“Rally” Suspension Setups

[minikiwi]

Hey all! Glad to finally be here. I got what is basically my dream 2016 Fiesta ST about a month ago and have been loving every second. I’m starting to look into building it a bit, and one of the things I’m most interested in is getting some rally style suspension for the winter. I don’t live in the snow, but I live super close to the mountains and would love to be able to rip up in the snow to the resort for some skiing anytime I like. I’d also enjoy ripping it along some gravel roads that are a bit more local. All that’s to say I don’t want to give up too much road performance, as I don’t love the idea of swapping my suspension out every season, but if I don’t really have a choice in order to achieve what I want to achieve, I’d be willing to go that route. I bought it with some relatively inexpensive but well reviewed coil overs already installed, and it seems to have lowered the car about 1/2” and made it a bit stiffer, which is obviously not ideal for rough surfaces. I’ve done a bit of research on suspension setups for snow/gravel, but I’m having a hard time understanding the pros/cons of the more common ones. Does anyone have any advice or recommendation for me? I’d like to avoid going for anything super expensive, but I don’t mind paying a premium if it’s something that will make a noticeable difference. Thanks!

 

[M-Sport fan]

You will pay a ridiculou$ 'premium' for the only true, proven effective fully developed rally suspension for these cars (whether you opt for the gravel or the better on road handling tarmac setup), the Rieger R2/Rally 4 Fiesta remote reservoir setup developed by M-Sport.

This runs from ~$4K USD used and rebuilt to almost $10K USD new (probably more with the effing tariffs now).
These also need to be fully re-built on a given rough use schedule as well, which will co$t, and have the car down unless you have something to use in the meantime.

For something much more workable and reasonable with better longevity, see this thread on this very forum;

https://www.fiestastforum.com/threa...ce-springs-for-oem-b6-style-suspension.30829/

 

[minikiwi]

You will pay a ridiculou$ 'premium' for the only true, proven effective fully developed rally suspension for these cars (whether you opt for the gravel or the better on road handling tarmac setup), the Rieger R2/Rally 4 Fiesta remote reservoir setup developed by M-Sport.

This runs from ~$4K USD used and rebuilt to almost $10K USD new (probably more with the effing tariffs now).
These also need to be fully re-built on a given rough use schedule as well, which will co$t, and have the car down unless you have something to use in the meantime.

For something much more workable and reasonable with better longevity, see this thread on this very forum;

https://www.fiestastforum.com/threa...ce-springs-for-oem-b6-style-suspension.30829/

Awesome thank you. Have you heard anything about the Yellow Speed Dynamic Pro Gravel setup? Besides Riegers and the B6 struts combined with TBD springs, it’s the only other system i’ve seen that doesn’t lower your ride height/is actually marketed towards rally.

 

[Dialcaliper]

Awesome thank you. Have you heard anything about the Yellow Speed Dynamic Pro Gravel setup? Besides Riegers and the B6 struts combined with TBD springs, it’s the only other system i’ve seen that doesn’t lower your ride height/is actually marketed towards rally.

What M-Sport said. Reigers are expensive and high quality, Yellow speed are middle of the road and still not cheap. But regardless, especially if you have harsh winters, any decent coilover has a fairly short service life between recommended teardown and rebuilds. Usually on the order of 20,000 street miles.

That’s part of the multiple reasons I came up with the “Rally” spring set to pair with stock style struts. I chose B6 non adjustable Bilsteins because they have a good reputation for longevity. Happy to answer questions about the setup - I was quite happy with it while I was still running it. If you don’t see the answer in the thread, feel free to add a response there so others can see it as well. I wish I could get that post stickied.

 

[minikiwi]

Awesome

What M-Sport said. Reigers are expensive and high quality, Yellow speed are middle of the road and still not cheap. But regardless, especially if you have harsh winters, any decent coilover has a fairly short service life between recommended teardown and rebuilds. Usually on the order of 20,000 street miles.

That’s part of the multiple reasons I came up with the “Rally” spring set to pair with stock style struts. I chose B6 non adjustable Bilsteins because they have a good reputation for longevity. Happy to answer questions about the setup - I was quite happy with it while I was still running it. If you don’t see the answer in the thread, feel free to add a response there so others can see it as well. I wish I could get that post stickied.

Awesome, thank you so much! I do still have a few questions so I’ll be sure to ask them in that thread. Thanks for paving the way for the rest of us!