chris2523
93 Mark VIII
new is pricey. i bought used.
Bilsteins are quality pieces and even used they are serving me well.
Bilsteins are quality pieces and even used they are serving me well.
Went from strut masters spring setup to vogtland 1.6" drop springs and not happy!
- Thread starter drobs5
- Start date
opalescent 96
Active LVC Member
Yeah and get those for the front too... not: cause they don't make them anymore. You want the rear to ride like a buckboard and have the front bouncing all over the place. Perfect.
dnsherrill
Dedicated LVC Member
hijack: which Tokicos (part #?) are used on the front for our Marks? the 96 Mark I just sold had tokicos and eibachs 1.5" lowered, rode real nice, my brown car has SM's...they SUCK
opalescent 96
Active LVC Member
HU3689 I don't know if you're going to be able to find them but good luck.
That's why I said you might have to buy them for all four corners. I think the Illuma's should be the same as the blues on the firmer setting if you can find those...
chris2523
93 Mark VIII
i run that set up exactly on the 96.
and no, it does not do that.
and bouncing all over the place. lol. thats a great plug for the blues.
and they'll be blown i under 50k. mine were. tim's were. LaserSVT mentioned he stopped putting them on customers cars, etc.
drobs5
Active LVC Member
So the part number for the front Tokico struts is HU3689. I see a few places advertising them for sale .... whether or nor they actually have them is another question. What is the part number for the Tokico rear shocks?
dnsherrill
Dedicated LVC Member
the HU3689's are the blues.... my car had the the adjustable white illuminas (EU3689)
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Chris are you suggesting the blues are subpar? or are they essentially the same as the Illumina without the electronic adjustment system?
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Chris are you suggesting the blues are subpar? or are they essentially the same as the Illumina without the electronic adjustment system?
opalescent 96
Active LVC Member
What setup exactly is that? Strutmasters? It says tokico in your signature
chris2523
93 Mark VIII
tokico blue fronts, cobra bilstein rears.
tokico drop springs.
the rear blue shocks were blown out, as they do, so they replaced with the superior Bilsteins.
tokico drop springs.
the rear blue shocks were blown out, as they do, so they replaced with the superior Bilsteins.
dnsherrill
Dedicated LVC Member
that's on the 96'?
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what's your susp on the base 93? air, right?...I'm dang sure missing my ivory 96, can't wait to get the susp right on my brown one, gotta link on those Tokico springs?
opalescent 96
Active LVC Member
OK
forget the Tokicos, except the front.... got it. That only three post or so to get to the bottom of. Thanks
chris2523
93 Mark VIII
he said he believe he needed rear shocks, and my suggestion was the Bilsteins over the blues.
its firmer, and overall a better unit.
i'll be dumping the front shocks as well asap.
the springs are fine. they are on the firmer side of the current options.
more difficult to screw those up.
the blue shocks in front are meh, but don't waste time on the rears.
i'm not the only one to have a blown, leaking one.
its firmer, and overall a better unit.
i'll be dumping the front shocks as well asap.
the springs are fine. they are on the firmer side of the current options.
more difficult to screw those up.
the blue shocks in front are meh, but don't waste time on the rears.
i'm not the only one to have a blown, leaking one.
drobs5
Active LVC Member
Well the isolators came today and I was able to get them installed tonight. I put one on the top and one on the bottom and it made a great difference. I'm happy with how the rear sits now but the front is still about an inch too high. What are my options there? I'm thinking about cutting a half coil off the front springs. I saw where some people have slotted the mounting holes in the strut so I looked that over tonight. There's about 3/4" clearance between the lower control arm and the bottom of the strut cartridge/housing. My lower control arms are brand new so the rubber bushing for the strut mounting bolt is in great shape but I worry that over time this will wear out and the strut will begin to sit lower in the lca. This has me concerned about whether slotting the mounting holes is worth anything significant.
Thoughts?
Thoughts?
opalescent 96
Active LVC Member
I've seen the holes re drilled just above the regular hole. I wouldn't slot it...
Re drilling the strut body would give you a better ride then cutting the spring. It would also allow you to keep the shocks in their preferred range of motion/ more stroke etc
Idk think you would want to cut a vogtland anyways because its a progressive spring
If it were me I would drive it for a while as is though. See how the shocks keep up etc so if you don't like it you don't have to redo it multiple times like me
My feeling is these car's ride and handle best either dead level or slightly lower in the back
Re drilling the strut body would give you a better ride then cutting the spring. It would also allow you to keep the shocks in their preferred range of motion/ more stroke etc
Idk think you would want to cut a vogtland anyways because its a progressive spring
If it were me I would drive it for a while as is though. See how the shocks keep up etc so if you don't like it you don't have to redo it multiple times like me
My feeling is these car's ride and handle best either dead level or slightly lower in the back
drobs5
Active LVC Member
Yeah I'm trying to get it dead level and not 4x4 ish. When people redrill the strut mounting hole, what kind of spacing have they used to locate the new hole? From what I measured, it looks like 3/4" would be close to the max so I may try that.
No, The new hole should be at 15mm (center to center) above the original hole.
This would give you approximately 1" drop to your front suspension with enough clearance (2mm) between the bottom shock tube and the lower control arm.
drobs5
Active LVC Member
How will a new hole at 15mm above the original hole give an approximately 1" drop? That confuses me
chris2523
93 Mark VIII
simple machines yo.
because the wheel is at the end of a lever, (the control arm), and the pivot point is towards the middle, the wheel to shock movement is not a 1:1 ratio.
its like, the farther you sit out on the merry go round, the faster you go.
the wheel sits further out than the shock mount.
because the wheel is at the end of a lever, (the control arm), and the pivot point is towards the middle, the wheel to shock movement is not a 1:1 ratio.
its like, the farther you sit out on the merry go round, the faster you go.
the wheel sits further out than the shock mount.
drobs5
Active LVC Member
Thanks for the explanation .... makes sense now!
dnsherrill
Dedicated LVC Member
Fwiw, you can trust any instructions given by 97 Octane....
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how bout pix?
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how bout pix?
drobs5
Active LVC Member
I'll be doing it this afternoon, what do you want pics of? Let me know and I'll snap some.
drobs5
Active LVC Member
Final setup with the strut mounting holes re-drilled and isolators on the top and bottom out the rear springs. Went for a drive and I'm pretty happy with everything except the alignment.
Bought my Tokico spring and shock kit from amazon a few years ago for under $500. Came with front and rear shocks and front and rear 1.25" lowering springs (i believe the ones that chris has). Also bought the rear perch set up from DLF when he was alive and prothane isolators. Rides great, not too stiff or too soft. Here's how mine sits.
