I installed STR.T/strano springs/adjustable pan hard bar on my Camaro last weekend. I went with all new Moog upper /lower spring thingy in the front and the shocks/springs in the rear. After lowering it off of the rack I tightened all the bolts, man did it look good. I went for a drive and it handled much better. I went over some imperfection in the road to see how they handled them. The front/rear was fine over the low-speed bumps, everything works great. the hi speed bumps the rear shocks slammed the **** out of the car like there wasn't any shock at all. Has anyone run into this??
Are the Koni orange shock meant to be used with lowing springs?

 

Yes they are meant for lowering springs as well. I run those with BMR springs. So you're saying it's almost like there is no give or flex on high speed bumps?

 

I just did the same shock and spring install and have only driven it at 20 km/h. The back of my car sits low too. I took off the (admittedly sh!tty) KYB shocks but there was a significant difference in the stiffness of the them versus the new koni's. The new konis compressed easily but the old kyb's could barely be compress with my weight on them.
I need to get my front end links installed and then i can go for a real ride. Hope its not as bad as you're describing. The slow ride i took was so much more comfortable than it was on the old shocks.

 

okay...
my .02...

Koni STR.T shocks are a better shock THAN FACTORY shocks. You can same the same for KYB's and Monroe's ad nauseum.

The Bilstein shocks offered in the optional SS/WS6 Stage 1 suspension package for SS's from 98-02 were better than factory as well, and SLP/Eibach offered slightly stiffer and lowered springs, not as low or as stiff as the Eibach ProKits.

Stage 2 from SLP offered the Koni DA's(Dual Adjustable's) with the same SLP/Eibach springs, HUGE difference in performance as well as handling AND comfort.

WHY???

Simple.

The Koni DA's came stiffer as their lowest rebound dampning settings than the Bilstein HD's.

The Koni Sports, aka SA's (Single Adjustable's) again are stiffer from Koni than the entry level STR.T's or the Bilstein HD's.

Basically the STR.T's are a compromise from a GREAT shock and the POS factory deCarbon shocks...I'm thinking they're just as good performance-wise as the Bilstein HD's, which I don't even think Bilstein sells anymore.

STR.T's are PERFECT if you wanted a better shock than factory, that's what you got.
Are they great with lowering springs? Depends on what you consider great.

there's been TONS of threads here about shocks and springs and what works and what works better and what works best.

The Koni DA's were a darn good shock, they don't sell them any longer. they were dual adjustable, so making their rebound stiffer made for a more spirited ride and yet, it kept the ride from not being teeth jarring if your were really pushing your car in the twisties AND adjusted the rebound by making it +5 out of 9 for the fronts and like 1-1/2 sweeps from full soft for the rears, coupled with Sam's springs you had a GREAT handling BEAST of an f-body.

Why you bought the STR.T shocks with a lowering spring, only you can answer that, and, for me that would be a major failure for a GREAT handling f-body.

Again, my .02

Lots of folks used to go for the Bilstein HD's and Eibach Prokit lowering springs cuz they wanted their car lowered and wanted it to be better than factory AND did not want to pay for the Koni DA's OR the Koni SA's.

Is that what you did?

didn't want to pay that much for the shocks?

Did you talk to Sam?

If you did I BET your concern was price...I get that...AND, you got a good setup.

Not GREAT, just good. Definitely better than factory.

AGAIN, I'm assuming here.

 

Ok, so a few questions.

Are there bumpstops on the car, and if so are they in good shape? If not that's a huge issue.

Are you carrying a lot of weight in the car?

Did this happen over just one imperfection or all the time? There are times that the shocks can't deal with just the right kind of hit, and if you have more unsprung weight it's even more apparent.

Remember that STR.T's are not in any way a Sport. Koni says this:
"KONI's entry level performance STR.T (pronounced "Street") shocks and struts bring improved handling and KONl quality to budget and performance minded car and light truck owners. Whether to simply refresh and upgrade a stock vehicle, to match with street performance lowering springs and other modifications, or to carry loads and pull trailers with improved control, KONl STR.T provides performance at a value price point.

