for compression and rebound (if not more), eventually heating up the damper oil. It is critical for the dampers to function at a consistent level at all times.

Having EDFC Active Pro definitely helps to negate the effects of heat soak and damper oil degradation. Being able to tune suspension based on their current condition helps to maintain that consistent damping force the driver needs. Otherwise, the driver has to make changes in driving style that may hamper their performance and elapsed time. And in endurance racing, low elapsed times is key.

Here is Mr. Akio Toyoda, president of Toyota Motor Company at the seat of the 2014 Toyota Altis! Just to the lower left (dash center) is our EDFC Active Pro Controller.

Here, the drivers explain a bit about their car. This was the first ever endurance race for the team. This presented them with a huge learning curve for this type of racing.

The Altis is a pretty nice looking car! Wish they had these stateside!

As mentioned, Bilstein is also a sponsor for the event. So, it kind of made it difficult to see TEIN as the suspension supplier. Fortunately, we had a few TEIN and Dampachi decals on the car!

Fortunately, the team saw the race through the end. Out of 241 entries, Toyota Team Thailand finished 109th with a total time of 24:01:41.283. Just a few ticks over the 24 hour mark. Nevertheless, their race was completed!

Congrats to Toyota Team Thailand!

Here’s a video that the team put together:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vyaxIZGvdlE

Formula Drift New Jersey (The Wall) Video

Posted on July 17, 2014 by Paul P.

A great video review of Geoff’s race at Formula Drift New Jersey (The Wall)!

Wish we were there to give you some pit side support, Geoff!
Best of luck at the next event!

Keep On Truckin’

Posted on June 30, 2014 by Paul P.

You all know motorsports ain’t easy. I mean, if you’re doing it for fun, no big deal. Enjoy yourself. But, when there’s big money on the line, it can be pretty stressful. Our guy Geoff Stoneback knows what it’s like to face tons of pressure, but at least he knows how to handle it in stride.
Here’s his recap of Round 4 for Formula Drift in New Jersey:

“Formula Drift Round 4, “The Gauntlet” was a real tough one! We had great vibes and momentum coming off of Miami, where we were in 17th place, a great standings for a rookie! Before the 2014 Formula Drift season started, I sat down with Wrecked magazine owner, Joey Redmond and two other rookies Eric Hill and Dan Savage. We talked about what our expectations and fears were and Round 4 was one of my fears. I’ve never driven wall before, even though it is an hour from my house, but it is also one of the craziest courses in FD. All my family and friends came out to their first ever live Formula Drift event to see me drive in the big show. The pressure was there, but it didn’t bother me!”

“On Thursday paid practice, I walked the course with my spotter Dan Popowich and saw where we had to put the car on each clipping zone. As we finished walking the course, it unfortunately started to rain. We suited up and heading to one of the most mentally and physically challenging courses that I’ve ever had to face. We went in practice and stayed high in the bank but giving us space between the rail just incase anything weird would happen.. Our main focus was coming off of the bank into the infield. We got some great advice from past champions such as Chris Forsberg and Vaughn Gittin Jr., so our biggest fears were an easy accomplishment. Our troubles came in the infield. The pouring rain running off the bank and sitting in the rear clipping zones made it tough for anyone to complete the course. In the last hour of practice, it dried off and we linked the course and felt confident about our runs.”

“Friday was our big day. It was make it or break it for us. We had our practice session and got a couple laps in. We felt good about our runs, but still needed to nail the transition into inner clip 1 and outer zone 2, however our practice was over and it was time for qualifying.

Our first qualifying lap we stayed high up on the bank, hit every clip, but coming off the last outer clipping zone, we came out of it too early giving us a score of 65, sitting in 44th place, not where we want to be. About 20 drivers had a score between 65-70. All we needed was a 70 to guarantee us in the top 32! I sat at the line and mentally focused. I realized that this is the first time I have never been in the top 32 on my first qualifying run and it needed to change. I launched hard off the line and through the car hard into the bank came into the infield, hit the clips and finished my run. From the cheering and clapping from the fans, drivers and other teams it seemed like I was in!”

“Unfortunately I missed top 32 by 1 point! I was really bummed, but my family and friends came to cheer me up. This was officially the first time I failed to qualify in my Formula Drift career. No other rookies qualified for this event, a first in 2014! I went to the drivers meeting and after stayed to talk with the judges. We went over their notes and talked about why I missed qualifying for top 32. It was the transition between inner clip 1 and outer clip 2 that hurt my score and didn’t let me advance. They were very happy to see me come and ask questions, no other rookie or driver did.

