silent running

Had a bit of a creak from the rear on the local 'rally stage' back roads, so thought this would be a good excuse to swap the springs on my 98 WRX wagon after 115k miles. Got hold of some used Eibachs at a price I couldn't say no to and after having messed about with the brakes I'm getting confident underneath the car now so thought I'd give it a go.

Well, the front Eibachs are now on, seems to sit a little lower but nothing major, which is good as far as I'm concerned. Dampers seemed in good nick. I was about to do the rear springs and I started loosening the top nuts on the damper rods. Once undone, the o/s rear damper rod started dropping into the body of the strut pretty fast and seemed far too easy to push up and down. In contrast to the fronts which were clean as a whistle, the rod on this rear one was filmed with oil and the inside of the boot and spring platform were covered in oily grime. I didn't get as far as the n/s damper which was the creaky one. Never having encountered a leaking damper before, I'm assuming this is what a knackered damper is like - a loose action and oil/grime everywhere it shouldn't be?

So I'm on the hunt for something to partner my Eibach springs - and so far it looks like KYB adjustables are well regarded (not heard much about the standard KYBs) and I remember a while ago somewhere seeing that STi 5/6 or P1 suspension was pretty much the best you could get on a road going UK driven classic. Is this correct? I want compliancy and the ability to iron out a bumpy back road plus high speed stability. Currently running Whiteline ARB on the stiffest setting, Whiteline ALK and drop links front and rear, soon to be Eibach springs all round as well as Eibach camber bolts at the rear, just to be sure of getting dead on 1 degree negative on all four wheels. Other than that I'm running Whiteline geometry settings (front zero toe, rear 1mm toe out per side).

All comments welcome!

Shark Man

Yup, some knackered shocks with be like a bicycle pump. Gas pressurised ones that should self extend, won't. But some will remain rigid but are still kankered/worn.

That's the arsey thing with shocks, some are obvious, whilst others aren't - I spent the best part of a month trying to sort out the back suspension on a Jag purely due to inferior specification shocks that had incorrect damping. Then trying to convince the fitter that they were not fit for purpose (thankfully, one blew a seal in the meantime ).

My Landrover pushed out the seals on both front shocks when off-roading the once...on the way back I was loosing the steering if I drove any faster than 50mph due to spring osscilation. And hitting a bump sent the front bouncing like a pogo stick, and braking would dive it straight on to bump stops. Was an interesting drive to say the least

However, 90% drivers will never notice a duff shock. Scary.

silent running

Yes that's the thing, I'm never sure whether a damper is supposed to be pressurised and fully extended when it's at rest, or whether it's supposed to stay wherever you put it. Or even whether it should just drop to the bottom although this doesn't seem right to me.

500

well a new one fully extends on its own devices so i'll let you make your own assumptions

silent running

That's pretty straightforward then.

Tidgy

got kyb adjustble shocks and eibach springs, along with few other things (drop links, rolls bars, anit lift kit etc), the car is sucha big improvement over the standard ones, as far as better than sti, i know peopl who have switched them out so presuming there better, although i honestly don't know

silent running

Well I was looking at the KYB adjustables which were gonna come out at £200 for the rear pair, then the same supplier came up with the standard ones ('Excel-G') at £115 delivered! Couldn't complain about that. I'm going to have a crack at fitting today.

Tidgy

good luck lol

o and if you had changed the rears to diff suspension you would have to change the front to kep same

vindaloo

Replacing shocks...

I've heard it's possible to get them re-built but I don't know where.

Standard replacements cost £££s.

Powerstation do some very nice looking ASTs.

J.

Tidgy

would have though for cost its would be more hassel than its worth, £100 per shock norm for brand new

silent running

Yes I would have got the matching STi fronts as well fairly soon. I was only thinking about the rears because they were cheap. Still, my KYB's are box fresh and unbelievably cheap so can't complain. Fitting the rear KYB dampers, Eibach springs and new rear discs and shoes all in one go as a little bank holiday project. I foresee lots of cups of tea.

scooby_matt

Let us know how you get on with fitting, I may be attempting the same myself very soon.

silent running

Still not quite done...I decided to really push the boat out, so I'm replacing EVERYTHING all in one go at the rear - new dampers, springs, brake discs, shoes and pads. And Eibach camber bolts as well. It's been a 3-4 day project what with waiting for parts to come in etc. Should be finished tonight if the rain holds off.