I hope some of you with experience can spare a moment to help.

what would be nice is the best shock/strut bang for my buck AND with the least amount of hassle and/or modification. currently i am poor and lazy.

i have a 1985-1/2 n/a 944 that i have owned since 1986 or 87 when it had only 20k miles... has 211k now and still runs fairly well. just recently the front end started to feel awful and rattles and shakes with slightest bump in the road on the passenger side. the car has original shocks and struts so i am pretty certain that the right front strut is the problem. i intend to do all 4 though.

what's best to use as a replacement, ie, what brand and model, etc., if i want the minimum hassle and setup?

replacing with oem stuff would obviously be the least problem but would going to bilsteins or konis require more modification or setup work and time? if not, which is better if i just want a good daily driver as a result?

also, i plan to change them myself. i have a clamshell spring depressor and have done all 4 struts on my wife's camry.

any suggestions or warnings?

 

I was looking for what you are and I am picking up some Bilstiens. Seem like the best bang for the buck. KYBs are cheaper, but I haven't heard great things about em.

 

I have KYB experience from the Nissan world, and I wouldn't do it again. I put Boge on my n/a, as I was under impression they were OEM type. They seem fine. Not great, but fine.

 

Koni's baby!

 

I autocross with KYBs. They are stiffer than factory OEM Boge shocks. I cannot complain about KYBs. However, there are better shocks out there than KYB, naturally. Before my engine failure, I was beating 944s with Bilsteins on them. Perhaps the amateur drivers....myself included.


I think KYBs though are underrated due to the fact that the majority of owners put premium shocks on their cars. As an everyday shock for road use, the KYB is an effective and suitable candidate. However, the car will ride a little stiffer than OE struts and shocks though.

 

Bilsteins

 

Koni Sport adjustable (inserts for front) front and rear. KYB are cheap but wont last. I got about 3 years of daily driving in mine. Then did it properly with the Koni's. I got them from Paragon. Worth it in the long run.

Good Luck!

RobT
Sydney Australia

 

Oops, I meant Boge instead of KYB. I would not consider KYB. You get what you pay for mostly. ;-)

 

I don't mean to steal the thread, but I have the same car, and right now I have koni yellow adjustables that are pretty bad. Would it be best to get another set of them, or go for the Bilstein's? I don't want to go for the uber cheapies, but I don't wanna spend a grand either.

 

silverbean, i think it comes down to preference somewhat. I like the adjustability of the Koni's. The difference in price between the Koni and Bilstein strut's for your car is about $25, or $50 total.

 

I prefer a stiffer ride, so then which would you reccomend?

 

Do you play with the adjustment on the Koni's much? How stiff do you usually have them set? I have never rode in a car with the Bilsteins, so i cant comment on how they are valved. Im sure someone here can give a accurate comparison.

 

If you autocross or track your 944, the adjustability of Koni's are a nice feature. There is a limited range of rebound adjustment on a single adjustable shock that is useful, however. Shock changes are not as "macro" as spring changes, more along the lines of "tweaking" adjustments in nose to tail balance, much like sway bars.

It is a mistake to assume that you can use an adjustable shock to substitute for a stiffer spring. As the shocks get too stiff for their spring rate, two things can happen....the car can take on an undamped bouncing feel and the shock itself can "work its way down" when subjected to repeated motion, basically not recovering all the way before the next compression.

Double adjustables are said to be more able to serve as a stiffening force within the suspension, but adjusting both rebound and compression is a bit of black art that requires a better understanding of race car dynamics than this author can muster.

An adjustable yellow Koni is said is be roughly equivalent to an OE Boge/KYB when the Koni is set to it's softest setting. The stiffest setting is about 50% more rebound resistance, IIRC. I don't mess much with the rears but the externally adjustable fronts are easy to play with and DO make a difference. Within their range of adjustment, the softer the front shocks the more front bite you get, the stiffer the fronts, the more understeer you induce.

It's been my experience that you can really change a 944's balance on race day by working with the front shock setting, the rear tire pressures and the rear sway bar if you have an M030 three holer or an aftermarket rear bar. As with every thing in life, though, there's no free lunch. Turning the front shock, say, a quarter turn tight, might help keep the tail under you in the kink at high speed, but you pay the price in the hairpin coming up next because the car now doesn't want to rotate enough to get a good launch on exit. Etc. Etc.

 

Silverbean, can you define "pretty bad"? Did your car have a problem that installing the Konis didn't fix? Perhaps your "bad" experience is related to another problem - bushings, tie rods, ball joints...?

 

On my 924S, I put Boge turbo gas shocks and Weltmeister 200lb. springs in front. They lowered the front about 1 1/4 inches and then I lowered the rear by 3/4 inches using the factory adjustment. Handles great and did not cost a ton.