mikochu

I started my search on suspension setups shortly after buying my 2021 Miata Club in October of 2021. After a couple of autocross events, the stock Bilstein suspension left a lot to be desired. Initially, I was just going to get a proven coil/shock combo but worried I would want more adjustability in the long run. Having had experience with Ohlins on other vehicles, I knew there had to be something better in the autocross/track enthusiast coilover category.

Rummaging through various forum threads, I found discussions about monotube setups like Flyin’ Miata FOX suspension, as well as SuperMiata Xida (zee-duh). The FM FOX setup is well-liked, but they were sold out and did not offer higher spring rates out of the box. I really liked the SuperMiata Xida but adding their Billet Coaxial Mounts put it in the same cost range as the SBG FPSport Ohlins offerings.

I waited a little bit and took advantage of SuperMiata’s Orange Friday sale in November and ordered the single-adjustment Xida suspension with 672/336 (12k/6k) Race springs and Billet Coaxial Mounts for my daily commuter/weekend autocrosser. My birthday is around Black Friday, and it always gives me the incentive to treat myself.

The target delivery window for the Xida suspension was sometime in February and Ed/turbofan did a good job of giving a status, but it ended up being delivered mid-March. The suspension was expected to arrive while my family and I were in California celebrating my kids’ birthdays/spring break at the theme parks (Knott’s Berry Farm FTW!). Of course, my wife reminds me of how terrible FedEx is at losing packages. Luckily, I was able to get FedEx to redirect the shipment to my office.

I was able to do the installation a couple of weekends ago. Out of the box, I was surprised how well-packaged the suspension was in the somewhat compact box. Each coilover was wrapped in bubble wrap and then inserted into a reinforced cardboard sleeve. The coilovers were pre-assembled and ready for installation, a service some other brands charge an extra $150 for.



Overall, the install was straight forward. However, the Xidas were my first monotube coilover install and I inadvertently damaged the threads of one of the coilovers during my test drive because the springs were not seating correctly due negative preload. I gave Ed/turbofan a heads-up and he said while it was sad to see the damage, it was a non-issue and should not even affect a rebuild. Worst case, SuperMiata offers discounted replacements for Xida owners, which is good to know. Also, I cannot stress enough that you will need to loosen all the 17mm control arm bolts and retighten them with the suspension at ride height (compressed with a jack). I forgot to do it in the rear, and I was having a hard time getting my ride height dialed in. Thanks to my QuickJack setup for keeping me sane during the process.

After the suspension was installed and the height was dialed in (Front: 115mm / Rear: 120mm) with my stock BBS wheels and Potenza S001 tires, I set the front to 15 clicks from full stiff and the rear to 17 clicks from full stiff. I drove it for a couple of days to (~50 miles) to let everything settle before getting an alignment, as well as wanting to make sure I was happy with the ride height. With the stock Bilstein setup, even driving straight on a relatively flat road caused the car to feel floaty with the slightest movement of the steering wheel. With the Xidas and these (compression?)/rebound settings, the car felt much more composed overall, especially in turns and over uneven roads. From what Emilio says, it’s my understanding that the first 6-10 clicks don’t have a noticeable change in compression.



Once I was content with the installation, I mounted my autocross wheels, 17x9" Titan7 T-R8s wrapped in Advan A052s (245/40R17), verifying fitment and adjusting where needed, then turned the ***** a bit, going to 5 clicks from full stiff in the front and 10 clicks from full in the rear. Suspension felt slightly tighter, but still very comfortable. I could feel more of the details in the road, but nothing jarring or causing nausea.



I had my car corner-balanced and aligned at my local performance shop (Dynasty Automotive). The technician pointed out that I was already close to a 50/50 weight distribution and just needed to raise the rear right corner a smidgen. He was able to get the camber to -2.5° with a caster of 6.5° (to center the wheels) in the front and -3° in the rear. I'll have them install the PL Motorsports offset camber bushings the next time I want to change my alignment.

For daily driving, I adjusted the ***** to 8 clicks from full stiff in the front and 12 clicks from full in the rear but going back to 10 clicks in the rear shortly after. I've been driving roads I normally drive, keeping note of areas where my car had gotten loose or jumbly with the stock Bilsteins. With the Xida suspension and alignment, I feel much more confident driving my Miata. The car is much more planted in turns with no fussiness. Driving over uneven roads, once jarring with the Bilsteins, now felt like my car was almost hovering over the smaller ripples in the road. I am super happy with the results and can’t wait to go to the next autocross event later this month.