Tag Archives: Honda

China Touring Car Championship

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While watching Speed TV one day, I caught a glimpse of their segment from Mobil 1 The Grid and they featured the China Touring Car Championship (CTCC).

As a kid, I remember watching the short-lived North American Touring Car Championship on ESPN, with racers such as Randy Pobst and Peter Cunningham as contenders. The high strung 4 cylinder engines, super low ride heights, 19″ wheels, and subtle but quite functional body kits looked and sounded awesome.

There were also the cars of the Japanese Touring Car Championships! They looked even better!

Honda AccordWRXPrimeraOpel Vectra

Needless to say, the CTCC quickly drew my interests. And I know that TEIN supports a few vehicles in both of their categories (1600cc and 2000cc).

Check out this link from www.grid1.tv

As for cars we sponsor, the Ford Focus looks to be one of the most competitive platforms. But we also sponsor a Honda Accord and Hyundai i30 and KIA Forte.

 

Overall, this looks to be a very exciting series of motorsports. I’m actually a fan of Touring Cars as they best represent production vehicles available to the public. Some of these setups are quite unique. But again, since they bare a strong resemblance to what we drive, it’s much more interesting to me. Not that I don’t appreciate open wheel race cars and such. It’s just that the Touring Car series has a different appeal.

It may not have the following like Formula 1, WRC (also production car based, but with a super high budget), or even Nascar, but it sure has a special place for people like some of us who appreciate seeing production vehicles on the racetrack. Fortunately in North America, we still get to watch Touring Cars. Speed TV shows the Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge, and there’s still a U.S. Touring Car series.

Now, if only they can bring back Touring Estate race cars…

SEMA 2010

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TEIN returned to SEMA this year after a one-year hiatus. Our booth was more focused on TEIN and SuperPro products.

A gamut of TEIN products were on display which included our new STREET BASIS damper (more info. on this in a future post).

TEIN coilovers were used on some high profile booth vehicles and on a few feature vehicles.

TEIN FEATURE VEHICLE

Abe Ko’s LS430 sitting on FLEX Sedan coilovers, special order from Japan. These coilovers feature a maximum drop of 4.5 inches. Coupled with the Platinum VIP Cup Kit this LS is literally on the ground. Full feature on this car and suspension system in a future post.

LEXUS BOOTH

0-60 Magazine GS450H Racer featuring custom Super Racing Coilovers and dual EDFC.

SCION BOOTH

Scion booth. 0-60 Magazine built Scion xD Rally v.3 using Specialized Damper.

Crawford 2011 Scion tC with Super Street coilovers. More on this car later as it will be running at Super Lap Battle on 11.10.10.

HONDA BOOTH

Honda Tuning Magazine built Honda CR-Z sitting on Mono FLEX coilovers.

Wraptivo Honda CR-Z with Super Street coilovers.

MACKIN BOOTH (RAYS WHEELS)




TEIN authorized dealer RallySport Direct built Subaru STI Sedan. One of the first modified STI sedans in the US. Featuring Mono FLEX coilovers and some aggressive TE37 SLs.

DC SPORTS BOOTH

DC Sports collaboration with Import Tuner Magazine. More on this car later as it will be at Super Lap Battle Finals with Tarzan Yamada behind the wheel.

There is no stop this week as we prepare to go to Super Lap Battle Finals at Buttonwillow Raceway. One of our engineers and a couple staff members will be out there supporting TEIN users.

SEMA Show 2010

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The SEMA show is less than 2 weeks away. It is an exciting time for car enthusiasts as many project cars are unveiled revealed and new parts are revealed. TEIN is back as an exhibitor after a one year hiatus. We decided not to build any cars this year but are sponsoring a few high profile vehicles. The Lexus, Scion and Honda booths all have brand new builds sitting on TEIN coilovers.

0-60 Magazine Lexus Project. Check out the finished car in the Lexus booth. NOT a traditional Lexus build.

We will also be leaking a new TEIN coilover in our booth before the Tokyo Auto Salon debut as well as displaying some new products from SuperPro polyurethane bushings. If you have access to the show please come by and visit our booth, 24513.

For any of our dealers or new potential dealers who read this blog, we will be having SEMA Specials during the show so be sure to make an appointment with us or drop by.

One Happy TEIN Family

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This post is on my wife’s car who is currently using the TEIN Super Street Damper kit. She drives a 2007 Honda Accord Coupe EX  4Cyl. It is just about stock with very few mods which include: 19×8  Racing Hart T5 wheels with 36 offset, Super Street without pillowball Mounts, and SPC Performance camber correction kits. She loves it.  She never had experience with a damper kit before on previously owned vehicles, only using lowering springs.

” I have only used lowering springs from different companies and was happy with the ride feel and drop they offered. I never really knew what a coil-over was and I think that I would have been surprised to find out that a car had coil-overs as I would have not paid much attention .”

When I got her a set of Super Streets for her car she was psyched and interested in how the car would ride. She wasn’t familiar with the adjustments can do on any shock absorber.

