California drivers - sports or touring suspension?

[TheMotizzle]

I'll be driving mostly on the street. Might get into a track day here or there, but not a usual event. I know there's a lot of talk of touring being a really nice balance of handling and ride quality. California roads might be a little more forgiving than what I've heard described in the UK so perhaps sport is no problem. I test drove sport and it seemed fine in my short run around the block from the dealership.

California drivers, what did you pick and how do you feel about it? I know the tires play a large role as well. Thanks!

 

[seriously]

Sport here no regrets. Very supple for a sport suspension. There are some unkept roads in LA, but they will be bad no matter what. No issues with LA freeways and such.

 

[T6061]

Happy with touring. Happy with the Goodyears. Coming up on 11,000 miles. Might be interested in the Nitron Fast Road setup for weight savings, ride height adjustment (probably not much more than half an inch for me) and the ability to fine tune rebound damping for a little less bounce over stock but nothing dramatic. The Goodyears are holding up nicely. Appreciate the built in curb protection. Wheels are unscathed at this point.

 

[TheMotizzle]

Happy with touring. Happy with the Goodyears. Coming up on 11,000 miles. Might be interested in the Nitron Fast Road setup for weight savings, ride height adjustment (probably not much more than half an inch for me) and the ability to fine tune rebound damping for a little less bounce over stock but nothing dramatic. The Goodyears are holding up nicely. Appreciate the built in curb protection. Wheels are unscathed at this point.

What do you mean by the built in curb protection? Are the goodyears wider than the rim and prevent curb contact? Cup2s do not I assume?

 

[Six Speed Stephen]

I owned a Touring car and now a Sport car.

I loved the Touring. The ride comfort was incredible. I did a 1,600 mile roadtrip through the US and couldn't have been happier. I felt like the comfort was equivalent to any german sedan.

Insurance took the first car, and then I got a sport suspension car. Super anxious on NYC roads, overly sensitive feedback through the steering wheel and very jittery. I was really regretting it. I changed the tires to the DWS 06+ and I feel like this is the perfect combo. I get nearly the same comfort as the Touring, but the car is much more stable at higher speed and on track.

Not looking forward to putting the summer tires back on, maybe I'll just keep the DWS 06+ on.

 

[T6061]

Yes, The Goodyears have maybe a quarter of an inch of rubber that stands proud of the rim itself. Hard to describe but it did save me when I was backing out with a curb on the passenger side of the car and I turned the wheel and could feel it rub against the curb. Thanks to the slight protrusion of rubber around the rim there was no damage at all.

 

[RoryBellows]

If you are undecided go Tour. there are already a handful of options for those that want to go with a stiffer setup than factory so it will be easier to replace later on if you want to switch. Going softer may be more difficult.

 

[OppositeLock]

Mine is the touring. It's wonderful on the street. I wanted the sports, but the dealer didn't have any on the lot with sports suspension in a color that I liked. I've also tracked the car, and it's too soft for the track, it makes the nose feel vague (but it could be the SuperSports).

I've got some new wheels coming from GRP with Dunlop Sport Maxx Race tires on them, and if that's still to vague with front end at the track, I'll install some Nitron FastRoad shocks (which are a little stiffer than sports in the rear, and a lot stiffer in the front)

If you don't drive on the track a lot, I think the touring suspension is just amazing on the street.

 

[morphious]

Sport.

 

[Lotusdoesit]

Sport with the Michelin's. No regrets. Even lowered it 12mm with GRP kit and probably could use 3mm more lowered.

 

[Bimmernate]

Simple. If it is your daily driver, you should go with touring/goodyears. If it is a second vehicle and/or weekend fun car, go with sports with goodyears. The saying that "touring is for mainly street, and sport is for track use" is silly. The sport suspension is not enough for a track devoted car. Sport is just a slightly more aggressive street setup and is actually quite compliant.

 

[Bimmernate]

I owned a Touring car and now a Sport car.

I loved the Touring. The ride comfort was incredible. I did a 1,600 mile roadtrip through the US and couldn't have been happier. I felt like the comfort was equivalent to any german sedan.

Insurance took the first car, and then I got a sport suspension car. Super anxious on NYC roads, overly sensitive feedback through the steering wheel and very jittery. I was really regretting it. I changed the tires to the DWS 06+ and I feel like this is the perfect combo. I get nearly the same comfort as the Touring, but the car is much more stable at higher speed and on track.

Not looking forward to putting the summer tires back on, maybe I'll just keep the DWS 06+ on.

did you have the michelins or goodyears with your sport setup?

 

[Six Speed Stephen]

did you have the michelins or goodyears with your sport setup?

Michelins

 

[Jinba ittai]

I like my sport with Goodyears, but we have pretty good roads up here. Straight and boring, but good. I wish I had access to California twisties.

 

[gcmak]

Are you considering the v6 or i4? I will need to swap cars with locals, but given differences in parts, geometry and weight, I believe they could be on two slightly different spectrums. I have the sport i4 on Cup2 and it is similar to Stephen's comments: it's a busy ride, steering wheel moves quite a lot and initially I have a hard time enjoying a daily commute or long drive in it.

 

[seriously]

Sport with the Michelin's. No regrets. Even lowered it 12mm with GRP kit and probably could use 3mm more lowered.

Any change in ride comfort or otherwise lowering on sport? I’m considering it but really like the current ride. I’m not looking for anything stiffer for my use (sport).

 

[cryptovince]

Touring here with the Goodyears. Here in the East LA / OC area there's lots of roads with cracks and the setup I chose handles them well.