Öhlins HA DFV Complete Suspension Kit Normal Mount Civic Type R (FL5 2023~)

Ohlins’ DFV (Dual Flow Valve) was developed to achieve both high driving performance on the circuit and ride comfort on the street. Generally, if you set a high damping force on the shock absorber in order to achieve better driving performance, the suspension will have difficulty following small, fast movements, and the ride will be worse. Conversely, if you set a low damping force in order to achieve better ride comfort, the suspension will not be able to absorb large movements and the ride will be poor.
Ohlins’ DFV quickly releases the sub-valve when the piston starts to move, gently raising the damping force. As a result, the suspension provides an excellent ride with less of a feeling of being pushed up or dropped by improving its ability to follow small, fast movements. In addition, the DFV does not have a significant effect on the damping force of the main valve after the piston starts to move. Therefore, it improves the ride comfort while maintaining Ohlins’ excellent driving performance.
The DFV has a compact structure and is versatile enough to accommodate a wide range of settings. The lineup that uses the DFV includes a wide range of vehicles, including sports cars that run on circuits, sedans, wagons, minivans, and compact cars. Please try out the DFV, which has been a symbol of Ohlins and has been supported by enthusiastic owners, on your favorite car. We promise you high satisfaction in both sports driving on the circuit and leisure driving.

What is DFV?

DFV stands for “Dual Flow Valve” and is the culmination of Ohlins suspension technology. The main valve pursues a characteristic that combines flexibility and maneuverability. DFV cancels the weak point of this characteristic, which is excessive damping force at high speeds, and DFV has made it possible for the first time to freely control the ideal amount of operation that draws a smooth curve from the piston’s stopped state to the high speed range.

DFV provides excellent road grip and a flat ride

　The recent trend in shock absorber settings is to avoid a stiff ride with a jolt-like sensation, and the mainstream is a damping force with low compression and high extension. The characteristics emphasize low speed ranges, with a curve that is flat overall, with high low speed ranges and low high speed ranges. This characteristic is a very effective means of achieving both maneuverability and ride comfort, but settings with significantly high extension compared to compression (especially in the low speed range) often lead to an unpleasant thud after crossing a gap.
By introducing DFV, it is possible to appropriately cut the damping force from medium to high speed ranges, which tends to be too high. This achieves ideal damping force characteristics that provide excellent ride comfort while still achieving both suppleness and maneuverability in the low speed range.

　During the compression stroke, three routes flow as shown in the figure. In the high-speed range, such as when picking up a gap in the road surface, the DFV opens instantly in addition to the orifice and main piston, and absorbs the impact beautifully. The DFV’s new pressure control technology controls it not to open at extremely low speeds, so steering information remains excellent and the excellent steering response that is a characteristic of Ohlins is also inherited.

　During the extension stroke, oil also flows through three routes. When the road moves fast, such as after going over a gap in the road surface or on an undulating road, the DFV opens instantly in addition to the orifice and main piston, appropriately controlling the speed of extension. As with the compression side, the DFV is controlled not to open at extremely low speeds, so smooth steering information remains and roll speed is appropriately controlled.

Single-tube shock absorbers generate damping force through the flow resistance of disc shims built into the pistons, and the combination of disc shims creates damping characteristics suited to each vehicle. To pursue comfort on regular roads, the damping force is set low overall, and to avoid a stiff ride with a jolt-like sensation, the damping force is low on the compression side and high on the rebound side.

DFV properly cancels this excessive damping force, which is detrimental to road surface tracking, absorbs the pulsating shocks that passengers find unpleasant, and continues to apply appropriate weight to the tires. Steering information is transmitted to the driver beautifully, and the response is also in a different league to conventional vehicles. Even minivans and wagons with high centers of gravity and high roll centers do not have the same maneuverability as sports cars, but they have succeeded in thoroughly suppressing behavior that makes the driver uneasy when driving at high speeds.