help with shocks & suspension

[_turtle_]

hey guys, just need some info on shocks and suspension. sorry, but i dont know too much about them.

say, if my ride was bumpy and i could feel all the bumps and stuff on the road whilst driving, would changing the shocks help this. can someone give me a rough price of how much a new set of standard shocks would cost including fitting. i dont' want to get ripped off at the mechanics.

would changing the suspension also help? car seems to bounce around a bit. also, how much would it cost for some standard suspension cost including fitting.

thanks

btw, i hear this clunking noise wen i take corners hard coming from the rear left. i think that it mite be something loose because it sounds like it slides across a bit and then slides back wen i straighten up, but i also think that it may b the suspension because i can't find anything loose. could it be suspension?

[B-Man]

I'd get your suspension looked at ASAP. Noises coming from under there can turn into very bad !

In regards to your suspension - All the questions you are are easily answered by "it depends".

Do you know what sort of suspension you have on now ?? Many Jap Imports come with some type of after market suspension. This makes harder to replace / fix. Mine came with Tanabe the rear shocks squeaked - and the ride was very harsh - I was lucky enough to pick up some second hand TEIN coil-evers for 1200 - I fitted them myself (very easy).

Full whiteline kit $2000-3000 depending on options (I've heard that the product is good but the service is average)

Kings spings only 400-600 per set.

Hope that helps..

[blind_elk]

The harshness of the ride you describe sounds a bit like mine - turned out it was shot shocks.

I went perhaps a bit overboard and got Bilsteins - they're for the R32 GT-R - but they were actually slightly cheaper than Koni. They are firm, but not harsh like you have ATM.

Then just the last couple weeks, I got some King springs all round and the Whiteline GT-R rear bar ($537 all up).

So all up, I've got about $1500 of suspension.

Now I'm not sure if they make a Bilstein for the 33 GTSt, but I would recommend that you not skimp on the suspension - get quality stuff.

The movement you describe would suggest worn bushes - you should replace them anyways with the urethane type.

Talk to Quadrant (9769 9666) about Bilsteins, or TopPerformance about Koni. Or you could talk to Rick @ Traction Tyres (9764 2811) about your general suspension requirements.

[_turtle_]

ahh, thanks blind elk. i thought they suppose to replace bushes and rods for compliancing. the dodgy guys. not that i know what they are, i just remember that for my 180sx i had them replaced. was fairly cheap.

i mite go get the shocks replaced. if i drive over those drains or small ditches, tram rds etc i can feel every bump. speed bumps r no good either.

will they know which part no. to put in or is there some local model car equivalent i can tell them about which will fit straight in?

don't want 2 take the car there and then they'll go "oh, this ones an import fish, we'll have to order it in" and then charge me double.

atm, my car is quite low, from what i can see it doesn't look like aftermarket springs are in there, just looks like the normal colour.

[skyline33]

yeah give rick at traction a call first explain the situation and he'll look after you.

[DanielGTST]

I had Bilsteins and King Springs installed into my car (R33 GTST)about 6 months ago with no problems sourcing the parts in WA. Cost me just over $1300, made a huge difference to handling, but the ride comfort is about the same, so it might not help too much with the bumps in the road, unless of course your shocks are completely stuffed.

Daniel

[JimX]

I got Bilstein shocks and Whiteline springs for a bit over $1300 too. Labour to fit was about $200 so I decided to do it myself. Didn't take too long and was very easy so I can't justify the extra cost.

Turtle, when you say you can "feel every bump", are you sure it's just not because some ultra-hard Japanese Tanabe/Tein/Cusco/JIC/etc suspension? You might try adjusting the damping rate to see if that will soften up the ride a bit, if you have adjustables.

If the shocks are worn your ride won't be harsh like that, the car will just start to bounce up and down and not recover very well from bumps. It'll also tend to "float" over uneven roads/bumps. If the fronts are particularly bad your steering wheel will shudder horribly when both front wheels hit a bump at the same time.

You can get cheap shock absorbers for your Skyline but I don't see the point if you intend keeping the car for any length of time. Just do the one-off investment on some good quality shocks (eg, Bilsteins) and when they *do* eventually wear out (they'll outlast any cheap brand) they can be rebuilt, probably for less money than a whole new set of cheapies. The added bonus is your handling will always be better than with the cheap set.

