RevGTO

iTrader: (12)

I'm interested in hearing from guys who are running Koni SA's with stock springs on the lower perch. What are your impressions of the ride with this set-up?

Also, guys who understand the physics of suspensions. Theoretically, how should this set-up affect ride and why?

I'd like to hear your experiences and knowledge ...

Giddswat

iTrader: (13)

You can see my suspension setup in my sig. I decided to stick with the stock springs on the lower perch and the hose mod in the back, this was mainly due to the bad road conditions here in Md. The drop for me was enough to get rid of the 4x4 look and the car rides great. The suspension is compliant over bumps but still firm for great road feel. I recently pushed the car through some nice s-turns very aggressively and the car was very predictable to the point I could step out the rear and not feel out of control. The suspension is very neutral with what feels like a small amount of over-steer, which I feel is perfect. I am not a racer or an expert on anything, but love to drive the car and have some fun on the weekends. A lot of people are using the Strano springs and that is very tempting, but my car handles and rides so good that I don't feel the need to change. If I was going to do springs they would be The Strano`s.

I hope this helps ya a little bit.

Mike G.

hpjunky98

iTrader: (3)

Lowering the perch the spring sits on allows less suspension travel for a spring that normally is allowed more travel. What this means is that the spring may be more inclined to hit the bump stops, and max out its travel sooner than it was designed to. On lowering springs, this can be a problem, but on the stock springs, I never encountered any issues. The stock springs have more than enough travel for their spring rate. For the record, my car handled and rode great with that setup when i had it.

01SSRMS

iTrader: (7)

Ordering my Koni's today to use that exact setup.

RevGTO

iTrader: (12)

Why would there be less suspension travel when the spring is expanded further sitting on the lower perch? It would seem to me that the spring would have less travel on the higher perch b/c it's more compressed.

How did the ride & impact harshness compare between the stock springs and the Stranos - mainly on the front, as that's what we're discussing here?

ThumperNC24

iTrader: (1)

the spring should be compressed the same on both perches....you are not putting any more weight on it by going to the lower perch.

I believe the loss in suspension travel he is talking about is the distance between the bumpstops, this does decrease when you put the springs on the lower perch.

coolformula

iTrader: (21)

Great setup I would do it again And yes I have had other setups

bearcatpride

iTrader: (3)

Easily the best mod I made on my car so far

I will never go back to aftermarket springs

...Keep in mind I daily drive my car and the roads in OC are horrendous

RevGTO

iTrader: (12)

I'm from CA and get back to OC frequently, and trust me, the roads there are nothing compared to what we have here. I DD too, and one thing here that I've never observed there are frequent sharp creases or folds in the roadway. Some are raised and some are indented, but when the front wheels hit them, it is jarring. It becomes maddening after a while.

I had Bilsteins on my car and it did a pretty good job of handling them. When I went to Konis & lower perch, it was significantly harsher. That's one reason I'm interested in other guys' experience and observations with this set-up.

SGMZ28

I wouldn't call it harsher with my setup. Firm, yes. Harsh, no. The only reason I went with the stock springs and Koni instead of Sam's spring and Koni is the extra 3/4" was just enough to keep me from dragging into some step driveways. Otherwise I would have gotten the springs, too.

I love the feel and handle of the Koni/stock spring combo. But what I may feel is acceptable is wrong for someone else. I live not too far from the mountains and I have some really great backroads that let me stretch the legs a bit on the car. I'm more willing to take a trade off on ride comfort in return for better handling.

Greggy

I've gone from stock spring/bilstein to strano/koni and the latter did not change the way the car handled ruts. The tire wear pattern and the alignment settings did change this. When you drop a car the toe-goes-in and the camber goes negative. Toe-in is good for tracking straight. Negative camber is not good for tracking, but good for turning. If the tires wear uneven, the handling changes with time. A right for your situation alignment, tire pressure adjustments and a tire rotation front to rear can do wonders for the behavior of a car.... If all component are in good working order and not worn out.

Sam Strano

iTrader: (41)

I need to address a number of points here. I'm not disagreeing or arguing that you aren't finding what you are reporting, but there are a number of mitigating factors.

