Koni shocks

[Ron Dittmer]

Originally Posted by Johnynorthla

One thing I noticed on my E450 chassis is the shock bushing hole looked much larger than the OEM bushing seat. It was mismatched, and most likely not tightened correctly. The bushing should be just bulging out of the washers, not flattened.

Shock bushings with their supporting washers seem to vary a lot. I am not surprised to read your comment.

The Bilstein heavy duty "front" shocks have massive upper bushings and massive washers compared to all others I have seen. Even the shock stem is thicker, and includes a hex for a wrench which makes installation easier. For all those reasons and more, I was happy with my decision to get them.

Here are my original Koni shocks with top bushing worn away, compared to the new HD Bilsteins. It is interesting that on the Bilstein, the one bushing is designed to fit inside the other. The cone shape portion on the Koni simply gets crushed. The heavy duty Bilstein design makes a lot more sense for long term durability for the vulnerable top-mount.

[jeddpearl]

Thanks so much, Charles. That's just what I was looking for. Much appreciated!

[JONWisconsin]

I installed Bilstein HD in mine. I am very pleased.

[88keys]

Originally Posted by Rufinitt

I ordered mine on Amazon and got them in three days check with Amazon I know that they have them the FSD koni .

I want to make sure that I get the right Koni FSD from Amazon. Can you please provide a link ? Thanks :-)

[Josephls]

Just had one of my gold Koni shocks take a crap at well under 40,000 miles snd ruin a tire. I was on rough two lane so I attributed the thump thump thump to the bad road. The front Ruth shock was shot, the tire bouncing and in short order the tire was damaged as well. Nearest place with a chance of bilsteins was summit racing but the best they had was Gabriel max control. I changed it out in the campground and when I set the Koni on the table it collapsed with no weight on it , with no rebound what soever. No oil leaking, just total failure.I’ve never been impressed with the Koni and obviously even less now. I know nothing of Gabriel but something is better than the Koni I had.

[Bullitt6283]

I just changed out the Bilsteins for KONI FSD.

In retrospect, it could be that the severely degraded Bilstein upper bushings could have contributed to the steering wheel shake I had.
Less than 18,000 miles on these.

.

[NXR]

Just had one of my gold Koni shocks take a crap at well under 40,000 miles snd ruin a tire.
...
I changed it out in the campground and when I set the Koni on the table it collapsed with no weight on it , with no rebound whatsoever. No oil leaking, just total failure.I’ve never been impressed with the Koni and obviously even less now. I know nothing of Gabriel but something is better than the Koni I had.

Komi makes a lot of shocks. Did you have FSD's?

The gold FSD's like I have do not behave like a traditional shock. Even on brand new ones you can push the piston in or pull it out by hand and it stays where you put it. It's not totally loose but the resistance is not significant. There is no rebound and the new ones do not need or come with a strap that needs cut.

FWIW,

Ray

[Josephls]

Ray, the Koni was the gold shock. My tire bounced like a basket ball being dribbled by a pro player going down the court. The tire was destroyed. The shock was shot. For me this was just another lesson in life confirming paying more doesn’t guarantee anything. Anything manufactured can fail, mine did.

[Ron Dittmer]

Originally Posted by Bullitt6283

I just changed out the Bilsteins for KONI FSD.

In retrospect, it could be that the severely degraded Bilstein upper bushings could have contributed to the steering wheel shake I had.
Less than 18,000 miles on these.

I find it interesting that regardless of the brand of shock, the top rubber bushing on the front shocks, consistently gets prematurely worn. I wonder if tightening the top nut on occasion to reduce "play" would slow down the rate wear.

[Johnynorthla]

Originally Posted by Ron Dittmer

I find it interesting that regardless of the brand of shock, the top rubber bushing on the front shocks, consistently gets prematurely worn. I wonder if tightening the top nut on occasion to reduce "play" would slow down the rate wear.

I wondering the same thing Ron. They should just bulge out of the washers a bit. But over tightening the bushing will cause the bushing to have no give and put more stress on the upper mounting holes. The bushing appears to be pushing through the hole, getting deformed and causing the excessive wear. I feel the the hole for the bushing seat is too large. It could be smaller with a metal sleeve perhaps.

[STRich]

My unsolicited $0.02 I would guess that the upper bushings are worn more due to the fact that when the jacks are down, the upper bushings hold the weight of the front suspension. This would cause the flattening such as you are seeing.
This "could" be a good spot for a polyurethane bushing with it's firmer material.

[Bullitt6283]

Originally Posted by STRich

My unsolicited $0.02 I would guess that the upper bushings are worn more due to the fact that when the jacks are down, the upper bushings hold the weight of the front suspension. This would cause the flattening such as you are seeing.
This "could" be a good spot for a polyurethane bushing with it's firmer material.

When the front jacks are down, the upper bushings could bear the weight of the front suspension, wheels, tires, AND at least part of the downward force of the springs. If the front wheels are off the ground, even more so.
Another factor could be heat from the exhaust manifolds, which are nearby.

In the Mustang aftermarket motor mounts, I've seen polyurethane bushings bulge-out under load and take a 'set'. The solution was to contain them with a worm-drive hose clamp.
.

[RayAZ]

Originally Posted by 88keys

I want to make sure that I get the right Koni FSD from Amazon. Can you please provide a link ? Thanks :-)

X2 - Roger That

Im in the market for shocks myself for my 2004 Holiday Rambler