Bc Coilovers Rear Dampening Adjustment

[rcmasterj]

Hello everyone. I just installed my bc coilovers about a week ago and i am now starting to play around with the dampening adjustments as they are too stiff for my liking. I need to adjust the rear and im able to stick my arms inside the access holes in the hatch but im not able to turn the knob as its way to tight. I dont want to take off all the interior in the rear just to access them easier. Any ideas?

[MikeTheCheek]

The 30 way knob you turn? You can either cut a hole in the lining or you take it out. BC also sells an attachment that attaches it it with a cable so you can access the knob from other areas.

As for the knob being tight I'm baffled. No idea why you wouldn't be able to turn it as it has no resistance. Did you buy new or used?

[rcmasterj]

The 30 way knob you turn? You can either cut a hole in the lining or you take it out. BC also sells an attachment that attaches it it with a cable so you can access the knob from other areas.

As for the knob being tight I'm baffled. No idea why you wouldn't be able to turn it as it has no resistance. Did you buy new or used?

Yes im able to reach the knob but not able to turn it as its too tight. I was able to turn them freely by hand before i put them in.

[Dave_The_BMXER]

You can't turn it when it's in unless you make modifications to the car. It's stuck against metal.

[FD22]

I was going to suggest it got seized (mine had/have that happen as well) but the fact that you say it rotated fine when off the car and then doesn't rotate when in the car, makes me not suggest that anymore. That's weird.

[Flagrum_3]

Maybe its a load issue?...I don't know much about these coil-overs, so just throwing this out there; Maybe you need to take the load off them to be able to adjust them, by simply lifting the vehicle with wheels off the ground.


_3

[FD22]

Maybe its a load issue?...I don't know much about these coil-overs, so just throwing this out there; Maybe you need to take the load off them to be able to adjust them, by simply lifting the vehicle with wheels off the ground.


_3

Nope, you can adjust the dampening while the car sits normally on the ground.

[Dave_The_BMXER]

There is physically not enough room for the knob to turn. It's pressed up against internal structure above the shock mount.

[FD22]

Pshttt. Y'all are all softies lol although yes, extremely tough/irritating to do, it is possible. My memory may be getting worse, and I tend not to care to remember things about my car anymore out of bitterness, but I don't believe I modified anything on my setup and I change (or attempt to change) my dampening twice a year. Albeit on a hatchback, so maybe a bit trickier/less possible on a sedan. But remove piece of inner hatch lining, reach your whole arm up in there with an awkward stance of you behind the car, and practise some patience in turning the knob little by little with the tips of your fingers.

[MikeTheCheek]

I'm a softie too , @Dave_The_BMXER is correct about the piece being stuck against metal. Just went out to my car to try and adjust it and could not. It seems though that if you drop the shock down just a bit you should be able to clear it. If not then just removing the shock is a quick job anyways, just a bit of a hassle. I took a couple videos with light so I will screenshot them and upload them here to show.

I will say Mazda definitely made rear suspension work easier on the gen 2.

[MikeTheCheek]

Said images

Driver side:


Passenger side:

[rcmasterj]

Said images

Driver side:


Passenger side:

Those are some great pictures! I couldn't fit my light in there to see very well but it makes perfect sense now. When i fit my hand in there i felt that piece of metal but didnt think it would be touching since the strut went in so easy. I really dont wanna take the wheels off and take the strut out. LOL. I'm gonna see if i can remove the hatch interior and try to notch the metal out so for next time i can turn the knob by hand since im fine tuning my suspension at the moment.

[Dave_The_BMXER]

@FD22 I've only had hatch backs, but I know of which I speak Proof in the photos. Mine could move very slightly (I imagine between the knurls) but not enough.

[rcmasterj]

Well i fixed the problem. I took out all the interior pieces in my hatch and long behold the knob was touching the metal pretty hard. I had to take the dampening knob off and dremel out a bit of metal where the knob would turn around. After it was knotched out the knob was able to rotate perfectly! I will post pictures soon once i figure out how to. Lol

[FD22]

@FD22 I've only had hatch backs, but I know of which I speak Proof in the photos. Mine could move very slightly (I imagine between the knurls) but not enough.

Lol no no, I know. I was saying more for other readers of this who may have sedans.

But anyway, I'll just stop contributing on this topic, since apparently what I've been doing for the past couple years now is apparently impossible... I guess I've been driving something other than a Mazda3 hatchback on which I've been adjusting dampening of my BC coils....news to me!

Glad OP got it sorted out though.

[Olestra]

Just to add another option to those with difficulty adjusting your rear damping for BC coils, if you have the knobs removed because you're like me and don't like that they're pinned against metal, you can use an allen key that matches the size of the knob ends to adjust the damping. If you have the right sized key, you can reach the adjustment holes through the access holes in the hatch and use the long end of the key.

[rcmasterj]

Heres how i notched out the metal. Finally turns now. You can see how the previous owner of these coilovers left the knob in place and weared a mark in them.