Koni STRT/Strano
Koni STRT/Strano About to pull the trigger on this combo from Sam. I will be having him assemble the fronts. I'll be installing them on my "new to me" 02 35th LE SS ( 14K miles).. I don't plan on driving her a lot... Weekends, nice days.... Not the "Yellows" i know. anyone running this combo on their car? Are the STRT's comparable to the Bilstein HD's? I have had the Yellows and Strano's on other 4th gen f bods that i have owned and loved the stance, ride. I'd like to hear from those running this combo... Thanks in advance.
Launching!
Joined: Feb 2012
Posts: 272
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From: Calgary, AB (Canada)
About to pull the trigger on this combo from Sam. I will be having him assemble the fronts. I'll be installing them on my "new to me" 02 35th LE SS ( 14K miles).. I don't plan on driving her a lot... Weekends, nice days.... Not the "Yellows" i know. anyone running this combo on their car? Are the STRT's comparable to the Bilstein HD's? I have had the Yellows and Strano's on other 4th gen f bods that i have owned and loved the stance, ride. I'd like to hear from those running this combo... Thanks in advance.
Im pretty happy with how mine rides. Like mentioned above its firm yet controlled and not harsh. No bottoming out, scraping or hitting the stock bump-stops in the rear either.
Really not much $$ difference between Yellow and STRT, The main reasons I would go to yellow is it's just a better product, it's also adjustable (I went up a click when I went to 315's) and I think (check with Strano on this) there was some kind of asterisk by the lifetime warranty on the STRT, I don't remember exactly what it was but it seems like there was something there that was just a little different than the no questions yellow lifetime warranty.
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TECH Fanatic
Joined: Nov 2007
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From: Lansing, MI via Bowling Green, KY, Dalton GA, Nashville, TN & Atlanta, GA
I’m sure at some point there are diminishing returns, but it would be interesting to hear Sam’s comparison of the STR.Ts and the Sports. He’s probably shared those thoughts before, perhaps many times, somewhere on this forum. I’m pretty sure when I bought my Sports the STR.Ts didn’t exist. I guess if you have really deep pockets there are even better options available. I’m not sure why Koni quit offering the dual adjustables, or what the benefit of those might have been in comparison to the SAs.
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Verdad Gallardo I actually found some local from a buddy who i sold my 96Z28 1LE to... The Koni Adj came on the car from the factory, i added the Strano's later. He is changing his suspension up so i will buy these from him. the shocks themselves has approx 24K miles... the Strano's probably have < 200....
TECH Fanatic
Joined: Nov 2007
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From: Lansing, MI via Bowling Green, KY, Dalton GA, Nashville, TN & Atlanta, GA
When I ordered my ‘94, I came very close to opting for the 1LE package. There are times when I regret that I didn’t, but it was nice to have AC when I was living down south.
TECH Fanatic
Joined: Nov 2007
Posts: 1,745
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From: Lansing, MI via Bowling Green, KY, Dalton GA, Nashville, TN & Atlanta, GA
Was AC added after the fact? I’m assuming yes. I’m pretty sure when I was ordering my car you could not get AC on a 1LE, which was the primary reason I opted not to order that package.
That is true for the 94's..... In 96 it was an option... You can clearly see the RPO code "1LE"...
TECH Fanatic
Joined: Nov 2007
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From: Lansing, MI via Bowling Green, KY, Dalton GA, Nashville, TN & Atlanta, GA
Yeah, I did see the RPO code. I probably overlooked that it was a ‘96 and I wasn’t aware it was ever offered as option. When I bought my car you couldn’t get any power accessories with that package.
TECH Fanatic
Joined: Nov 2007
Posts: 1,745
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From: Lansing, MI via Bowling Green, KY, Dalton GA, Nashville, TN & Atlanta, GA
What kind of wheels are on that car? I like them. I gotta get some wheels & tires. I still have the salad shooters on my car, which don't look half bad in my eyes. That car looks good. The LT1s look so much better to me than the LS1s. I really wish AC had been available on the 1LEs when I got my car. I would have totally ordered that package. Those are my too many beers thoughts for the evening.
The wheels are the old Enkie Wins.... LG Motorsports used to sell them years ago... Very light, nicely built wheels. Good luck finding a set... I would say to find you a set of Fikse FM5's and call it a day...
Teching In
Joined: May 2014
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Anyone running Koni Yellows: I've had mine for about 6 years. I've put about 1000 miles on the car since that time, but the Koni's have never felt anything but super stiff and super harsh. I've pulled out as much dampening as they'll allow over a series of drives and while they've gotten better, the car still rides like a dump truck. I can't imagine this is normal for the Sport shocks. Running Sam's springs too. They're so bad, I'm pricing out some Penske @ our dealer pricing, but before doing that I'd love to get the Koni's working. The car is only a cruising mobile anyway...Koni sports are rebuildable, correct?
I do Penske for these too... but they are a lot more, depends on options and depends on what version too, but which adjusters, what pistons, all kinds of things. No idea what price level your shop is at, but that's a sliding scale and options add up. I've done 3 sets in the last two months for these things.
As for what's up with the ride. You don't say what else is going on. What other parts are on the car. What wheels, tires, etc. I don't find Sports to be at all brutal unless something is very wrong in one or more of them. But you can get a mess in a hurry with a lot of unsprung weight from a big axle, or super heavy wheels and/or tires. Hell even just tires with way too much air will wreck how things work. Then there are things like control arms that are bound or binding up.
As for what's up with the ride. You don't say what else is going on. What other parts are on the car. What wheels, tires, etc. I don't find Sports to be at all brutal unless something is very wrong in one or more of them. But you can get a mess in a hurry with a lot of unsprung weight from a big axle, or super heavy wheels and/or tires. Hell even just tires with way too much air will wreck how things work. Then there are things like control arms that are bound or binding up.
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Results matter. Talk is cheap. We are miles beyond the success anyone else has had with the 4th gens, and C5, C6, C7 Corvettes,
10 SCCA Solo National Championships, 2008 Driver of they Year, 2012 Driver of Eminence
13 SCCA Pro Solo Nationals Championships
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www.stranoparts.com --814-849-3450
Results matter. Talk is cheap. We are miles beyond the success anyone else has had with the 4th gens, and C5, C6, C7 Corvettes,
10 SCCA Solo National Championships, 2008 Driver of they Year, 2012 Driver of Eminence
13 SCCA Pro Solo Nationals Championships
2023 UMI King of the Mountain Champion
RE: STR.T's vs. Sports. If you had Sports before honestly I think at best you'll find STR.T's ok. At best. They are not the same level of shock, at all. And if you ran Sports at a setting more than pretty low I think you will find the lesser amount of rebound a loss. The car will not be as snubbed down and will generate roll faster too.
__________________
www.stranoparts.com --814-849-3450
Results matter. Talk is cheap. We are miles beyond the success anyone else has had with the 4th gens, and C5, C6, C7 Corvettes,
10 SCCA Solo National Championships, 2008 Driver of they Year, 2012 Driver of Eminence
13 SCCA Pro Solo Nationals Championships
2023 UMI King of the Mountain Champion
www.stranoparts.com --814-849-3450
Results matter. Talk is cheap. We are miles beyond the success anyone else has had with the 4th gens, and C5, C6, C7 Corvettes,
10 SCCA Solo National Championships, 2008 Driver of they Year, 2012 Driver of Eminence
13 SCCA Pro Solo Nationals Championships
2023 UMI King of the Mountain Champion