Testimonial

Performance Ford Magazine - PB Coilovers Review

Cubby's Mk2 Focus ST

This month I prepared the ST for its rolling road marathon! We tested the Anembo Engineering inlet plenum along with five different engine maps and the results were very interesting! Take a look in our tech section in next month's issue for the results...

The PB coilovers also arrived this month so I decided to get them on as soon as possible. The swap over was a relatively easy job since the front shocks were already assembled. I removed the old shocks and adjusted the camber tops with as much positive camber as possible as a starting point. One thing to note is, due to the design of the ST, once the shocks are fitted in place it's not possible to adjust the camber since the suspension turret is enclosed. I made sure the ride height was the same on both shocks using a measuring tape then fitted the front struts. I left the height adjusters loose in case I needed to adjust the ride height. I also set the compression settings to 15; this was again a starting point of halfway since there are 30 settings.

The rear setup was even simpler. I removed the pinch bolt that connects the bottom arm to the hub and the one that connects the shock to the hub, allowing me to remove the rear springs. Then the shock can be removed by removing the two 10mm retaining bolts in the inside of the suspension turret. Next job was to set the springs and shocks to the correct height. For the springs it was a bit of guesswork. I made them 20mm lower than the Eibach's since I wanted the car to sit a bit lower at the back. To set the shocks I compressed the lower arm to the point that the hub retaining bolt would fit. I then adjusted the shock to the correct length so the hub retaining bolt for this would also fit. The compression was set to 15 on the rear, just like the fronts.

When I let the car down off the ramp the front sat perfectly but the rear was too low! I then simply lifted the ramp back up, locked the front adjusters and turned the rears up four full turns. To adjust the rear it was easier to take the shock and bottom arm pinch bolts back out and after the second attempt the car set perfectly.

Out on the road the ST felt like a different car! There was no body roll anymore and the car felt so agile and the steering was so responsive. It's been a while since I drove a car on coilovers so it took a little while to get used to. The ride quality felt no different to the Eibach springs I previously had fitted so the kids won't be jumping about in the back and after a week of driving I decided to...

...stiffen the front up to 23 and the rear to 20 making things a little firmer without sacrificing much ride quality.

PB will send these coilovers to Europe for £599 including shipping and for an extra £50 it will add a set of camber adjustable top mounts. It stocks these for a large range of Fords; for more details check out its website A huge thanks to Dan from PB Brakes, these shocks have transformed the ST. Now all I need to do is convince the missus that a Knockhill track night is a good idea!

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