Product Review - Fortune Auto 500 Series Coilovers - Zilvia.net Forums | Nissan 240SX (Silvia) and Z (Fairlady) Car Forum

95KA-Turbo · 10-06-2009, 10:00 PM

Hello Zilvia!

I've been a fairly active member of this forum and am happy to review this product for everyone since I know they are an up and coming company.

I was lucky enough to be chosen by Fortune Auto to receive a set of their coilovers and have been putting them to great use here on our excessively crappy Virginia roads.

I will start off by saying that I was pressed for time (daylight) during the install process and my camera battery was dead so I don't have any pictures of the install. After driving on them at an event I took some pictures of the rear coilovers as I was changing my wheels out and got a picture of the front camber plate/dampening adjustment knob. The products look identical to the pictures on their website:

Here are the specs as I am sure a lot of you are not 100% familiar with them:

-Dyno tested
-Stainless steel body / piston
-30-way adjustable dampers
-Pillowball mounts
-Forged aluminum locking collars
-Dust boots on all pistons
-50mm piston (beyond the industry standard of 44-47mm)
-Anodized aluminum camber plates** on front upper-mounts
-Fully anodized body
-1 year Manufacturer's Warranty
-Height adjustment independent of preload
-ISO 9002 certification

Previously, I had some JIC FLT-A2 coilovers on my S14 since 2007 and on my old S14 I had Megan racing coilovers. I've also ridden in plenty of S-chassis cars with D2, K-Sport, and Stance coilovers.

I am running a 9k/7k set up with the Fortune Auto coilovers.

On to the review!

I will start off with how low they go.

I have the fronts set so they have two collars out but I have not flipped the mounting bracket (which will allow for another inch of drop but will require you to wallow out the bolt holes a little as they are staggered to allow for more camber adjustment).

The rear is set like this:

They can be lowered all of the way to the collars by the spring....so they go STUPID low out back.

Here is a better picture of the rear height:

The car is at 23.75" on all four corners (measuring from the center part of the fender to the ground). I am running 17X10/11 +7/+12 with 245/40s and 255/40s so you have an idea as to what sort of wheel/tire set up I have.

Here is the picture of the front camber plate (at that setting I have -2.6):

Now for the performance and ride quality.

I do not daily drive my car any more, so I've gotten used to driving around my wonderfully smooth 96 Accord, haha. After I installed the Fortunes I decided in order to give my best review I would need to drive the car around to work and on a long trip. My job requires me to drive around to different car dealerships so I got to experience the terrible interstates and wavy roads of Hampton Roads (the area of Virginia I live in). In addition to this I did a 200 mile round trip drive to the Outer Banks in NC, making a stop at a local drift event about 120 miles into the trip.

During the time I spent driving from dealership to dealership I was adjusting the dampening and I lost count as to where I set the final numbers, but it is somewhere between 15 and 18 clicks (with 30 being full hard and 1 being full soft). I would say after about 100 miles of driving the dampers seemed to really break in well and I noticed the car was riding better then I ever would have imagined and the height was a little lower.

The coilovers really handle bumps very well, especially the ones between the seams of concrete on the highway - those are basically not even felt at all. There is an interstate down here called 64 that is known for basically having speed bumps on it and I could drink a drink while driving down it with the Fortunes (with the JICs I would literally get air driving down it).

I could easily daily drive this car with these coilovers. I would go so far to say that I would enjoy dailying the S14 again. The only reason I don't daily it now is because I have another car to drive that isn't slammed and I prefer to keep the miles off the S14 (not to mention the S14 is being turned into a track monster this winter

).

Performance wise I am extremely happy with the coilovers. I stiffened the fronts up a few clicks from the street settings at VIR this past weekend and it really made a noticeable difference. The fact that the clicks do something in their shock dynos impressed me as well.

