bonzelite

iTrader: (2)

well, they suck.

the rear passenger's side failed about 3 weeks ago. making all this clangor sound and ****. i thought something was banging around in the trunk. so cleaned it out. got it in order. took a couple of years of crap out of it. then went over bumps again. nope -not the trunk. the strut/shock. put car on jack, moved wheel and strut assy by hand and that metallic jangly sound was heard: strut is fried. the shaft thing is just loose in the sheath thing. is junk. absolute crap. only the spring is holding the car up.

despite my words of approval and defense for that brand at the outset (they felt great when new), the truth comes out.

i'm getting koni yellows next week. f$ck it. no more economy measures.

i read reviews of kyb's as well. i'd stay far away from those pieces of ****, too. they may feel good for a while, then -wham. failure city.

internetautomar

iTrader: (30)

I sell them konis
but you already knew that

bonzelite

iTrader: (2)

i don't see on your site the mounts for them.

do those come with camber bolts, too?

how much would shipping be to 91606 area code?

Dysfunctional

yea,
mine have gone to **** as well, ... im looking into new things as well ... but i have to finish one project b4 i get into another one.
-Dys

MrGone

iTrader: (30)

Your making me one sad panda you know that?
They do have warrenties

bonzelite

iTrader: (2)

shawn, that is true, but i think they're out of warantee. and i'm so infuriated, i'm dumping them. konis are guaranteed for the lifetime of the vehicle. like snap-on or craftsman tools. even within warantee, i've got to take the goddam@@ things off anyway and replace them with --- what >> the same brand part?? after this?! no f#$ck'n way. they're gone. i'm lucky i have some tax return money left over, else i may have been forced to piece-meal a same-brand warantee swap. and then wait for the the driver's side one to fail, too? and then take it off, too? replace it? go through the expense of that?

when looking for shocks/struts or anything (as i tell myself this), read reviews from people who have had them for a year to 18 mos. not new. this steered me away from kyb's as tokico alternatives. i saw too many year or more of ownerships relate similar failure stories.

i could have spent the money on konis, or others, the first time and then there would be no more money spent again on the issue. but now this is happening. in hindsight, i would have rather waited longer to save up more money to get better parts than to put myself through this **** again.

to all of those happy with kyb and tokico, rock on, brothers. i'm moving on to higher ground.

mtcookson

iTrader: (2)

i think the warranty on the blues doesn't cover them when the car is lowered. i could be wrong though

bonzelite

iTrader: (2)

no, you're right. that may even apply to any brand. i just looked at koni's site and they do not cover "any vehicle that has been modified for use other than or in addition to it's originality of use." so if that is the case, then almost eveyone replacing their struts with aftermarket is SOL. struts and lowering are one and the same animal. almost nobody on here changes their struts with the intent on leaving the wheel gap. i think manufacturers cover their butts by not supporting lowered or altered cars.

roll the dice...

mtcookson

iTrader: (2)

heck, look at eibach's warranty paper. it says they aren't covered if you use them for anything other than normally driving on the road. if you use them for any sort of racing at all they are covered. fine print sucks lol

internetautomar

iTrader: (30)

you can use the strut mounts from any brand with any other brand.
and Koni Does NOT make strut mounts.
Camber bolts are sold seperately on all struts that I can recall, but they're on the site too.
Shipping? check with the shipping calc on the site. (in the shopping cart)
Let me know what you need and what kinda deal and I'll try my best to work it out.

bonzelite

iTrader: (2)

now i just read a review about the konis being easily broken as the adjustment ring is weak. i'm thinking now non-adjustables. it seems there is no winning situation yet. car is lowered, streets have potholes, shocks are going to get abused.

James92SE

iTrader: (31)

Everyone has to keep in mind the Tokico 'blues' arent exactly supposed to be ultimate 'high performance' or whatever. They've kind of gotten that reputation over the years within the 3rd gen community mostly out of necessity/lack of other 'high performance' brands. They're still what they are: pretty good better than stock struts. They're certainly not crap, as most everyone has had relatively good experiences with them. Of course though, there's always someone with the bad experience(s) which is unfortunate for bonzelite =\

I've had my Tokico's for going on almost 4 yrs now (all of those years on Intrax)and I cant much complain honestly. They've softened up a bit but they're certainly not failing and I've been overall content with their quality. Given all that I still plan to get Koni's eventually

bonzelite

iTrader: (2)

maybe the roads are better in texas.

bonzelite

iTrader: (2)

heres a good faq about koni: http://www.tirerack.com/suspension/koni/koni_faq.htm

i have ST springs with 1.5" drop. they're close to the OEM feel, but are a bit stiffer.

bonzelite

iTrader: (2)

well. seems like Bilstein doesn't make stuff for the maxima. hmm... this is frustrating.

what am i supposed to to do? not drive the car on bumpy public roads?

there seems to be a dynamic between the spring rate/avoiding bottoming-out of the shock (a la bump stops), the shock's internal integrity, tire sidewall height; road conditions.

internetautomar

iTrader: (30)

has anyone ever tried the Boge' (sachs) brand?
I know they're more of an OE on german cars.

