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      04-01-2019, 09:13 AM   #1
Kruppa
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KW V3 Settings (Comfort)?

I know, there are other threads on KW settings. I read them all and it's not really giving me much

I have my install appointment for my KW V3s tomorrow morning. It's a bit of a drive from my house and I would prefer to minimize my trips back to adjust.

I know they come at KW recommended settings out of the box. This is my wife's daily driver so comfort takes priority and I will want to go softer than stock settings I'm sure. Sadly I will probably never track this car. Has anybody adjusted theirs on the softer side and found something equal to/more comfortable than stock without any bounce that they can recommend? Looking for number settings for rebound/dampening that I can pass along to the installer.

I talked to one person who had them on his SQ5 looking for the same setup and he recommended 4 clicks from softest on both rebound/dampening in front and 5/6 clicks from softest in rear. Did you guys match your front/rear settings? It will obviously vary by application so would love to get F85 specific advice here.

One of the big draws of this kit is that you can always adjust, but I'm guessing it's not easy to access all of the adjustment controls once it's installed.

Thanks in advance for any info!
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      04-01-2019, 01:11 PM   #2
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i think as long as the rears dampening is set softer (2 settings) then the fronts, it will reduce any bouncy effect.
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      04-01-2019, 01:14 PM   #3
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Quote:
Originally Posted by daytonaviolet View Post
i think as long as the rears dampening is set softer (2 settings) then the fronts, it will reduce any bouncy effect.
Interesting! The guy I spoke to who has them on his SQ5 recommended the opposite with 2 clicks firmer in the rear. Maybe I'll just go consistent all around and see how it feels.
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      04-01-2019, 07:48 PM   #4
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Quote:
Originally Posted by daytonaviolet View Post
i think as long as the rears dampening is set softer (2 settings) then the fronts, it will reduce any bouncy effect.
Interesting to hear you say this. I have mine (non-KWs) set to one click stiffer in the rear. What's the stock KWs set at?
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      04-02-2019, 12:14 AM   #5
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They come from the factory in the most comfortable setting. I left mine alone.

Your drop settings will have the most affect. Did you buy them to be more comfy that stock. I don’t think that’s what you will find. They handle better, handle bumps better but wouldn’t say they price a softer ride

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Originally Posted by mikew2069 View Post
Interesting to hear you say this. I have mine (non-KWs) set to one click stiffer in the rear. What's the stock KWs set at?
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      04-02-2019, 09:36 AM   #6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Ehloo View Post
They come from the factory in the most comfortable setting. I left mine alone.

Your drop settings will have the most affect. Did you buy them to be more comfy that stock. I don’t think that’s what you will find. They handle better, handle bumps better but wouldn’t say they price a softer ride

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Originally Posted by mikew2069 View Post
Interesting to hear you say this. I have mine (non-KWs) set to one click stiffer in the rear. What's the stock KWs set at?
Agree to this statement.
I have installed a few, and Customers always happy with default setting.
I just always double check the setting to make sure left and right are the same.
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      04-02-2019, 10:21 AM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Ehloo View Post
They come from the factory in the most comfortable setting. I left mine alone.

Your drop settings will have the most affect. Did you buy them to be more comfy that stock. I don’t think that’s what you will find. They handle better, handle bumps better but wouldn’t say they price a softer ride
I vaguely remember what stock feels like to be honest but I know I had no complaints. I've been running H&R VTF and am looking for improvement in comfort with same drop from that. Between PMs, this post, and general internet searching, not surprisingly, I see completely contradicting information on top of the fact ride comfort is so incredibly subjective. Ideally I don't want to adjust a bunch but at least I have the option. We'll see how it goes after install today.
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      04-02-2019, 10:51 AM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Kruppa View Post
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ehloo View Post
They come from the factory in the most comfortable setting. I left mine alone.

Your drop settings will have the most affect. Did you buy them to be more comfy that stock. I don't think that's what you will find. They handle better, handle bumps better but wouldn't say they price a softer ride
I vaguely remember what stock feels like to be honest but I know I had no complaints. I've been running H&R VTF and am looking for improvement in comfort with same drop from that. Between PMs, this post, and general internet searching, not surprisingly, I see completely contradicting information on top of the fact ride comfort is so incredibly subjective. Ideally I don't want to adjust a bunch but at least I have the option. We'll see how it goes after install today.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kruppa View Post
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ehloo View Post
They come from the factory in the most comfortable setting. I left mine alone.

