This is a review of the new NC Xida suspension from SuperMiata,installed in my 2006 NC1 Sport raceish car.

Car has the following relevant mods:

Keesler front lower control arm spherical bearings.
MazComp offset lower balljoint bushings.
MazComp offset upper control arm Delrin bushings.
Progress front swaybar and Racing Beat end links.
Whiteline rear swaybar and SuperMiata end links.
Slightly tweaked OSG.
Splitter and ducting.
Hood and fender vents.
BBFW rear spoiler set fairly steep.
Race hardtop and appropriate safety gear.
Car has an aggressive fender roll, and very light clearancing on the rear shock towers. I believe it would be considered STR legal. It has not been cut or pulled.
Car is 2385lbs without me, as raced with a 1/2 tank.
3.3 front camber.
2.6 rear camber.

I ordered and received the race spring Xida.

This is the part most people care about:

I can confirm the following wheels fit with the following tires:

17x9 +40 Konig Hypergram w/ 245/40 ECS
17x9 +43 Enkei PF01SS w/ 245/40 SC3R
17x9 +45 Enkei PF01A w/ 245/40 ECF
17x9 +48 Enkei PF05 w/ 245/40 RT660
17x9.5 +55 Sakebomb RZ+ w/ 245/40 A052 *this was checked with both a 5 and 10mm spacer as the wheel hits the rear shock tower at full bump and rubs on the FLCA at full lock with out them. The pics of the Sakebomb were with a 5mm spacer, and it clears*

Shocks were well packed, and generally nicely done. One of perches only had one rubber for locking, so the screw bottomed before the perch locked. I inserted a small chunk on aluminum TIG rod, and it now works fine. Ed offered to send some spare rubbers out. I also received the travel limiters which it is now apparent I don't need at all.

This will be a comparison with the Ohlins setup, with FPSpec rear low profile cups and upper spherical mounts, and 8/5 springs. The car as initially received had an Ohlins setup on the standard cups and mounts but revalved from GWR for 11/8. Those went back to thecae's previous owner, as he is swapping them into an RX8. So I have driven on those three suspensions.

Rear shocks:


Front shocks:




Install was fine, with the following caveats:
The rears are LONG, and harder to swap.
The Whiteline rear bar requires careful stacking of spacers for the end links to clear the shock.
The rear really doesn't get as low as I would want until I realized in talking things through with Ed that part of the reason I was running so low was to get any kind of droop travel. Instead, I could run a little higher and get more bump too. This pays off.
The front spring looks like it's going to just barely rub on the inner control arm. This is an artifact of my offset bushings, caster, etc... BUT there is not even a mark after about 50 miles of hard bumpy driving.
The rear bags are a pain but worth it.
I did not need travel limiters.

Before droop travel:



After droop travel:



Full stuff w/ Xidas:




I set ride height and did a quick drive at full soft. It felt springy but composed and very smooth.
Then I brought it in for corner weights, and set the front to +4and the rear to +4 from FS. Double checked alignment, and took it out for a 20 mile break in run.

It was very, very good. Very composed over bumps and whoops, excellent reflexes, and for the first time on this test loop I wasn't picking up an inside rear. As a result the car was distinctly more composed and throttle adjustable. One particularly nasty corner is a relatively tight right hand higher speed corner with a horrible dip right at the mid corner, and it soaked it up instead of hopping to the left like it had before. Good times.
Some of the difference is finitely in the valving being better matched to the springs rates than my previous 11/8, and just more stiff than the 8/5, but there is a distinct lack of harshness, and I think the Ohlins are quite good at compliance. These are–to–noticeably better. Also found the Ohlin without the cups to be a real handful on this test loop.
I brought it back in and checked everything out and verified ride height and corner weight, and went up 4 more rear and 1 front.
Then I did the loop again, and confirmed my feelings. I had the data acquisition running, but I haven't had a chance to analyze it.

Overall, it's good. Really good. High quality, long travel, excellent damping. Fantastic customer support.

I'd be happy to answer any questions, and I am selling my Ohlins setup for a good price..

 

A few more random photos:

 

Suspension ****. NSFW.

 

******* hell that droop is sexy. Supermiata does it again! My biggest beef with people reviewing suspension (on cars or trucks) is that they never seem to show pics/data of full droop and bump, as well as clearances. Take some cats for your time.

Also - Stop making me want to get an NC

 

Wow, awesome review.
Your shop, your attention to detail is just World Class.
You would be doing my tires and alignment for life...
My only complaint is you're 2,000 miles away.

The total range pictures are appreciated BIG TIME.
I'm not a NC guy (yet) but if I was this thread sold that set up BETTER than SuperMiata themselves (and they do just fine anyways).
I think they should make sure you review anything they need an objective opinion on.
You KICK ***!

 

Man this makes me want an NC so much...I must be getting old...lol. Awesome review, car is looking very good!

 

Am I losing my mind, or is this showing a stack with two torrington bearings?

 

Sharp eye. Yes. Top sekrit.

 

Agreed, very detailed and thorough. Many more reviews forthcoming from other owners. Shipped a bunch of NC Xidas in the last two weeks.