Entry level performance shock absorbers & struts
Perfect for OE replacement or vehicle improvement
Complements lowering springs & performance upgrades
Lifetime Warranty


New for 2017, KONI STR.T performance and value are now available for pickup trucks.

KONI STR.T is designed to improve light truck load carrying control when hauling campers, horse or car trailers, or any other precious cargo without compromising ride quality when not towing or hauling. KONI’s decades of knowledge and focus making premium shocks for large motorhomes, buses, and heavy trucks are now applied to light trucks and specifically for people who haul trailers part of the time.


Key Features:
Improved control and handling when towing and hauling
Reliable ride comfort when unloaded
Twin tube low pressure nitrogen gas design is easier to install than mono-tube high pressure gas shocks.
Reduced impact harshness and vibrations from rough roads
KONI performance at a reasonable price
Limited lifetime warranty"

What shocks and springs exactly did you come off of before? The lowering springs, being shorter, but not radically stiffer (to help things with ride and power down on less than perfect roads), rely on the bumpstop to help with adding wheel rate at the end of the travel range. That said, too much is too much too. Urethane ones are not nearly as nice as rubber or the OEM foam ones because the urethane is very stiff and while it stops from overtraveling, you still get a much more sudden spike in wheel rate. And that can happen before the shock, being less control oriented than a Sport, has a chance to do what it needs to do to damp things.

 

2ToeRacing: So I got my car out for a ride last night and this morning to work. I am not experiencing what you are. Most of my vehicles have been lowered and this might be the best ride of all of them (couple of cars with eibachs on stock shocks, truck has lowering spindles). Roads here in Edmonton are brutal for potholes and frost heaves and the car is comfortable; I didn't bottom out at all and I did not experience any of the real harshness you describe. That said, the KYB's I took off might as well have been a solid piece because they were so harsh (horrible shocks/struts!!!).
I hope you get a solution to this! I'd be frustrated to spend $$ and then not be happy with the end result. I could send you my KYB's so you could really have a sh!tty ride and then you could go back to your new gear...might feel a lot better

 

I have been riding the new setup for two weeks, it's been my DD since my truck need brakes. I have been hitting a lot of different bumps/dips in the road to understand what the suspension can and can't do. It is jarring on the high-speed bumps, low speed is great. I got new bump stops with my shocks/springs. I still have the rear seat/spare tire and jack out of the car so I'm not carrying any extra weight. I'm sure we'll come to a conclusion on this so I'm not shitty yet

 

LOL, well thanks for not being shitty.

New stops (rubber?), and the fact it's not bad all the time does point to shock valving to me. Just to be clear, because not everyone is on the page here, high speed bump, you mean high piston speed stuff, right? Short, sharp hits?

 

I wouldn't rule out that maybe there is a damper that just isn't working right out of the box. Rare but has happened.

 

Let's see pics of the rear bump stops on the car. Also, how much clearance is between the bump stop and the axle when the car is not jacked up?

 

Weird I actually searched "bad koni " because I've been getting the exact same hard hit mostly on my passenger side rear again. I began experiencing it last year before I put my car away and replaced the bump stops then as recommended. Just recently got the car back from H/C/I, LT's tranny rebuild, tune etc...got a new set of Nitto G2's and started driving it. I'm thinking I have a bad shock because man it sounds horrible going over faster, harder bumps! I was thinking of trying the hose mod to get the rear up a little if it's hitting the bump stops. Car sits perfectly level...with no one in it. It hits hard with just me driving it...no passenger. My spare, jack etc are still all in car. Going to try pulling that all out, never used them anyway. FYI.. I have Strano springs and Koni yellows.

