These superb new designs are aimed at a wide variety of vehicles, with diameters, widths and fitments covering almost every car you can think of, from prestige and sports marques, through to tuner and mainstream manufacturers.

The first wheel is the AEZ Valencia. Proving that a classically designed multi-spoke will never be out of fashion, the Valencia features an attractive ‘pinched’ design at the end of each spoke, combined with an beautifully sculpted inner bowl around the bolt holes to create a timeless design that will suit almost any car. Available in either Premium Silver or Black with a polished face, the Valencia is a true ‘OEM+’ design.

Size wise, Choose from either 7×16, 7×17, 8×17, 8×18, 8.5×19, 9.5×19, 8.5×20, 9×20, allowing for the perfect fitment to be obtained, and the popular ‘staggered’ look to be achieved in 17” and 19” sizes. Prices start from £135 + VAT.

The Dezent RE also follows another classic genre, being an elegant 5 spoke. This too has a choice of colour options; silver for those looking for a more ‘factory fresh’ demeanour, or moody satin black for those that aren’t. Not only does this wheel represent excellent value, starting at just £90 +VAT, but it also comes in no less than 12 different sizes, ranging from 5.5×14” right up to 8×19”.

Both designs are fully TUV approved and are finished to Wheelwright’s own stringent quality control procedures. Best of all, thanks to Wheelwright’s innovative ‘Shopatron’ technology, you can browse for your wheels in the comfort of your home, before having them delivered to your local dealer for mounting and fitting. What could be more convenient than that? Click to www.wheelwright.co.uk for more details.

AEZ’s designers paid special attention to the larger Bavarian variants, creating a wheel design that complements the Munich manufacturer’s design language perfectly, whilst being the exact size, offset and dish to endow each vehicle with a decidedly ‘OEM+’ flavour.

Based loosely on the timeless ‘cross spoke’ genre, the new Antigua offers a modern day interpretation of this popular style, with the added attraction of a deeply concaved face and ten slim spokes that run right to the very edge of the rim, to enhance the optical size of the wheel. The design of the wheel gives it little visual ‘weight’ in the centre, making for an elegant, balanced design that will enhance any BMW.

Two finishes are available, and both enjoy full TUV approval, Choose from either the perfect silver hues of the Antigua or the sultry satin tones of the Antigua Dark. Size wise, an impressive array of five fitments offers plenty of choice, whichever model of BMW is the intended recipient. 8.0×18”, 8.5×19”, 9.5×19”,  8.5×20” and 9.5×20” versions are available in both colours.

Prices start at £200 For the 18” version – and thanks to Wheelwright’s innovative ‘Shopatron’ technology, you can browse for your wheels in the comfort of your home, before having them delivered to your local dealer for mounting and fitting. What could be more convenient than that? Click to www.wheelwright.co.uk for more details.

Respected American transmission company Competition Clutch is building on the sales success of its diverse race-quality clutch range by opening a dedicated UK sales office and logistics centre.

Competition Clutch has partnered with industry leading logistics provider Universal Automotive to allow UK end-users and retailers to enjoy the same levels of stockholding and customer service that has made the brand so popular in its native USA.

Based in Kidderminster, Universal Automotive’s state-of-the-art, 40,000 square foot, computer controlled facility will carry all popular Competition Clutch lines for immediate delivery, with the ability to rapidly order more specialist products from the states with very short lead times. Universal are also the logistics partners for household names like Denso, Brembo and Monroe.

At present the Competition Clutch range covers literally hundred fitments and includes fast road and motorsport clutch kits, discs and flywheels. The range has already found favour in the UK, being the first choice of many drag racers and drifters as well as being specified as a control part for one-make racing series like the Buddy Club Civic Cup.

Commenting on this latest development, Dan McCarny, sales manager for Competition Clutch said ‘We are delighted to be able to offer our UK customers a dedicated call centre and customer service team, as well as the fact that by working with Universal, we can increase our inventory of parts and improve our speed of delivery. This is a great partnership for us that will allow us to build on the success and hard work of our existing UK dealer network.’