Although we didn’t progress on track like we wanted to, my team and I progressed off track very well! We interacted with the fans, signed autographs and took pictures at our pit area. As long as we progress on and/off track I can be proud of that. We also watched some of the best drivers in the world attack one of the hardest courses in the series.”

“On Sunday, My spotter Dan and crew Mechanic Matt Waln, Headed up to a local event to have some fun and blow some steam off! We had a great time and ended our weekend on an amazing note!
We aren’t letting this event get us down! We are gearing up for Seattle, where we will be competing in Pro 2, which we are currently in first and Pro 1, which we are in 25th. ”

We feel bad that Geoff wasn’t able to put in a great result in front of what was essentially a home crowd. Great to know that he had some family and friend support there for him!

And, some of the most important fans he’ll ever need- Geoff’s parents!

We look forward to a better outcome for the next event! Keep on truckin’, Geoff!

We Like 4×4’s, Too!

Posted on June 26, 2014 by Paul P.

If you follow our TEIN Facebook page, then you probably have already seen some photos of what looks to be some off-road vehicles. You were probably wondering what this had to do with TEIN, a company synonymous with lowering Hondas, or drifting, or Time Attack, or basically anything other than 4×4’s.

For the most part, you’re right. But, if you think about it, it’s not a far cry from TEIN’s start in the suspension business. Founded by a couple of rally competitors, TEIN knew there would be a demand for the perfect suspension for road conditions considered to be less than ideal for a daily commute (but for some reason perfect for racing). Considering the pounding that rally cars take, a properly built rally suspension can make a world of difference in performance.

Our Group N Dampers were developed directly through involvement in domestic and international rally (FIA PWRC, ERC, Rally America).

Gr. N Gravel Dampers

Gr N. with F.R.S. (Fast Rebound System) Tarmac

I guess it would be a natural progression for us to venture into the 4×4 suspension market, which is surprisingly very strong, especially overseas.

The pics that we shared are related to our involvement in the China Cross-Country Raid rally (think Paris-Dakar rally as a comparison).

Here’s a pic of one of the 4×4 developments we created for a customer.

Another 4×4 set

However, some setups are a bit more gnarly, requiring something more unique. Like this double damper setup.

Being that this type of racing was relatively new to us, we had engineers fly out to China to do testing with the teams and help them develop the suspension.

Other than this Mitsubishi Montero/Pajero, we also built suspension for a VW Tuareg

I also know that we’re putting our EDFC Active Pro to the test with a few of these 4×4’s. Talk about having the ultimate advantage- fully active suspension under some of the harshest conditions!

Although a new experience for us, the demands are still relatively the same, just with varying degrees of complexity. So, 4×4 suspension is definitely within the realm of possibilities for us. However, I must make mention that we do not manufacture leaf springs or torsion springs. Through our Specialized Damper Service and our involvement in motorsports, TEIN always looks to bring our very own technological advancements in getting the best out of every racing environment.

TEchnical INnovation- that’s what we’re all about!

*If you’re looking for suspension for your 4×4, let us know if we can help! We obviously love the opportunity to help our customers in obtaining their ideal suspension.

Give us a call at 562-861-9161!

Event Updates from Geoff Stoneback!

Posted on June 13, 2014 by Paul P.

Geoff has been very good at following up with all of his sponsors after every event. Goes to show he’s not just in drifting for himself, or simply for personal gain. That’s something for us to admire, as we know Geoff already works hard at what he does, and he also has a wife and baby added to his personal life. I’m glad that he can find some time in between all of that to let us know how he’s doing!

Here’s what Geoff has had to say about the year in Formula Drift so far:

“Coming off of the two rounds of Formula Drift, we were sitting 29th in the standings. We felt positive going into Round 3 Homestead-Miami since every round we were improving on and off track. The car set up was getting dialed in more as I felt more comfortable in the car. Since this was a new venue, I felt we had a great opportunity to put on an amazing show. On top of the regular Formula Drift series, Pro 2 had its first round of the new series. With many pros and cons of running two events in one weekend, we decided the extra seat time will pay off.”

Geoff certainly knows how to lay down some smoke!

