Reiger Suspension

[Rhys1983]

So I’ve finally bought some reconditioned Reiger suspension for my fiesta m-sport edition last week.
Looking to get them fitted in the next month or so. Does anything else need to be changed on the car for these to fit? I believe that I will need a standard fiesta steering knuckle as the ST one won’t fit.
Will report back on what they’re like to drive with once fitted! 👍

 

[the duke]

Holy hell.

 

[haste]

why

 

[M-Sport fan]

Yes, base Fiesta knuckle.

Those are the R2/R2T tarmac version, correct?

Quite envious I am, and if you don't mind letting us know, how many pounds (or if you have the current conversion rates at hand, how many USD)?

 

[Rhys1983]

Yes, base Fiesta knuckle.

Those are the R2/R2T tarmac version, correct?

Quite envious I am, and if you don't mind letting us know, how many pounds (or if you have the current conversion rates at hand, how many USD)?

Yes, they’re the R2/R2T tarmac version. I’ll need to make sure that I get the base fiesta’s knuckle then before getting them fitted with the garage.
The cost would have been the equivalent of $5500 so certainly not cheap! Although they have been fully serviced before being posted and are in excellent condition. Some would say a bit overkill for fast road use, but should make the car handle perfectly on broken/uneven tarmac like we have here in Wales!

 

[Rhys1983]

why

The M-Sport edition car that I have came with lowered Bilstein B8 struts along with lowered Eibach springs which didn’t give very good handling on uneven undulating roads with broken tarmac like we have here in Wales.
I have looked at various suspension kits, but all options for the fiesta seem to be lowered options more for looks rather than performance on broken tarmac so I went and got the Reigers.
As the car is a limited m-sport edition I also thought it would finish the car off nicely and stick with the rally theme.

 

[M-Sport fan]

^^^On top of which, I trust that the Reigers would stand up to much much more bad road punishment, for a much longer time frame (these things are built to handle very rough Euro tarmac roads at speed, and even rough gravel with different valving and springs), than any of the lesser coin Taiwanese/Chinese coil over setups, albeit one does pay for that long term reliability.

Let's also not forget that these are REAL (separate, NOT 'combined' rebound and compression at the same time required, like all of the other 'adjustable coils' out there!) 3 way adjustable dampers with remote reservoirs, and true motorsport spec piston diameters which are inverted.

Yes, a bit of overkill for even rough roads, but leaps and bounds greater suspension than the cheaper options out there.
IF I had that coin laying around, these would already be on my car.

 

[Dialcaliper]

I’m curious to see how these turn out. Tarmac spec usually means a pretty bone crushing ride and gravel spec typically ends up being better for a street/track car, but hopefully that’s not the case here with the Fiesta being a lighter car.

 

[Rhys1983]

I’m curious to see how these turn out. Tarmac spec usually means a pretty bone crushing ride and gravel spec typically ends up being better for a street/track car, but hopefully that’s not the case here with the Fiesta being a lighter car.

My set up comes with the medium springs and the suppliers did say that’s what they’d recommend for broken uneven tarmac and only going to soft springs if the tarmac is really broken and it’s wet.
One good thing is that they are 3 way adjustable so I should be able to find the best setting.
As the car is more of a weekend toy I don’t mind having a stiff set up.
I will definitely report back what it’s like to drive and get some photos up once the work has been done.

 

[rallytaff]

Rhys, check your private messages.

 

[kevinatfms]

I’m curious to see how these turn out. Tarmac spec usually means a pretty bone crushing ride and gravel spec typically ends up being better for a street/track car, but hopefully that’s not the case here with the Fiesta being a lighter car.

Id also be very curious on the longevity between rebuilds. They aren't a typical road going shock package and will require them to be rebuilt much more often than a typical road setup. They are a full on race damper versus a street damper package.

You buy them as a race team under the assumption that they will require frequent servicing compared to a "set and forget" road damper package.

They are fucking gorgeous though. Gotta love the all out spectacle of race specific parts.

 

[Rhys1983]

Id also be very curious on the longevity between rebuilds. They aren't a typical road going shock package and will require them to be rebuilt much more often than a typical road setup. They are a full on race damper versus a street damper package.

You buy them as a race team under the assumption that they will require frequent servicing compared to a "set and forget" road damper package.

They are fucking gorgeous though. Gotta love the all out spectacle of race specific parts.

Yes, from what I understand normal oem suspension are usually good for 50,000 miles plus but I’m not sure how often these will need servicing? Like you say, professional rally teams will have the team and money to service them after almost every rally as they will be tested to their limit. As I only use the car on weekends and mostly in the dry, I’m hoping to get at least 20,000 miles out of them before a rebuild, but will have someone look at them when the car gets serviced making sure that they’re in good working condition.
It will make the car unique that’s for sure as there were only 20 m-sport edition cars built and none will have the reigers on!

 

[Dialcaliper]

Yes, from what I understand normal oem suspension are usually good for 50,000 miles plus but I’m not sure how often these will need servicing? Like you say, professional rally teams will have the team and money to service them after almost every rally as they will be tested to their limit. As I only use the car on weekends and mostly in the dry, I’m hoping to get at least 20,000 miles out of them before a rebuild, but will have someone look at them when the car gets serviced making sure that they’re in good working condition.
It will make the car unique that’s for sure as there were only 20 m-sport edition cars built and none will have the reigers on!

Not sure about Reiger, but I’ve heard loose recommendations about Ohlins needing servicing something like every 20,000 miles, or 30 hours in a race/track/rally environment where they see a lot of abuse.

