Greetings everyone. I'm new to the forum so please accept my apologies if this thread is duplicative. I have a babied 997.1 that the dealer says has leaking rear struts. They recommend replacing all four. The car seems to drive just fine without apparent slop in the rear-end or elsewhere. The car has PASM which also works fine. Should I replace the struts as the dealer recommends? If so, should I stick with stock struts or switch to something else? I'm not doing track days, just spirited daily driving.

All thoughts welcome!

 

No reason to replace the fronts at the moment, but both rears should be replaced if one is leaking. I'd get to the car to an independent shop to save some money, and use that savings to buy a DSC suspension controller.

 

If it was my car, and given its age, I would pursue replacing all four.

Might want to consider Bilstein B4 Damptronics or B6 Damptronics - both compatible with PASM.

 

I’d also replace all 4.

However I would verify they are in fact leaking, yeah, I have trust issues when it comes to dealers.

Id also find a good independent shop, never dealer unless warranty.

 

Terrific replies, all. Thinking about the B6's. I will definitely have the existing hardware checked by an independent shop. This dealer has been telling me for 2 years now the rear struts are leaking and I cannot detect any deterioration in performance. If I do proceed with the new struts, anything else I should do while it's taken apart?

 

I'm relatively new here and I've been doing lots of research on the suspension upgrades. I was thinking of getting some springs, but then I thought I should probably replace the shocks while I'm at it since my car just hit 65k miles. However, that has lead me down the rabbit hole...

So, if you don't want to change anything at all, the OEM PASM shocks run about $1600 for the set. Alternatively, you could get upgraded Bilstein B6 (B8 for lowered springs) or the B12 kit (Eibach springs + B8s) but the PASM version is very hard to find right now and the kit will run around $2k. But then at that price, the next question is if you should just go for coilovers. I keep going back and forth on this, but I'll probably end up just doing springs and leave my shocks alone until I absolutely have to replace them since I'm probably never going to track my car.

I know this isn't exactly what you asked, but it may come across your mind if you end up having to replace your shocks.

 

I've got 145K on my 2010 C4S without leaking. I might question the dealer if I was you ...

Regardless of being dry, I feel my struts have gotten tired.

I bought a DSC and recalibrated the struts to reduce rear end wallow (after replacing the motor mounts). That has helped, for about the last 25K miles. But I'm definitely compromised.

So I started looking at options for the near future. The B4, B6, and B8 (B12?) options were always out of stock with no restocking date. The only thing I could find was B16 Comfort Damptronic 49-135817 from FCP or Rock Auto or Flat 6. The Sport option was not available.

That was a few months ago and things may have changed. But as I thought about it, coil overs with adjustable height and corner balancing started making a lot more sense. I would hate to have second thoughts and buyer's remorse.

In for a penny, in for a pound. If possible I'd do all corners, especially if you are upgrading from OEM.

 

For the 997.1, FCP Euro shows that Bilstein B4 Damptronic and B6 Damptronic units are currently available.

 

I'm in the same boat on my 997.2 4S with PASM, I have a leaking left front (verified now fully blown) and asked the Forum yesterday if replacing in pairs was recommended/required or could you just replace the leaker? The one response I got said do them both. I plan to go with the B4s and do both but It doesn't just stop with the shocks. You have to add strut bellows, bumpers (bump stop),and strut mounts. Now comes the question of alignment, is a 4 wheel alignment necessary? I'm told it is necessary because the front end will be apart . That's another $400. All in I'm estimated at $2800 ( that total is parts plus 6 hours labor to R&R the struts, plus the alignment). Does that sound about right?

 

FYI I found Bilstein B4 PASM set for 997 on Amazon for around 1200 and Bilstein B6 PASM set on shocksurplus.com for around 1600.
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My car has ~80k miles and I am discovering the last owner was a hooligan...
I am thinking of refreshing my suspension and I need a project.
I haven't bought anything because I am not sure if I want to change the suspension and how much the B6 will actually changes things
And it's easier to shop than it is to disassemble your suspension.

Is there a thread around here about replacing shock mounts / etc?
Specifically looking for a list of "consumables" that I should look at replacing like shock mounts, bump stops, spacers etc...

 

Just had my 40K miles 07 C2S PASM suspension upgraded to Bilstein B8, previously it had Eibach Pro-kit springs installed but the OEM B4s were retained, lower stance look great, however handling over curves at high speed suck. The B8 is specifically designed for shorter spring, the B4 with shorter springs will limit suspension travel. Along with the upgrade, every other components were replaced with new parts, none was reused, labor is too expensive to take chances. The OEM rear mounts would last another 40K miles based from its look but not so much for the front.

The Bilstein B12 Pro-kit basically is B8s with Eibach springs.
For OEM springs application, I would step up to B6 from B4. Do all 4 corner at same time, why paid alignment twice?

Bought the B8s through TireRack, the front were 4 weeks backorder.

 

When I refreshed my suspension at 66K miles, the shop I went to did the following (see photo). I would change the shock mounts if you're going to replace the shocks since you're in there already. NOTE: The prices are list prices and you can probably get the shock mounts cheaper online at ECS. I got the B12 suspension at Tire Rack and they were delivered directly to the shop.