ST Suspensions Coilovers (Made by KW) anyone tried?

[Freshness]

Hey guys, just discovered that ST Suspensions has a coilover kit for the Model 3.

ST is manufactured (and owned) by KW and have been praised by the aftermarket community for a very long time.

I’m in the market for some coilovers, and obvious choice is MPP, but I’m now very curious about the ST setup. I have had KW V3’s in the past and they were great. But considering the price point of the car (SR+) I can’t help but feel like I’m throwing too much money into a base 3. This might be a reasonable compromise.

Shop - Order products online | ST suspensions

www.stsuspensions.com

 

[Mash]

If you short on expenses don't venture into experiments. MPP comfort non adjustable would end up cheaper.

 

[Freshness]

If you short on expenses don't venture into experiments. MPP comfort non adjustable would end up cheaper.

I am reaching out to ST suspensions and will be happy to be the first here to have them.

It’s not about being short on expenses. It’s about finding the best product for the money. You own KW V3s so this is made by the same factory by the same people, doesnt hurt to be the first person to try them out. If they suck, I’ll buy another set, but I highly doubt they will be bad considering they are KW just like what you have.

in many cases, like on my e46 M3, I had ST when they first entered the market, and they were identical to KW V1s with the exception of being galvanized steel (less corrosion resistance for snowy climates)

I had KW V3 on my M6, so I know they are a good product.

But my Model 3 is just for driving my dog around and getting gardening stuff, so I don’t think it’s necessary to get V3s on a car I beat up.

 

[dfwatt]

Hey guys, just discovered that ST Suspensions has a coilover kit for the Model 3.

ST is manufactured (and owned) by KW and have been praised by the aftermarket community for a very long time.

I’m in the market for some coilovers, and obvious choice is MPP, but I’m now very curious about the ST setup. I have had KW V3’s in the past and they were great. But considering the price point of the car (SR+) I can’t help but feel like I’m throwing too much money into a base 3. This might be a reasonable compromise.

Shop - Order products online | ST suspensions

www.stsuspensions.com

For about the same money you can get the comfort non-adjustables from Mountain Pass. Although they are again not adjustable these shocks appear only to have rebounded justement which is puzzling. I wouldn't Venture into this because you'd be the first person to our knowledge anyway trying this product on your Tesla. Hundreds and hundreds have tried Mountain Pass products and I would say just about everyone comes away extremely satisfied. I'm not aware of a single dissatisfied customer in relationship to their suspension kits.

 

[Freshness]

For about the same money you can get the comfort non-adjustables from Mountain Pass. Although they are again not adjustable these shocks appear only to have rebounded justement which is puzzling. I wouldn't Venture into this because you'd be the first person to our knowledge anyway trying this product on your Tesla. Hundreds and hundreds have tried Mountain Pass products and I would say just about everyone comes away extremely satisfied. I'm not aware of a single dissatisfied customer in relationship to their suspension kits.

according to this it seems, there’s height and dampening.

XA coilover kit - more than lowering | ST suspensions

sporty and at the same time comfortable driving with the XA coilover kit ✔ lowering up to 30mm ✔ adjustable in rebound damping ✔renommated KW automotive technology

www.stsuspensions.com

 

[dfwatt]

according to this it seems, there’s height and dampening.

XA coilover kit - more than lowering | ST suspensions

sporty and at the same time comfortable driving with the XA coilover kit ✔ lowering up to 30mm ✔ adjustable in rebound damping ✔renommated KW automotive technology

www.stsuspensions.com

Is it both compression and rebound dampening that are adjustable on the ST? The Comfort non-adjustable kit of course from MPP is height adjustable as all of their kits are. If that ST kit it has compression and rebound damping adjustment even if they're not separately adjustable, that might be worth taking a risk on if it is indeed made by KW. The ad says only adjustable in rebound damping? Might be worth checking out has obviously that would be a strange arrangement to have only rebound adjustable.

 

[Freshness]

Is it both compression and rebound dampening that are adjustable on the ST? The Comfort non-adjustable kit of course from MPP is height adjustable as all of their kits are. If that ST kit it has compression and rebound damping adjustment even if they're not separately adjustable, that might be worth taking a risk on if it is indeed made by KW.

I reached out to them already to express interest and will report back with what I find out.

ST Suspensions is in fact, wholly owned by KW Suspensions and developed in the same facility with the same equipment.