Your drop settings will have the most affect. Did you buy them to be more comfy that stock. I don't think that's what you will find. They handle better, handle bumps better but wouldn't say they price a softer ride
I vaguely remember what stock feels like to be honest but I know I had no complaints. I've been running H&R VTF and am looking for improvement in comfort with same drop from that. Between PMs, this post, and general internet searching, not surprisingly, I see completely contradicting information on top of the fact ride comfort is so incredibly subjective. Ideally I don't want to adjust a bunch but at least I have the option. We'll see how it goes after install today.

Awaiting your review as you'll be one of the first to go from VTF to Kw V3 😇
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      04-02-2019, 08:26 PM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by r33_RGSport View Post
Agree to this statement.
I have installed a few, and Customers always happy with default setting.
I just always double check the setting to make sure left and right are the same.
Since you've made sure the number of clicks are the same, do you recall how many clicks from softest or hardest the stock setting is?
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      04-02-2019, 08:40 PM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mikew2069 View Post
Quote:
Originally Posted by r33_RGSport View Post
Agree to this statement.
I have installed a few, and Customers always happy with default setting.
I just always double check the setting to make sure left and right are the same.
Since you've made sure the number of clicks are the same, do you recall how many clicks from softest or hardest the stock setting is?
I don't.
I just count 1 side and count the other side.
I don't keep track of it since it is not a daily occurrence and no one ever done a custom dampening setting.
All goes with default.
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      04-03-2019, 10:30 AM   #11
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Alright. It's done. Installed. I only have 3 hours of driving so far and I spent a lot of money on these so I'm wary of that and trying to be objective.

My opinion. Do it. Too expensive? Make your kid set up a lemonade stand. No kid? Make your pet an influencer on social media. No pets? Sell your bodily fluids.

This is exactly what I was looking for. Low AND comfortable. I have front dampening/rebound set at +4 and rear at +5 (to clarify this is +4/+5 from the softest setting). There's about 2 threads left to go lower but I'm happy with the height. It's ~30" ground to fender. Not every kit is sent out the same because mine were all set at 0 (which the instructions specifically say is not recommended), others I've PM'd with were set at 8.

I haven't been on the stock setup since last October but this is no firmer and the handling is superior. It's a night and day difference from the VTFs I've been running with the road conditions in New England. The biggest difference I notice is on patches with many small road imperfections that would make me harshly jump around before are now handled gracefully and incredibly well absorbed with nothing I would consider being firm or harsh. My full enjoyment driving the M has been restored. I'll post back with more thoughts after some time and once I can set a baseline for myself and see if I want to adjust up/down for height/rebound/dampening.

If anybody is around southern MA and wants a ride hit me up.
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      04-03-2019, 01:06 PM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Kruppa View Post
Alright. It's done. Installed. I only have 3 hours of driving so far and I spent a lot of money on these so I'm wary of that and trying to be objective.

My opinion. Do it. Too expensive? Make your kid set up a lemonade stand. No kid? Make your pet an influencer on social media. No pets? Sell your bodily fluids.

This is exactly what I was looking for. Low AND comfortable. I have front dampening/rebound set at +4 and rear at +5 (to clarify this is +4/+5 from the softest setting). There's about 2 threads left to go lower but I'm happy with the height. It's ~30" ground to fender. Not every kit is sent out the same because mine were all set at 0 (which the instructions specifically say is not recommended), others I've PM'd with were set at 8.

I haven't been on the stock setup since last October but this is no firmer and the handling is superior. It's a night and day difference from the VTFs I've been running with the road conditions in New England. The biggest difference I notice is on patches with many small road imperfections that would make me harshly jump around before are now handled gracefully and incredibly well absorbed with nothing I would consider being firm or harsh. My full enjoyment driving the M has been restored. I'll post back with more thoughts after some time and once I can set a baseline for myself and see if I want to adjust up/down for height/rebound/dampening.

If anybody is around southern MA and wants a ride hit me up.
Looks good.

FYI though, on dampening dials, the correct way to count is from full stiff and back down.
The way the internals work is full stiff is by fully closing the oil passage to the valve, while full soft is fully open to the oil passage to the valve.
But, fully open from time to time will be different since it doesn't have a reference point.
While fully close have a reference point where it stop when the oil passage is fully closed.

I hope that make sense.
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      04-03-2019, 01:11 PM   #13
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Kruppa View Post
Alright. It's done. Installed. I only have 3 hours of driving so far and I spent a lot of money on these so I'm wary of that and trying to be objective.

My opinion. Do it. Too expensive? Make your kid set up a lemonade stand. No kid? Make your pet an influencer on social media. No pets? Sell your bodily fluids.

