Sixpack Member 43 Member For: 16y 3m 19d Gender: Male Location: Gippsland Vic Posted 22/02/14 08:23 PM Share Posted 22/02/14 08:23 PM (edited) Am thinking to upgrade the standard shocks on my FG Xr6t as I find them a bit sloppy (done 100,000 ks)Because it is our everyday family car I don’t want the suspension too hard that my wife will complain but I would like an improvement over stock and would prefer adjustables. We also use the car to carry our camping gear and will be towing a caravan. The springs are standard XR height and there is an lp gas tank in the boot (over rear axle).I would appreciate any advice, comments or personal experiences with any of the above as to which may suit our needs. If you wish to discuss other brand like Bilstein, Monroe, Pedders etc. that’s fine.Have got a Whiteline adjustable rear sway bar. Also can the Konis be adjusted while they are still on the car.ThanksSixpack Edited 22/02/14 08:30 PM by Sixpack Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
discostig Manual mode ________________________ All day, erryday Donating Members 13,798 Member For: 17y 5d Gender: Male Location: Probably above atmospheric pressure Posted 23/02/14 12:50 AM Share Posted 23/02/14 12:50 AM (edited) I have Koni Red/specials and they cannot really be adjusted on the car. Have heard of the fronts being done on car with some messing around, and the rears I guess you could leave the tops bolted in and give it a go but it's all wheels off and bolts being undone stuff, not really convenient like the mega dollar EDFC Teins etcRide wise I find them nice, I have superpro bushes that give a bit more NVH but I drive on some terrible roads so opted for the Konis. They still hit the corners very nicely though. Combined with Kings springs in mine. If you like have a look at my build thread linked below, I have pics of installing the suspension etc towards the end.edit - chose Koni red over Blistein for comfort on bad roads. Edited 23/02/14 12:51 AM by -SteveR- Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arronm Dropping a turd Gold Donating Members 9,520 Member For: 17y 1m 3d Gender: Male Location: Perth Posted 23/02/14 11:23 AM Share Posted 23/02/14 11:23 AM Koni reds will be sweet. Keep the stock springs. Adjust the Koni in the mid range and set and forget. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sixpack Member 43 Member For: 16y 3m 19d Gender: Male Location: Gippsland Vic Posted 24/02/14 04:30 AM Author Share Posted 24/02/14 04:30 AM Thanks for the replies.I appreciate that the koni reds can handle the bad roads better than say the Bilsteins especially that we have many of them around here. I was wondering how does their handling compare with the stock XR shocks as I am not too keen with what came on the car.Sixpack Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
discostig Manual mode ________________________ All day, erryday Donating Members 13,798 Member For: 17y 5d Gender: Male Location: Probably above atmospheric pressure Posted 24/02/14 05:20 AM Share Posted 24/02/14 05:20 AM (edited) Well I did shocks and springs at once, and the old ones were about 175,000km old so you'd hope it improved hahaha.Can negotiate roundabouts much better now. People have noticed on cruises that I enjoy to go around corners and the suspension (and superpro bushes) help a lot with that. Toby who was along said he really noticed his car suffering as he followed me on the weekend, comparison is not ideal though as he's got an FG and it's a ute.I still have stock swaybars on - front whiteline I haven't gotten around to fitting yet. Edited 24/02/14 05:23 AM by -SteveR- Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sixpack Member 43 Member For: 16y 3m 19d Gender: Male Location: Gippsland Vic Posted 02/03/14 06:31 AM Author Share Posted 02/03/14 06:31 AM After reading the replies so far I've no doubt that the Koni reds are the way to go if if you still want a reasonably comfortable ride and this is important to me especially that we use the XR as our everyday family car.What I'm trying to work out is if there is a noticeable improvement in handling and roadholding compared to the factory shocks that came on my XR6T. The Konis are quite expensive and I have to convince my wife that it is worth the outlay.I understand that if the old shocks are worn (like mine are) then whatever I buy would be an improvement. Also replacing the springs with Kings at the same time as the shocks would also make quite a difference thanks in part to the Kings. I will be keeping the spring height the same at this time.Ignoring springs and sway bars, am I going to experience some improvement in the way the car handles on the road.... I'm trying to compare new Koni reds with new factory XR6T shocks?ThanksSixpack Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sixman Donating Members 600 Member For: 20y 4m 8d Gender: Male Location: Hills District, NSW Posted 02/03/14 07:45 AM Share Posted 02/03/14 07:45 AM Without doubt you will notice a big improvement, will make you wonder why you didn't do it sooner 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sixpack Member 43 Member For: 16y 3m 19d Gender: Male Location: Gippsland Vic Posted 10/04/14 06:45 AM Author Share Posted 10/04/14 06:45 AM Thanks for all the useful information. I've decided to go for the Koni reds adjustable and am now wondering what settings for them. Arronm made a good suggestion about setting them in the mid range. However because I have an LPG gas tank in the boot above the rear axle it means that I am carrying some extra weight in the back of the car.Should I set up the shocks a bit firmer than the mid range? Would it need this extra damping because of the weight of the gas tank? Should I adjust up only the back, or both the front and rear.I would appreciate any comments.Sixpack Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arronm Dropping a turd Gold Donating Members 9,520 Member For: 17y 1m 3d Gender: Male Location: Perth Posted 10/04/14 07:49 AM Share Posted 10/04/14 07:49 AM Just the rear a tad firmer. If you dont like it the rears are easy to change. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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