 

[dfwatt]

I reached out to them already to express interest and will report back with what I find out.

ST Suspensions is in fact, wholly owned by KW Suspensions and developed in the same facility with the same equipment.

Nice. You could be a real resource for the Forum if in fact you take a chance on these and they work out and you can report back with pictures and experience. That's a real service to the group.

 

[Mash]

I reached out to them already to express interest and will report back with what I find out.

ST Suspensions is in fact, wholly owned by KW Suspensions and developed in the same facility with the same equipment.

If you do it for experiment, don't forget to update the thread later. If you do it on belief that if something is done by the same company than it's same good, I have to disappoint you, because every company has good and bad products.

Now this one is also sold much cheaper and apparently not worthy KW brand. Also, if I knew at the time I don't have to import MPP to EU, I would bought MPP instead, despite fancier KW colors. Because MPP took v3 kit and did a proper valving that KW didn't bothered to do at all for model 3.

 

[Freshness]

I love @MountainPass as a brand. Their activity and dedication to this forum (and Tesla owners in general )is unparalleled by any other brand we have seen. To be honest, I would probably just purchase their coilovers just because i've seen how actively they contribute to these forums. Also, the ethos behind their BF sale (donating to climate change) was a nice heart warming thing to see. Whichever suspension I go with, i'll likely still end up with their camber arms and other parts to go in conjunction.

I put the MPP Comforts in my cart twice during the Black Friday sale but never could bring myself to order them...I thought, I should be spending this money on Christmas presents for others not for myself.

Well, now i've pretty much gotten through my Christmas list and am back to hunting for coilovers. My local shop suggested I see if ST makes a coilover set because of their notoriety in the BMW world. That was when i came to discover that they are the exact same price as the MPP Comforts and could be a decent alternative. Yes, they are a mid-level suspension brand, and yes there are brands that are tested by many other members here that are well-proven.

Checking back through my e-mails, back in 2013, I had a set on my E46 M3 for about 3 months before I sold the car. If my memory serves me correctly they were really great. But that was also the introductory phase for ST and their first ever kit. I was also 23 years old at the time, and probably had no idea how a proper suspension should feel. A lot can change in 10 years.

I currently prefer a soft cushiony suspension feel with moderate handling improvements and less body roll (this is why i'm apprehensive about the ST). On my M6, I put the V3's to almost full comfort as that is what suits me best.

I simply made this thread to see if anyone out there had these installed already, as the brand ST/KW has been around for a some time now. Until someone comes forward with having a set on their vehicle, it will all just be assumptions. They could be awful, or they could be the best thing since sliced bread!

 

[fajitamondays]

I ran ST coilovers on my previous car (2007 VW GTI) for several years with zero issues. It had a great ride for daily driving.

I don't have any experience with their Tesla/Model 3 offerings though.

 

[Mash]

I don't particularly worry whether ST can do coilovers or not. But I see that even under KW brand they released their product with worse settings than MPP after MPP made their coilovers with them. So you can almost bet that they don't have a lot of business for Tesla customers on ST brand and it's not made for online customers. It's a low cost brand for sale by car shops to people who aren't demanding.

Chances that settings are not very good high, resale value is very low. Having only rebound adjustability is not much different from being non adjustable at all.

 

[MasterC17]

I don't particularly worry whether ST can do coilovers or not. But I see that even under KW brand they released their product with worse settings than MPP after MPP made their coilovers with them. So you can almost bet that they don't have a lot of business for Tesla customers on ST brand and it's not made for online customers. It's a low cost brand for sale by car shops to people who aren't demanding.

Chances that settings are not very good high, resale value is very low. Having only rebound adjustability is not much different from being non adjustable at all.

These are good, valid points.

I think what it comes down to is this - for the same price why bother? The MPP Comfort's are tried and true. MPP has superb customer service and the coilovers are in-stock.

Then when you consider resale value, having to spend the time adjusting them and figuring out the correct settings, that all just seems like wasted time and money.

If the ST kit was 25% cheaper, then it's a whole different story, but it's not.

 

[Freshness]

These are good, valid points.

I think what it comes down to is this - for the same price why bother? The MPP Comfort's are tried and true. MPP has superb customer service and the coilovers are in-stock.

Then when you consider resale value, having to spend the time adjusting them and figuring out the correct settings, that all just seems like wasted time and money.

If the ST kit was 25% cheaper, then it's a whole different story, but it's not.