A friend of mine has a 350z with Koni race shocks and Nismo springs. I remember saying to him that I wished my car rode like his does when I had the JICs. I can say for certain that with the Fortune Auto coilovers my car rides damn near identical to the way his car does.

Overall thoughts:

I really couldn't be happier with these coilovers. Outside of building a completely custom set up that would easily cost double what this suspension costs I don't think you can find a better set up out there for an S-Chassis car.

I am open to answer questions from anyone. I hope this review is helpful and has shown some light on these coilovers for those of you scratching your head about them.

Here are a few more pictures of the coilovers in action:

A few more hard parked:

5t341tH · 10-06-2009, 10:25 PM

ahh so your the winner

mothon · 10-06-2009, 10:31 PM

Awesome i have fortunes also i pretty much feel the same way as you. I also removed to collars, and will be flipping the lower bracket this weekend. The rears will go way lower than you will ever need them to, and thats without drooping the spring. My only issues with them so far are at speeds under 35mph they are a little bouncy, but im still on the softest settings front and back I probably should increase them a little bit. I sold my daily kouki a few weeks ago so i have been driving on these everyday to school and work. Ill really get to test their performance at lone star bash next weekend. Overall I am very happy with my purchase. I will probably be purchasing another set of these for my zenki in the near future. Hope you dont mind me adding my input here. And the car is a work in progress, i havnt even had it for a month yet.

This is as low as they go without flipping the lower mount in the front. Tires are 225/35/18. Im gonna flip the mount and go down another half in. or so.

95KA-Turbo · 10-06-2009, 10:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 5t341tH

ahh so your the winner

I got chosen off of a local forum. Someone from outside of VA is still going to be chosen on here.

Mothon, I don't mind you adding in your review at all. The dampening just takes a little tweaking to get it just right, I'm sure if you stiffen it up 99.9% of the bounce will be gone.

s13 @ fullboost · 10-06-2009, 11:03 PM

looks sweet

HyperTek · 10-06-2009, 11:35 PM

sweet nice write up, hopefully whoever gets chosen for the zilvia selection wont be like "yo these are tons better then my used blown coilovers thanks for voting for me!" lol

Ali 556 · 10-07-2009, 03:33 AM

Right,,,

So they send you RUSTED coilovers...that why they gave'em for free

Your pic is the proof

MADE · 10-07-2009, 03:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ali 556

Right,,,

So they send you RUSTED coilovers...that why they gave'em for free

Your pic is the proof

I thought I only caught that back ones had some spots also. Could be particles falling from the install though. Where they used or did you wait to do a review? Not knocking it cause after usage none will look flawless.

ayuaddict · 10-07-2009, 03:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ali 556

Right,,,

So they send you RUSTED coilovers...that why they gave'em for free

Your pic is the proof

a steel threaded part on an automobile has a bit of surface rust?

no fucking way!

jhageman · 10-07-2009, 06:07 AM

I actually enjoyed driving my car this spring & summer since i installed these. i put over 2k miles on them which is unheard of for me.
great company to deal with!

shitty cell phone pic

Nick@Fortune-Auto · 10-07-2009, 07:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ali 556

Right,,,

So they send you RUSTED coilovers...that why they gave'em for free

Your pic is the proof

Yeah that is not rust...look at the blotching its red.
Rust is more orange like the rust on his shock towers.
Must be something he bumped up against or particles during install as I hand delivered these myself to him and they were flawless

Nick@Fortune-Auto · 10-07-2009, 07:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MADE

I thought I only caught that back ones had some spots also. Could be particles falling from the install though. Where they used or did you wait to do a review? Not knocking it cause after usage none will look flawless.

Again pointing out that the rears do not have rust. Those are just dirty. He went 2 weekends straight drifting them (1 in the rain) and they got mud all over them. I am not trying to

......just want to make sure that people know that is NOT rust

95KA-Turbo · 10-07-2009, 09:29 AM

Yeah it is not rust, the track I went to before I took those pictures had clayish dirt.