Jeff92se

iTrader: (82)

Um I haven't read one bad review on the red Konis ever on the .org. I love mine.

MrGone

iTrader: (30)

if you dont mind, whats the difference between red and yellow? I thought we could only get red, thats all i've ever seen. I've seen 5th gens with yellow.

mtcookson

iTrader: (2)

shawn... read the thread

posted above:
http://www.tirerack.com/suspension/koni/koni_faq.htm

bonzelite

iTrader: (2)

the review wasn't on the org. i think it was for yellows. it was only one. most reviews are excellent. i'll try to refind the review.

being a noob to konis, i am cautious of the adjustment thing. are non-adjustables less prone to fail? but the tokicos are non-adjustable. and they failed. i think it is a matter of driving conditions as much as it is shock quality. if i am constantly hitting potholes and driving aggressively, my shocks will not last very long no matter what brand. if i'm on the racetrack or driving only on smooth-as-glass roads, my shocks will last longer.

i would assume, too, that if my springs are stiffer, they will not put as much load on the shocks. and/or, if my car is not lowered too far, this will not put as much stress on the shocks as a very low car. i think lowering the car combined with abusive road conditions just waste shocks.

bonzelite

iTrader: (2)

try this: http://www.carreview.com/Suspension/...crx.aspx#revie

there are 27 reviews in this lot. go to the 21-27 page. scroll down. the guy talks in broken english. and he has the only dissenting opinion of konis on the whole review thing.

94M@X

How can I tell if mine are busted? I have the Tikico blues with the eibach pro kit. Had the whole thing installed around September last year and I have been hearing a clanking sound from the rear of the car. At first I thought it was the Addco RSB, but I re adjusted to make sure that it wasn’t touching undercarriage. I was thinking it was something loose in the trunk as well but after cleaning up the noise was still there. Is there a way to check if it was busted other than putting the car on jack? I should still be under warranty, but the car has been lowered? (eibachs) any suggestions on what I should do?

Thanks

bonzelite

iTrader: (2)

you have the same condition that i started the thread about. just get your jack out like your changing your tire and move the whole assembly. you'll hear the sound. and you'll be crestfallen.

if you lower the car, more than likely, the manufacturer does not honor it's warantee anymore. if koni does not, then tokico probably will not either.

mtcookson

iTrader: (2)

I'm sure it all depends on how the shock/strut is made. Tokico Blues are only meant as a stock replacement that is just a tiny bit better. They weren't made for lowering. I'm sure there are companies that make adjustable and non-adjustable shocks and struts for lowering purposes, they just don't make them for our cars. koni is the best one to go with for our cars until something better comes out like coil overs or something similar.

lophix

iTrader: (3)

crestfallen..lol i like that word...

To address the "warranty" issue...How do they know if they have been used in a "lowered" application? Well they most likely won't know unless you tell them! So keep it between you, your car, and your sig.

Kybs have lifetime warranty. I should know..i've changed the set I had like 3 times...the first two were diagnostic since I was doing some other form of suspension work and they weren't bad. If only I can get my hands on another shot set of kybs. I'd put them on in a heartbeat since I can't recall them failing on me with my eibachs. I currently have tokicos and I have the same clang coming from behind and now I know what it most likely is, I wont bother to go back there. Unfortunately, I didn't buy them brand new, my mistake.

bonzelite

iTrader: (2)

good point about the "how do they know". they don't.
that may remedy the crestfallen dispositioin of mind at that jangly sound coming from the rear.

if kyb's have a lifetime warranty like koni, then i'd go with those if the funds were not available for koni. i've read more reviews of kyb's failing after a year or so, however.

this is all a learning experience.

i will more than likely go with koni, as that seems to be the ideal route considering the lack of availability. i do cringe at the cost of admission, however.

lophix

iTrader: (3)

no kidding!! 5bills + modification. Personally, I am not looking for serious performance...just something that's slightly "better than stock". I don't mind the task of changing them out every year...i can live with that. Besides, it's fun!

bonzelite

iTrader: (2)

i guess i was expecting the tok's to last a bit longer, hence my "**** and vinegar" opening to the thread.

i've calmed a bit.

still hate it though.