For more details on the Competition Clutch range, please visit www.competitionclutch.com or call the UK team on 01562 512 512

The BILSTEIN B16 kit represents the pinnacle of suspension performance, allowing the owner to fine-tune the ride height and stance to suit their own needs. Each damper unit has nine steps of adjustment, with bump and rebound being changed together in a carefully pre-set ratio to ensure that the car retains impeccable manners. With a damping range that offers either limo smoothness, track control or indeed, anything in-between, the B16 kit truly allows you to have two cars in one.

This latest kit offers OEM levels of fit, finish and ride quality, coupled with significant improvements in handling. Everything included in the kit has been designed and produced entirely in-house in BILSTEIN’s cutting-edge German production facilities and uses many of the material and production techniques that the firm has developed from its extensive motorsport programme.

Thanks to precision-machined threaded steel bodies, the BILSTEIN B16 kits offer 20mm of ride height adjustment from a lower starting point, which equates to a drop of between -30mm and -50mm. This is regarded by most engineers to be the most that it is possible to lower a vehicle before handling becomes adversely affect and safety is compromised.

As with all BILSTEIN performance products, this kit has been extensively proven. Not only in BILSTEIN’s extensive laboratory set-up, but more importantly, at the Papenburg test facility, where the firm has its unparalleled research centre. Here, both kits were ‘shaken down’ by real, live test drivers, to ensure that these upgrades don’t just work well in a computer simulation, but can offer ride quality and peerless handling whether fully loaded or on the poorest of surfaces.

As you might expect from the World’s leading original equipment manufacturer, both kits carry full TUV approval and 12 months warranty. The complete B16 is priced at £1530.00 + VAT.

For more details, please visit www.BILSTEIN.de or call the UK office on 0116 2478930

The E30 version of the BMW’s capable 3 series is considered by many to be one of the finest platforms for development, due to its light weight, neutral handling and wide range of tuneable engines. BILSTEIN’s B8 damper package helps to significantly enhance the dynamic abilities of the car, working in perfect harmony with either the OEM springs or better still, with any quality aftermarket offerings. The units are set to work particularly well with lowered and uprated spring packages and are available in a variety of fitments to suit the many power-plants available across the E30 range.

The BILSTEIN B8 range is designed for those looking for more damping capability, with improved handling and reduced squat and dive, without ruining everyday ride comfort. Using the very latest in BILSTEIN gas pressure technology and inverted monotube construction, each unit is hand finished in BILSTEIN’s German factory to surpass even the most stringent of OEM production standards.

The monotube BILSTEIN dampers in this kit draw heavily from the firm’s motorsport heritage and are vastly superior to the twin-tube design fitted by most manufacturers. After full dyno analysis, each kit application has been signed off by BILSTEIN test drivers and engineers at both the Nürburgring as well as the industry-leading Papenburg test facility – hence the reason that the BILSTEIN B8 kit offers such a peerless ride and handling balance.

Offering significantly greater service life than the standard part, the BILSTEIN B8 dampers also increase active safety through more efficient braking, better traction and improved handling.

Improve comfort, safety and driving enjoyment from just £124.00 each (front) + £95.00 each (rear). All prices exclude VAT.

For more details etc please click to www.bilstein.de or call BILSTEIN UK on 0116 247 8930.

Having long been regarded as the benchmark in high-performance road and track suspension across a wide range of performance and tuner cars, the Road and Track range brings Öhlins unparalleled competition knowledge and peerless build quality to the Porsche marque. Owners of the 996 Carrera and GT3 models, as well as the much vaunted 997 Carrera already know a thing or two about handling finesse, but the Öhlins kit allows dedicated drivers and true enthusiasts to really test the limits of these capable cars – as well as finally solving the puzzle of how to achieve a truly comfortable ride from competition-quality units.

Stuttgart’s finest exports make a superb blank canvas with which to enjoy the artistry of Öhlins hand-finished damper units. Each damper uses the very latest motorsport-derived material choice and manufacturing techniques to offer superb longevity, exceptional performance and infinite adjust-ability.

