Bilstein PSS9's for a 2003 NB

[RJ45]

Fellow owners of impractical motor cars, I seek guidance and advice.

The Aussie dollar is way high & I need a holiday, so I'm off to the US, as I haven't had a holiday for way too long.
I plan to bring back some new suspension, in my luggage, splitting it with the missus so I have more than just the clothes on me.

Actually I lied, I seek justification of a decision already made, unless I start hearing horror stories that make me reconsider.
I have a certain admiration of ze crazy Germans, so I want the Bilstein PSS9 Coilover kit.

I drive to work & also when I'm bored but can't sleep, no racing, yet, but would like to.
I need it to be comfortable on the street, can handle stiff, just don't want to have fillings checked each month.

Does anyone else have this setup on a 2003 or similar? Would you recommend it?

[Bizi]

There's at least one MX5 person rocking PSS9s on a dark blue NB8A who gets along to some MX5 club events. I've dríven that car up the hill to Pie in the Sky and the handling is terrific.

How much would a couple of the coilovers weigh? I think you'd get two bags per person with generous kg allowance (32kg?) so one per checked bag x4 could be fine.

[Caffeine]

Does anyone else have this setup on a 2003 or similar? Would you recommend it?

Rodd had PSS9's on his 2002 NB8B and it was fantastic. 2003 will be the same. One of the best suspension setups for the NB.

[surok]

Pss9s are awesome, they are very stiff, but thats what you want. german quality!

[RJ45]

How much would a couple of the coilovers weigh? I think you'd get two bags per person with generous kg allowance (32kg?) so one per checked bag x4 could be fine.

I'm told the kit is 42pounds, that's 19Kg in the modern system, as it's summer over there I won't need heavy clothing, so I will have room for this, but will split it with a friend, carrying back half each.

According to my research, the duty free allowance is currently $900, so I plan to offer some beer money if they'll give me seperate receipts for front & rear to make things easier on the way back (my mate is on a different flight)

[RJ45]

Pss9s are awesome, they are very stiff, but thats what you want. german quality!

Any idea how much stiffer, than stock, when on the softest setting?

[sledgehammer]

Hey RJ45 Love the states went twice in the space of 5 months (First one 4 weeks, Second 3 weeks). Where in the states are you traveling to? Travel as light as possible as you can buy your clothes from there (It's mega cheap)

As for the bilsteins PSS9 i believe are the older models PSS10 is the new product.

There is no way your going to be able to bring the shocks back in your luggage! Shocks need to be ground freighted, not through the air. You'll need organize your shipping before you leave, dont assume they let you take it.

Other mechanical parts like rods and pistons, engine mounts, bushes things like that dont get questioned but when they do screen your luggage they will open your bags and have a peek around.

Sometimes its just better to buy stuff from here hassle free.

Enjoy your trip im very jealous

[pcmx5]

[quote="sledgehammer"]There is no way your going to be able to bring the shocks back in your luggage! Shocks need to be ground freighted, not through the air. You'll need organize your shipping before you leave, dont assume they let you take it.

Not sure if I have misunderstood what you mean but my mate bought Billy's from the Us and they arrived in about 7 days,so obviously did not come by sea!!Were you meaning they would be too heavy for luggage?

Cost him $2100 all up fitted in Aus, about $1700 cost from the US and the Aus $ wasn't as strong then.

Peter.

[RJ45]

Hey RJ45 Love the states went twice in the space of 5 months (First one 4 weeks, Second 3 weeks). Where in the states are you traveling to? Travel as light as possible as you can buy your clothes from there (It's mega cheap)

As for the bilsteins PSS9 i believe are the older models PSS10 is the new product.

There is no way your going to be able to bring the shocks back in your luggage! Shocks need to be ground freighted, not through the air. You'll need organize your shipping before you leave, dont assume they let you take it.

Other mechanical parts like rods and pistons, engine mounts, bushes things like that dont get questioned but when they do screen your luggage they will open your bags and have a peek around.

Sometimes its just better to buy stuff from here hassle free.

Enjoy your trip im very jealous

1 month solid, LA, SF, NY, Vegas, Boston, Toronto and more, planning to land in LA with the clothes on me + backpack containing spare underwear + a Tshirt. I'll have no money when I get back, but I get back 2 days before payday

The PSS9's are for NA/NB, whereas PSS10's are for NC onwards, I don't think i'll miss one extra adjustment.

Damn, I would have thought I could bring the shocks as long as it's under the weight limit, but will double check with the Airline to be certain, and investigate shipping costs, Thanks for bringing it up so I can plan ahead

Note to self: MX5 batteries are pricey, so must remember to disconnect car battery before I leave.

[NMX516]

I've got PSS9's on my '02 NB. Bought them from shox.com last November and air freight to Brisbane was ~$200. They arrived in less than a week. I would not stuff around with the hassle of having them in my luggage, especially when DHL freight is so cheap. They're quite heavy, and excess luggage charges can be huge.

Performance wise they're fantastic, you won't regret having them. Mine are set to 7 out of a possible 9 settings, with 1 being hardest and 9 softest. They sometimes feel a bit stiff on rough surfaces, but 90% of the time they're very comfortable, and I've still got two softer settings to go... I'd buy them again for sure.

PSS10's are for the NC.

