adjusting shocks
 

am getting adjustable shocks, and would like to hear about how to adjust them.
the 1s am getting are koni.
there are some videos and data on how to do it, but if some1 with experience could pipe in, will be great.
like these: http://www.koni.com/en-US/Cars/Techn...stment-Guides/
KONI | Adjustment Guides
the reason why am doing this is to make riding more comfortable. our beloved sports car is too stiff for my bones. i imagine others share the feeling so keep an eye on this.
perhaps if all goes well, some will get shocks to make their life easier.

Re: adjusting shocks
 

read something that brings the basics on shocks here (last post): https://www.crossfireforum.org/forum/crossfire-srt6/22346-best-shocks-comfort-srt6-2.html
by bladecutter:
"A shock is a fairly simple device that keeps your car under control on the road.
There are two main forces that the shock controls:
Compression forces and Rebound forces.
Compression forces are very easy to explain.
You are driving down a very smooth road, and you hit a bump.
The tire travels up, and compresses the shock absorber.
Depending on how the compression damping inside the shock is set up, this controls how much of the compression force is absorbed by the shock, and how much is transmitted into the body of the car, which ultimately is felt by you in the driver's seat.
Basically, the compression damping is controlled by the size of the orifices in the piston body inside the shock. The larger the size of the holes, the more fluid can travel through when the piston compresses the fluid. The larger the holes, the softer the ride can be. The smaller the holes, the more resistance there is the the fluid passing through, and more of the impact force is transmitted through to the body of the car, and the driver.
Now, once the shock compresses, it eventually has to go back to its normal position. The job of the spring is to push the suspension back apart, but by itself, the spring will just oscillate uncontrollably. The shock absorber has to stop this from happening.
This is where the Rebound damping takes place.
As the piston in the shock goes back to its normal position, there is a check valve in the shock that seals off the compression damping orifices, which then forces the fluid to travel through another set of holes that control the rebound damping rate.
Again, as with the compression orifices, the ones that control the rebound damping will allow more fluid as they are larger, and less fluid as they are smaller. But in this case, too large makes the ride jarring, while too small causes the suspension to take too long to get back to its original position.
In other words, too little rebound damping causes the back end of the car to jolt back into position, causing the rear end to get light and skittish, like a bucking feeling. Too much rebound damping feels like your suspension is made out of tar and molasses. The rear end seems to stick in the compressed position, and really can put the car out of sorts on a bumpy, curve, right quick.
Personally, I would want a shock that offers just a smidge too little compression damping, and also a smidge too little rebound damping. This means that the shock will travel up and down on the firm side, without being overly jolting in either direction.
Hope this helps you understand what is going on with the suspension a bit better. "

Re: adjusting shocks
 

The Koni Sports have adjustable rebound. They come with a dial that fits on the top of the shock -- the fronts are easily adjustable in the engine bay. I made a hole in the carpet for the rear shocks so that they can be adjusted without removing carpet. Adjustment is quick and fast and do not require shock removal.

I run them pretty close to maxed out on the track and autocross -- you can use them to dial understeer and oversteer out. On the street, I still like a firm suspension so I run them about 1-2 full turns from max. This is with a SRT-6 which has pretty stiff spring rates. I know other members have dialed them down quite a bit and it really takes the roughness out of the SRT. They do feel quite a bit better than the factory shocks which were just rough as a whole and cornering is definitely better as well.

Re: adjusting shocks
 

great data. thank you very much. this gives me the chance to experiment until reach the way i like it best.
thanks again.

Re: adjusting shocks
 

thank you very much for your comments. as you have them, am asking some questions based on what the instructions show.
there are several instructions, for several series of models, and some have only 1 adjustment. from the post i had before, there are 2 kinds of adjustments (compression damping, and rebound), and hopefully the ones am getting fit into those. only the last series mentions both. see:
"Adjustment Procedures Independently adjustable in both compression and rebound this series racing shock absorbers offer over 140 different combinations and rebound, to finely tune the chassis for maximum performance. "
from the videos, rebound is done at the top, compression at the bottom, so this needs to get under the car, right? for both front and rear.
i think that when ordering, i need from the supplier to tell me exactly what series they are sending, otherwise i may get some of the previous series that dont have both adjustments.
and still have no idea how (or if) to reach that screw at the bottom...

Re: adjusting shocks
 

The only Koni sports that fits the Crossfire has rebound adjustments only and it is done on the top. That is the only fitment available from Koni. Rebound adjustment is generally the most important adjustment anyways.

If you want double adjustable, you will pay a pretty penny. You probably will need to get custom Penske or Bilstein shocks and have them built specifically for the Crossfire.

Re: adjusting shocks
 

i see. thank you for explaining. i was looking at the videos, that is why i got that impression.
wonder why they have those videos. or should tell that are not for all-or tell which do.
anyway, this way trimming them is easier.
thanks again.
and, yes, there have been threads about this before. but i didnt know until now. and they confirm that this is a good solution.

Re: adjusting shocks
 

waxhell: can you post a pic showing the place where you made a hole for the shock?
thanks

Re: adjusting shocks
 

Here is a photo with the adjustment knob attached.

I used a hole saw to cut through the carpet -- I pushed the carpet in to feel the top of the shock and drilled in that approximate location.
https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.cro...7b13a98be5.jpg

Re: adjusting shocks
 

thank you very much. terrific job. great pic. am sure many, like me, will benefit from your solution.

