- Oh, hey there, YouTube.
You like this fresh fade?
Don't worry, I'm not getting rid of the facial hair, though.
But, instead, we're gonna talk about something else
that's controversial in the YouTube section:
Raceland USA, baby, let's go!
(upbeat electronic music)
You know, when we first started Wheel History,
we decided to go with XXR
because everybody knew who they were.
So, why not do the same thing with our Suspension History?
Raceland: Everybody knows them, everybody has ran them,
or claimed they haven't ran them.
They either hate them or love them,
but when they do love them,
they just never tell anybody that they do
and we're here to talk about it because why the fuck not?
Raceland USA is actually based out of Bluffdale, Utah,
which was named after for their bluffs and their dales.
Raceland is an interesting company.
They make every conceivable part you could possibly imagine.
Weird, right? Raceland.
They make coilovers, they have headers,
they have bolts and lug nuts,
they have wheels on their website.
They even have air suspension that they're introducing.
These guys are all over the place with their products,
but you kinda have ta know a little bit about their history
to understand why they do what they do
at a price point that's just non...
It just doesn't fucking make sense.
And in case you've been living under a rock,
Raceland is known for their suspension components,
most notably how insanely cheap
their suspension components are.
Raceland is one of those companies that is just
surrounded by controversy for the sole fact of their price.
But we're not gonna jump into that just yet.
Let's jump into who they are and what they do.
(bell ding)
So, Raceland designs, tests, and installs
all their products here in the United States
but it's unlikely that they actually manufacture these parts
in the United States.
A lot of customer reviews have stated that their products
have come from overseas, most notably China.
Now, that's not the worst thing in the world.
Remember, a lot of cast wheels come from China,
a lot of other things come from China,
probably the meat that you get at McDonald's comes from a--
Wait, no, that doesn't work.
Anyway, a lot of things come from China so if you're already
in the comments section about to talk shit about Raceland
coming from China and you're on West Lakes and Sportmax,
just, just shh, just mm-mm, just don't do it.
You're not gonna get a lot of companies
that are selling suspension for under $1000
to come from countries like Germany or the UK
or the United States of America
just because the profitability isn't there.
You're gonna have to get over it,
you're gonna have to get okay with making things from China
if you're looking for something with budget in mind.
But Raceland does go an extra step.
They re-powder coat a lot of their products,
they add epoxy powder coating
to their springs to last longer,
they CNC machine a lot of their materials for their spindles
and things like that so Raceland does do a good job
at trying to go one extra step
instead of giving you the bare minimum.
So, are Raceland's rebranded?
No, they're not.
Are they from a private suspension company?
Probably, but that's not a bad thing.
What you gives have to remember about Raceland is
that they exist to serve a consumer market
of entry-level suspension components
and they do that really quite well.
They have really taken over the market
within the past 10 years in terms of just being
a decent product that you can get
for almost any application vehicle.
They're not really meant to be the end all
but they do a good job at making affordable products
for any automotive enthusiast.
I know there's been a ton of times where I've seen Miatas
and S2000s and Evos and STIs that run Raceland
as one of the first modifications that
they get because it's just a
budget-affordable product that you can get.
It's not one that you're gonna want to
compare to something like a ST, KW, AccuAir,
Air Lift, companies like that because that's
just not something that you wanna do.
You don't compare a Mercedes to a Kia.
Sorry, Stinger, still not convinced that it's a good car.
And Raceland is an international company.
They've made products for all across the world.
So while they haven't been established
for as long as a lotta companies
that they're in competition with have,
they have really taken over the market in terms
of what you would see in your standard-built car.
So, let's get the biggest thing out of the way: price.
How the fuck do they do it?
I don't even understand how a company
can supply a product so insanely cheap.
So I went in there on Raceland.com to figure out why
and how they can even possibly imagine
to sell these products for so cheap
and I came out with a couple answers.
So, take a seat, grab a bag of popcorn,
and let's just delve right into it.
Raceland isn't a dealer-style business.
So in wheels and tires and suspension and things like that,
companies or manufacturers host dealers.
Those dealers then take the products and market them out
to the wonderful world, or international if they choose to,
and that's how they sell it.
