I'm looking for a new wagon and the seller informed me that I will be needing new shocks in the front. Im not sure what I should be looking for what are the difference between shocks and struts. Since im spending money on suspension i was thinking about just dropping it. from my research I'd like to get coils because of the adjustability but am not sure how much it would cost. I'm just looking for a good dd. I'm sorry if my questions are too nooby
-
-
Shock n struts are the same thing...Originally posted by Abcdefranklin View Post -
we have shocks aka dampers. struts are used on cars that dont have upper control arms or upper ball joints, some struts are also part of the steering system on other cars. Thank god we dont have that type of system.
If youre looking for some stock replacements for the meantime while you save up/research KYB GR-2's(excel-G's) are a good cheap stock replacement, dont drop on these. If youre ready to commit to something with a good drop and good handling on ebay I was able to get an H&R sport cup kit for 560 bucks plus shipping, which are the koni sport shocks that are tuned for the H&R sport springs that come in the kit, all youd need to do is reuse the top hats from your original shocks.
Comment
-
We have an odd setup, honestly. "Shocks" are usually outside the coil springs. "Struts", such as the MacPherson design, are usually inside the coil springs as ours are, but they are used as part of the steering/alignment system (which ours are not.)
For our cars, the terms are used interchangeably, and neither is 100% incorrect.
Anyway, read the "sticky" threads in the suspension subforum of this site. They will give you a much better understanding of what you need to do to achieve your goals.
Keep in mind that adjustable height will require an alignment every time you mess with it... and if you don't have the tools, knowledge, or need to adjust it properly, it will never perform as well as a properly matched set of regular springs and shocks.
Comment
-
Now if I were to get the kyb shocks would I need springs also? And thanks deev! I went through the suspension stickies. I really like the way the f&f type ones sit and read pretty good things about them. I don't have the knowledge to adjust them myself so I'd probably have a mechanic do it for me. I don't plan on messing with it just when I get new rims or something because the alignments are something to take into consideration.Comment
-
No you would reuse your stock springs unless they were broken. Other items that might need replacing after 20+ years. Jounce bump stops, dust boot, upper spring isolator/seat #9/#7, the rubber doughnut bushings in the shock hats and then your lower shock mount bushings (more likely the rear ones)Originally posted by Abcdefranklin View Post
visual inspection on all, at the very minimum lower shock mount bushings and top hat doughnuts. be prepared for it all to be replaced most likely if you have a shop do it. They also sell monroe quick struts for our cars which is the whole assembly, pop out the old, pop in the new but they are expensive(119 -198$ each) which a shop would probably do instead of rebuilding, depends on the shop
Comment
-
KYB doesn't make anything for our cars that can handle a drop of more than 1.5", or a spring rate greater than 15% over stock... which is just about every aftermarket spring on the market.
I would seriously doubt that a mechanic would know how to PROPERLY adjust a full coilover system any more than you do. In fact, I doubt more than a handful of the members here, if any, know how to do so. Most just adjust it until it looks good.
Hasn't killed anyone yet... but that's one reason I don't care for full coilovers.
My suggestion is some H&R or Neuspeed springs... Sport (mild drop) or Race (more extreme drop) paired with some Koni Sport (yellow) shocks and a camber kit from Ingalls or SPC. It's a simple setup, but it's proven to look good, be reliable, and handle very well. It's what I have on my own car (at the moment, I'm running Neuspeed Sport springs... which recently replaced H&R Race.)
Comment
-
Thanks illinois Erik im not too car savvy so the picture really helped me understand. And @deev I understand now. Now that you mention it, coilovers don't sound too great I'm sure there's lots of complications if you don't do everything correct. I'll be looking into the parts you've listed with the mild drop. The only reason im worried about springs is because I'm planning on building a sub wall in the future and don't know how much more the lowered springs will drop with the extra weightComment
-
I'm sure you can order custom spring rates from most of the more prominent companies. It would take more research than what it currently available on this site to do that, though.
Comment
-
I was looking for camber kits and am a little confused. The camber kit i am linking says for a 1.5 drop. Does that mean they work for anything up to a 1.5 drop? and I will be needing 2 sets of camber kits correct? 2 for front 2 for rear
http://www.andysautosport.com/honda/...p00432804.htmlComment
-
That set right there is for all 4 corners, so you would be good with that. Personally, I prefer the anchor bolt style front kits to the ball joint kits seen there... but that's really just my preference. I don't like the idea of pressing the old joint out of the control arm, as I feel it weakens the metal of the arm... but nobody that has that kit has reported failure due to a weakened arm for all the years this site has been around.
Also, I wouldn't buy from that site. Andy's is known to be extremely unreliable, with awful customer service. One of this site's moderators actually ordered a full body kit from them, and they sent him a kit for a completely different car. Then they gave him a hard time when he wanted to exchange for what he actually ordered. I believe they made him pay for shipping the wrong one back, and then for shipping the correct one to him again!
Terrible company. They're only in business because they're so huge, and advertise so heavily.
Comment
Comment