Koni Active Shocks

[shogun32]

What dampers and springs?

Steeda dual + adjustables

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[BmacIL]

Steeda dual + adjustables

Stiff springs are going to give some more & quicker body motion even if controlled well. Try playing with the damper adjustment. Unfortunately a twin tube just won't have the low-speed control many seek, but you can get it pretty well-sorted with the rebound adjuster. Removing additional sources of bushing twist also helps.

 

[TheMegalodon]

Thanks man this is super helpful. Are you saying you’d like to send me some directly? I don’t know what it would cost you to ship USPS to Canada but if you’re open to it we can work it out in PMs.

If you order through Summit are you paying per bump stop?

It's the (E)BS770066 for the rears and fronts are -44 . I couldn't get the rate information from Eibach - they didn't have it handy. They are $27.8 each (less below) but I ordered some extras and got a further discount. @TheMegalodon I'll be happy to send you some if you like.

https://www.summitracing.com/parts/eib-ebs770060/overview/
background
https://www.cjponyparts.com/pub/media/images/install-pdf/install_ebs28-1.pdf

I may have found a source of my rear suspension 'oscillations' (shocks were built with either trimmed Ford bumpers or even stiffer 'adjustables') and swapping to the Eibach might be just the ticket. Now I wish I had a lift. Next need to tear into a Koni damper to see what's going on inside it.

 

[shogun32]

If you order through Summit are you paying per bump stop?

yes they are priced each. my expression of dismay probably garnered the on-the-fly discount.

 

[Stone 54]

Hey guys, I just installed Koni Special Actives Struts and Shocks today, with stock springs. Want to share some initial impressions with you.

Handling:
The ride feels firm and the car corners way better with minimal body roll. Reduced nose dive and squat. Highway speed handling and controlling feel more confident. It feels like faster the speed, firmer the dampers. Overall, the car feels planted all the time and definitely a better handling car.

Ride quality:
"Small and subtle" bumps and cracks on the road can be felt a little bit more pronounced, especially at higher speed. The dampers deal with bigger bumps or imperfections on the road very well, no matter what speed. It absorbs them at the same or higher level of comfort, comparing to stock dampers, but in a very controlled and planted manner. Bumps and potholes do not upset the car like when it was with stock dampers. The rear shocks feel firmer than front struts. Overall, ride quality is very good and close to stock, with the advantage of handling bad road condition better.

It is a great option for anyone who wants to improve handling, while maintain stock height and comfort.

 

[TheMegalodon]

Sounds like the best experience is at stock height.
I noticed that highway bumps can feel more pronounced too.

 

[GT 550]

Any word from BMR on your rear springs ie are they at the right height?

 

[TheMegalodon]

Any word from BMR on your rear springs ie are they at the right height?

Nope. Probably too busy with more important requests and orders than to reply to my long winded situation/question. The more I look at 1” inch rear drop springs the more I feel BMR springs drop more than 0.5”. I just don’t know

 

[TheMegalodon]

Something else that might put my BMR drop on the Konis into perspective is something I didn’t really think to mention before: my alignment. I had a very reputable shop that has seen a few S550s do my alignment after indexing/clocking the bushings. I stupidly didn’t buy front camber bolts. I regret that choice because I asked to have the alignment specs that Kelly of BMR recommended in another thread https://www.mustangecoboost.net/threads/alignment-specs.18895/ scroll down a few to OITexastang post.

Just to be clear I asked for the toe in front and rear as per Kelly’s recommendations. What surprised me is how much negative camber I’m seeing in the rear. Maybe it’s because of the toe in I requested because I was told the toe and camber impact one another.

Obviously there’s very little camber adjustment on these cars so here are my final numbers. Thoughts?

 

[GT 550]

Hey Ryan how are you getting on with these?

 

[TheMegalodon]

Hey Ryan how are you getting on with these?

Still sorting out the rear clunking I’ve been seeing since October. Given that it’s winter it’s not as easy for me to work on the car. I thought it might be the bump stops so I bought a pair of Eibach stops off Shogun32 and installed those in the rear in January. It helped a little because they’re much better designed and softer than ford ones. I just ordered some J&M rear shock mounts because I realized I must of worn the factory ones out with the lack of bump travel at first. I’m hoping it’s the shock mounts; to me it makes sense because the rear clunking stared to slowly creep in and got worse over time. J&M’s shock mounts look robust and have the option to be mounted a notch higher to give back some bump travel for improved ride quality on a lowered car.

Apparently trimming the ford bump stops as per BMR’s instructions wasn’t enough because I had only a few cms of bump travel. The Konis don’t work well if they’re hitting the stops all the time. If I’d done more research beforehand like I normally do, I would not have bought the Koni Actives for a lowered car. Could’ve bought the Ford track dampers or Bilsteins and been better off.

On a positive note, the handling is much better; the car corners flatter and doesn’t squat or dive much. The front struts are working well and rebound is solid, no noise or issues (I put in new ford PP strut mounts when I installed the kit). I should’ve replaced the rear shock mounts when I installed the springs/dampers. The car does manage to ride pretty well over the harsh roads of my city and if the new shock mounts solve my rear clunking issue, I believe I’ll be happy overall with the BMR763 and Koni Active combo.

TLDR: rear clunking still there, J&M rear shocks mounts on order, ride is okay

 

[TheMegalodon]

Any word from BMR on your rear springs ie are they at the right height?

BMR did get back to me after a month and asked me to take pictures of the rear spring part number and if I had installed all the spring isolators (I had). I took some pictures, replied to them and never heard a thing afterwards. Granted it was never the springs causing the issue but yeah they were probably too busy to care.

 

[JCFoster]

Mine has the light clunking too from the rear at slow speeds on rough roads. From what I gather it’s in the shock. I’ve swapped out shocks and it went away. I’ve decided to live with it because of the ride quality. I’m also using the oe mounts and bump stops on stock springs.

 

[TheMegalodon]

Are you serious? Why was no one talking about this noise in other reviews. I would NEVER have bought them knowing there would be NVH issues. A better ride isn’t worth having your car sound like a 90s econobox. I guess that’s what we get when we buy an unproven product. Doesn’t seem like Konis are that great in general.

Well here’s hoping the shock mounts make a positive difference. Good thing I don’t daily the car anymore; I was getting sick of listening and feeling that clunking.

Mine has the light clunking too from the rear at slow speeds on rough roads. From what I gather it’s in the shock. I’ve swapped out shocks and it went away. I’ve decided to live with it because of the ride quality. I’m also using the oe mounts and bump stops on stock springs.

 

[JCFoster]

I live on a very bumpy rural road, 3/4 mile long. When I come and go it’s at 10-15 mph when I hear it. It’s a light bumping sound from the rear wheel well. I don’t feel anything in the seat. Once I get off my road or go faster I don’t hear anything, even on rough city streets.

I’m still very pleased with the shocks. If your feeling and hearing something on normal roads at normal speeds it may be something else.

As said earlier, I changed them out for new oe shocks to see if was just the shocks and the noise went away. If you can try another set I’d try that first. I still really like mine and figured it might just be the internals of the shock I’m hearing at that slow speed.

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