Currently it looks like this:

You can see everything is covered in tire dust, sand, and dirt. My car is just dirty, lol. I even put a date card in there for you guys.

If everyone wants I'll clean my car really good and take more pictures.

Spring Break '92 · 10-08-2009, 05:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 95KA-Turbo

A friend of mine has a 350z with Koni race shocks and Nismo springs. I remember saying to him that I wished my car rode like his does when I had the JICs. I can say for certain that with the Fortune Auto coilovers my car rides damn near identical to the way his car does.

I remember you saying the same thing when you drove my car, but on the way to your house that day you rolled my fenders I can truly say that I-64 in our area is RETARDED screwed up. My S13 with Koni yellow/RSR race springs which are 5K/4.5K still ride rough on those concrete joints and potholes, I can imagine that hitting those things with stiffer rates is a disheartening feeling! Nice to hear that you like the Fortune coils, if I knew about those last year when I put my suspension together I probably would have gotten them instead.

Drifting-pedobear · 10-08-2009, 11:01 AM

very cool. they are pricy too. but you gotta pay to play. (your the exception to that i guess

)

seems like top notch quality here! thanks for the review!

Edgar · 10-08-2009, 11:35 AM

It was really nice meeting you at VIR this past weekend, I cought up with the owner of Fortune and I can honestly say these dudes really stand behind their product and we will soon be carrying them here at Swapped. Every coilover is inspected before leaving their facility. I will be trying a set this upcoming season on my S13. Super Rad!!!!!!

landins13 · 10-08-2009, 11:38 AM

thanks for the review, this definatelly helped my decision of whether or not i want these coilovers

Nick@Fortune-Auto · 10-09-2009, 01:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Edgar @ Swapped

It was really nice meeting you at VIR this past weekend, I cought up with the owner of Fortune and I can honestly say these dudes really stand behind their product and we will soon be carrying them here at Swapped. Every coilover is inspected before leaving their facility. I will be trying a set this upcoming season on my S13. Super Rad!!!!!!

Edgar it was a pleasure meeting with ya man!

VAs13 · 10-09-2009, 02:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 95KA-Turbo

Hello Zilvia!

so I've gotten used to driving around my wonderfully smooth 96 Accord, haha.

that accord that pushes s15s down busy roads? and yes it is wonderfully smooth

Chernobyl · 10-09-2009, 03:40 PM

How is the coil to back-of-wheel clearance on the front? Have you tried the 17x11 +12 wheel up front without using a spacer? (I know this is silly, but maybe you have just for shits).

I assume that utilizing the slotted upper hole on the front strut may give you the extra clearance required.

95KA-Turbo · 10-09-2009, 06:20 PM

My 10 +7 clears but it is definitely close. I'd say they have just as much clearance as any other coilover, no more and no less.

Chernobyl · 10-09-2009, 07:26 PM

Good to know, thanks.

VAs13 · 10-10-2009, 07:43 AM

i love them on my s15. rides like no other

tricky_ab · 10-10-2009, 11:59 AM

God I love your S15...

Quote:

Originally Posted by HyperTek

sweet nice write up, hopefully whoever gets chosen for the zilvia selection wont be like "yo these are tons better then my used blown coilovers thanks for voting for me!" lol

HAHA That's what I was thinking...And thanks for the review OP

Charsiu · 10-12-2009, 04:10 AM

How does this compare to those Stance Coilover you have driven in?
That's really the only thing I wish to know

Thanks!

95KA-Turbo · 10-12-2009, 07:23 AM

I personally like them better then Stance. The Stance were not bad, but the Fortunes handle bumps better - comparing their shock dynos alone will show you that.

d0pe240 · 10-12-2009, 01:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by VAs13

i love them on my s15. rides like no other

how did you get your fronts so low? did you flip the mount like the others said? sick s15 too!

95KA-Turbo · 10-12-2009, 07:35 PM

No he actually only has one collar out. He is on 19s though, so that's why it is so close to the wheel.

