Originally Posted by bren@apex

Would you guys be interested in a KYB/Eibach GB? I think youd be suprised at just how good a properly specced set of coilover are and how well they will fit your needs but if youre adverse to coilovers then we also deal with both KYB and Eibach, amongst others

The margins are tight on them but if I can save you £30 then its £30 more to spend on fuel.

Originally Posted by bren@apex

Im just gathering prices now

Originally Posted by LouisB

I would be interested for my 05 WRX too depending on price.

Originally Posted by bonesetter

What KYB's are these? OE inverted monotube, aftermarket monotubed , AGX?

Originally Posted by bren@apex

Im just gathering prices now

Originally Posted by bustaMOVEs

Have a read at this what i found


Hi all, thought some people might be interested to know a "third Way" to sort out the inverted struts failures.

As we all know, inverted struts on New Age Imprezas like to fail. these were fitted on STi's form around 2001 and to WRX's from MY 2005 (so note that 54 plate and on WRX's may be on inverted struts!).

The failure mode is that the struts run out of grease, and the damer itself doesn't fail, but the strut starts to knock and bang at low speeds, and you may hear graunching as you manouver at low speed. Ride quality will be affected. You may notice the car "settle" when coming off the handbrake, or after coming to rest usually with a nasty graunching noise. Like it or not handling will be affected because the damper is unable to damp properly because of the "sticktion" in the strut (primary friction that must be overcome before the strut starts to move and the damper can damp)

This picture shows the thickness of the "damper tube (actualy the damper body) on an inverted strut
Normal struts are much thinner in the damper rod:
This image has been resized. Click this bar to view the full image. The original image is sized 1296x776.


Up until now, it seems like there are 2 ways to "properly" fix this problem,

1) Fit Coilovers and replace the suspension wholesale. Fine if your car is a weekend driver/special stage warrior, or you want to alter ride height drastically. HOwever, without spending £1000 or more I'm still not convinced that you can get real ride quality out of coilovers. The adjustability available goes without saying though and it is undoubtably the best route for some.

2) Disassemble the existing inverted shocks, regrease them, and if you're doing a proper job, fit grease nipples so you can stay on top of the problem and periodically re grease them. No doubt this would work well, particularly if you did it before the shocks actually failed. However, I'm not a fan of having to re-grease my suspension, even just with a grease gun every 3 months or so. My struts had also been failed for a while, so the damper bodies looked scored and no doubt the seals were properly knackered too so any fix wouldn't last long.

Subaru wanted £550 A STRUT for replacements!

So I decided to go my own route: I wanted a nice riding car with good handling, suitable for daily and fast road use. I did not want inverted struts as KYB have been making them for 10 years and they've been failing for 10 years! This doesn't fill me with faith for the aftermarket solutions like KYB Ultra-SR's
I did a lot of work looking up and finding out Damping rates and spring rates, and I also ended up getting into lots of bother because KYB if you ask them state that their Excel G shocks do not fit cars 2004-2006. There is good reason for this - they have to say that to avoid annoying Subaru because they are OEM suppliers and have a deal that they will not release after market parts until 5 years after the model build run has finished, to protect Subaru dealer revenue.
The standard KYB Excel-G shocks, and Ultra SR's (shown 2003 >on) WILL fit 2005/2006 model year cars despite what KYB say if you phone them direct!
The other issue is some confusion re Top mount fitting. This appears to be a non issue amongst WRX's. All top mounts appear to be the same 2003-2006 and most likelt 2001-2006 FOR WRX's. STis may be different. If you're fitting STi Struts onto a WRX car, make sure you have Sti top mounts too.

Anyway, My Solution: (Fora MY05 WRX PPP Wagon)
I got KYB Excel G Shock absorbers From Camskill. (nb These are Wagon, chsssis code GG specific!)
I got Eibach Pro-Kit Springs because their srping rate was only 20% up on standard, and they lowered a modest 20mm and I don't want to ruin my geometry or handling for the sake of looks, but I do think a slight lowering actually helps in twisties and looks a little better for a performance car. They also make Wagoon, GG chassis code specific springs - the wagon is only 20Kg heavier, but it's all over the rear axle and these springs have a higher progression rate for the wagon to cope with loads).
I got 2 sets of Eibach Camber bolts.
I took the car to rich at FB Tuning for Fitting and 4 way alignment.

HEre's all the stuff - About £580 all in


Here is how the car sat before:




Here is how the car sits now:




It's also been aligned, about -1.2 deg neg camber at the rear, -1.5 at the front, 5 mins toe in at the front and 2 at the rear. This was what Rich @ FB tuning recommended for me given my requirements.

I picked the car up this morning. It was raining hard and I haven't got time for a "proper" drive now but first impressions:

1) Instantly, primary ride comfort is there. Previously, the car was "Jiggly"... no primary ride/harshness reduction at all, and I guess this was because the shock struts were efefctively stuck in their tubes and took quite a big amplitude bump to knock them into motion. Now, the car feels like a magic carpet ride (Comparitively). It glides along very, very nicely.

2) Ride height looks good. I wouldn't want to go any lower personally, but the wheels sit well in the arches and the 4x4 front arch gap has gone.

3) Jurys still out on geometry. I impressed upon Rich at FB tuning that this is an everyday family car that needs to handle when a twisty road presents itself, not a tarmac special stage warrior. In the wet it's hard to tell to be honest. I had a couple of good hoons in the car as it was before, so I'll have to find time to compare when conditions are right. Nothing feels wrong, anyway.

Rich (in his own words: "I do nothing but drive these things") was impressed - he's driven it 30 miles for a shakedown and general condition check. He's asked me to get back to him with an update once I've had a chance to get used to the car and find any problems, but if all is dandy he said he'd be recommending this damper/spring combo to customers who want a comfy fast road set up because he was impressed with the Eibach springs.

So, first impressions are I'm happy. Time will tell exactly how happy.


Sumamry: Important points that I've learned:
KYB aftermarket shocks, either Excel-G's or Ultra SR's WILL FIT WRX's from 2003-2006 no problems. you do NOT need new top mounts front and rear.
Many springs are either too short or to ostiff or both. Eibach Pro R'#s seem good.
If you want a cheap all round solution, a pair of rear shocks are £160 form Camskill, or the whole set ar £330 for Excel-G's or £370 for Ultra SR's and these will work fine with Standard springs.
Camber bolts are needed if yo ulower the car - £20 a pair for Eibachs.
So what are your options:
If you want a really aggressive set up with loads of adjustability, go for coilovers.
If you want an STi spec set up, then KYB Ultra SR shocks have slightly more damping force than Sti shocks, and are inverted design. Combine with your chosen springs for lowering - again Eiabch Pro-Kit/Pro-R springs will work well and not drop the car too far.
If you want to refresh your WRX suspension, Excel-G Shocks will fit fine and ride nicely, and can be combined with a MILD drop if you choose but I would not drop the car any more than I have (20mm) on them as they will not control a much shorter stiffer spring adequately! This wil lstop the inverted shock failure mode as you now have right way up shocks!
If you are happy to keep your standard inverted shocks alive, rebuild them with grease nipples and stay on top of lubrication.