bilstein
Here are a few more observations on my Bilstein installation:
The nut on the top of the front shock is metric. This is understandable considering where they come from, but it annoyed me because I don't carry metric tools. More annoying was the fact it was a Nylock nut. Personally, I tend to avoid using Nylock nuts anywhere on my car — if it needs to be tight, torque it to spec or use a lock washer — but in this particular application it is annoying as hell, because you can't just spin the nut down the shaft until contact — you have to fight it every inch of the way as the shaft tries to rotate with the nut, while you try to keep it from spinning with a small wrench on the top. I decided this was so stupid that I went to the hardware store and bought some plain metric nuts and just double-nutted it instead.
Also on the top of the front shock, the rubber grommet that Bilstein provided was different than the existing one provided by KYB. Both had a "nub" in the middle, intended to keep it centered in the hole in the fender, but the KYB one was perfectly sized to the hole, while the Bilstein one was only half the size of the hole. Considering it was rubber and therefore could not really be clamped down very tight, I thought this was not acceptable — I didn't want the top of the shock moving around under impact. So I reused the existing rubber grommets (which were in good condition) with the new shiny Bilstein washers for appearance.
I wouldn't agree with the comment that KYB shocks are "crap", but the Bilsteins do seem to be smoother and also provide more rebound control. I haven't really given them any kind of workout yet. Years ago I had the car out at Willow Springs with the KYBs and I can't say they hurt me any — the limiting factors were the engine and the driver.
Yeah, I passed that Cobra in the next passing zone. He didn't seem to be trying all that hard.
Here are a few more observations on my Bilstein installation:
The nut on the top of the front shock is metric. This is understandable considering where they come from, but it annoyed me because I don't carry metric tools. More annoying was the fact it was a Nylock nut. Personally, I tend to avoid using Nylock nuts anywhere on my car — if it needs to be tight, torque it to spec or use a lock washer — but in this particular application it is annoying as hell, because you can't just spin the nut down the shaft until contact — you have to fight it every inch of the way as the shaft tries to rotate with the nut, while you try to keep it from spinning with a small wrench on the top. I decided this was so stupid that I went to the hardware store and bought some plain metric nuts and just double-nutted it instead.
Also on the top of the front shock, the rubber grommet that Bilstein provided was different than the existing one provided by KYB. Both had a "nub" in the middle, intended to keep it centered in the hole in the fender, but the KYB one was perfectly sized to the hole, while the Bilstein one was only half the size of the hole. Considering it was rubber and therefore could not really be clamped down very tight, I thought this was not acceptable — I didn't want the top of the shock moving around under impact. So I reused the existing rubber grommets (which were in good condition) with the new shiny Bilstein washers for appearance.
I wouldn't agree with the comment that KYB shocks are "crap", but the Bilsteins do seem to be smoother and also provide more rebound control. I haven't really given them any kind of workout yet. Years ago I had the car out at Willow Springs with the KYBs and I can't say they hurt me any — the limiting factors were the engine and the driver.
Yeah, I passed that Cobra in the next passing zone. He didn't seem to be trying all that hard.