I'm looking to get a set of custom Koni inserts made for the OEM shocks/struts and the rebuilder needs photos to ensure fitment. Can anybody provide me with decent photos of the OEM front struts and rear shocks? In particular, the shots need to show the bottom mounting points pretty well. If you already have shots laying around that you can send me, that's great. Thanks!

PM me if you have them and I'll give you my email address, or you can post them here or on the web.

 

Anybody...?

 

SOMEBODY has to have them, you know there are folks with coilovers installed and the stock stuff is just sitting around. That's the same way I found an OEM axle-back to tinker with.

Anyway, here's a bump 'cause I'm interested for the same reasons you are. Is your Koni guy going to use the same inserts I posted up, or some other option?

 

HEMI: thx for the bump. Still no response, but I took some pictures of the drawings in the factory shop manual, and I think they'll work. I'll be emailing those off today.

I don't know what kind of inserts he plans to use, and I'm not sure he does, either. That's why he needs the photos. But I'll let you know as soon as I find out. One thing he told me is that Koni DOES plan to release some ready-made replacement shocks for the fit, but not for 12 months, and I don't know if they'll be adjustables (he actually talked to Koni about this). I don't want to wait that long, and if I'm gonna spend the money, I want adjustables. So I'm going to forge ahead with the custom-insert option unless it proves to be ridiculous expensive.

 

dude. great idea.
now how much will this run you if it actually works out? and will it be as efficient as any other koni shock?

 

I suspect more "efficient" because the shocks will be custom double adjustables.

Stay tuned, as I'm going to ask if there's any chance of doing a group buy to bring the price down. Problem is, you'd have to send in a set of OEM shocks/struts to get new inserts, which adds to your price and hassle. Anyway, I sent in the JPGs of the stock suspension drawings today and I await a response...!

 

bunch of pictures of my Fits suspension on Welcome to Panducky Motorsports, Inc - search galleries and project smurfit

 

Hocker,
I've heard (maybe from you...) that those Mugen/Showa shocks are pretty nice. Are they adjustable at all, or just a bit more agressive than stock? For a point of comparison, what's the cost of those, and are they available w/o springs? That's the way Skimmer and I would need them in order to compete in the SCCA Stock classes - OEM springs only, but shocks are essentially unlimited. Nice photos of the shocks/struts, BTW.

Skimmer,
One complication I didn't notice before is the upper sway bar mount. I wonder just how much that can deviate from "stock" before it becomes a problem to the rule nazis? They allow the front bar to be changed up/down, and I don't think end links are limited, so it's only a hop/skip/jump of logic to think it might not be a big deal as long as the sway is still attached to the strut somehow. Hmmm... Need to ask my guru guy another couple questions.

 

The dampening is adjustable for 5 settings which is a HUGE differance between each setting. I say that because I have had friends and customers tell me brand A is better because it has 10-15way or whatever adjustable settings. Yet no a single one of them can tell me what differance is made from one setting to the next, and half the time they still leave it on stock settings which is pointless IMO since they got it to adjust.

The height is dropped about 1 inch. To me I love the look of a nice set of rims and that inch drop. Composimo parks his by my car everyday and his is stock and its subtle but there is a enough notice that it looks great. I hate the look of a slammed car. When I was younger I thought it was great but as I got older I saw how bad it really is on everything.

Cost is around 1300 or so. That is pretty steep for just dampening and an inch drop for most people. Let me tell you this though. I use to always use Ground controls with Koni yellows on my CRX (which by time you count the cost of the yellows that isnt cheap either). I've also have tein coilovers and adj damp. I can honestly say that the ride quality and feel from this suspension is probly ranked highest on my list of suspension.

Are there better things out there? Probly so and could my personal pref be differant than yours? Probly so. But every single person who has driven my car has said the ride is pretty damn close to perfect as it gets. It is just a great improved stock feel. Rides smooth as glass and yet still offers performance.

You have to buy them with springs. I am sure you can probly toss these on another set of coilovers or springs but I haven't attempted it and I personally love the way the car rides already.

 

Thanks for the update, Hocker, that's good info. Too bad there's a drop built in to the struts, that pretty much nukes them for Skimmer and I, as the spring perches have to be in exactly the same location as stock to count as a "replacement part" under the Stock rules.

I'd prefer more adjustment "clicks", but any is arguably better than none. My low-tech QA-1's (single-adjustable) have 12 clicks of adjustment range, but old skool Koni reds have 3 positions and folks LOVE those, too. And that price isn't THAT bad, especially for 4 shocks and a set of springs. I know guys that have more than that tied up in EACH SHOCK - as in, nearly $6K in dampers. That ain't gonna be me when I finally get around to racing this little critter. I'm hoping to tie up a grand or less in shocks, and cheap out on some semi-light wheels and sticky tires to get the job done.

 

Hocker, thanks. But can you clarify:

-- Are you saying the Showa shocks/struts come delivered with a spring platform that is lower than stock? Or is the 1" drop achieved by shorter springs?

-- Will OEM springs work with the Showa shocks/struts?

-- Is the swaybar mounting point on the Showa struts in the same location as the OEM struts?

-- Does your shop sell these Showa units? Do you sell them without springs? If so, how much?

Thanks again!

 

I've been asking around about this, too, and it appears that the endlinks are basically "open" in Stock class. In other words, you can change them to whatever you want, just like you can change the whole front swaybar to whatever you want. You can even drill the frame or chassis to create new mounting points. (See Section 13.7 of the SCCA rules.)