Mainly because for the price on my RWD Base model it’s 1620 for non adjustable MPP and 1619 for height + dampening from ST.

So you get more adjustment compared to fixed dampening, which is a plus.

Yes MPP is tried and true, but it should be a bit more compelling knowing that ST isn’t some random China brand. It happens to be from the same company that MPP asked to develop their shocks. That’s the main reason for me to Guinea pig this experiment.

And yes it’s not in stock, but at least you can customize the colors and text haha.

Here are pics of the model 3 with ST coilovers installed at the KW Headquarters in Germany. They sent me these photos, which don’t do much but it’s something.

And cmon guys, resale value? How do we even know that at this point. I’m all for resale value, I collect watches as a hobby. But we don’t know how these perform and no one has ever sold a set.

 

[Motion122]

Hey guys, just discovered that ST Suspensions has a coilover kit for the Model 3.

ST is manufactured (and owned) by KW and have been praised by the aftermarket community for a very long time.

I’m in the market for some coilovers, and obvious choice is MPP, but I’m now very curious about the ST setup. I have had KW V3’s in the past and they were great. But considering the price point of the car (SR+) I can’t help but feel like I’m throwing too much money into a base 3. This might be a reasonable compromise.

Shop - Order products online | ST suspensions

www.stsuspensions.com

ST is very popular with some of the BMW crowd and you really can't go wrong on the price, especially with the rebound damping adjustable feature.

 

[MasterC17]

And cmon guys, resale value? How do we even know that at this point. I’m all for resale value, I collect watches as a hobby. But we don’t know how these perform and no one has ever sold a set.

Pretty sure you literally just answered your own question. I have had SPL arms and MCS coilovers for sale for months, maybe a year now? They're "nice parts" but no one wants them. Literally, I've had zero interest. I've sold a few duplicate MPP parts and they go instantly.

90% of people have literally no idea how to adjust rebound and dampening properly, so not sure that's really much of a benefit tbh. I still barely understand it after doing this for a decade.

100% agree that this is a better alternative to the multitude of junk that has been put on the market. At the end of the day, if it makes sense to you then go for it!

 

[Freshness]

Pretty sure you literally just answered your own question. I have had SPL arms and MCS coilovers for sale for months, maybe a year now? They're "nice parts" but no one wants them. Literally, I've had zero interest. I've sold a few duplicate MPP parts and they go instantly.

90% of people have literally no idea how to adjust rebound and dampening properly, so not sure that's really much of a benefit tbh. I still barely understand it after doing this for a decade.

100% agree that this is a better alternative to the multitude of junk that has been put on the market. At the end of the day, if it makes sense to you then go for it!

I’ll take the SPL arms for 3.50 and a handshake

ST has provenance, just to people outside the Tesla world. I’m basing it off that.

 

[Motion122]

Mainly because for the price on my RWD Base model it’s 1620 for non adjustable MPP and 1619 for height + dampening from ST.

So you get more adjustment compared to fixed dampening, which is a plus.

Yes MPP is tried and true, but it should be a bit more compelling knowing that ST isn’t some random China brand. It happens to be from the same company that MPP asked to develop their shocks. That’s the main reason for me to Guinea pig this experiment.

And yes it’s not in stock, but at least you can customize the colors and text haha.

Here are pics of the model 3 with ST coilovers installed at the KW Headquarters in Germany. They sent me these photos, which don’t do much but it’s something.

And cmon guys, resale value? How do we even know that at this point. I’m all for resale value, I collect watches as a hobby. But we don’t know how these perform and no one has ever sold a set.

ST could very well be KW V2 with different colors and/or with a slight valving/spring change.

 

[Freshness]

ST could very well be KW V2 with different colors and/or with a slight valving/spring change.

On the E46 M3 platform the ST is an exact replica of the V1 minus the materials. I don’t think KW is making any other suspensions other than V3 and HAS for their main line any more, and has redirected all of their less adjustable coilover kits to ST.

I had HAS on my previous 911, which were just glorified lowering springs, but the resale value was great.

 

[Motion122]

On the E46 M3 platform the ST is an exact replica of the V1 minus the materials. I don’t think KW is making any other suspensions other than V3 and HAS for their main line any more, and has redirected all of their less adjustable coilover kits to ST.

I had HAS on my previous 911, which were just glorified lowering springs, but the resale value was great.

ST will fetch much better prices on the used market than BC/XYZ/Yellow Chinese made products for sure!