[Tyron]

http://www.rocky-road.com/bolton-samurai-spoa.html
Anyone got any experience using one of these.
The main reason I'm looking is because it's bolton, so if i do get defected.
I can just through the springs back under and put the stockies in.
Just would like to know if anyone has used one?

[alien]

no such thing as a well built bolt on SPOA mate... too many things change for it to be totally bolt on and not dodgy in some aspect. Don't bother.

[defibros]

what about the Calmini version?

http://www.puresuzuki.com/complete_spoa.htm

[zooky08]

Whats the reason you want to go spoa

[BlueSuzy]

If you go spoa. Weld the mounts and leave your originals. The suspension can still be easily reversed then.


Just make your front flex well, and you can drive everything in WA

[Tyron]

Just wanted to see if anyone has used it. and for the price i can get it for, works out cheaper than a 2inch susp lift.
I'll have a think about it and write a review on how it goes if i do buy it.

[Red89]

Try pming Hottuna they dont get on here much, they ran the Rockyroad Spoa kit on theirs for a while.

[Gwagensteve]

1997 called. They want their suspension back...

Tyron wrote:

... for the price i can get it for, works out cheaper than a 2inch susp lift.
I'll have a think about it and write a review on how it goes if i do buy it.

It's tempting to think this is just a SPOA vs SPUA debate, but it's not, this is just a rubbish kit, and I don't need to have experience with it to know that. Many many people thought they could build a quick, easy SPOA back in the day and be rocking hektic clearance and flex in a weekend, but history has shown it's a bit more complex than that.

Have a really good look at what's included and where you're going to want to add "upgrades" to sort out the little compromises and you're going to quickly realise this "kit" is neither good value or "able to be put back to stock"

Firstly, a "Z" link does nothing to correct the significant bumpsteer SPOA cars suffer. You'll need some form of hi steer to get steering back to even stock. Hi steer kits are fairly expensive and won't work when SPUA, so it's one more thing to pull off to put the car back. Z links are hack. Hi steer is really a requirement.

This kit includes no shocks.

This kit provides no bumpstops. That's why it provides "super flex" - those springs are being over compressed. Spring life is short when they are overcompressed. Fabricating some proper bumpstop extensions (and lands on the U-bolt plates) will be required and whilst that might be achievable as a "bolt on", it's one more thing to sort out.

The brake lines included in this kit will not have an ADR approval and will need to be replaced with approved lines.

This kit contains no means of controlling axle wrap. Once the rear springs are all whack from being overcompressed, they're going to wrap like a bitch. That's going to kill unis.

All up, SPOA is a whole lot of work and $$ to get right. Really. A whole lot. You're messing with most of the critical systems of the car. Most people found it really hard to work all the bugs out. Short spring and uni life are the primary problems, but it's hard to be motivated to sort those bugs out when the car feels spooky off road anyway because of its height.

What do you achieve at the end of it? 5" of lift. Are you sure you needed 5" of (suspension) lift in the first place? I'm not sure. I know I don't.

Take a step back and work out what you want your car to do and what tyre you want to run. I'm going to suggest neither require 5" of lift, or a half baked spring over to do it.

Steve.

[Tyron]

Gwagensteve wrote:

1997 called. They want their suspension back...

Tyron wrote:

... for the price i can get it for, works out cheaper than a 2inch susp lift.
I'll have a think about it and write a review on how it goes if i do buy it.

It's tempting to think this is just a SPOA vs SPUA debate, but it's not, this is just a rubbish kit, and I don't need to have experience with it to know that. Many many people thought they could build a quick, easy SPOA back in the day and be rocking hektic clearance and flex in a weekend, but history has shown it's a bit more complex than that.

Have a really good look at what's included and where you're going to want to add "upgrades" to sort out the little compromises and you're going to quickly realise this "kit" is neither good value or "able to be put back to stock"

Firstly, a "Z" link does nothing to correct the significant bumpsteer SPOA cars suffer. You'll need some form of hi steer to get steering back to even stock. Hi steer kits are fairly expensive and won't work when SPUA, so it's one more thing to pull off to put the car back. Z links are hack. Hi steer is really a requirement.

This kit includes no shocks.

This kit provides no bumpstops. That's why it provides "super flex" - those springs are being over compressed. Spring life is short when they are overcompressed. Fabricating some proper bumpstop extensions (and lands on the U-bolt plates) will be required and whilst that might be achievable as a "bolt on", it's one more thing to sort out.

The brake lines included in this kit will not have an ADR approval and will need to be replaced with approved lines.

This kit contains no means of controlling axle wrap. Once the rear springs are all whack from being overcompressed, they're going to wrap like a bitch. That's going to kill unis.

All up, SPOA is a whole lot of work and $$ to get right. Really. A whole lot. You're messing with most of the critical systems of the car. Most people found it really hard to work all the bugs out. Short spring and uni life are the primary problems, but it's hard to be motivated to sort those bugs out when the car feels spooky off road anyway because of its height.

What do you achieve at the end of it? 5" of lift. Are you sure you needed 5" of (suspension) lift in the first place? I'm not sure. I know I don't.

Take a step back and work out what you want your car to do and what tyre you want to run. I'm going to suggest neither require 5" of lift, or a half baked spring over to do it.

Steve.

Thanks Steve, that's a lot of things to consider
90 percent of my driving will be road with 10 percent being split between
offroad which consists of driving on beach & Mud.
Most of the offroad i do never involves flexing.
Ths idea is to get the car a decent amount of the ground whilst being able to change it back if i get defected.
this is why i dont want to do a chassis extension, moving spring hanger mounts and re welding stuff.
It'll be alot harder to convert it back to standard.
I'm all open to suggestions, I just wanted to see if anyone has used this kit

[Fatzook]

Tyron wrote:

Most of the offroad i do never involves flexing.
Ths idea is to get the car a decent amount of the ground whilst being able to change it back if i get defected.

Sounds like a 2" suspension lift and 2" body lift would get you what you want. Both are legal ( mod plate required for B/L).

Add some 31's, and you can't go wrong.

JMO
Peter

[Gwagensteve]

What's your planned tyre size?

Steve

[Tyron]

Thanks Fatty,
Problem is, I'll get defected for the tyres anyway.
I have some 33's but i'm really starting to think of selling them and just getting 31's
Too reduce the amount of work required.

[Fatzook]

Tyron wrote:

Thanks Fatty,
Problem is, I'll get defected for the tyres anyway.
I have some 33's but i'm really starting to think of selling them and just getting 31's
Too reduce the amount of work required.

Yes, the tyres will still earn you a defect. But how much easier will it be to clear said defect, if all you have to do is go home and swap shoes? SPOA is VERY involved to get right, and is not what I would call reversable ( when done properly)

[Gwagensteve]

^ This = the truth.

2" BL, 2" Spring, bumpstop spacing, redrill front spring plates, and some guard work will get 33's on. You'd probably be happier with 31's though, long term.

Bear in mind too - there's no way that SPOA kit will fit 33's if you don't heavily limit the "super flex" so guard work, bumpstop spacing etc anyway. Might as well just do the bumpstops guards in the first place rather than that on top of troubleshooting a dodgy SPOA.

Steve.