“We would have a full three days of non stop drifting, which would really put the team and I to the test. Going into paid practice on Thursday, we had four hours of Pro 1 practice, straight to the Pro 2 drivers meeting and finally into Pro 2 practice and qualifying. With the added seat time we were able to dial the car in as well as our line on the track. We felt confident going into qualifying and our first run landed us in first place with a score of 74. It wouldn’t hold for too long, we were knocked into the second qualifying place by Carl Rydquist with a score of 76. Our second qualifying run, we wow’d the judges but being a couple feet off clip 3 landed us a score of 75, still stuck in the 2nd qualifying spot. Thursday was complete!”

Easily gapping his competitor!

“Heading into Friday, we had another busy day of qualifying for Pro 1 and then top 16 in Pro 2. After the drivers meeting, it was officially announced we ended up qualifying 21st in Pro 1 and were really excited that we were in both of the shows! We went right into Pro 2 practice for an hour and directly into top 16. In our first battle we were supposed to face Ron Ewerth, but due to mechanical issues we got the Bi-run into the top 8. In the top 8 I faced Dave Briggs, an Achilles Radial teammate, also a Pro 1 driver. We laid down a solid lead run giving us the advantage. On our chase run, Dave spun around the 2nd inner clip giving us the win. In the top 4, we faced a local Florida native, Jeremy Lowe. This was going to be a tough battle because I have personally driven with him before and know he is a tough competitor. We had another amazing lead run, which Jeremy straightened hard into clip 2 giving us the advantage. On our chase run, we stuck our front bumper to his rear wheels and got the win. Moving on to the top two, we would face our good friend, Nate Hamilton. Nate and I have battled once before, in 2012 at Buffalo XDC where I got the win. I knew he wanted to get the friendly revenge, but I wouldn’t let that happen. I led first and laid down the solid runs i’ve been doing all day, gaping Nate off the line and throughout the whole course. On our chase run I laid hard into the throttle into inner clip 2, putting the car door to door and amazing the judges, drivers and fans! We stuck to his door and got the win in the first ever Pro 2 series event, Friday complete!

Saturday was the big day! We showed that we were able to adapt in tandem and on the track. The guys at R/T tuning dialed in the car from yesterdays abuse and we were 100% ready to get into the top 16. Every event we want to better ourselves from last time. We qualified, which was great, but it was time to get our first win as a Pro 1 Formula Drift driver. Coming off of our momentum and Fridays win in Pro 2, we raised tons of eyebrows and had everyone asking how are we so fast. We knew we were extremely fast off the line and we needed to keep that momentum going in our first battle against Odi Bakchis. We had a great follow run, with one correction with our lead run on point, but we had a OMT call. On our second follow run, we put the car closer to Odi giving him no room for error. On our lead run we had an amazing line with aggression, not allowing Odi to keep up. We finally broke out of the top 32 and into the top 16! For my first ever top 16, I decided to take my wife, Linda out as my umbrella girl. She has been there since day one and I knew it would mean a lot to us in our first top 16!
One of the coolest feelings to date was riding out with my Achilles Radial teammates Kenny Moen and Robbie Nishida. It will be a memory that I will never forget. With the ceremonies complete it was back to the focus of our next battle with Forrest Wang. I was excited to go against one of the best privateers, as I really look up to Forrest, but it was time to take him out. We had our follow run first and kept on his door throughout the whole course. On our lead run I launched hard and left Forrest at the line, unable to catch up. We were awarded the win and made it to The Great 8!

Our next battle was with Matt Fields. We had a great follow run, but the car bogged down on power a bit. We added fuel to the cell, thinking we had a fuel slosh problem and went out for our lead run. We left the line hard and had a decent gap, but going into inner clip 2 the car lost all power, we straightened, dropped a tire and reinitiated. We were called for a OMT and brought the car back to Hot grid. We checked the data logs and found that our car was throwing fuel into the tune to make up for the O2 sensors that were not functioning correctly. We went back to the line, hungry for the win. We were one more battle closer to the top 4! Unfortunately on our second follow run, we stayed to close to Matt on inner clip 2 and 3. I switched back to quickly running door to door, but Matt threw tons of angle and scrubbed a bit of speed and I tapped him just hard enough to make him spin. We were at a huge disadvantage, but we still remained positive! I did my lead run but dropped a tire. Although we still had a couple car lengths on Matt, at the end, Matt got the win and we finished 8th place in Pro 1.”

“After we were knocked out, I was bummed about being too aggressive and beating myself, but the fans definitely made the team and I feel better. Many drivers came up to congratulate us on a great round in Miami! With a 1st place podium at the first Pro 2 event and finishing 8th in Pro 1 was a very successful weekend for the team and I!