[sledgehammer]

Hey RJ45 Love the states went twice in the space of 5 months (First one 4 weeks, Second 3 weeks). Where in the states are you traveling to? Travel as light as possible as you can buy your clothes from there (It's mega cheap)

As for the bilsteins PSS9 i believe are the older models PSS10 is the new product.

There is no way your going to be able to bring the shocks back in your luggage! Shocks need to be ground freighted, not through the air. You'll need organize your shipping before you leave, dont assume they let you take it.

Other mechanical parts like rods and pistons, engine mounts, bushes things like that dont get questioned but when they do screen your luggage they will open your bags and have a peek around.

Sometimes its just better to buy stuff from here hassle free.

Enjoy your trip im very jealous

1 month solid, LA, SF, NY, Vegas, Boston, Toronto and more, planning to land in LA with the clothes on me + backpack containing spare underwear + a Tshirt. I'll have no money when I get back, but I get back 2 days before payday

The PSS9's are for NA/NB, whereas PSS10's are for NC onwards, I don't think i'll miss one extra adjustment.

Damn, I would have thought I could bring the shocks as long as it's under the weight limit, but will double check with the Airline to be certain, and investigate shipping costs, Thanks for bringing it up so I can plan ahead

Note to self: MX5 batteries are pricey, so must remember to disconnect car battery before I leave.

Awesome stuff. Dont get too disappointed when you land at LAX the first suburb Inglewood is a dump. Try to get out of there asap. Worked for Hertz Australia (Its America + cheap rates for us) if your renting a car GPS is a must. If your taxi-ing grab a known one and dont listen to the guys offering you a limo for the same price they'll keep driving around and around to get more money and whatever you do DONT forget to tip. Vegas is its own little world, like, think of something and it can be done at Vegas. Do grand canyon while your there. New York was my favourite, Frisco try their famous Clam Chowdor Soup. Get up early and stay out late dont waste a day cause you WILL run out of time.

My bad about the PSS10!

There is no way your going to be able to bring the shocks back in your luggage! Shocks need to be ground freighted, not through the air. You'll need organize your shipping before you leave, dont assume they let you take it.


Not sure if I have misunderstood what you mean but my mate bought Billy's from the Us and they arrived in about 7 days,so obviously did not come by sea!!Were you meaning they would be too heavy for luggage?

Cost him $2100 all up fitted in Aus, about $1700 cost from the US and the Aus $ wasn't as strong then.

Peter.

Wasn't talking about the weight but they're not light either. Its a safety issue coming through air freight as they need to be stored in special pressurized containers which can be costly. There are heaps of shipment coming to and from the states and if he times it right ground freight shipping can arrive in 7 days and its heaps cheaper. So long as he has the original receipts and its under 1K there's no tax or duty (hence his mate bringing the other half)

[greenMachine]

The GM ran PSS9s for all of its competition years, and racked up around 200,000kms before they went into the racecar. On the road they were awesome, great control, even on full soft, and good performance on the track at the stiffer settings. The GM was quite successful as a track car, a large part of that was its handling, and a large part of that was the PSS9s.

I have now bought another set of PSS9s for the GM, just landed form Shox.com, I won't have anything else and I have tried a few....

I do think you have rocks in your head to bring them back as luggage , mine were only $200 freight and believe me they are pretty heavy to carry around. Not worth $200 to me, but YMMV

[surok]

Awesome stuff. Dont get too disappointed when you land at LAX the first suburb Inglewood is a dump. Try to get out of there asap.

haha that explains my memories! hahahahahah i never thought about that..
i think...i stayed in a lucky8 motel near the airport one night back in 2000..

[RJ45]

Thanks Sledgehammer, appreciate the advice.

Awesome stuff. Dont get too disappointed when you land at LAX the first suburb Inglewood is a dump. Try to get out of there asap.

haha that explains my memories! hahahahahah i never thought about that..
i think...i stayed in a lucky8 motel near the airport one night back in 2000..

Always thought it was normal for Airports to be in a shitty suburb, much easier for government to ignore those with less money and keep the airport running 24hrs. But thanks for helping set the expectation even lower

The GM ran PSS9s for all of its competition years, and racked up around 200,000kms before they went into the racecar. On the road they were awesome, great control, even on full soft, and good performance on the track at the stiffer settings. The GM was quite successful as a track car, a large part of that was its handling, and a large part of that was the PSS9s.

I have now bought another set of PSS9s for the GM, just landed form Shox.com, I won't have anything else and I have tried a few....

I do think you have rocks in your head to bring them back as luggage , mine were only $200 freight and believe me they are pretty heavy to carry around. Not worth $200 to me, but YMMV

Well that settles it, no doubts now, I'll be getting the PSS9's. I might have rocks in my head, but nothing rattles so all good

Online quotes for shox.com and others, I couldn't find anything close to $200 (to Sydney), it was over double that.
Using luggage allowance, idea was to use duty free allowance (split it with another) so; no duty, no shipping & no GST!
With the shipping costs i found so far & duty+gst, I calculated this would save up to $700!

For that $200 price from shox, was that from an online quote?
Or did you have to submit the form to get a quote?
Who did they use? DHL?
What about duty/gst? did they give you a 'special receipt'?

Thanks

[greenMachine]

Well that settles it, no doubts now, I'll be getting the PSS9's. I might have rocks in my head, but nothing rattles so all good
....

For that $200 price from shox, was that from an online quote?

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