[hippy]

i noticed that my steering is a bit off now .. what i mean is when i hit a bump the wheel turns by itself ... and sometimes when i brake the steering wants to turn by itself too ... not too hard ... just slightly ...its not a wheel alignment problem cause the wheel turns with the wheels ... i haven't checked my steering fluid yet but i will do that later ... do u guys think this is a suspension problem?? i don't have much money right now ... i was wondering what u guys thought of monroe shockers cause i can get them cheap ... and maybe some progressive springs ...what do u guys think??

[blind_elk]

I think what you're suffering is 'bump steer'. When the wheel moves through its arc of travel, the toe changes because of the geometry of the front suspension.

It can be fixed, but it can be expensive. Depends what you're prepared to tolerate.

[_turtle_]

Jimx, my steering wheel doesn't move or anything wen i go over bumps. but i do reckon my shocks are buggered.

how do i tell if i have aftermarket supsension? anyone got any pics of the standard ones?

my car is defintely lower than factory height, theres not that much room on top of the wheels and i've just got factory wheels.

also, roughly how much are cheapy shocks? coz i'm planning on selling the car in the next few months, as soon as i get a full time job happening after final exams. so i don't want to spend too much on it, i will also be taking it for a full service too, so i'm kinda short on the cash flows.

i think ylrgtr has some springs (rs brand?) for $200 for sale. but then my springs might be fine and its just the shocks. also, i would then have to take them somewhere to be fitted (more $$$), as u have realised i don't know shiat about suspension!

thanks

[skyline33]

to check if you have aftermarket just have a look underneath the car, most of the time there is a sticker on the shock with the brand on it.

to check if your shocks are stuffed go to any pedders or traction tyres in rowville, pedders have a test it costs like $20 or something and they should be able to tell you what exactly is stuffed if anything.

traction tyres in rowville are good but they will be a bit pricey.

[blind_elk]

Originally posted by _turtle_

...as u have realised i don't know shiat about suspension!

thanks

I'm sure there are members who would be willing to teach you - I, for 1, would be.

[hippy]

so what u are saying that the most probable reason is that my front suspension is f*&^ed?? ... my car is also lower at the front by about maybe 3 cm.

[JimX]

My front is lower than the back by about an inch, but everything is brand new. The old worn out suspension had the rear about 1" lower Just because one end is lower than the other doesn't mean it's worn out or stuffed, although if your rear is lower than the front it's more than likely not done that way deliberately so something is probably wrong.

[Scotty]

Hey B-Man

Just quick question, you mentioned that you installed your coil overs yourself. An easy job you said. Can you possibly advise on how exactly?

Thanks heaps

[JimX]

Putting your own coilovers in is easy, and so is forgetting to do the wheel alignment afterwards I'm paying the price of 2 near-new tyres scrubbed out within 10000km

For the rears, remove parcel shelf and rear wheels (jack car up and put on axle stands). Loosen the top 2 bolts, undo bolt down the bottom, knock the shock off, then undo the top 2 the rest of the way (helps if you've got someone to hold the shock and stop it falling on the ground).

For the fronts, jack the front up, put axle stands under the crossmember rather than the suspension arms, take wheels off, undo the top/bottom same as the rears.

It's pretty simple, just keep in mind that the top bolts shouldn't be done up too tightly or you'll snap them, and the bottom should be done up very tightly.

[B-Man]

V.Easy.

Rear: Remove rear seat & parcel tray (hardest bit of the lot). Jack the car up so both back wheels are off the ground. Undo to the two nut on top of the reat strut tower. Remove the rear wheels. Remove the bottom nut from the shock tower - the whole suspension strut will flop out.

Front - Jack front of car up, Remove both front wheels. Remove two nuts at top of strut tower, Remove nut off the bottom of the shock. Takes a bit of fiddling to remove the who assembly. Carefull that the spring is not under compression (OK if only a little under compression)

I've done this now 3 times on my car and it gets easier each time - I can now do the rear in 10 minutes.

Helps if you have a trolley jack !

Remember: Saftey first

Cheers,

[JimX]

Shazzam!

[benm]

I recently had new Koni Adjustable shocks put in the back and its dramatically improved things.

The front is still -way- too stiff for my liking. I dont mind the firmness for cornering and stuff but small bumps and road surface changes is enuff to bloody give me a headache.

Im not sure what my front shocks are but they are adjustable (im pretty sure its damper only).

What exactly is damper (too lazy to look it up right now) and how hard/easy is it to adjust them at the front to try and soften it up alittle.