hazlgreen

I just ordered some Koni Sports, but now I'm beginning to wonder if I should have gone with Bilstein HD's instead. I don't track or autocross. I drive this car for fun on the weekends and evenings here in the DC area (note: lots of potholes). My mechanic claimed that some people find Koni Sports "a little bouncy" and claimed that for driving around on bumpy city streets I might find the bilstein HD's smoother.

Anyone drive on both and can offer me a comparison? I'd rather not go through the hassle of sending the Koni's back and ordering bilstein HD's if the difference is not that great.

I'm betting at this point anything will be an improvement. I am pretty sure I'm riding on the originals now...

Sam Lin

Don't bother to exchange the shocks, you won't notice much difference if any.

Sam

hazlgreen

Thanks Sam.

I miss Phx. I really like DC, but the two years in phx were great. Dry heat, man. Doesn't get any better.

Eyal 951

if you run them at the correct setting for the spring rate you run, they should feel as good as stock when it was new. Their great shocks for running low rates and comfort, or running high rates, and stiffness. If its bouncy, its because the springs are not being dampened enough... you have to set the shock stiffer until the bouncy is gone.
~Eyal

Serge944

Bilstein HDs are valved fairly high and will, without doubt, be a little harsher than stock Boges. This is true of nearly every suspension upgrade though.

Manning

I have used both on my car, and currently run the HDs. So far I like the HDs very well, and if they last longer than the numerous sets of Konis I have used in the last 8 or so years I will be happy as can be.

The Bilsteins seem to fall in the range of stiffness of a set of brand new Koni yellows set in the middle of their adjustability. The Billys also, by hand shock dyno seem to be a bit stiffer on compression than the Konis.

Eyal 951

does anyone know if M030 yellows are valved the same as OTS (off the shelf) yellows? I need to know how high of rates i can go before i have to revalve. Rears too, I'll be doing a conversion on em.
~Eyal

special tool

Sam is saying little dif between Koni and Bilstein HD - I agree.

There is a big dif between Boge and either of those.

hazlgreen

Thanks guys. I feel pretty comfortable with the Koni Sport purchase now. I cannot wait for the delivery -- New Koni sports, front bump rubber, and tie rods/ends! Proper alignment and a smoother ride are soon to come!

Jerad

Does anyone know the difference in durability between the two? I've heard some people have issues with the konis wearing out over a short period of time. Do the bilsteins last any longer? This would be for a street setup with stock springs.

eohrnberger

Pardon the newbie questions, but: I don't have the M030 option but do have stock everything else. The S2 is used for weekend fun driving and PCA DEs. I'm planning on up fixing to Koni Yellows, which are adjustable. The fronts are easy to adjust for DEs, but the rears require removal for adjustment.

So for DEs I'd adjust the fronts and leave the rears as they are, which means to me that the rears are adjusted once to a compromise setting. What should that setting be? Are Koni yellows the right choice for this type of use?

Serge944

In general, you would start with both adjusted approximately half way. This is tedious, but you drive around, and depending on the over/understeer characteristics you encounter, you increase the stiffness on the corresponding side. A safe way to start is to have the rears a bit stiffer from the beginning because understeer is a nasty little thing.

eohrnberger

So then the choice of KONI Yellows are about right for what I want to do with the car?

Eyal 951

you may want to consider upgrading the springs and torsion bars. when doing suspension, the real upgrade is in the spring... the shock/strut is just there to be able to dampen the stiffer spring correctly. If you increase stiffness for the shock, and leave springs stock, your really just over dampening the spring. it really wont handle any better.
~Eyal

Serge944

For a street driven car, springs would be my last concern. You'd be surprised how good tires, stiff swaybars, and an aggressive alignment will transform your car - all while leaving it perfectly drivable on bumpy streets.

Setting konis on full stiff with a relatively stock suspension forces the shock to do a springs job. No surprise that those shocks don't last.

Play around with camber. After a hard drive take the temperature across the tires tread. Adjust the camber so that the temp is relatively even. Once you have a perfectly perpendicular tire to road angle, your car will have as much grip as a car with greater spring rate. However, the time it takes the suspension to do what it's told will still be longer. A good thing, IMO, for the average inexperienced driver. A real race car can easily catch the driver off guard and swap ends without warning.