 

Yes, that is correct^^^^^^ I (think) the bump stops are polli. If that's the problem then I will be ordering rubber

eb110americana Let's see pics of the rear bump stops on the car. Also, how much clearance is between the bump stop and the axle when the car is not jacked up?
I also thought about the bump stops, I will measure. Any idea what a decent distance should be? Yeah, I know it's very subjective.

 

Don't remember exactly how it works, but I did what I've seen recommended on here many times when I did my springs and shocks----- I used the factory bump stops but took of the aluminum piece of it which is easily 1/2" IIRC. The thought being that the car is sitting lower so the springs and shocks don't have as much distance to do their thing before hitting the bumpstops. The fix? Shorter bumpstops. I have the good Konis (no offense) and have yet to bottom out. Car rides wonderfully.

 

I have the Strano Springs, Koni DA's and new rubber bump stops. Rear always bottoms out on any little road dip. Far worse when there is more than one person in the car. I have about 20K miles on them...so maybe something to say about wear and tear on the shocks. I tightened the Konis as much as I could, still bottoming out. Anyone move to an airbag setup in rear?
Its embarrassing driving around town in a nice car with someone in the passenger seat and all you hear is "SCCCRRRAAAPPE" on every little bump.

 

ok... here's the thing. What's "SCCCCRRRAAAPPE"ing? That's what bumpstops do it limit the ultimate travel of the wheels and tires vs. the body. And if they are there, then I have to ask how big your wheels and tire are, and what offset they are?

No shock, no spring can change the shape of the body or where your wheel and tire resides under it. And because folks always want bigger wheel and tire tends to reside in places it did not on a stock car. remember that the BIGGEST wheel/tire was 17x9 with a 275/40-17 stock.

Shocks are dampers, they are not limiters. Springs are springs, they move and also aren't limiters. Bumpstops are the limiters. Not there, that's an issue. There but half destroyed, issue. Stock not there, but you put some on the shock, big issue as that is a last ditch effort and not a good one.

The fact of the matter is lowering springs are lower. And there are softer ones than mine out there too (and lower). I.E. this issue would exist on this car with the same parts with pretty much all springs except maybe stock, but most likely there too as while taller they are softer and also use the bumpstops.

So let's here some details.

 

I've got 19" CCW with 295/30/19 rubber. Corvette offsets on wheels, running 1/4" spacers and longer studs. Scraping only recently got worse. Led me to look and the Bump stops were obliterated. I took them off for a while till I replaced them, and the car was still scraping even with bumpstops off. What else could be scraping? I don't see any other areas of wear. What else would give metal scrape? New rubber on those bumps stops. I wonder why I'm not hearing more of a thud vs a scrape? Any help,is appreciated,

 

Scraping is not specific. Is it a tire rub or something else?

And if the stops are worn out that's an issue, removing what's left isn't going to help if the tire is contacting the quarter panel

 

I at times get the same hard bump on the passenger side as capelajc mentioned above. I have a 99 ls1 Camaro with stock springs, stock bumpers and Koni Str.T shocks all around. When I start getting that hard bump on the passenger rear, I take off the shock and cycle it by hand from fully compressed to fully extended 2-3 times and when I put it back on the car that hard bump goes away. I don't know exactly why this happens, maybe an air pocket forms in the oil in the shock periodically, maybe it's temperature/season related.

My Str.Ts have approximately 10k miles on them. They handle great both on the street and track (i.e. road course). The only time when the Str.Ts don't perform so well on the street is when you hit a series of short, sharp bumps. They don't seem to be able to respond fast enough. I will likely buy Koni SA next, but I would buy the Str.T again. They are pretty good shocks for the money.

 

That would indicate it's sucking air in, cavitating. This is one reason they are not to be considered an equal to a Sport even when the latter is set full soft.

And this is what non gas charged shocks tend to do in general. The STR.T's have a charge but it is quite low and it sounds like one is pulling some air in and what are doing is bleeding it, much like brakes.

 

Sam, I was hoping you would respond because I knew you would be able to explain this. Thanks for your answer.