We currently have the car back at R/T tuning and are making sure it is 100% ready for our “hometown” round at Wall, NJ The Gauntlet!”

Two TEIN equipped drift cars battling it out!

With Geoff facing some stiff competition, not to mention well-funded teams, we’re glad to see his racing talent really shine. He’s making the best with what he’s got. It’s great to see him in the points, and with the first win in the inaugural Pro 2 series, we’re sure that the only place Geoff has to go from there is UP!!!

Sitting atop the Pro 2 podium! Congrats, Geoff!

Here’s a link to Geoff Stoneback’s Vimeo page. He gave a full report on the event here!

Formula Drift Brings The Heat to Miami!

Posted on June 2, 2014 by Paul P.

A huge congrats to two of the hardest working guys in the Formula Drift series- Vaughn Gittin Jr. and Geoff Stoneback! Both took first place wins in their respective class!

Vaughn Gittin Jr. just came back from a win at Road Atlanta a little over two weeks ago. It’s great to see his Monster Energy/Nitto Tire Ford Mustang in top form and getting podiums once again! He certainly knows how to please the crowd!

Our good friend Geoff Stoneback took part in the Pro 2 battle, which is a new addition to the Pro Championship series. Since this is Geoff’s rookie year running with some of these seasoned FD vets, this new Pro 2 series is a great way in showcasing his talents while working towards racing against the Pro Championship guys. And he didn’t disappoint!

Pics sourced from the following links:

Formula Drift Homepage

Vaughn Gittin Jr. Facebook

Geoff Stoneback Drifting Facebook

Geoff Stoneback. A True Competitor

Posted on April 24, 2014 by Paul P.

Once again, we’re glad to have Geoff Stoneback on-board with TEIN as his suspension supplier! Never one to let his sponsors down, Geoff made sure to put in a great effort at the Long Beach event this past April 4-5th.

He’s not with easy company, mind you. This year, Geoff takes his talents against seasoned veterans in the Pro Championship drivers many of us are already familiar with. So, in some ways, the odds are against him since many of these pros are backed heavily with sponsors, and that money goes into their race cars (some builds well into the 6 figures!!). Geoff is doing all his campaigning on a relatively paltry budget. But, he’s doing it well!

We had a chance to run into him in the pits and he gave us a rundown of the event. Unfortunately, he was plagued with clutch slave cylinder issues from the beginning. Even after repairing the damaged seal with a spare seal, the problem persisted, making qualifying difficult for Geoff. Unfortunate to say, but Geoff was knocked out of competition early due to this constant problem with the slave cylinder seal.

He stopped by our booth during his downtime. Since we’ve yet to meet him in person (can you believe that?!?!), it was a great pleasure to hear from him. Seems like car problems during qualifying weren’t the only issues. Geoff told us transportation of his race car was delayed due to the truck breaking down en route, stopping in Sweetwater, TX. Fortunately, Geoff’s TX connection from Dirty Diesels gave the trailer a tow to the nearest Ford dealership, while the truck was being worked on over there. It definitely pays to have connections like that!

However, the headache grew, as the Ford dealer could not repair the truck in time. Geoff had no choice but to hire a contractor to deliver the trailer the rest of the way to sunny California. Talk about being stressed out.

When the car finally arrived to California, there was still plenty of prep work to do to get the car to pass tech inspection. The crew went right to work. This cut well into any practice time for Geoff in a completely new car. So many unknowns were to be revealed to him. Nevertheless, Geoff went right to work. And the rest of the story you read about above.

So, while sad as it all sounded, it was great to see Geoff continue with his pursuit to become a champion. The season is far from over, and the same goes for Geoff’s career as a race car driver! We look forward to Geoff’s updates on the next event!

Get the race recap from the Formula Drift Site

Here are some pics of Geoff’s qualifying and practice runs:

More info found at Geoff Stoneback

and on Facebook

Initial Review: EDFC Active Pro

Posted on April 9, 2014 by Sergio M.

When discussing the original EDFC, I sometimes would run into some wishful individuals wishing that a system would have the capability of adjusting itself. When we released the EDFC Active, our electronic damping system which allows the front and rear dampers to be adjusted automatically based on the vehicle speed and G forces applied. A lot were impressed and in awe, but still we had individuals who complained that it was still not good enough. Now with the release of the EDFC Active Pro, no one can say a word.

Continue reading →

TEIN USA Blog

The latest news and info from TEIN USA

Tag Archives: EDFC Active Pro