Trophy GAZ Gold Suspension and MINTEX Pads Review!

bray1615 · Apr 4, 2015

We recently fitted GAZ Gold Pros and Mintex Racing MDB2561 M1144 front brake pads to a customer’s Clio Trophy car, he then came along on one of our track days at Brands Hatch to give the upgrades a test, and this was the review he sent us after the day:

"I asked the Finishline team to refresh the rolling train of my 2005 Clio Trophy. The car is used as a weekend run about and for the occasional track day. They recommended and fitted GAZ Gold Pro suspension and Mintex Racing brake pads. After driving the car for a week I took it to Brands Hatch. The suspension performed really well: very little roll in the corners yet compliant over the kerbs. The pads gave me consistent braking and good feel throughout the day and after 2.5 hours of track time they are only showing 3mm of wear and make very little road noise. Both upgrades work really well together and overall they enhance the car exposing it exactly for what it is: a brilliant little hot hatch, very exploitable and great fun to drive. Good call and great job!"

Please contact us if you have any questions about the GAZ or Mintex products.

hoolio · Apr 4, 2015

Okay, I'll start. I would say at £900 for a complete suspension setup they are very cheap against the T's £4000 OE setup and whilst I can be persauded that some coilovers will be better for track why do you think these are superior for what most of us bpught the Trophy for in the first place.

Mikeyjp · Apr 4, 2015

i think it is a good idea not to run the sach on a track car, due to increased chances of refurbs needed, works out expensive

marrow · Apr 4, 2015

Nice photo.
Would be interesting to compare both set-ups head to head, on road and track.
I think I'd prefer to put the £900 towards refurbishing the Sachs.

Krys_23 · Apr 4, 2015

Mikeyjp said:
i think it is a good idea not to run the sach on a track car, due to increased chances of refurbs needed, works out expensive

people seem terrified to put these shocks to any use, if you cant use them for what they are designed for then whats the point?

hoolio · Apr 4, 2015

Krys_23 said:
people seem terrified to put these shocks to any use, if you cant use them for what they are designed for then whats the point?

Have to agree considering the Twingo R2 were kitted out with them.

Badgerman85 · Apr 4, 2015

Agreed, they are designed as a track / race shock and fitted to a road car, if you aren't gonna push them to the limit then just stick cup shocks on and waft around

bray1615 · Apr 7, 2015

hoolio said:
Okay, I'll start. I would say at £900 for a complete suspension setup they are very cheap against the T's £4000 OE setup and whilst I can be persauded that some coilovers will be better for track why do you think these are superior for what most of us bpught the Trophy for in the first place.

Good question. For the price, this suspension set up offers extremely good performance on track. You're provided with fully adjustable bump, rebound and ride height on both the front and rear of your car, allowing for the serious track day enthusiast to adapt their set up for different tracks, weather and tyres. GAZ suspension is used in hundreds of cars across all types of motorsport, as well as in road and show cars! As you say, the original set up is extremely expensive and if crashed extremely expensive to replace. These shocks are ideal if you're intending on putting your Trophy through many track days that aren't just at airfields. Along with all of this, they are cheap to service and offer great performance!