clayq wrote:
What kind of NVH are you experiencing? I have the same kit on my car, but i guess the level of NVH is subjectively different to each person.
The best way I can explain it is quite violent "crashing" or "shock" being transferred into the body of the car - specifically when going over crappy sections of road (ie; botched potholes etc), metal grid lines (the flat kind - like on bridges etc) or cracks in the road. It feels like that initial shock is transferred directly from the wheel into the body of the car. The noise is heard and felt in the car and it vibrates and rattles
everything.
There was no noticeable increase in NVH when fitting the STi struts. There was also no noticeable increase when adding the Whiteline Com C strut tops (done in phases 1 & 3 respectively). Phase 2 was the addition of HD Steering Rack bushes + Whiteline ALK + Whiteline RCA kit all at the same time. Castor is ~6.5deg R + L.
I've had Whiteline ALK kits on both of my MY06 STi's - the first running OEM struts with lowered springs, the other having every whiteline piece possible under it, including subframe bracing, MCA coilovers (9kg F / 8kg R) etc. Neither of those cars had the same shock being transferred into the car - they simply absorbed the shock.
I've also had a turbo MR2 with incredibly stiff coilovers - so I know what a stiff car feels like and also what a very well set up car feels like. The Forester is intended to be comfortable enough for a daily but with all the "SUV-ness" taken out of the suspension/steering. The steering rack is awful and will be replaced and I was honestly pretty happy with how it felt with just the STi struts on it, but with a **** alignment and limited scope for camber adjustment, my hand was forced into fitting the top hats and RCA kit (as it dropped about 4" or so) but I'm not so sure about the ALK and how necessary it is.