 

[M-Sport fan]

Yes, from what I understand normal oem suspension are usually good for 50,000 miles plus but I’m not sure how often these will need servicing? Like you say, professional rally teams will have the team and money to service them after almost every rally as they will be tested to their limit. As I only use the car on weekends and mostly in the dry, I’m hoping to get at least 20,000 miles out of them before a rebuild, but will have someone look at them when the car gets serviced making sure that they’re in good working condition.
It will make the car unique that’s for sure as there were only 20 m-sport edition cars built and none will have the reigers on!

Some of the less monied R2/Rally 4 teams/crews do not rebuild them after every tarmac rally, and they take less of a brutal beating on even very rough paved roads than on rough gravel stages, so with your usage they should last a while.

Now a Sadev sequential gearbox from an R2/Rally 4 Fiesta would definitely require frequent rebuilding, and along with the 'on-off switch' racing clutch used with those units, they are unusable on the street for a daily driver, or even a 'weekend car' (unless you NEVER face stop and go traffic jams, EVER).

 

[Rutschpartie]

@Rhys1983 any updates/review on the reigers, how did it work out for you, do you rebuild them frequently?

 

[Rhys1983]

So an update on my new set up.
I got the Reiger suspension fitted back in December with EDSL motorsport who work with M-Sport and specialise in the Fiesta R2T.
The suspension is set on the softer side as M-Sport set their cars up for rough tarmac rallies with 200 lbs inch rear and 228 lbs/inch front springs. The car sits about the same ride height as a standard ST.
I had the car corner weighted and alignment set up at the garage. I also had a gripper mechanical diff fitted to the car the same time. Along with this, I had some DNA control arms fitted to increase positive caster for improved turn in and steering feel.

This set up has totally transformed the car! The steering is pin sharp and so precise with excellent turn in and the mechanical diff really wants to pull you around corners. You feel everything through the steering and get excellent road feedback through the car feeling every bump, crest and knowing exactly what the road is doing beneath you.
The ride is a lot stiffer, but in a good way and the car takes any bump, or broken surface in its stride and just swallows them up without bottoming out or losing grip.
It feels like a totally different car to standard.
The team who set up the car also rebuild the Reigers and said they will be fine for around 25k miles before they need a service. As I only use my car occasionally this doesn’t bother me and the diff will need servicing every 3 years or so depending on mileage as it’s a proper mechanical diff.
It was a LOT of money to spend on a road going fiesta, but totally worth it if you can get hold of a set of Reigers.

 

[M-Sport fan]

THANKS for the review, but it just makes me really want to spend money I do not have on a ride which would only be worth a little more than those mods after ancillaries and labor.

I SOOOO want those Reigers even though I do not need them!

Let us know how that Gripper diff functions in all scenarios.
Which fluid are you now using in the transaxle with this diff (does Gripper themselves suggest/require anything specific)??

Are the diff rebuilds required simply due to the carbon clutch plates wearing out, or for some other reason(s)??

 

[Rhys1983]

THANKS for the review, but it just makes me really want to spend money I do not have on a ride which would only be worth a little more than those mods after ancillaries and labor.

I SOOOO want those Reigers even though I do not need them!

Let us know how that Gripper diff functions in all scenarios.
Which fluid are you now using in the transaxle with this diff (does Gripper themselves suggest/require anything specific)??

Are the diff rebuilds required simply due to the carbon clutch plates wearing out, or for some other reason(s)??

Yes, I felt bad spending so much money on my new set up, but it’s worth it for me.
I did have a Quaife ATB originally on the car but I felt that could be quite ‘snatchy’ when accelerating hard in a straight line on rough tarmac and felt like the steering wheel was fighting with you. I haven’t felt that with the gripper diff and it works a lot better in the corners. The only downside is that it’s quite loud before the car warms up when driving around town. But down a twisty road it’s a massive improvement. Gripper did originally recommend a different oil, but the guys at EDSL motorsport did try that oil and they said that it made the gear change a bit stiffer so they went back to the oil they use for their R2T cars. The diff comes with a lifetime warranty and I believe that’s all that’s required is a regular oil change and watch for ware and tare on the plates years down the line. They sell every part individually so worn out parts can be changed if needed.

Most people are always looking for big power upgrades on these cars, but for me if you can increase caster, fit some new bushes, fit a mechanical diff and get a good alignment done then these cars are transformed. Fitting Reigers would also be a massive improvement, but I understand it’s a hell of a lot of money to spend. If I didn’t have the Reigers then I’d be tempted to go for the flat out suspension GR40 with a similar spring rate and ride height of the Reigers or stick to stock ST suspension or go for something like a Bilstein B6 with swift springs.

 

[M-Sport fan]

Yeah, on my budget, that very last option seems like my only choice right now.

Just hoping that setup does not even lower the car the 1.0" that Swift claims it does.

Do you remember the actual weight and brand of the gear oil that EDSL uses in their R2T/Rally 4 cars? Something from Miller maybe??

 

[Rhys1983]

Yeah, on my budget, that very last option seems like my only choice right now.

Just hoping that setup does not even lower the car the 1.0" that Swift claims it does.

Do you remember the actual weight and brand of the gear oil that EDSL uses in their R2T/Rally 4 cars? Something from Miller maybe??

I believe it’s Castrol syntrax that they use. The gripper diff are tolerant of a wide variety of oils and I believe that worked a lot better with the gearbox. I do have a quickshifter in the gearbox along with alloy shifter bush kit and the car does have a lovely gear change.
That’s the problem with every spring available for the ST is that they’re lowering springs. Maybe the B6 with standard springs would work better? Or even just keeping the standard set up.