New Coilover Option

[PeteK]

Made in Taiwan is not "made in China." Leaving aside the political distinction that gets the pinstripe trouser set in Foggy Bottom hyperventilating, Taiwan is the source of very high-quality parts for many industries, as well as many of the electronic chips you find in nearly all electronic products. I would not be surprised if some of the chips in our Ford GTs of both generations came from TSMC--Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp.

China is a very different business case. I won't go into my rant about how Chinese manufacturers constantly cut corners and change material specs to cheapen the product, AFTER they get the contract to make something to a particular spec. We all have had the experience of some product "made in China" falling apart, or wearing out quickly, or not fitting right, etc. That's why "Made in China" is despised, and deservedly so.

Nevertheless, I DO want to know where parts are sourced, because I want to avoid the shit "Made in China."

 

[Shark01]

Made in Taiwan is not "made in China." Leaving aside the political distinction that gets the pinstripe trouser set in Foggy Bottom hyperventilating, Taiwan is the source of very high-quality parts for many industries, as well as many of the electronic chips you find in nearly all electronic products. I would not be surprised if some of the chips in our Ford GTs of both generations came from TSMC--Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp.

China is a very different business case. I won't go into my rant about how Chinese manufacturers constantly cut corners and change material specs to cheapen the product, AFTER they get the contract to make something to a particular spec. We all have had the experience of some product "made in China" falling apart, or wearing out quickly, or not fitting right, etc. That's why "Made in China" is despised, and deservedly so.

Nevertheless, I DO want to know where parts are sourced, because I want to avoid the shit "Made in China."

Oops....

Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia.

 

[PeteK]

That, and $3, will get you a cup of chi-chi coffee.

 

[nota4re]

Nevertheless, I DO want to know where parts are sourced, because I want to avoid the shit "Made in China."

Typical of these companies, they intentionally do not make it easy to trace their heritage. The parent company may be Jiangsu Fortune Auto Technology Co., Ltd in China. Knowing that Taiwan may have a *slightly* better reputation for manufacturing quality, many of these companies will frequently claim to have manufacturing in Taiwan... but it is difficult to know when and for what parts this may be true.

The GT is an American-made icon. Does it contain parts manufactured in other Countries? Sure. No doubt, many components in the limited number of electronic modules within the GT are sourced overseas. Unfortunately, this is almost unavoidable. But when sourcing major components for the GT, I think Ford quite intentionally chose the high road. Even down to the Made in the USA McIntosh stereo components where virtually every other Ford product used "foreign" suppliers for upgraded audio options. Blingy, Made-in-China shocks on a GT isn't right.

 

[twobjshelbys]

I would not be surprised if some of the chips in our Ford GTs of both generations came from TSMC--Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp.

Just to be clear, TSMC is a chip MANUFACTURER. The chip content (the design of what the chip does, ie, the "intellectual property") is done by someone else. TSMC even manufactures some Intel chips these days (as a second source). TSMC designs the very low level transistor elements that the silicon compilers (Verilog, VHDL) translate into circuits but the designs are NOT from TSMC. However, there was a China Inc company that built a second source to TSMC (same design rules, implying the same lowest level transistors) right across the bay. This was due to many of TSMCs customers demanding second sources after some of the traditional smaller foundarries could no longer keep up with the feature shrink rate. Factories do have "failures", either internally or in their supply chains, that can cause component availability issues so almost everyone has two sources for chips. We even had migrated from a single design for our controller with two sources to two separate designs (dictated by the foundaries) which doubled the chip hardware startup but halved the risk.

 

[2112]

I am just a layperson, but I read that TSMC‘s designs come out of Belgium. They have the strangle hold on how to make the design come to fruition in the manufactoring sector. At least it isn’t the mainland designing them.

Also read that intel is about to leapfrog the design.

Last IBM is on the verge of making 1’s and 0’s obsolete if you believe the 60 minutes piece from a couple months back.

 

[twobjshelbys]

I am just a layperson, but I read that TSMC‘s designs come out of Belgium. They have the strangle hold on how to make the design come to fruition in the manufactoring sector. At least it isn’t the mainland designing them.

Also read that intel is about to leapfrog the design.

Last IBM is on the verge of making 1’s and 0’s obsolete if you believe the 60 minutes piece from a couple months back.

I've been retired for 10 years so it is entirely possible that TSMC found smart people somewhere else, and even then who knew where they were. The people that design these transistors and the blocks built from them now work at almost atomic level. Stuff is so small that the real meaning of "solid state physics" is in play.

Here is a progression of "feature size"

SEMICONDUCTOR FEATURE SIZES

Nanometers Micrometers
Year (nm) (µm)

1957 120,000 120.0
1963 30,000 30.0
1971 10,000 10.0
1974 6,000 6.0
1976 3,000 3.0
1982 1,500 1.5 *
1985 1,300 1.3 *
1989 1,000 1.0 *
1993 600 0.6 *
1996 350 0.35 *
1998 250 0.25 *
1999 180 0.18 *
2001 130 0.13 *
2003 90 0.09 *
2005 65 0.065
2008 45 0.045
2010 32 0.032 **
2012 22 0.022 **
2014 14 0.014
2017 10 0.010
2018 7 0.007
2020 5 0.005
2022 3 0.003
2024 2 0.002 ***
2025 1.8 0.0018 ****

* Range for MCUs

** Range for ASIC chips

*** 2 nm = about 20 atoms (20 angstroms)

**** 1.8 nm = about 18 atoms (18 angstroms)

In addition there are "point changes" between the big ones.