Although both front and rear coilovers follow a loosely conventional shock absorber design, this is where all similarities to other commercially available contemporaries end. With single bleed and preload adjustment, the Öhlins units also feature inbuilt height adjustment. Build quality is exceptional, with carbon-steel bodies and flawlessly anodised detailing. Öhlins pioneering dual-flow valve technology means that despite their lighter weight and slim-line profile, the Road and Track kit responds to road undulations in exactly the same manner as a traditional Macpherson strut set-up. The use of needle valves in the damping unit also means that even when the oil becomes hot after a hard session on the circuit or ‘B’ road, the damping rate is kept absolutely consistent, even when the viscosity of the damping fluid changes. Better still, the Öhlins units keep height adjustment separate from spring seat adjustment, ensuring that spring rate is kept constant, throughout the full range of suspension travel.

Height adjustment is achieved by simple adjustment of the precision-machined threaded body.  Compression and rebound are tweaked simultaneously in one simple twist of the easily accessible knurled knob; allowing the daily commute to be clicked off with OEM smoothness.  However, after a few seconds of adjustment, track days can be dispatched with racecar precision. Both front and rear units feature full dust and weather protection, making them the ideal upgrade for cars that are used in all seasons. Being designed for one of the harshest of European climates, the Öhlins dampers have been proven to surpass the gruelling ISO 9227 Salt Spray test, making them the ideal fitment for cars that are enjoyed in the ‘real world’ and for 12 months of the year.

This unparalleled quality helps to explain Öhlins 2 year warranty and thanks to their racing heritage, each unit is fully serviceable and even upgradeable, should requirements or car specs change. Remove your interior and strip out for weight? No problem. The units can be revalved and changed, as well as being able to accommodate a wide variety of proprietary aftermarket springs for cars that spend more time on track and require a custom spring rate.

The prices are as follows:

Porsche 996 Carrera, full set £2354.20+VAT

Porsche 996 GT3, full set £2185.60+VAT

Porsche 997 Carrera, full set £2342.70+VAT

For more information on this kit, please click to http://www.roadandtrackbyohlins.com/en/ or call Öhlins UK on 0203 286 3127.

The new BILSTEIN B14 kits offer OEM levels of fit, finish and ride quality, coupled with a significant improvement in handling and stance. Designed and produced entirely in-house in BILSTEIN’s cutting-edge German production facilities, this fixed damping rate kit represents a direct ‘bolt-on’ enhancement to all variants of the capable hatch.

Thanks to precision-machined threaded steel bodies, the BILSTEIN kits offer 20mm of ride height adjustment from a lower starting point, which equates to a drop of between -30mm and -50mm. This is regarded by most engineers to be the most that it is possible to lower a vehicle before handling becomes adversely affected and components are moved too far out of plane – meaning safety is compromised.

The B14 kit comes with a pre-set damping rate, allowing the owner to fine-tune the ride height and stance to suit their own needs. The springs and dampers are perfectly matched to endow the car with handling performance that works well on both road and track.

As with all BILSTEIN performance products, the BILSTEIN B14 kits have been extensively proven. Not only in BILSTEIN’s extensive laboratory set-up, but more importantly, at the Papenburg test facility, where the company has its states-of-the-art research centre. Here, the DS3 kit was ‘shaken down’ by real, live test drivers, to ensure that this upgrades don’t just work well in a computer simulation, but can offer ride quality and peerless handling whether fully loaded or on the poorest of surfaces.

As you might expect from the World’s leading original equipment manufacturer, the kit carries full TUV approval and 12 months warranty. The B14 kit is priced at £608.00+ VAT.

]]> http://www.maxxd.co.uk/new-bilstein-b14-coilover-system-for-citroen-ds3/feed/ 0 http://www.maxxd.co.uk/eibach-launches-new-mini-coupe-suspension-enhancements/ http://www.maxxd.co.uk/eibach-launches-new-mini-coupe-suspension-enhancements/#comments Fri, 13 Apr 2012 08:18:31 +0000 maxxd http://www.maxxd.net/?p=1905 Respected suspension manufacturer Eibach has released a suspension upgrade package for BMW’s cheeky new Mini Coupe.