So, the manufacturer sells them to the dealer,
then the dealer raises pricing and then they sell it
to the customer, that's you guys,
for an increased price point.
Well, Raceland doesn't do that.
In fact, they have absolutely no dealers.
So, everything that you're buying from Raceland
is directly from Raceland; it's manufacturer to customer.
So, what that does is that cuts out the middle-man.
Now, this is where it gets a little finicky
because Raceland states that markup for dealers is
about the same price as it costs the company to make it.
So, if the suspension is $200, that the dealer's gonna mark
that up another $200 and they're gonna sell
that same coilover for $400,
where they're just selling it for $200.
I have never seen a markup in my professional career
that is that insane but it is a good reference point
to explain why they chose not to go with dealers.
At the same time, though, it's probably not that extreme.
A lotta times, dealers raise pricing anywhere
from 10% to 15% on suspension and with wheels
and things like that, all of that stuff is at MAP,
which is Minimally Advertised Price,
and so I don't believe that it's $200
but it's a good play based on Raceland
because it allows them to undercut
their own potential competition
and people have to go directly to Raceland.
So, it works out great for everybody
except for anyone that wants to be a dealer.
And on top of that, Raceland claims that
they're better supported and what that means is that
their customer service is just better.
You have less turn-around time,
you have less problems with waiting with dealers
to get information from manufacturers in terms of specs
or spindle lengths and all that sort of crap
and what that ultimately allows them to do
is just give better service and that's something
that Raceland does an absolutely incredible job,
considering who they're selling to
and the price point that they're at.
You really wouldn't be able to match this.
They do next-day shipping on a lot
of their suspension components, if not two-day.
A lot of customers on forums have raved about how incredible
and Speedy Gonzales-style their service on
shipping has been and top of that,
people respond relatively quickly to Raceland.
A lot of people that have concerns,
they get answered pretty quick.
So, there's a lot of companies
that could probably take a cue or two
(coughs) multi-piece wheel companies
that could probably learn a couple things
about responding quickly.
On top of that, Raceland touts that they
only have a 2% return rate on all of their products.
Now, we're not able to compare that to another brand
because they just didn't want to tell us
but to have a 2% return rate on a lot of products
that are essentially entry-level suspension components,
I'd say is pretty damn good.
At the end of the day, Raceland is a quick, responsive,
entry-level suspension company that just does a good job
at doing what they say they're gonna do.
Raceland's image has always been
surrounded by suspicion and drama.
Where are the kits made?
Where are the springs made?
Are they rebranded?
Do they have issues with reliability or quality?
Do they have issues with image or if they're made cheaply?
And, unfortunately, that's just the world that we live in.
You're gonna have people that are skeptical about a brand
that sells at a price that they do.
It's the same reason that XXR has such
high controversy in the market today.
At the end of the day though, a ton of people rock XXRs.
It's the same thing with Raceland.
A ton of people rock them and, on top of that,
when I went out on the forums, they really weren't that bad.
A lot of people had a great time using their
suspension components brought to you by Raceland.
They enjoyed it, they thought it was a little bit more bumpy
but it lasted them a long time.
They compared it a little bit better than V-MAXX
but not as great as anything like BILSTEIN or ST.
So, they fit the market and, judging by the people
that actually use Raceland products, it does a good job
and you can't be mad at a company that does exactly
what they say they're gonna do.
That they're gonna provide a quality product that's gonna be
entry-level, that's gonna work great, that's gonna be
constantly improving with great customer service and speed.
It's like, "What more could you possibly want?"
Raceland does a great job.
If you want something more expensive like KW, ST, Air Lift,
or AccuAir, or something like that,
hey, be sure to hit up fitmentindustries.com
because we sell those.
So, if you guys haven't been to our website at
www.fitmentindustries.com, you can check up
over 30 thousand wheels and tires.
We also have Air Lift, we have ST, we have KW,
we have Eibach, we have a couple different suspension brands
We have new apparel, which I'm not wearing
because I forgot to wash my clothes.
Rebecca, bro.
Wait...
Girl, wife, help me, please.
I need to get my clothes washed.
Be sure to check us out on the internet.
We kind of have our big deal there, that's pretty much it.
I'm Alex from Fitment Industries.
We will see you later.
Peace.