The hardest part of today's chip design is the pseudo-analog physical layer ("Phy") front ends. They are the front ends for the communications like ethernet, storage (SAS, SATA) and PCIe, and also in HDD controller "read channel" analog detectors. The "detectors" have to be designed using the digital rules and result in some pretty strange looking physical circuits. The biggest killer of modern chips is the USB2 "phy" which has to be 3.3V which is NOT a native voltage any more. We put a USB2 phy on one of our SOCs and dropped native USB support because of the physical size of the chip (which was my project and led to my retirement) I spent a lot of time integrating (debuggin) first generation phy silicon and got to know the concepts. I'd collect a bunch of data on a problem and the analog guys would huddle and come back with tweeks to registers in circuits that did magic things.

Intel and TSMC have been leap frogging each other for decades... Intel does additional leap frogging in its own factories which are split between Chandler Arizona and Portland. They build a fab line, run it until it is the oldest and have wound down contracts, retire it and rebuild it to the newest. TSMC does it too.

Hidden in this discussion is the reason for much of the auto industry's chip woes. Many of the chips were on 65nm-32nm processes which just about the time of the pandemic were where the last of the factory transitions were happening and being asleep at the wheel, they forgot to source their IP in new chip designs. Part of their concerns was "ruggedness" - tolerance of temperature and vibration. I don't know if those were well founded or not...

 

[white out]

Yeah, you're right. I think boy-racer Honda Civic targeted, Chinese-made coil overs have no business on a Ford GT - and I would never install them on a car of this caliber. We do have standards.

Lots of smart, successful people here and each can make their own decisions about the components they choose to install on their car.

These are not made in China. At this point it is clear the sole purpose of your posts are to attack the coilovers with false statements.

 

[nota4re]

These are not made in China. At this point it is clear the sole purpose of your posts are to attack the coilovers with false statements.

This is the second time you've accused me of saying something false....

What I'm saying... MADE IN CHINA - is true. Do some more research - it's not that hard.

As long as we're on the topic of truth.... what's YOUR sole purpose? It seems to me that you just want to use this forum audience to sell your stuff to. I'm assuming that you discussed and got dbk's approval to leverage the forum in order to sell product. You have done that, right?

Let's look at your most recent "contributions" to the forum.

1. Current favorite - Trying to promote blingy, Chinese-made coil-overs for the GT
2. Before that, uh, oh-yeah, the obscure reference to the ATi Harmonic balancer in the pulley-tune thread. Gee, I wonder who sells those. (Sorry nobody bit on that because it is such a stupid solution)
3. Before that - hey, anybody want to buy my Penske coil-overs?

And over the past couple of months, more posts/references to almost every product you happen to sell - titanium lug nuts, KW suspension, Borla Exhaust, Big Brakes, yadda, yadda, yadda. It sure seems that your sole purpose here is to help sell your goods as opposed to contributing anything of value.

If you don't like getting called out when you're making misrepresentations, go pound sand.

This is dbk's place and it's his decision alone if he has a vendor relationship worked out with you.

 

[white out]

This is the second time you've accused me of saying something false....

What I'm saying... MADE IN CHINA - is true. Do some more research - it's not that hard.

As long as we're on the topic of truth.... what's YOUR sole purpose? It seems to me that you just want to use this forum audience to sell your stuff to. I'm assuming that you discussed and got dbk's approval to leverage the forum in order to sell product. You have done that, right?

Let's look at your most recent "contributions" to the forum.

1. Current favorite - Trying to promote blingy, Chinese-made coil-overs for the GT
2. Before that, uh, oh-yeah, the obscure reference to the ATi Harmonic balancer in the pulley-tune thread. Gee, I wonder who sells those. (Sorry nobody bit on that because it is such a stupid solution)
3. Before that - hey, anybody want to buy my Penske coil-overs?

And over the past couple of months, more posts/references to almost every product you happen to sell - titanium lug nuts, KW suspension, Borla Exhaust, Big Brakes, yadda, yadda, yadda. It sure seems that your sole purpose here is to help sell your goods as opposed to contributing anything of value.

If you don't like getting called out when you're making misrepresentations, go pound sand.

This is dbk's place and it's his decision alone if he has a vendor relationship worked out with you.

I really tried to be nice on this, but you just keep going. It is clear you need to stop being a jerk to your wife because nobody who's dick is getting wet would put so much effort towards a product release which you have zero interest in. It seems that you are the only one 'pounding sand'.

In regards to the parts, I manufacture 2WD conversions for Lamborghinis and you sell hood struts. . . I'll think of your worth every time I access my engine LOL

 

[nota4re]

Yeah, can you imagine how hard it is to maintain my lifestyle by selling only a few hood struts a month?

