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Gecko Suspension Systems: Review & Insight

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    Gecko Suspension Systems: Review & Insight

    Peace CB7ers! First let me apologize because I will have to post pics later , I know. But 1 I am posting this from my phone without the pictures, and two I have not quite put together a pic hosting site . I am semi reluctant to as well (after watching "hunted" on CBS I am more paranoid about my internet footprint). But I still want to contribute, and provide members with constructive feedback to help the community!!

    Anyways, I wanted to give a review for a new brand of coilovers on the market. They are made by Gecko Suspension Systems based in Taiwan ���� . I know I know I can hear it now, those Taiwanese companies...they make some boo-boo products, but before we jump to conclusions I would like to give an honest review.

    Background:
    So in looking for coilovers, my goal for the car was to achieve a two-ish inch drop, increase cornering capability, have adjustability, without back wrenching/sphincter tightening stiffness. I also wanted a quality unit theat offered durability, collars that would not seize (though the car will not be drive. In the winter) and a reasonable price point. As a comparison, I was a hairs breath from purchasing fortune auto 500 coilovers, but just could not come up with the "scrilla �� to pull the trigger ��". With that said I stumbled across The gecko series coilovers which are supplied by ShadowFabrication in NC.

    About the coils:
    Ok now for the good stuffs! So before I decided to get these I trolled around the forums looking for comparisons at price and reviews. Needless to say the rep for Taiwanese companies was a huge deturent so i delayed my purchase for some months to research.

    As a comparison the coilovers use all the same internal components as Tein coils, NOK seals and oils, the coils use steel tubes and bodies as opposed to aluminum which is going to reduce their ability to seize. The strut bodies are also manufactured as one peice showing a higher end manufacturing of the actual product. The geckos can also be fully rebuilt from your garage as the components offer a simple design and no specialty manufacturing features that require them to be sent out.

    The coils come in two classes: g-street, and g-racing. The differences will be camber plates and the level of 24 vs 32 dampening.

    Spring rates can be custom matched to your desire and purpose, which was also a huge plus for me.

    In terms of price they fall right between $950-$1100 for the two classes, placing them at the same price point as Megan, BC, D2race and just under FortuneAuto.

    This does place them above FuncForm, race land, black works, Yonka, Godspeed truhart etc. making them a more expensive purchase. Spoiler: they are worth it.

    I will be posting a video below of a similar review with more information as well as a visual of what they look like (video was done by shadow fabrication).

    Ride quality and review:
    As a commparison I will use two cars that I have ridden in recently: My brothers car: 91 Toyota MR2 turbo on koni yellows with Eibach springs & infinity g37s on airlift performance bags with auto pilotV2.

    Before I purchased the coils I called shadow fabrication to speak with them as they had been running the racing series on an e36 pro car. I believe for drifting. They were very helpful with their information and honest in their feedback. And I received my coils in about a week from ordering.

    Grip: 8.5
    Dampening: 8.5
    Stiff/Soft: 8.5
    Ride quality: 8.5
    Drop: 10
    Ease of install: 9

    In comparison to the ride quality. It falls somewhere I between the two. My cousins grip on the bags was as close to a 10 as I could think. With the auto pilot v2 it is unreal for bags! Basically the the computer takes measurements of the pressure and car height and adjusts at some rediculous rate to reduce body roll and maintain grip. He lost the back end once in the middle of a turn due to wight transfer, and his unfamiliarity with the road. Even in that moment the car maintained a considerable amount of grip and it was easily remedied given the situation and location.
    - for some perspective I live in rural Maryland with many hill and winding roads (rally reminiscint). Very fun to drive on but can dangerous, if you don't know them;at times as the reduce to narrow/no-center line roads. I used to have a 4wd ram pick up and lost the backs end on that during the winter ❄️ = full 360. That had less to do with the road and a lot with conditions but it did take place on one of the sharpest hairpins back there-

    Back to the review: the geckos on the cb7,to my surprise, seem to be a tad softer than the eibach koni combo, with the added ability for damping and spring rate/height adjustment (both can be adjusted separately). The receive road imperfections very well for coils and are not hard on your back at all. My bushing set up might also aid in this regard but all things said and done I am highly satisfied with my purchase!

    My settings for the road are 13 clicks to stiff from soft and about 4mm of preload front and 6mm preload back. The ride has been exceptional as I do not even feel the need to reduce the stiffness. The car rsponds very well in heavy cornering (I have been practicing left foot brakeing), has considerably less body roll, and has yet to lose grip.

    The only gripe I had was that the coils did not come with brackets for the stock brake lines. But this did give me an opportunity to test my creativity for a remedy. I used a hose clamp to secure a cork gasket between the clamp and the body. I then used two zip ties to secure the line to the clamp.

    Conclusions:
    My hope is that this review will provide the community with yet another option for coils. It is also to show gratitude to the manufacturer and distributors for providing a great product and service at a great price point. I will be doing a similar review on the Hardrace products I use later. In would like to see this brand gain some exposure and a strong customer base to help them have a stronger foothold in the industry as they have truly provided a great product that is not very well known.

    If anyone else has used their products please let me know what you think and help spread the word. Their may be group buy opportunities available in the future. If there are any specific questions that I over looked ASK! Let's get this discussion rolling!!



    Thanks
    Peace ✌️
    TheSnigg
    Last edited by TheSnigg; 05-15-2017, 09:48 AM.

    #2
    Camber plates on CB7 suspension?






    Comment


      #3
      Camber plates are model specific and reserved for the racing series. I do not believe the cb7 models come with the camber plates I could be wrong tho. I got the street series.