*ManoNegra* · 10-12-2009, 07:57 PM

hmmm... I thought ISO 9200 was obsolete
link to company cert?

Nick@Fortune-Auto · 10-12-2009, 10:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ManoNegra

hmmm... I thought ISO 9200 was obsolete
link to company cert?

I think you meant ISO 9002

Fortune Auto Taiwan received there ISO certification several years ago. I honestly do not no much about ISO and if it is renewed or how it exactly works. I was told that to receive ISO certification every coilover must be dyno-ed. I will try and get in contact with the factory tomorrow and see if I can get some documentation.

Again nobody has ever asked for this in all the years that I have sold suspension and I am not very familiar with ISO so I will see what I can do.

Terry

10-06-2009, 10:00 PM	#1
95KA-Turbo Post Whore! Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: LA Age: 38 Posts: 3,402 Trader Rating: (19) Feedback Score: 19 reviews	Product Review - Fortune Auto 500 Series Coilovers Hello Zilvia! I've been a fairly active member of this forum and am happy to review this product for everyone since I know they are an up and coming company. I was lucky enough to be chosen by Fortune Auto to receive a set of their coilovers and have been putting them to great use here on our excessively crappy Virginia roads. I will start off by saying that I was pressed for time (daylight) during the install process and my camera battery was dead so I don't have any pictures of the install. After driving on them at an event I took some pictures of the rear coilovers as I was changing my wheels out and got a picture of the front camber plate/dampening adjustment knob. The products look identical to the pictures on their website: Here are the specs as I am sure a lot of you are not 100% familiar with them: -Dyno tested -Stainless steel body / piston -30-way adjustable dampers -Pillowball mounts -Forged aluminum locking collars -Dust boots on all pistons -50mm piston (beyond the industry standard of 44-47mm) -Anodized aluminum camber plates on front upper-mounts -Fully anodized body -1 year Manufacturer's Warranty -Height adjustment independent of preload -ISO 9002 certification Previously, I had some JIC FLT-A2 coilovers on my S14 since 2007 and on my old S14 I had Megan racing coilovers. I've also ridden in plenty of S-chassis cars with D2, K-Sport, and Stance coilovers. I am running a 9k/7k set up with the Fortune Auto coilovers. On to the review!** I will start off with how low they go. I have the fronts set so they have two collars out but I have not flipped the mounting bracket (which will allow for another inch of drop but will require you to wallow out the bolt holes a little as they are staggered to allow for more camber adjustment). The rear is set like this: They can be lowered all of the way to the collars by the spring....so they go STUPID low out back. Here is a better picture of the rear height: The car is at 23.75" on all four corners (measuring from the center part of the fender to the ground). I am running 17X10/11 +7/+12 with 245/40s and 255/40s so you have an idea as to what sort of wheel/tire set up I have. Here is the picture of the front camber plate (at that setting I have -2.6): Now for the performance and ride quality. I do not daily drive my car any more, so I've gotten used to driving around my wonderfully smooth 96 Accord, haha. After I installed the Fortunes I decided in order to give my best review I would need to drive the car around to work and on a long trip. My job requires me to drive around to different car dealerships so I got to experience the terrible interstates and wavy roads of Hampton Roads (the area of Virginia I live in). In addition to this I did a 200 mile round trip drive to the Outer Banks in NC, making a stop at a local drift event about 120 miles into the trip. During the time I spent driving from dealership to dealership I was adjusting the dampening and I lost count as to where I set the final numbers, but it is somewhere between 15 and 18 clicks (with 30 being full hard and 1 being full soft). I would say after about 100 miles of driving the dampers seemed to really break in well and I noticed the car was riding better then I ever would have imagined and the height was a little lower. The coilovers really handle bumps very well, especially the ones between the seams of concrete on the highway - those are basically not even felt at all. There is an interstate down here called 64 that is known for basically having speed bumps on it and I could drink a drink while driving down it with the Fortunes (with the JICs I would literally get air driving down it). I could easily daily drive this car with these coilovers. I would go so far to say that I would enjoy dailying the S14 again. The only reason I don't daily it now is because I have another car to drive that isn't slammed and I prefer to keep the miles off the S14 (not to mention the S14 is being turned into a track monster this winter ). Performance wise I am extremely happy with the coilovers. I stiffened the fronts up a few clicks from the street settings at VIR this past weekend and it really made a noticeable difference. The fact that the clicks do something in their shock dynos impressed me as well. A friend of mine has a 350z with Koni race shocks and Nismo springs. I remember saying to him that I wished my car rode like his does when I had the JICs. I can say for certain that with the Fortune Auto coilovers my car rides damn near identical to the way his car does. Overall thoughts: I really couldn't be happier with these coilovers. Outside of building a completely custom set up that would easily cost double what this suspension costs I don't think you can find a better set up out there for an S-Chassis car. I am open to answer questions from anyone. I hope this review is helpful and has shown some light on these coilovers for those of you scratching your head about them. Here are a few more pictures of the coilovers in action: A few more hard parked: __________________ Instagram - SJKnoop