This is exactly what I was looking for. Low AND comfortable. I have front dampening/rebound set at +4 and rear at +5 (to clarify this is +4/+5 from the softest setting). There's about 2 threads left to go lower but I'm happy with the height. It's ~30" ground to fender. Not every kit is sent out the same because mine were all set at 0 (which the instructions specifically say is not recommended), others I've PM'd with were set at 8.

I haven't been on the stock setup since last October but this is no firmer and the handling is superior. It's a night and day difference from the VTFs I've been running with the road conditions in New England. The biggest difference I notice is on patches with many small road imperfections that would make me harshly jump around before are now handled gracefully and incredibly well absorbed with nothing I would consider being firm or harsh. My full enjoyment driving the M has been restored. I'll post back with more thoughts after some time and once I can set a baseline for myself and see if I want to adjust up/down for height/rebound/dampening.

If anybody is around southern MA and wants a ride hit me up.
I want a ride 👍🏽. So your rears are set softer then the fronts right ?
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      04-03-2019, 01:23 PM   #14
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Quote:
Originally Posted by daytonaviolet View Post
I want a ride 👍🏽. So your rears are set softer then the fronts right ?
Come on over!

Rears are 1 click more firm.
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      04-03-2019, 06:57 PM   #15
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Looks great! I agree-worth the money. Glad you are happy with the result.
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      04-05-2019, 08:17 AM   #16
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what wheel spacers are you running
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      04-05-2019, 09:20 AM   #17
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what wheel spacers are you running
None with the stock setup. I run 10mm with my winters.
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      04-10-2019, 01:06 PM   #18
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Kruppa View Post
Come on over!

Rears are 1 click more firm.
Thank you for the review.
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      05-08-2019, 06:34 PM   #19
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just wondering if these are still your current settings? i just need to know in ~ 4-6 weeks as i just ordered my KW's today from Ben

Quote:
Originally Posted by Kruppa View Post
This is exactly what I was looking for. Low AND comfortable. I have front dampening/rebound set at +4 and rear at +5 (to clarify this is +4/+5 from the softest setting). There's about 2 threads left to go lower but I'm happy with the height. It's ~30" ground to fender. Not every kit is sent out the same because mine were all set at 0 (which the instructions specifically say is not recommended), others I've PM'd with were set at 8.
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      05-25-2019, 12:43 PM   #20
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Quote:
Originally Posted by daytonaviolet View Post
just wondering if these are still your current settings? i just need to know in ~ 4-6 weeks as i just ordered my KW's today from Ben
Sorry for the long delay here, been crazy busy.

Alright so I still love this setup just as much as my original thoughts, if not more. I did mess with the settings a bunch and finally have it where I want. At first I started off too soft, which was great for around town but it was scary/floaty going fast on the highway so I had to find a balance.

When you adjust these settings you are supposed to turn the adjustments all the way to fully firm and then go backwards from there hence my descriptions below.

Front Bump: -6 from full stiff (was -8)
Front Rebound: -9 from full stiff (was -12 which was too soft, then -6 which was too harsh)

Rear Bump: -6 from full stiff (was -7)
Rear Rebound: -10 from full stiff (tried -9/-11, this is just right)

So I personally find this to be the best balance of everything. I learned a lot in my research about what bump vs rebound does to the dynamics of the car and it's been a fun process. I hope some people find this useful.
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      05-25-2019, 12:49 PM   #21
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Unrelated I continue to have difficulty with getting the wheel gap exactly how I want it - I had the exact same issue with the H&R VTF where the front passenger side won't get as low as the driver side.

I have the front driver at 29.75" ground to fender and there are 3 full threads left to go lower. The front passenger is at 30.25" ground to fender and there is only 1/2 thread left to go lower. I can't explain this but it was exactly the same with both suspensions.

The rears are both at 30.25" ground to fender but the passenger side wheel gap is a full 1.5 finger wheel gap bigger.

Soooo is it possible the passenger side of the car has slightly different angled fenders or the fenders are slightly higher than the driver side? It's driving me crazy, I can't figure it out.
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      05-25-2019, 07:14 PM   #22
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Kruppa View Post
Unrelated I continue to have difficulty with getting the wheel gap exactly how I want it - I had the exact same issue with the H&R VTF where the front passenger side won't get as low as the driver side.

I have the front driver at 29.75" ground to fender and there are 3 full threads left to go lower. The front passenger is at 30.25" ground to fender and there is only 1/2 thread left to go lower. I can't explain this but it was exactly the same with both suspensions.

The rears are both at 30.25" ground to fender but the passenger side wheel gap is a full 1.5 finger wheel gap bigger.

Soooo is it possible the passenger side of the car has slightly different angled fenders or the fenders are slightly higher than the driver side? It's driving me crazy, I can't figure it out.
Why not just raise the driver side to make it even ?
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