The exciting new two-seater Mini may be the new kid on the block, but thanks to unparalleled access to chassis data and one of the fastest speed-to-market times in the industry, Eibach already has a fully tested kit available that will allow enthusiasts to lower their cars by around 30mm.

The springs feature unique progressive winding technology that has been optimised to work perfectly with the factory dampers. Ride quality is maintained at OEM levels, despite the car’s newfound poise and handling improvement. The kit is priced at £145.22 + VAT and comes with a comprehensive 5 year warranty thanks to an industry-leading surface treatment and deep electrostatic powder coating. Each spring is pre-stressed at the factory in Germany to ensure that it will never sag later in life for a consistent ride height and peerless handling performance.

Also available is a range of precision machined Pro-Spacer kits that can be fitted to give any factory or aftermarket alloys a track increase of between 10 and 50mm. These hub centric spacers start at just £34.78 + VAT per pair.

As the ultimate in automotive perfection, Retro British styling and German precision engineering are doubtless a pretty hard combination to beat.

For more information on the Eibach range of chassis enhancements, please call 01455 285851 or click to www.eibach.com

Like the earlier version, the new CC handles extremely well in standard trim, making it the perfect recipient for a subtle visual drop with improved dynamics. In standard form the car is finely balanced and a brilliant drive, but for those looking to achieve the ultimate in pin-point handling, without upsetting the VW’s superb road manners, Eibach have released a selection of chassis upgrades to endow the Passat with unparalleled handling. This is achieved without inducing harshness or spoiling the car’s balance and works perfectly in tandem with the magnetic damping system, where fitted.

The Pro-Kit lowers the car by approximately 30mm and offers an a more aggressive stance, better handling and grip due to a lower centre of gravity and improved braking and steering dynamics thanks to reduced dive, roll and squat. Eibach’s unique progressive winding technology offers everyday comfort at low speeds and during cruising, balanced by exceptional handling and feedback during hard cornering.

This can be improved further with the application of the Anti-Roll kit. These precision-engineered bars decrease the load difference between the inner and outer wheels during cornering, neutralizing understeer and maintaining spring comfort under bilateral deflection. The upshot of this is a car that corners flatter, without any increase in harshness.

For drivers seeking the ultimate in dynamics and aesthetics, Eibach also offer a wide selection of Pro-Spacers. These are precision manufactured, hub-centring spacers which are machined from aerospace grade aluminium. Available in a wide variety of widths, they are the perfect way to increase the track measurement of the car for enhanced steering feel and ‘turn in’.

The Pro-Kit retails at £187.83 + VAT and the Pro-Spacer kits start from £34.78 + VAT per pair for the 5mm versions. The Anti-Roll kit completes the package at £265.22 +VAT.

For more information on the Eibach range of chassis enhancements, please call 01455 285851 or click to www.eibach.com

The PX500 system is based around a smart aluminium baseplate, which is tailored for each application. Versions for the Honda Fireblade and Blackbird engines are available, as well as the Suzuki Hyabusa and both 1000 and 600 GSXR powerplants. Blank plates are also available for tuners needing to create a bespoke application.

For those looking for optimum surface area and where space isn’t an issue, the ‘box’ filter offers a neat and hugely effective method of induction. Its increased height also allows the use of velocity stacks, where appropriate. Also available is the low profile ‘domed’ filter, which is ideal where space is at a premium, for example, when carbs or throttle bodies end up being close to the bonnet or bodywork. The filters affix to the base plates with Dzus fasteners, which allow for rapid removal and replacement and can be ordered in either ‘race’ or ‘off road’ foam specifications, as well as a variety of heights to cope with differing induction set-ups.

All filters use Pipercross’ unique multi-layered foam construction, which means not only means a higher rate of flow, but also that, compared to even the leading cotton-gauze replacements, Pipercross foam filters can go for up to three times longer before needing any servicing or cleaning. This can be done indefinitely for the life of the filter. Little wonder then that most of the front three rows of the BTCC grid will run Pipercross filtration this season.

Prices start at just £69.99 for the box or domed elements, with the modular baseplate costing £29.99.. All prices exclude VAT.

For more details on the 3,000 vehicles covered by the Pipercross range, please visit www.pipercross.com or call the team on 01604 707750.