KW Variant 5

kitkat · Sep 27, 2023

Looks like KW just released a Variant 5 for the Emira.

Has both high speed and low speed compression and rebound adjustments for a pretty competitive price.

Shop - Produkte online bestellen

www.kwsuspensions.de

kitkat · Sep 27, 2023

From a KW brand manager on Facebook.

Nova · Sep 27, 2023

Did they repaint that? That's a neat color.

kitkat · Sep 27, 2023

Digging Deeper:

They're offering two versions: Variant 5 & Variant 5 Club Sport

Spring Rates

OEM Touring Front: 55 Nm/mm
OEM Touring Rear: 110 Nm/mm

OEM Sports Front: 60 Nm/mm
OEM Sports Rear: 115 Nm/mm

KW V5 Front: 70 Nm/mm
KW V5 Rear: 120 Nm/mm main spring with a helper spring

KW V5 Clubsport Front: 80 Nm/mm with a helper spring
KW V5 Clubsport Rear: 130 Nm/mm with a helper spring

Technology, Competitors, and Pricing

They're using solid piston technology much like the Ohlins TTX and offer really good price point compared to Ohlins TTX. You're getting a 4 way adjustable damper for 7,498.19 € while Ohlins TTX are 3 way adjustable for 8,980.00 € -- I've seen 4 way adjustable Ohlins TTX well over 10K in the past.

Porter · Sep 27, 2023

Nova said:
Did they repaint that? That's a neat color.

That's Shadow Gray, but the actual production paint. I think many of us were thrown early on by the hand painted demo car that made the rounds, it lacked the strong blue undertone that seems to be present in the final production cars.

Porter · Sep 27, 2023

kitkat said:
Looks like KW just released a Variant 5 for the Emira.

Has both high speed and low speed compression and rebound adjustments for a pretty competitive price.

View attachment 31645

Shop - Produkte online bestellen

www.kwsuspensions.de

That's very cool. Makes me wonder how the damping compares to the JRZ 3 ways.

kitkat · Sep 27, 2023

Porter said:
That's very cool. Makes me wonder how the damping compares to the JRZ 3 ways.

Those are definitely a more traditional piston damper. Generally I think it’s all upside to using solid piston: less cavitation, lower pressures needed, less heat — all leading to more consistent performance.

dgrace · Sep 27, 2023

kitkat said:
From a KW brand manager on Facebook.

Dead sexy. Thanks for the info!

Porter · Sep 27, 2023

kitkat said:
Those are definitely a more traditional piston damper. Generally I think it’s all upside to using solid piston: less cavitation, lower pressures needed, less heat — all leading to more consistent performance.

Same story with MCS and Penske I believe.

If I ever lose my mind and decide to go the Öhlins route, the guys at Öhlins USA in Hendersonville, NC can do custom valving to suit your application and preferences. Small upcharge but worth it I think.

Porter · Sep 27, 2023

Porter said:
That's Shadow Gray, but the actual production paint. I think many of us were thrown early on by the hand painted demo car that made the rounds, it lacked the strong blue undertone that seems to be present in the final production cars.

Now I'm second-guessing myself. It has some significant color changes in post processing, so it's hard to say, but I do still think it's Shadow Grey... here's the original post from KW Switzerland, with multiple angles.

Gprodigy · Sep 27, 2023

Porter said:
Now I'm second-guessing myself. It has some significant color changes in post processing, so it's hard to say, but I do still think it's Shadow Grey... here's the original post from KW Switzerland, with multiple angles.

I think they just color graded the photos to stand out and used "shadow grey" as the original.

I just made this one real quick from shadow grey. (however, they did picked a good color option for a future mod/wrap)

On topic: I had coilovers on my last vehicle which enhanced the entire experience.
But $8k for coilovers I'd have to race for money lol.

KAR120C · Sep 27, 2023

Gprodigy said:
I think they just color graded the photos to stand out and used "shadow grey" as the original.

I just made this one real quick from shadow grey. (however, they did picked a good color option for a future mod/wrap)
View attachment 31656

View attachment 31655

On topic: I had coilovers on my last vehicle which enhanced the entire experience.
But $8k for coilovers I'd have to race for money lol.

I imagine you'll be quite happy with the coilovers that come stock, either touring or sport. At some point you might want to go to adjustables but for non-track driving the Bilsteins will be good for awhile! I'll probably wait for awhile before I change the suspension. Once I make the first change it'll be a never-ending modification journey for me!

shin73 · Dec 10, 2023

Lotus Emira Gets Adjustable KW Coilover Suspension For Speed And Style

KW Automotive has introduced two suspension kits for the Lotus Emira - the KW V5 and KW V5 Clubsport. Both coilover suspension kits are designed explicitly for the Emira, the automaker's final combustion engine-powered sports car before going fully electric.

carbuzz.com

kitkat · Dec 10, 2023

KW Variant 5

Looks like KW just released a Variant 5 for the Emira. Has both high speed and low speed compression and rebound adjustments for a pretty competitive price...

www.emiraforum.com

Very cool that they’re 500€ off till January 8th.

hagen111 · Dec 11, 2023

Emira looks sooooooo fantastic with a slightly lower stance!

tvs_1320 · Dec 11, 2023

kitkat said:
Digging Deeper:

<snip>

Did KW make available shock dyno info for these vs the stock options (force vs velocity curves)? Would be interesting to see how different the Sport and Tour are numerically - the spring rates are only 9%/5% stiffer which I would think would be hard to notice for most. The main difference must be in the dampers. Also be interesting to see what the adjustment range of the KWs are...

kitkat · Dec 11, 2023

tvs_1320 said:
Did KW make available shock dyno info for these vs the stock options (force vs velocity curves)? Would be interesting to see how different the Sport and Tour are numerically - the spring rates are only 9%/5% stiffer which I would think would be hard to notice for most. The main difference must be in the dampers. Also be interesting to see what the adjustment range of the KWs are...

Nobody has posted a PVP or CVP for the OEM dampers, having driven both, i won’t claim to have the most sensitive butt dyno, but my best guess is the sport suspension low speed damping picks up quicker in order to make the chassis feel like it turns in sharper and then it levels levels back out to a similar curve to high speed damping as touring.

Asking KW directly might help you but I’ve got a feeling they focus more on the replacement setup rather than understanding the OEM setup.

kitkat · Dec 11, 2023

kitkat said:
KW Variant 5

Looks like KW just released a Variant 5 for the Emira. Has both high speed and low speed compression and rebound adjustments for a pretty competitive price...

www.emiraforum.com

Very cool that they’re 500€ off till January 8th.

I got word from GRP that these dampers are over $9K state side, quite a markup over the euro price.

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