Krumme said motorsports accounts for about a third of Eibach’s production and distribution with the other two-thirds coming from the enthusiasts’ market and private-label production.
Its motorsports business primarily serves off-road and circle-track racers. “Anything circle track is way up there,” Krumme said. “The UTV (utility task vehicles) segment has also been growing.”
Although Heinrich Eibach likely never dreamed his company would be such a big player in motorsports, Wilfred Eibach became an avid fan of racing.
“He has always been very involved with race teams and continues to ensure we are surpassing their needs,” Krumme said. “He attends the races and goes down to Baja every year. We were also involved with Formula One and continue our longstanding partnership with Audi Motorsports. We’ve had a lot of different partnerships along the way and we consistently learn and develop new products to help our race teams get to the top of the podium.”
Expansion of a manufacturing plant in Taichung, China, occurred in 2015.
“We develop and manufacture products for the Asian market at Eibach China,” Krumme said. “We use the same machines and have the same training, processes and certifications. The quality is the same across the globe. We found that just like in the United States, we have vehicles that are not found in Germany and vice-versa, and it’s the same in China. This helps position us to supply products for all markets.
“The long and the short of it is we’re all trained Eibach employees and we truly are one big team,” he added.
“We manufacture springs, stabilizer bars and dampers, all from start to finish, in California,” he continued. “All the specialized motorsports and standard measurement racing springs are made in the United States and the metric springs are made in Germany.”
Eibach also has engineering and sales offices in Australia, England and South Africa. It also has regional partners or distributors in more than 80 countries.
Eibach North America’s damper (shock) program is its newest.
“It’s mostly focused on late model trucks and SUVs,” Krumme said. “This has been a major new program for us. Every shock we make follows the same quality-control processes as our springs and stabilizer bars. Each one is dyno-tested to ensure a matching pair and backed with a limited-lifetime warranty. We’ll have a lot more off-road focused products coming soon with our new coil-over shocks and lift systems.”
The enthusiast market is small but steady.
“About 5-10 percent of the population, closer to five, always wants to modify their personal vehicle,” he said. “People were lowering their trucks for a while and now they’re lifting them. Whatever you want to do, we have something for your race vehicle and your tow rig.”
Enthusiasts depend on Eibach to make their car or truck more enjoyable to drive than it was when it came off the showroom floor. With the installation of Eibach products, nosedive under braking is reduced, as well as excessive body roll in hard cornering.
The company offers a limited million-mile warranty on many of its products, and its line seems to always be expanding.
What are the most challenging things about the suspension business in general following the COVID-19 pandemic?
“We work in a very flooded market that is looking for a quick, cheap solution, so the biggest challenge is to teach new motorsports enthusiasts about what a quality product can do for their program,” Krumme said.
“It’s challenging to manufacture in the United States, but we have been committed to doing so since 1987,” he added. “We’re proud to employ approximately 150 employees in the United States.
“We’re a family-owned, private company and we’re set up well for the future.”
Today’s Eibach Group is secured by the commitment of the third generation, management and the family foundation.
Eibach has numerous videos and catalogs on its website and a free email newsletter. Some of the videos showcase the high-strength steel alloys that go into Eibach’s springs and its advanced CNC winding process.
Both the Eibach North America (eibach.com/us/) and the German website (eibach.de/en) are packed with information. Racers can also follow the company on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.