10-06-2009, 10:25 PM	#2
5t341tH Post Whore! Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: socal (Huntington Beach) Age: 35 Posts: 2,787 Trader Rating: (14) Feedback Score: 14 reviews	ahh so your the winner __________________ lexus baby

10-06-2009, 10:31 PM	#3
mothon Zilvia Addict Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: oklahoma Age: 38 Posts: 835 Trader Rating: (2) Feedback Score: 2 reviews	Awesome i have fortunes also i pretty much feel the same way as you. I also removed to collars, and will be flipping the lower bracket this weekend. The rears will go way lower than you will ever need them to, and thats without drooping the spring. My only issues with them so far are at speeds under 35mph they are a little bouncy, but im still on the softest settings front and back I probably should increase them a little bit. I sold my daily kouki a few weeks ago so i have been driving on these everyday to school and work. Ill really get to test their performance at lone star bash next weekend. Overall I am very happy with my purchase. I will probably be purchasing another set of these for my zenki in the near future. Hope you dont mind me adding my input here. And the car is a work in progress, i havnt even had it for a month yet. This is as low as they go without flipping the lower mount in the front. Tires are 225/35/18. Im gonna flip the mount and go down another half in. or so. __________________ instagram: madness_garages14

10-06-2009, 11:03 PM	#5
s13 @ fullboost Post Whore! Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: St.Petersburg,FL Posts: 2,549 Trader Rating: (15) Feedback Score: 15 reviews	looks sweet __________________

10-06-2009, 11:35 PM	#6
HyperTek Post Whore! Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Cali Posts: 13,224 Trader Rating: (3) Feedback Score: 3 reviews	sweet nice write up, hopefully whoever gets chosen for the zilvia selection wont be like "yo these are tons better then my used blown coilovers thanks for voting for me!" lol __________________ Keep it Classy

10-07-2009, 03:33 AM	#7
Ali 556 Zilvia Junkie Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Far Far Away...... Posts: 359 Trader Rating: (0) Feedback Score: 0 reviews	Right,,, So they send you RUSTED coilovers...that why they gave'em for free Your pic is the proof __________________ '95 S14 Se With HKS's - BREMBO's - ES/SPL.

