Shock recommendations for Mk1b

[jsheathcote]

Me again

As posted in the Tryre recommendation thread, while the car was up on the lift I took advantage and checked out the underside.

I noticed that the nearside rear shock is leaking.

What recommendations do you guys have for replacement, and where do you recommend that I get them from?

Thanks for you help so far.

You guys are GRRRRRRRREAT

[spudgun]

This has been covered a few times, but here goes. You can be stock items from toyota if you want, but can't imagine there going to be very cheap tbh.

Another option is to buy KYB inserts which are what most people would consider the budget option. Expect to pay somewhere around 60 quid a corner.

The "best" option, considered by most anyway, is to fit Koni adjustables. These are again inserts, but can be easily adjusted from hard to soft.
Fensport want around £100 per corner, but if you fancied lowering the car 30mm at the same time, Larkspeed do a set of Koni's and lowering springs plus new bump stops for around £360, which as you can see is a bit of a bargin. hth.

[kevin..in]

http://www.larkspeed.com/index.pl?c=KON ... 617234&a=i

[jsheathcote]

Agreed. The Konis look nice. They might just be the first real mod I do

[un1eash]

Can you use the kit from larkspeed and keep your original springs as i dont really want to lower the car??

Cheers

[Speedy]

For completeness, I'd recommend the Leda coilovers.. but they are the wrong side of 1k

[jsheathcote]

OUCH! £1K+

I need to do a fair bit of other stuff before I go throwing £1k in one hit at my MR2.

[System-G]

The Koni's are great if you do loads of track days and/or need/want to constantly change stiffness settings. If most of your driving is done on the road (with the possible odd track day) , then non-adjustables (like the KYB's) would probably be more suitable and easier on the pocket.

I recently fitted KYB's to my 1a and have to say the car's handling had improved 200% (you''ll need to read my previous post to understand why such a big improvement). KYB's will cost around £200 delivered from Fensport.

You can use uprated shocks on standard springs, but if you are going to the hasle of replacing the shocks, then you may as well do the springs too as they will probably be tired.

[LimeyMk1]

Another vote for the KYBs from me.

What kind of ride characteristics are you after and what kind of use is the car going to get?

O/T are you spacer free now Garrick?

[monster red]

Has anyone fitted the Larkspeed kit ?

Just purchased it and gonna try this weekend.

Might be a silly question, but why does it only come with two bumpstops ?

Cheers
Paul

[ldavies83]

bear in mind Lauren did a really good KB article on removing/replacing suspension on the Mk1, click on the Knowledge Base Link at the top of the page.

I wouldnt have been able to do it without that article! (Damned Drop links!)

[jrleech]

Agreed. The Konis look nice. They might just be the first real mod I do

Please be aware that more dealers show a nice set of yellow shocks for the Koni kit for the Mk1.

This is NOT what you get.

The Koni kit is just the damper inserts, you'll need to dismantle and rebuild the stock strut housings.

I've not found anyone who does replacement struts for the Mk1 (other than expensive coilovers), only inserts.

Cheers,
Jon

[monster red]

That did surprise me a little !!

I have already dimantled the struts.

My only concern is why only two bump stops supplied ?

Cheers
Paul

[jrleech]

I don't know. I just got the Koni dampers and used some Jap springs, so I've used the standard bump stops. Haven't bottomed it out yet, and I really really tried in Scotland

[System-G]

O/T are you spacer free now Garrick?

Lost me there mate

[anna]

O/T are you spacer free now Garrick?

Lost me there mate

On the fronts?

[System-G]

O/T are you spacer free now Garrick?

Lost me there mate

On the fronts?

God, I must be having a very blonde day... Still lost

Is this by chance refering to me having to pack rear shocks to make them fit the front?

[LimeyMk1]

Is this by chance refering to me having to pack rear shocks to make them fit the front?

Yup! Sorry being cryptic.

[Lauren]

The Koni's are great if you do loads of track days and/or need/want to constantly change stiffness settings. If most of your driving is done on the road (with the possible odd track day) , then non-adjustables (like the KYB's) would probably be more suitable and easier on the pocket.

I recently fitted KYB's to my 1a and have to say the car's handling had improved 200% (you''ll need to read my previous post to understand why such a big improvement). KYB's will cost around £200 delivered from Fensport.

You can use uprated shocks on standard springs, but if you are going to the hasle of replacing the shocks, then you may as well do the springs too as they will probably be tired.

Just because the konis are adjustable doesn't mean you have to adjust the all the time!

Seriously the koni's on full soft give a much better ride than the KYBs which are on the hard side tbh.

I guess the beauty of them is that you can tailor the koni's to suit what you want whether its a well damped but comfortable ride or a stiffly damped setup for enthusiastic driving.

I do actually adjust mine depending on what i'm doing. I leave them on medium all round for the road and take the rears to full stiff for the track as otherwise i get some iffy roll oversteer.

Fensport do some great springs though that work really well with the konis. 20% uprated 30mm lower and it'll never bottom out. They are streets ahead of crap like Pi springs (which i've currently got).

[System-G]

Is this by chance refering to me having to pack rear shocks to make them fit the front?

Yup! Sorry being cryptic.

No mate, Still using the shocks intended for the rear on the front. We packed out the underside of the shock with high-tensile nuts and some serious washers. All good The only thing that concerns me is that the KYB rear shocks may have a stronger damping rating than the KYB fronts. I couldn't get a definate yes or no as to whether the damping differs from front to rear. Feels fine though