      Comment


        #4
        I'd be curious to see if they offer camber plates. My reason is that camber cannot be adjusted via camber plates on a CB. Despite being a coilover design, the CB does not have a traditional MacPherson strut. You cannot change the camber angle by changing the angle of the shock (all that would do is potentially result in the binding of the shock itself.) If they do offer camber plates for the CB or CD, then that is a glaring indication that they have never actually conducted any real world testing of their products on those cars. Or, if they did, that they have very little understanding of suspension design... which is significantly worse!
        That was just a red flag for me. I'm highly skeptical of anything made in China or Taiwan, due largely to the tendency of companies in those countries to make counterfeit and low-quality products. Not all are bad, certainly, and it would be cool if you discovered a new good one. Still, it's something that I'll question until I'm blue in the face! I do recognize that companies like BC are capable of producing high quality components (though I wouldn't trust BC's lower-end stuff).

        I'm curious to see what your long-term experience is. To me, that's the true test of quality. Especially on a street car. Street driving really puts a suspension through the paces, and that's also where safety and reliability matter the most.

        I've never heard of Gecko. To my knowledge, you are the first among us to use them. I like that you did extensive research. So few people bother to do that! Most people that buy Chinese/Taiwanese stuff settle for "my boi got um and dey gud" as a valid reason to purchase.
        The fact that they seem to be softer than an Eibach/Koni setup is promising. Most of the cheap junk is obscenely stiff, because that's a great way to make an uneducated enthusiast feel as if they have a race car. A company that makes a street-focused suspension that is actually soft enough for regular street use suggests that they actually put some genuine engineering into their stuff, rather than just cranking out generic parts.






        Comment


          #5
          I just checked the race series and the CB7 units do not come with camber plates. So I guess that's a plus.

          But I hear you on the skepticism. I was HIGHLY skeptical and since it was such a high asking price in comparison to their counter parts I was even more worried that I could waste my money. I actually remember reading a few of your threads/posts before I purchased them. And that was one of the reasons I did not go D2 even though a local shop "swore" by them.

          However from what I gathered, the did not skimp in the manufacturing and the internal components are of a higher quality as well. I reached out to people on Facebook who had been using them, and they have had a great reception in AUSTRALIA ����, their first region to market.

          Apparently they started by making Suspension components for higher end cars with race and street applications then decided to branch out into making their own units for the afte market scene.

          I have put about 2000 miles on the Suspension in various settings as well as cruising, city, and "spirited" driving. I live in MD so I have acces to many roads. They are great on the highway, exceptional on the back curves even with imperfections. U probably wouldn't even know that it's on "coils" unless we were driving over manholes in DC. It's pretty easy to tell at that point.

          Comment


            #6
            Any further updates on this coilover setup? I'm curious, now that you have had it for over half a year if your impressions of it have changed at all, now that everything should be broken in.
            MRT: 1993 Honda Accord SE Coupe (Lola)

            Comment


              #7
              I too would like an update and pictures.


              I've been looking into Horizon International Co. for the last year or so and I haven't been able to find a whole lot in terms of their actual development of products. A few things I've came across are similar (almost exactly) the same pieces and parts as Ceika (Chinese company) items.

              I'm extremely skeptical as to what they've done in terms of R&D for the CB chassis (as well as the others they make them for), but I'm more than happy to give them a shot if they are willing to divulge some info on their setups.
              Click Image for CB7Tuner.com Beanies, Decals, & Keychains!

              Comment


                #8
                That lack of willingness to divulge details is what scares me about relatively unknown companies. It suggests that the company is either intentionally hiding undesirable facts, or they know very little about the product they are selling (meaning they likely purchase their products from the cheapest Chinese/Taiwanese source possible.) details regarding materials, manufacturing processes, and quality control procedures shouldn’t be guarded secrets. Any company that treats that info as such is one to avoid, in my opinion.

                I’m hoping this isn’t such a company, but I’m wary of any relatively unknown company that is just now beginning to support an aging, fairly unpopular platform.






                Comment


                  #9
                  Update!

                  Apologies for being away so long. I go on hiatus from time to time.

                  i thought i posted these pics somewhere but i got them here as well. I will try to get some pics of the coils on the car one I get under there again.

                  This is how the car sits at the moment:


                  https://ibb.co/kJJPpa
                  https://ibb.co/mcWAUa
                  https://ibb.co/fZHjpa

                  I just drove it today, I recently installed the ESP front traction bar

                  I also installed a progress rear swaybar. Stock front bar - PU end links.

                  As far as " how is everything ". I stand by every word that I said in the initial review. I really enjoy driving this car now even how it looks at the moment. The adjustable dampening has allowed me to adjust my grip front and back keeping the rears softer than the fronts. I have a slight rub, but the ride quality is more than satisfying. Its a great coil that offers drivability and performance at a great price.

                  I also rode in my cousins STI on racelands...def mad me appreciate my geckos.

                  As I stated before my car rides better than my brothers MR2 Turbo on Konis and Eibach springs. It feels very planted and responsive.
                  Last edited by TheSnigg; 11-27-2017, 02:52 AM.

                  Comment


                    #10
                    I'm think you may have copied the wrong link in there for your pics. Nothing's showing up for me.
                    My '91 LX build. Bought September 2017. Sold June 2020.
                    http://www.cb7tuner.com/vbb/showthre...r /> t=209871
                    Current mileage: 399450 5/18/2020

                    My '92 LX build. Bought Novemeber 2019. http://www.cb7tuner.com/vbb/showthre...91#post3293791
                    Current mileage: 422679 11/21/19

                    Comment


                      #11
                      Weird. I will look into it.

                      You can also see the pics on IG @ cb7_snigg. I post the build updates there as well so you can see the other components on the car.

                      Comment


                        #12
                        I wish their website was in english :/

                        Comment


                          #13
                          Have fun reading.
                          Click Image for CB7Tuner.com Beanies, Decals, & Keychains!

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