midnight oil.. suspension

[G60 0]

its midnight over here, must be near 5am on that side eh!

 

was just reading the US club list and came across something i haven't heard of before. has anyone tried taking out the stock strut cartridges on the fronts and replacing them with koni adjustables or something else? figure this will save me some cash over the complete assembly.

 

then i've heard you fill the gap between the cartridge and the mount with oil or coolant.. it disapates heat better then air and doesn't rust your new suspension setup..

 

any thoughts?

[Banana Man 0]

Yeah I ve heard of just getting the inserts and changing them instead of buying the complete strut never heard of filling the gap with oil though as there shouldn't be a gap, if you've bought the right inserts they should just slot in with a nice tight fit!! and there is a nut that holds the insert onto the strut they are a bastard to get off on older suspenssion as they corrode!! It maybe a little cheaper than buying the complete strut but I think there wont be that much differnce in price to be honest and the extra aggrevation it causes isn't really worth it. I should know I bought inserts for my mk2 and ended up having to take them off and to a garage for the nut to be loosened with an airhammer as it was well and truely corroded on!!

[G60 0]

any idea on the price difference? i have access to air/heat or whatever it takes to get the nuts off. (hehe, nuts off) :lol:

 

if its gonna save me a little cashola i'm all for it!! 8)

 

as far as the gap, the knowledgable US listers have either used coolant or oil to fill the gap, and i've also heard of using brake fluid but it is not ideal since it absorbs moisture and will corrode the metal.

 

let me see if i can find the post about the gap..

 

"I don't like brake fluid 'cause it's hygroscopic and eats paint... I have used engine oil just because I fear rust. I think the main point is that you should put *something* in there that has better heat transfer qualities than an air gap."

 

"since there is a small amount of space between the insert and the housing, he filled up that space with anti-freeze, rather than just 'leaving' the air in

there."

 

seems to be a widely known procedure on that list.. anyone here have any input?

[Kevin Bacon 5]

Wouldn't putting fluid at the bottom of the strut cause a hydraulic lock when you tighten the nut down? Anyway, I hate inserts, twice as much work. I'd rather bin them, pay the small difference and get full struts. If you choose Konis - I would - then you can have these rebuilt if and when they wear out. When it comes to brands like Koni, I don't think there is a massive difference in price to be honest.

 

As an idea, the difference in price between a top adjustable rear and a non adjustable rear Koni is about £8 GBP.

 

Cheers

Kev

[G60 0]

thanks kev.

 

i just heard back from shox.com.

 

set of four - koni adjustable (90-92 G60, not sure what else they fit): $574. and i assume this is US money, can't imagine it being that low if it was in canadian.

 

they also sell the front insert by itself, still waiting on price for that bit.

[G60 0]

any opinions on bilstein vs. koni yellow?

 

koni's will run me close to $574 US (thats front inserts only, full rears) and bilsteins $380 US (front inserts only, full rears). i'm still waiting on pricing for complete front asemblies. shouldn't be more than $10-15 more ea.

 

i was all over the konis.. but now i'm hearing that for regular street driving the bilsteins are more comfortable.. and that they are more 'settled' when you drive it hard.

 

anyone tried both side-by-side?

[G60 0]

c'mon.. someone has to have run at least one of these struts..

 

how do you like them? what springs do you use with them?