New shock absorbers...

[sanjay]

hey guys, time for another "sanjay's a moron" thread

this time i did search though! and couldnt find much relevant to me.

i reckon the shock absorbers in my XR6 are gone...after 200,000km i wouldnt be surprised if they were never replaced.

what im asking is - are the shockies in a XR6 VCT any different to that in a standard falcon? and how much am i looking at for the cheapest new shocks all around? i dont do any spirited driving in this thing, i just dont want it bouncing up and down over speed bumps.

[ronwest]

I've seen Ultimas on ebay for $150/pair front and rear.

edit: Fronts http://tinyurl.com/2rugko
Rears http://tinyurl.com/289lmp

[v8falconsrule]

i am quite interested in this myself as i think my shockies are on the way out too. i have fitted kink springs lows and as soon as i have some weight on board (tank of fuel and a couple of rear seat passengers) the rear seems to be really soft. it bottomed out the other week at 100k's....not very happy.

at some point the car was used for towing something presumably a largish caravan, and i think the rear shocks havr been changed at some point. is there a heavier duty option?

[GK]

Originally Posted by ronwest

I've seen Ultimas on ebay for $150/pair front and rear.

edit: Fronts http://tinyurl.com/2rugko
Rears http://tinyurl.com/289lmp

So Ultimas are good quality then? I've not heard of them. Pardon my ignorance if they're top gear.

GK

[Chamelion]

From what I've read they're a reasonable low cost alternative. Ride quality is reportedly a little firmer than usual, but by no means bad.

I'm looking into getting a full set of these soon myself. I might get fronts first though and see how they treat me before forking out on rears as well. Depends on what they offer in regards to combined postage discounts.

Matt.

[sanjay]

Originally Posted by ronwest

I've seen Ultimas on ebay for $150/pair front and rear.

edit: Fronts http://tinyurl.com/2rugko
Rears http://tinyurl.com/289lmp

yeah but then theres the issue of installation...i wont be doing it myself.

[Chamelion]

Originally Posted by sanjay

yeah but then theres the issue of installation...i wont be doing it myself.

Take them to your local smaller workshop.. Shouldn't take a pro long to switch out shocks.

Why not have a go at it yourself? That's what I plan to do!

[Sox]

Monroe, Ultima, Pedders, KYB, Gabriel, etc, are all in the budget end of the range and all offer better performance than standard, but not a lot. Expect to pay somewhere around $300 - 400 for 4.

If you want to get serious, Koni or Bilstien are the ants pants, but expect to pay upwards of $1000 for 4. Koni make 2 ranges, reds and yellows, the yellows are the top line.
But they really are that good.

Rick.

[ronwest]

Originally Posted by GK

So Ultimas are good quality then?GK

I've never used them George but my brother had them all-round and reckons they're as good as anything else he's had over the years.

I'd break shocks up into two groups - "normal" and "performance".

The price will tell you which is which although I think it's debatable whether a shock that's three times the price is three times better for normal street driving.

[sanjay]

Originally Posted by Chamelion

Take them to your local smaller workshop.. Shouldn't take a pro long to switch out shocks.

Why not have a go at it yourself? That's what I plan to do!

yeah ill give my mech a call (why did i have to find a good mechanic, finally, thats like 20km away from me :p)

dont wanna try anything serious myself on this car, that was what the bluey was for (didnt care if i stuffed it up)

[Mechan1k]

I put Ultima's in the back of the ute ... as they hadn't been replaced previously.
They have been quite good ... especially loaded up too.

Quite cheap ... and they do the job well.

I got quoted approx $800 for Koni replacements ... Bilstein was double that price. Was advised to Billies were really for track work and not normal/spirited driving ... more suited to competition.

I have Pedders in the front of the ute ... and after about 120,000km ... I think they are on their way out now ... its starting to feel a little soft again on sweepers ... and just in general.

If i had the cash .... I'd go Koni's.

But for the Ultima's .... so far so good. Especially for the money.

[FGII-XR6]

the XR6 VCZT has different rear shocks to a standard AU because of IRS shocks should be replaces about 80 to 100 Ks especially the front where gradual degradation actually lengthens braking distance

[SVR73]

The XR definately has different shocks, they are monroe's and I've had to replace mine in the past due to the previous owner working it hard on weekends
I just got exact some spec monroe's but eventually when I have enough money, the koni's and as yet to be determined top shelf brand shocks will go in and lower it down a little bit

[Fairlane]

Had 4 ultima's put in my old lowered AU on King lows (so similiar to XR6).

Around $550 installed, made a tremendous change to the cactus stock 150,000 klms old shocks. Seemed like an Ok shocker to me, did about 10,000 klms with them and i quite liked the setup.

[nitroman]

I've just installed Koni's front and rear and they have transformed the car from being a wobbly teeth gritting experience to a very stable confidence inspiring on rails feeling.
I was lucky to get them cheap (fronts $440 at local autopro due to the previous shock buyer dogging it, and rears $100 on ebay seconhand in good nick) They are normally $560 a pair. Best mod I've done to the car by far.

[blackers10]

i chucked Boge short shocks in mine and standard length up rear as they are not available for IRS yet (only koni's are available in a short shock)
very happy with them
reasonably priced and made in germany or somthing too.. and are standard equipment in alot of euro trash like porsche etc