” My first thoughts of the Super Streets were that they felt great but I was expecting them to be a little firmer. Then my husband let me know that the adjustment was set at full soft and he adjusted it to the half way point. Right away I felt the change in the cars ride and the feel during turns. He then set it to the full stiff setting which I also immediately felt. The cars reaction on turns was drastic. It felt very planted and not like it was gonna flip. The car has greater control with the coil-overs in comparison to my old lowering springs. My husband was surprised to find that I preferred the stiff setting over any of the others.”

I couldn’t help but too slam her car prior to the test drive but she was uncomfortable with height and insisted I raise it a little. The current ride height is great for daily use – looks good and rides well.

“ In my personal opinion with no influence from my husband (even if he works for TEIN), the Super Street coil-overs are a great kit to use on the streets. Its a cool kit because I can have my husband set the ride height and ride quality to what I want. I would recommend this kit to anyone who wants a specific drop since you can adjust it. Not saying anything bad about lowering springs as they are great but you are limited to the drop.”

Her understanding of the coil-over kits is greater now but if she can only understand the slam. LOL. Her car goes to show that even if I’m currently not sporting TEIN Suspension, someone in the family is. H

opefully I’ll have a Specialized Damper made for my next project. Time will tell.

Honda CR-Z Mono Flex Coming Soon

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We recently got a hold of Honda Tuning magazine’s CR-Z to use for Mono Flex testing.

The JDM Spec Mono Flex will be test fitted and road tested. Following our normal testing procedures we will be revalving and tuning the kit to for Time Attack competition.

Look for complete coverage of the build-up in future issues of Honda Tuning magazine.

Honda Hybrid Power

Getting Started

Checking fitment and taking measurements

Honda CR-Z Sport Hybrid Testing

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Product testing for the Honda CR-Z Sport Hybrid, the highly anticipated successor to the CR-X, has been completed.

H.Tech Lowering Springs & Super Street Coilovers.

The H.Tech Springs will provide a drop of: Front -20mm and Rear -25mm

The Super Street Coilovers will provide a drop of: Front -35mm and Rear -40mm

Drop quantities at this time are only approximations, as Honda has yet to provide information on different Grades, Packages, Equipment, etc.

The CR-Z when it first entered the garage. Almost time for us to begin removing and disassembling the suspension.

With the H.Tech Lowering Springs installed the CR-Z is already looking better.

For those that desire a more aggressive stance and slightly sportier ride quality over the stock suspension.

Riding on Super Street Coilovers the CR-Z now truly looks like a Sport Hybrid.

This product not only provides an aggressive drop, it also has a much sportier feel that won’t compromise your comfort.

These products will arrive on our shelves and be available for purchase very soon.

Coilovers for 1st Gen Integra & CR-X / 3rd Gen Civic

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TEIN Authorized dealer Heeltoe Automotive specializes in Honda/ Acura tuning and asked TEIN to produce a coilover kit for the ’84-87 Honda CRX/ Civic and ’86-89 Acura Integra. The result is called the Medieval Pro Coilover Kit exclusively sold by HeelToe.

All product development was performed in our HQ in Downey CA and the kit is manufactured in our Yokohama Japan factory.

The kit has features similar to our Super Street coilovers. 16-way damping force adjustability with a ride height adjustable rear. The front suspension retains the standard torsion beam from Honda. Heeltoe allows customers to pick the TEIN rear spring rate and also offers different diameter torsion beams for the front.


Additional stock of these limited edition coilovers is now available through HeelToe. Please visit Heeltoe’s website at, www.heeltoeauto.com for additional technical information or to place an order.

2010 HONDA CR-Z Released in Japan

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TEIN Japan recently took delivery on their newest demo car which is the 2010 Honda CR-Z. They have already begun product development and are planning to release the Mono FLEX coilovers as well as High.Tech lowering springs for the Japanese Domestic market.

The CR-Z is “supposed” to be a Sport Hybrid. Comes with a 1.5L Hybrid engine which makes 84KW @ 6,000 (about 113 HP). The weighs in at 1130-1180kg depending on options which is about 2491-2601lbs. Does not sound sporty in comparison to other US vehicles but I guess we’ll have to wait to test drive one.

Front suspension is a MacPherson Strut layout which has the benefit of being lower in cost, having less moving parts and leaves plenty of space for the drive axle.

Rear is a Torsion Beam layout. As you can see the spring and shock is separately mounted. This has become a common rear suspension layout for many manufacturers due to relative low cost and ability to retain more interior space.

This is one of the hottest cars in Japan right now and TEIN is working long hours to finish the development quickly to meet the huge consumer demand. There is already a large back order for the vehicle from Honda.

TEIN Japan is also testing the automatic version.

Once the car is released in the US we will try to locate a test vehicle and begin our own development/ testing processes. TEIN products are developed for the specific region in which they are sold to best match consumer demands. In most cases the US spec products are more aggressive in spring rate and valving as well as drop range.