Cause for bent shock?
01-11-2012, 06:56 PM
#1
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Cause for bent shock?
This is another post related to the post-accident repairs of my car -
In the process of checking the alignment on my car, the body shop discovered that the shaft of my left front shock is bent. My question is: is this likely to have happened when my car was hit (on the right side)? If not, why does this happen? Can potholes do it? otherwise bad roads?
The car was hit on the right quarter and front fender while I was traveling about 25 mph. I think the car that hit me was in the next lane and trying to make a u-turn, but I'm not sure. I did end up in the lane to my left after the impact, but it wasn't a "broadside" impact.
The body shop says that it's very unusual to see opposite side shock damage without very hard impacts, usually to a parked car - does that sound right? Should I appeal with the insurance company, or is that going to be a waste of time?
Related to this, the current suspension on the car is Bilstein HDs with ROW M030 springs, and it's entirely too stiff for me. It's my only car, and I don't track it or auto-x, so I don't need super handling, I'd rather be a bit more comfortable when I drive it (and not feel like I'm going to shake the dash and everything else loose!)
What other suggestions do people have for suspension set-up? If I want something softer, can I just change the shocks, or do I need to do the springs as well? I was thinking about the new Koni FSD shocks, but I'm not sure if that will solve my problem. Other suggestions?
Thanks!
In the process of checking the alignment on my car, the body shop discovered that the shaft of my left front shock is bent. My question is: is this likely to have happened when my car was hit (on the right side)? If not, why does this happen? Can potholes do it? otherwise bad roads?
The car was hit on the right quarter and front fender while I was traveling about 25 mph. I think the car that hit me was in the next lane and trying to make a u-turn, but I'm not sure. I did end up in the lane to my left after the impact, but it wasn't a "broadside" impact.
The body shop says that it's very unusual to see opposite side shock damage without very hard impacts, usually to a parked car - does that sound right? Should I appeal with the insurance company, or is that going to be a waste of time?
Related to this, the current suspension on the car is Bilstein HDs with ROW M030 springs, and it's entirely too stiff for me. It's my only car, and I don't track it or auto-x, so I don't need super handling, I'd rather be a bit more comfortable when I drive it (and not feel like I'm going to shake the dash and everything else loose!)
What other suggestions do people have for suspension set-up? If I want something softer, can I just change the shocks, or do I need to do the springs as well? I was thinking about the new Koni FSD shocks, but I'm not sure if that will solve my problem. Other suggestions?
Thanks!
01-12-2012, 12:42 PM
#3
Rennlist Member
You can always have the Bilstein guys revalve the shocks to better suit your desires. The stock valving is something called digressive, which has lots of resistance for small bumps and only increases gradually on the bigger bumps. I believe you could have them reduce that to be more linear.
Rebuild cost is about $60/shock. Depending on what is bent, they may be able to fix your front strut. Downside to the revalving is that your car is out of commission for a couple of weeks.
Rebuild cost is about $60/shock. Depending on what is bent, they may be able to fix your front strut. Downside to the revalving is that your car is out of commission for a couple of weeks.
