I have an opportunity to pick up a set of Bilstein RSR shocks and springs for a reasonable price and wanted to get some feedback on them. Right now the suspension is 100% stock and original and I would like to improve the handling, especially at higher speeds where the car feels "floaty"
I don't know the spring or valve rates off hand, but the previous owner is very knowledgable and said the Bilsteins should be good for a 85% street, 15% AX car without being too harsh.
There doesn't seem to be a lot of information here, so hopefully that doesn't mean the RSR is a "bad" system. Any thoughts would be appreciated.
Thanks,
Peter

 

The Bilsteins can be revalved to suit whatever spring rate you choose, my only reservation is that they may be too short for street ride heights. If you can pick them up cheap enough that the $100 a shock rebuild is reasonable and they are long enough to have a reasonable ride height I say go for it. Bilstein makes a good shock, it just isn't as good as a the $$$ adjustable stuff. Bilstein NA is in Poway, CA so to getting them rebuilt to suit your desired spring rate (400/600 may be reasonable) would be easy.

 

The 993RSRS had a full race suspension w/ very stiff springs
the shocks are multi-adjustable w/ external reservoirs
for street use they can certainly be toned down but keep in mind that this is a full race setup more suited to track use than anything else

these are Bilstein 993RSR

 

Good advice here and I'd simply add that EVO uprights & tie-rods are needed for those Bilstein RSR struts and shocks.

These are much shorter than street shocks (such as PSS-10) which mandates a ride height that guarantees a serious bump steer problem without the EVO hardware.

 

I have them and like them on the track, night and day compared to pss-9. Much, much more predictable and confidence inspiring. (never used JRZ or Moton so I cant compare). Even with 800/1000lb springs they do "ok" on the street.

+1 on the EVO uprights..... With non-RS uprights (which I am required to run in stock class) there is interference between the front adjuster **** and ball joint. Took serious finagling to make it work.

Before you pull the trigger, make sure you have all the parts you need. The peripherals add up quickly. off the top of my head you will need:
Rebuild @ 175/ea
8 springs @ 60/ea
4 couplers @ 50/ea
4 spring hats @ 50/ea
2 rear drop link mounts @ 75/ea
monoballs
swaybars
droplinks

One other thought, Bilstein also makes a shock which I have seen called an RSR that is not remote reservoir and is not adjustable, that is NOT what we are talking about here…

 

I don't believe the shocks are adjustable...
They come with the rear spring hats and all the springs. I haven't seen them yet, I was just told about them at my last autocross. Valving/spring rate was set for a vheicle very much like mine. They had less than 1000 miles on them before the car was stripped down and converted to a full race car.
With my budget where it is I would have to purchase these, collect the peripherals over the next couple of months (years? ) and then install it all before paying for an alignment.

I will call the seller today at a more reasonable time and get some more information. I wasn't aware there were multiple choices.

Thank you for all the replies!

 

I have always wondered about the "other" RSR shock. Does anyone know how it is related to the remote reservoir RSR?

 

the only others i've seen are the RS shocks seen here

 

Bill,
Thank you for the image. The shocks I am looking at are the RS series as pictured. There is very little information about these on the internet. Was this a discontinued item?
I was told by the owner that they were RS shocks, but due to a lack of information I thought he must have been mistaken.
What do you know about these? I am assuming these were the high end race series at the time, but were discontinued to make room for the adjustable shocks...
Thanks again for the help!

 

The Bilstein RS shocks were oe on the 993RS models, they are roughly equivalent to current Bilstein hd shocks. they are shorter and stiffer than the street shocks, IMO perfect for street use. They use monoball top mounts, springs were 246/457 much softer than the usual track shock but stiffer than the usual street stuff(M030 is 200/275)

lots of us use 450/675 to 600/800 on the street but w/ adjustable shocks(adjustability is huge when using race stuff on the street)

you'd probably want to consider adding RS uprights and sways to complete the suspension package

 

I am currently running the RS shocks on the street 600/800 and think they are a bit stiff for "daily use". On the highway/track they are great, but on bumpy roads they are brutal (esp with the shorter travel). I also have a horrible bump-steer problem that I need to correct.

Hope this helps, if you have any other questions, feel free to PM me.

 

[QUOTE=Bill Verburg;7337833]the only others i've seen are the RS shocks seen here


Hmm.... I see someone had extended rear shackles and TRG rear droplinks. Pretty fancy hardware for RS shocks .

 

JMHO, but 600/800 springs (especially without tenders) gives a punishing ride on the street unless one has Motons.

That bump steer problem is easily fixed with the right hardware,...

 

you have Cup competition springs, as I said they are street drivable iff the shocks can be adjusted down a few notches.

also as I indicated, RS uprights and tie rods are needed at the lowered ride heights

 

If I need to purchase RS uprights to go along with these, then I will not be able to afford this system.
The rougher ride is acceptable since the car isn't really a daily driver, its a spirited weekend car and AX'er which will see occasional "get me to work" duty when my other cars are down.
Thank you all so much for all the help. Unless I can source some cheap (ie almost free) uprights or can modify something to eliminate the bump steer issues, I won't be able to afford this package.
Thanks again,
Peter