First and foremost you did lower the car. That takes a bit of working travel away from both the shock and the spring. This wasn't the case with the Bilstein's because they don't have the provision. You could always set the Koni's back up to the stock perch height, it should help a bit.

Secondly, I have no idea where the Koni's are set on rebound. They have a large range of damping, and if it's a little too firm for you, I suggest softening them a touch and see if that helps. This can be done along with, or separate from moving to the upper perch.

Thirdly, tire pressures. Makes a huge difference, and I find an awful lot of folks run higher pressures when they have softer shocks to crisp up the car. But when the change dampers, they don't always lessen the tire pressures... and pressures are a part of the dynamic suspension team. If you running much above 32 in front, you need to drop them a bit. This is tire dependent and some are just very stiff, some aren't. But pretty much not matter what, 35 psi will really harm ride quality.

While you are comparing Bilstein's to Koni's, you aren't really comparing apples to apples because of the height change, or the fact we don't know what settings have been tried, and those things can make a HUGE difference. Bilstein's are more about ride than outright performance, Koni's are more about performance. However, I think I can count on one hand the times I've heard anyone complain about a Koni's ride when time was taken to sort through adjustments and setup the suspension correctly. And the details matter. I know that folks can buy Koni's and other parts other places, but I think what makes me different is I not only give setup advice to customers, but also explain how and why you might want to tweak that setup.

RevGTO

iTrader: (12)

Thanks for the replies, guys ... a few comments:

First of all, I think the car rides great with this set-up over all but the sharpest impacts. It just hits them harder than before - pretty darn hard IMO. Alignment may play a role. I checked with a guy as to whether I should have the car aligned because of the drop and he said "no."

I keep my tire pressure at 30. No question about - tire pressure plays the single biggest role when it comes to impact harshness.

Shocks are set at four sweeps from full soft. I'm happy with how the rebound feels. I'd mess with them some more, but I've found it impossible to move the adjuster further because a coil is in the way (and I've jacked it up and down, compressed the spring, etc.)

I really like they lowered the car - that's why I got the Koni's - and so I'm not going to move them up to the higher perch. I posted this thread not to complain, but because I wondered if the lower perch has an effect, and it's been affirmed that it does and why.

Lastly, Sam, I did call you and leave a message on your tech line before going down this road and didn't hear back from you. I am a customer, and I do value your advice, but we didn't connect at that time. It was during the period when things were at a peak with your mom, so I figured your plate was overfull. I do appreciate your feedback in this thread.

RevGTO

iTrader: (12)

His observations also motivated me to post. Anyone else feel that ride quality is better with Stranos than stockers on Konis?

Websy21

iTrader: (34)

Me 3? I am definetly going koni's but up in the air from stock or strano springs?

Sam Strano

iTrader: (41)

Now we have some questions answered, and I now know better where you are coming from.

As for not returning the call. Allow me to apologize. I try very hard to return all the calls I get, but from time to time I'm sure I forget one or mis-place a phone number. But the most common occurence is that I can't understand the messages, or they are broken up and I can't hear the name and phone number. I can't know, but I'd assume that's what happened here. However I do appreciate your understanding, and sincerely thank you for it.

You should be able to adjust the shocks, this is why we use the short end of the L on the hex/allen wrench, so you can slip in behind a spring coil. My car is the same way, where one coil is in front of the adjuster, but I can still adjust them. Just takes a little more time.

BREWS02WS6

iTrader: (6)

+1. Just bumping to see if anyone else has input here. Good reading!

DTB_LS1

iTrader: (2)

Great thread guys lets keep it going. I too just ordered Konis from Sam yesterday. I was completely in the dark about suspension physics/theory and was going to buy a spring/shock setup that wouldn't have worked very well for my application. After talking with Sam I went with the 4/4 setup so I can adjust the rears on the car. They were a little more $$$ than the 4/3s but less than the spring/shock setup would have been and I believe they will be well worth it. Thanks for all the help Sam, you really cleared up alot of questions and misconceptions that the Internet couldn't.

Intercooler2

iTrader: (24)

Yea it's old but I wanted to see how people that went Koni stock fronts and hose-modded rears liked the ride.

Mr. Luos

iTrader: (9)

I would like some pics as well.