Your colorful language and personal attacks say a lot about who you are. How impressive.

Listen, I don't know how I can make this any clearer than I already have. All of the major components of these shocks are manufactured in China. While it could also be Taiwan, it is difficult to discern without a bit more research and frankly there's not a lot of distinction IMHO. They are not made in the USA, they are shipped here and assembled in the USA. You seem to be aghast that these are the facts which only makes your plight worse. Your position of denial strongly suggests that you believe there is something inherently wrong with where these are manufactured... which leaves you no "out" when you finally accept the truth. You have vehemently denied any similarities to BC Racing and other China-based shock manufacturers - yet this is almost exactly what Fortune Auto is - save for what appears to be an increased focus on in-Country assembly, QC and customer support.

The fact that the vast majority of your posts to this forum are either referencing or promoting products that you sell is an issue (or not) between you and dbk.

 

[nota4re]

and you sell hood struts

A picture from last week of the new shop we had to build to accommodate the hood strut business. Owners gotta leave their cars with us...installing these struts is not as simple as a Lambo 2WD conversion.

 

[white out]

Yeah, can you imagine how hard it is to maintain my lifestyle by selling only a few hood struts a month?

Your colorful language and personal attacks say a lot about who you are. How impressive.

Listen, I don't know how I can make this any clearer than I already have. All of the major components of these shocks are manufactured in China. While it could also be Taiwan, it is difficult to discern without a bit more research and frankly there's not a lot of distinction IMHO. They are not made in the USA, they are shipped here and assembled in the USA. You seem to be aghast that these are the facts which only makes your plight worse. Your position of denial strongly suggests that you believe there is something inherently wrong with where these are manufactured... which leaves you no "out" when you finally accept the truth. You have vehemently denied any similarities to BC Racing and other China-based shock manufacturers - yet this is almost exactly what Fortune Auto is - save for what appears to be an increased focus on in-Country assembly, QC and customer support.

The fact that the vast majority of your posts to this forum are either referencing or promoting products that you sell is an issue (or not) between you and dbk.

You are somehow are arguing the same point of my posts and the video I posted days ago. Seriously, go get a good old fashioned or learn how to comprehend the english language because something is not allowing your brain to process this thread. While you are at it, look up the definition of aghast, plight, vehemently and then re-read my posts, as your use of those terms in relation to my posts make you come off as an ignoramus while the intent of your threads comes off as acting in a way calculated to disrupt business . . .

Again, these coilovers have nothing to do with BC.

A picture from last week of the new shop we had to build to accommodate the hood strut business. Owners gotta leave their cars with us...installing these struts is not as simple as a Lambo 2WD conversion.

Showing off other peoples' cars is such a baller move. Yikes.

 

[STORMCAT]

Made in Taiwan is not "made in China." Leaving aside the political distinction that gets the pinstripe trouser set in Foggy Bottom hyperventilating, Taiwan is the source of very high-quality parts for many industries, as well as many of the electronic chips you find in nearly all electronic products. I would not be surprised if some of the chips in our Ford GTs of both generations came from TSMC--Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp.

China is a very different business case. I won't go into my rant about how Chinese manufacturers constantly cut corners and change material specs to cheapen the product, AFTER they get the contract to make something to a particular spec. We all have had the experience of some product "made in China" falling apart, or wearing out quickly, or not fitting right, etc. That's why "Made in China" is despised, and deservedly so.

Nevertheless, I DO want to know where parts are sourced, because I want to avoid the shit "Made in China."

Nice work..!! I find this thread amusing my only comments is my Dick gets wet occasionally . I'm getting a great education on chips... I prefer blue corn chips VS yellow... And preferably baked over fried LOL...

 

[white out]

Some additional pictures. Coilovers can go lower for those that want it or be adjusted to OEM height.

Car has 20mm wheel spacers on each corner, so the offset is quite aggressive.

 

[2112]

For 20mm spacers, did you switch to longer wheel studs?

 

[white out]

For 20mm spacers, did you switch to longer wheel studs?

Yeah, went with ARP extended and open ended lugnuts.

 

[extrap]

Looks tight Any tire-fender rubbing? Maybe you could find some lug nut caps, just to tidy up their look ... ?

 

[white out]

Looks tight Any tire-fender rubbing? Maybe you could find some lug nut caps, just to tidy up their look ... ?

No rubbing and the suspension is completely compressed entering and exiting my parking. Lugnuts are titanium (matte silver) and the studs have a gold finish rounded end (can see in my original posting of the coilover with wheel off), so it doesn't look unfinished. But it doesn't have the same appearance of a closed lugnut.

The easy way to do spacers (for 15mm+) is to have offset studs on the spacer itself (like an adapter but the same bolt pattern). So the spacer is bolted to stock studs, then the wheel is bolted to the spacer and that would allow the use of stock lugnuts.

 

[Twturbo]

For 20mm spacers, did you switch to longer wheel studs?

Yes can you give us some info on the spacers