Why do I keep breaking RF Koni???
Thread Starter
TECH Regular
Joined: Nov 2005
Posts: 457
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From: Boston, MA
Why do I keep breaking RF Koni??? The Koni SA's were installed six month ago. I have now broken the right front twice. The adjuster just turns forever and practically no rebound or compression damping as compared to what it use to be.
The installation is perfect, I've done shock multiple times without issue.
Is there something I can do myself to keep them from breaking, like put nylon spacers to increase the size of the Koni bumpstops, or switch to factory GM stops.
I do tons of driving on bad city roads, but have not hit anything big, and the front end has never been damaged. I previosly used Bilstein HD's for 50k miles without issue other than slowly wearing out.
Koni tech support had nothing to add other than "their shocks don't need any modifications to work with a 1 to 1.5 inch drop spring."
Please any knowledge on the subject would be greatly appreciated.
The installation is perfect, I've done shock multiple times without issue.
Is there something I can do myself to keep them from breaking, like put nylon spacers to increase the size of the Koni bumpstops, or switch to factory GM stops.
I do tons of driving on bad city roads, but have not hit anything big, and the front end has never been damaged. I previosly used Bilstein HD's for 50k miles without issue other than slowly wearing out.
Koni tech support had nothing to add other than "their shocks don't need any modifications to work with a 1 to 1.5 inch drop spring."
Please any knowledge on the subject would be greatly appreciated.
This is a very rare case, but it's not unheard of. The Koni bumpstop is very long and pretty soft and is more of a snubber than an actual stop. On really big hits you can get into an area where the snubber just can't support the speed and mass well enough and the shock can bottom internally.
You have a few options. You can add a few of the white nylon washers to make the bumpstop come into play sooner. You could talk to Koni about a harder silasto (bumpstop) in place of what comes on the shock because of the recurring problem. I'd start with just adding a few extra nylon bumpstop washers on the top of the shock body. Cheap, shock needs not be screwed with, and should buy you enough wiggle room to be fine.
I too broke a shock in this way. Of course it took a curb jumping incident (I wasn't driving) that was hard enough the LF wheel tire left a black mark in the inner fender just behind the upper control arm.
You have a few options. You can add a few of the white nylon washers to make the bumpstop come into play sooner. You could talk to Koni about a harder silasto (bumpstop) in place of what comes on the shock because of the recurring problem. I'd start with just adding a few extra nylon bumpstop washers on the top of the shock body. Cheap, shock needs not be screwed with, and should buy you enough wiggle room to be fine.
I too broke a shock in this way. Of course it took a curb jumping incident (I wasn't driving) that was hard enough the LF wheel tire left a black mark in the inner fender just behind the upper control arm.
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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
Thread Starter
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Joined: Nov 2005
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From: Boston, MA
Thanks Sam,
Can I just pull the plastic dust cover down, cut the nylon washer in half, slip it over the shock shaft, and pop the plastic back up.
Where is the best place to get them...Koni, you or Home Depot?
Great..Just found out that the shocks are out till next shipment in late August.
I hate driving it this way. Must be doing a job on my rack and tie rods.
Can I just pull the plastic dust cover down, cut the nylon washer in half, slip it over the shock shaft, and pop the plastic back up.
Where is the best place to get them...Koni, you or Home Depot?
Great..Just found out that the shocks are out till next shipment in late August.
I hate driving it this way. Must be doing a job on my rack and tie rods.
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Joined: Mar 2004
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From: Laguna Niguel, CA
Threads like these scare me when I have to daily drive my car w/ Koni's and the Southern California roads have MANY BIG bumps, just sitting in the middle of the 70MPH busy CA freeway because they couldn't pay the contractor enough money to do the job correctly and the state doesn't have enough money to fix all the roads, not to mention all the trucks that kill the freeways.
Rant over! Buying one Koni is better than having to buy 4!
Rant over! Buying one Koni is better than having to buy 4!
Koni has them, and they are already split to fit over the shock shaft. If you want to hedge you bets, get a firmer stop while you are on the phone with them. Note this is NOT a common occurence and is covered under warranty too. Please don't panic. Look at all the Koni's here, we're talking about one issue.
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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
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
well, yes.... that'd be nice. 
But in all reality, this isn't exactly a rash of problems....
But in all reality, this isn't exactly a rash of problems....
__________________
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
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From: Boston, MA
Sam, Koni tech support, specifically Stoney, seems to have no idea what I'm talking about on the nylon washers/spacers. He said if you knew the part #'s he would throw them in w/ the replacement shock.
I would have thought Koni, being a company that supports racing, would know about this stuff. Probably just talking to the wrong person in this case.
Do you get them from Koni and have the part number?
I would have thought Koni, being a company that supports racing, would know about this stuff. Probably just talking to the wrong person in this case.
Do you get them from Koni and have the part number?
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Joined: Nov 2001
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From: Dallas TX
I had a front Koni break in this manner as well - adjustment wheel spun forever, and much less rebound & compression damping than before. Even spoke with the same Tech support guy - Stoney. However, I didn't hit anything notable, it just broke. Stoney never did get back to me with why it broke - they were going to do an autopsy of sorts on the shocks, but they got lost after they got back to Koni - and they ended up covering me under the warranty just based on the delivery receipt showing someone at Koni had signed, even though they never could find the shocks themselves.
If it makes you feel more confident, after I got the free warranty replacement parts on (they charged me a lower price for new, then credited my card when I returned the old) there have been no problems at all, and this was about 3 years ago.
If it makes you feel more confident, after I got the free warranty replacement parts on (they charged me a lower price for new, then credited my card when I returned the old) there have been no problems at all, and this was about 3 years ago.