10-07-2009, 06:07 AM	#10
jhageman Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: virginia Age: 45 Posts: 25 Trader Rating: (0) Feedback Score: 0 reviews	I actually enjoyed driving my car this spring & summer since i installed these. i put over 2k miles on them which is unheard of for me. great company to deal with! shitty cell phone pic

10-07-2009, 09:29 AM	#13
95KA-Turbo Post Whore! Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: LA Age: 38 Posts: 3,402 Trader Rating: (19) Feedback Score: 19 reviews	Yeah it is not rust, the track I went to before I took those pictures had clayish dirt. Currently it looks like this: You can see everything is covered in tire dust, sand, and dirt. My car is just dirty, lol. I even put a date card in there for you guys. If everyone wants I'll clean my car really good and take more pictures. __________________ Instagram - SJKnoop

10-08-2009, 11:01 AM	#15
Drifting-pedobear Zilvia Addict Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: seattle, wa Age: 33 Posts: 937 Trader Rating: (11) Feedback Score: 11 reviews	very cool. they are pricy too. but you gotta pay to play. (your the exception to that i guess ) seems like top notch quality here! thanks for the review!

10-08-2009, 11:35 AM	#16
Edgar Post Whore! Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Indianapolis,IN Posts: 4,980 Trader Rating: (13) Feedback Score: 13 reviews	It was really nice meeting you at VIR this past weekend, I cought up with the owner of Fortune and I can honestly say these dudes really stand behind their product and we will soon be carrying them here at Swapped. Every coilover is inspected before leaving their facility. I will be trying a set this upcoming season on my S13. Super Rad!!!!!! __________________ Drift Indy

10-08-2009, 11:38 AM	#17
landins13 Zilvia Addict Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Baltimore Posts: 986 Trader Rating: (3) Feedback Score: 3 reviews	thanks for the review, this definatelly helped my decision of whether or not i want these coilovers __________________ NO HANDS IN PANTS!!

10-09-2009, 03:40 PM	#20
Chernobyl Zilvia FREAK! Join Date: May 2003 Location: Denver, CO Age: 41 Posts: 1,563 Trader Rating: (6) Feedback Score: 6 reviews	How is the coil to back-of-wheel clearance on the front? Have you tried the 17x11 +12 wheel up front without using a spacer? (I know this is silly, but maybe you have just for shits). I assume that utilizing the slotted upper hole on the front strut may give you the extra clearance required.

10-09-2009, 06:20 PM	#21
95KA-Turbo Post Whore! Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: LA Age: 38 Posts: 3,402 Trader Rating: (19) Feedback Score: 19 reviews	My 10 +7 clears but it is definitely close. I'd say they have just as much clearance as any other coilover, no more and no less. __________________ Instagram - SJKnoop

10-09-2009, 07:26 PM	#22
Chernobyl Zilvia FREAK! Join Date: May 2003 Location: Denver, CO Age: 41 Posts: 1,563 Trader Rating: (6) Feedback Score: 6 reviews	Good to know, thanks.

10-10-2009, 07:43 AM	#23
VAs13 Nissanaholic! Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Tampa, FL Posts: 2,098 Trader Rating: (28) Feedback Score: 28 reviews	i love them on my s15. rides like no other

10-12-2009, 04:10 AM	#25
Charsiu Leaky Injector Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Bay Area, CA Posts: 97 Trader Rating: (0) Feedback Score: 0 reviews	How does this compare to those Stance Coilover you have driven in? That's really the only thing I wish to know Thanks!

10-12-2009, 07:23 AM	#26
95KA-Turbo Post Whore! Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: LA Age: 38 Posts: 3,402 Trader Rating: (19) Feedback Score: 19 reviews	I personally like them better then Stance. The Stance were not bad, but the Fortunes handle bumps better - comparing their shock dynos alone will show you that. __________________ Instagram - SJKnoop

10-12-2009, 07:35 PM	#28
95KA-Turbo Post Whore! Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: LA Age: 38 Posts: 3,402 Trader Rating: (19) Feedback Score: 19 reviews	No he actually only has one collar out. He is on 19s though, so that's why it is so close to the wheel. __________________ Instagram - SJKnoop

10-12-2009, 07:57 PM	#29
ManoNegra Guild of Skullduggerous Intent Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Socal Posts: 7,841 Trader Rating: (48) Feedback Score: 48 reviews	hmmm... I thought ISO 9200 was obsolete link to company cert?