When to replace struts

[whatnext]

I'm a stickler for better vehicle handling. I prefer stiffer struts and shocks than most folks. I have changed out dampers when vehicles loose that tied down handling. Float? At the first sign of any float, they get yanked irregardless of mileage.

I do have a high performance 6 liter sport sedan (2009 Pontiac G8 GT, really a Holden Commodore) that the factory struts and shocks were not up to my standards (from day1) so by 25k miles I replaced them with available police pursuit vehicle (PPV) units. That got the handling nice and tight with good road trip comfort too. No complaints from the wife and passengers. The PPV units were a great upgrade on a budget (~$350) as the better/adjustable Koni's would have been in the $500 range. (Yeah I wasn't just throwing money at it)

 

[dlundblad]

Originally Posted by whatnext
I'm a stickler for better vehicle handling. I prefer stiffer struts and shocks than most folks. I have changed out dampers when vehicles loose that tied down handling. Float? At the first sign of any float, they get yanked irregardless of mileage.

I do have a high performance 6 liter sport sedan (2009 Pontiac G8 GT, really a Holden Commodore) that the factory struts and shocks were not up to my standards (from day1) so by 25k miles I replaced them with available police pursuit vehicle (PPV) units. That got the handling nice and tight with good road trip comfort too. No complaints from the wife and passengers. The PPV units were a great upgrade on a budget (~$350) as the better/adjustable Koni's would have been in the $500 range. (Yeah I wasn't just throwing money at it)


Sounds like a sweet car. I've always liked the G8. On a side note, it's too bad Holden is no longer now.

 

[WylieCoyote]

This can be a tough call, as it's hard to notice a gradual deterioration in handling when you've had the car for years. None of the shocks on my '05 Sport Trac were leaking or had any visible signs that they were tired, but they did eventually get "squishy" after about 75,000 miles. Bad handling started to become noticeable when driving over train tracks, and humps in the road weren't dampened like I thought they should be. The truck was never exactly an autocross champ, so you have to manage your expectations depending on what you're driving. I stuck some new Monroes on, and it suddenly drove like a brand new truck. If you're seeing excessive rebound or leaning, it may be time.

 

[Ws6]

Originally Posted by whatnext
I'm a stickler for better vehicle handling. I prefer stiffer struts and shocks than most folks. I have changed out dampers when vehicles loose that tied down handling. Float? At the first sign of any float, they get yanked irregardless of mileage.

I do have a high performance 6 liter sport sedan (2009 Pontiac G8 GT, really a Holden Commodore) that the factory struts and shocks were not up to my standards (from day1) so by 25k miles I replaced them with available police pursuit vehicle (PPV) units. That got the handling nice and tight with good road trip comfort too. No complaints from the wife and passengers. The PPV units were a great upgrade on a budget (~$350) as the better/adjustable Koni's would have been in the $500 range. (Yeah I wasn't just throwing money at it)


The GTO's had trashed suspensions from the boat ride over. Known issue. Was the G8 the same way?

 

[Andrew1972]

My 13 year old Acura MDX has original struts and they actually doing okay except for a broken spring. The broken spring would lead to changing the individual or pair of struts beyond the spring.

 

[whatnext]

Originally Posted by Ws6
The GTO's had trashed suspensions from the boat ride over. Known issue. Was the G8 the same way?


Yeah same issue but it wasn't the boat ride over. What was happening was the big rubber bushing at the top of the front struts squished down just from the weight of the vehicle and handling loads. I'm sure the boat ride over didn't help. The resulting slop had the tops of the struts moving around vertically and laterally. Mine were good from the dealer's lot but I watched them collapse so by 8k miles I replaced the bushings with tougher poly units.

So Ws6, is there a Firebird in your history?

 

[whatnext]

Originally Posted by geeman789
The best easy test for strut / shock performance is the freeway expansion joint test. Observe the vehicles wheels from another vehicle as it goes over the expansion joint at highway speed. A decent shock will fully dampen the movement, with no extra bounce or shudder. A worn shock will let the wheel bounce another 1/2 cycle or so with some shudder. A blown strut will do nothing, and the wheel will oscillate thru multiple cycles after the initial hit, often for a few seconds or longer.

I have never seen a strut / shock that wasn't leaking oil badly lose all damping ability. Weaker yes, but not completely blown.


Why bother with external observation of the oscillation? You can feel it driving the vehicle. Besides, with float, you can't visually pick it up.