OneMeanZ

iTrader: (2)

Got my rear Koni SA's on Friday...car feels great!

Props to Sam for the Koni's and to the girlfriend for getting them for our anniversary!

Rides perfect, car feels very stable, Mike (churp0ka or however you spell his damn name) said that you only feel bumps once, and I have to agree. It's a completely different animal now. I'm very pleased!

chupr0kabra

iTrader: (10)

Cool! Glad you like them. What are your settings?


-Mike

OneMeanZ

iTrader: (2)

Haven't really messed with them yet to be honest, Mike. Just pretty much took them outta the box, and put them in there for now. I gave it like a 1/4 turn to the firm side though.

What are your settings?

chupr0kabra

iTrader: (10)

I'm running about half (4 sweeps from full firm) on the front and 1.5 turns from full soft in the back. I'm experimenting more with the back shocks. I started them at half a turn from full soft when I first got them, but the back felt a little floaty, so I tightened them to a full turn and ran that way for a while. Now that I'm daily driving it again (totaled my Escort), I'm running them at 1.5 turns because I keep bottoming out over large bumps (mini hills) and the driveway at work has a couple small speed bumps that also cause me to bottom out. The curse of 315's. I just set them to 1.5 turns yesterday and drove it a little, so it's too early to tell if I'll like them that way. I prefer the ride a little firmer, especially after running the KYB GasAJusts for so long, which were WAY too soft.

It's nice to have the flexibility, though, isn't it?

What are you running on your fronts? What sway bar, too?


-Mike

OneMeanZ

iTrader: (2)

Yes it is.

I'm running 1 sweep towards the firm side on the fronts and have stock sway bars.

J. Brown

I'm running the front and backs on full soft with the factory springs set to the lower perch. Rear hose mod..........for the street it feels great.

Sam Strano

iTrader: (41)

First off, let me thank you all for your business.

Second, it always makes my day to see such happy folks.

Third, and this if more for the group at large..... Notice the differences in shock settings these guys are running. As you can see they all like what they have, which is why when folks call me, I kind of need more information than "I want it to handle well". Any word, be it handling, ride, etc, can have (and do have) VERY different definitions depending on who you are talking to. That's why I pry and poke trying to figure out what you don't like about the car before I can recommend anything to you.

J. Brown, don't rule out trying some more damping, primarily in front, just to see what happens. I think you'd like a bit more.

OneMeanZ. Glad the shocks got there for you. I wish Koni would just bring in a ton and quit running us out of them bi-annually. And you just wait until I can get you on some swaybars.

J. Brown

Thanx Sam..........i will try that.

Koncrete

iTrader: (3)

waht springs are they running? I am planning koni's but I haven't a clue yet as to what springs tickle my fancy...

Sam Strano

iTrader: (41)

Two of them are stock, one has Hotchkis.

My2ndls1

iTrader: (3)

I bought the Koni's/ Hotchkis springs for my SS from Sam a year or two ago and I also love them! I don't get as much time as I'd like to mess with the settings either, but it is fun to do occasionally. I run mine about midway in the front and about one turn from full soft in the rear. So far, that seems to be working pretty good for me on my DD. I also added a set of subframe connectors not long after that, which also helped a lot! Oh, and I am also running stock sway bars. Congratulations on the purchase OneMeanZ!!

Dom

iTrader: (2)

So Hotchkis springs are recommended with Konis if one wants a little stiffer spring and lower a bit? That's exactly what I'm looking for. My car is just a daily.

What are the spring rates on the Hotchkis and how much of a drop?

J. Brown

Stock......lower spring perch. Sam what will the front feel like with a little more damping? it's not going to be jarring is it? What should I expect?

Sam Strano

iTrader: (41)

Please stop. You can't pick parts (and I can't recommend parts) based on internet chatter.

Parts are recommended for a variety of reasons. And FWIW, many folks think they need "stiffer springs" because their shocks are so bad, not because they really need stiffer springs. And you can lower it a bit with Koni's and stock springs too.

In short, there is no way in hell I'll tell you that the Hotchkis are "recommended" for you. I did recommend them to these guys, but then again I also recommended stock springs to a few them too. And sometimes I use LS1 Pro-kits. Sometimes I use LT1 Pro-kits. What I recommend varies because no two situations are alike.

Sam Strano

iTrader: (41)

Just try it and see. I'd rather you give it whirl than just assume. And I don't want to plany a seed in your head. It'll feel more damped. More controlled. If you don't like it back it off some. You have adjustment, use it and see if you find something you like better. If you don't, just go back.

chupr0kabra

iTrader: (10)

Ditto what Sam said on this one. I was a little skeptical about going to 1.5 turns on the back shocks and the jury is still out, but so far, I really like it. From my experience, with my setup, my driving style, my roads, my butt-o-meter, the ride isn't jarring so much as you just feel smaller and smaller bumps in the road.

For example, there is a road near my house that has grooved pavement. On half soft front/One turn from soft rear, I could barely feel the grooves. After going to 1.5 turns from soft on the rear, I am now more aware of the grooves.

The bottom line is, you spent the money on the shocks, so don't be afraid to play with them.


-Mike

Dom

iTrader: (2)

I'll be calling you when I'm ready to order Konis w/springs and we can chat about the recommendations for my personal needs. I'm just used to a lot of research and not buying just because something is popular.

The reason I want stiffer springs is because of my 96 camaro. I put 1LE shocks/springs/sway bars, LG LCAs and I loved it. I wasn't basing my needs on internet chatter, just personal experiences. The car handled great. I was looking at ls1 pro-kit first since it has #400 front springs. 1LEs are #360 and that was right about where I liked it for my needs. So #400 should be good for my needs also. I don't think I want more spring rate. I saw the Hotchkis mentioned and I was curious about their rates and drop. My 96 V6 is lower even after it got raised a little bit by 1LE springs then my 00 Z28. I don't know why it sits so abnormally high. I just bought it 2 months ago with 73K miles and it looks like it has stock shocks/springs. It also handles horribly compared to the V6. Yes it needs shocks very bad, and it will get Konis. All it has is KBDD SFC and KB STB.

Sam Strano

iTrader: (41)

But you see the point is you don't know it's the spring rate. And I contest that it's not. 1LE shocks (either the 96 and later Koni's, or the pre-96 Decarbon's) are much better than the normal shocks you have now.

I ordered a Z28 to autocross, and picked it over a 1LE. More non-1LE's have won F-stock championships than have 1LE package cars. It shows the stock springs are really a problem. Might want to change them, might have reason to. Then again, might not.

Dom

iTrader: (2)

I guess I have much to learn yet. I could try the stock springs with Konis first and see how that feels. Thanks for the advice.

OneMeanZ

iTrader: (2)

I think I'm going to go mess with the adjustments now. What would you recommend to use to adjust the front shocks, I've tried an alan wrench before but the damn thing felt like it was going to break.

And I always enjoy doing business with Sam