Re: adjusting shocks
 

this is what am getting:
2 Shock Absorber KONI 8041 1228SPORT (front)
2 Shock Absorber KONI 8041 1229SPORT (rear)
if you order for crossfire, this is what you will get.

and if you want to get more details on the install, when you check the instructions available you need to make sure you are using the right 1s, as there are many that dont belong to these you are getting. to read the right 1s you need to check the whole part number, including the 8041.
these are the specific for ours:
Adjustment Procedure 8010, 8041, 8210, 8241, 8610, 8641, 8710, 8741 Series (notice somewhere: 8041-thats ours)
( i extracted just what is of use for us)
the pic showing the knob:
http://www.koni.com/CorporateSite/me...-KONI-Knob.jpg

Externally Adjustable: These dampers can be adjusted, literally at the turn of a knob, a technique borrowed from Formula-1 racing where KONI dampers have dominated the field for years. By means of a knob damping forces can be altered to driving conditions or personal preferences. One can switch back and forth, in most cases in a matter of seconds, from a comfortable "touring" setting to a more firmer setting for a sporty drive.

Rebound Adjustment Direction:
Clockwise: Softer
Counter Clockwise: Firmer

so far, using the knob all is straightforward, but still i dont understand why they show the figure and instructions telling that about inserting a pin-that dont belong and we are not getting. they shouldnt include it . just makes things confusing.
and i had to find this in the complete instructions ( http://www.koni.com/en-US/Cars/Techn...stment-Guides/ ) and was because i found the 8041 lost in the series. so beware.

Re: adjusting shocks
 

and, in case you are going to do it and havent got details, here is a great way with all details:
https://howtune.com/articles/333-rep...sler-crossfire

Re: adjusting shocks
 

No pin is needed -- the knob comes with the shocks and fits into the top of the shock. I leave my rear ones always attached.

As for that guide, it is not fully correct for the Koni installation procedure. The Koni's do come with instructions, but they are not very clear. They do detail how things need to be assembled for the Koni's.

Essentially you will need to remove and reuse the dust cover pieces and bump stops from the OEM shocks, and drill out the metal part of the dust cover to fit the larger diameter of the Koni's.

This post has a lot of photos of a Koni install. Note that if you are are at stock ride height, you don't have to trim the bump stops. I did not as shock bump stops can act like springs and I wanted as much spring rate as possible since I am autocrossing the car.
https://www.crossfireforum.org/forum...ravaganza.html

Re: adjusting shocks
 

thank you for your input.
regarding: " and drill out the metal part of the dust cover to fit the larger diameter of the Koni's. ",
what dust cover you are talking about? is that sort of large washer that is seen in the pic of post 9?
and the post you attached is very illustrating. so many details...
thanks again.
this?
https://assets.howtune.com/articles/...076_normal.jpg
and what is the diameter of the konis?

Re: adjusting shocks
 

on the other hand, here is 1 of the shocks. the pic shows several parts that seem to be what we need, so we dont have to drill anything. right?
https://www.summitracing.com/parts/kon-8041-1228spt
folks, this post dissapeared, and is not until i posted the next that i can see it again. whats going on?

Re: adjusting shocks
 

tried to send this before but is no longer available so here i come again:
from ads i learned that the konis come with some fittings. like this: https://www.ebay.com/itm/Koni-8041-1...-/142491846673
and the other: https://www.summitracing.com/parts/kon-8041-1228spt
as you can see, 1 shows certain parts and the other, different. 1 has the rubber spacer, but not the other 1. and we need both to have it because the diameter of the shaft is larger, from what i have heard. but then the ad says: " Image is a representation of this item. Actual item may vary. " go figure !
i hope some1 can help to unravel this mystery.

Re: adjusting shocks
 

That photo is of an aftermarket shock so the dust cover and top is designed differently. It would be the area below the washer. The top of the black plastic dust cover has a rubber piece and underneath that is a metal cup / collar.

Not sure on the size, but it is a little bit bigger. You can use a drill or a dremel to open it up larger. It will be really obvious when you take it apart and fit it to the Koni's. A vise to help get those pieces off makes things a lot easier.

Re: adjusting shocks
 

thanks again. i think i have no choice but to wait until the parts arrive and go from that. i got a reamer and a drill and hope that will do.
but i think the supplier should enclose these parts matching the diameter and not leave us having to drill the old 1s.
for a product of any price, but especially for these that are way more than the stock.

Re: adjusting shocks
 

Who’s on first that’s what I want to know. This thread is quite comical.
The dust cover is not shown here, it is on the OEM shocks. The thread on the rod end of the OEM shocks is smaller in diameter than the Konis rod thread and therefore the hole in the OEM dust cover has to be made larger to fit the Konis rod thread.
The dust cover protects the rod from dirt and rain etc. It fits directly over the rod end and goes halfway down the cylinder.
There is no pin with these shocks just the adjustment knob and the hardware shown. All the adjustment is done with r
the knob on the threaded end of the rod, it just slips in place and you just turn it.
I did mine nine years ago so I may be in error in places.

The OEM dust cover on the new Koni shock. Photo by downwardspiral.
https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.cro...5ee94b383d.jpg

Re: adjusting shocks
 

guys: am not questioning the quality of the products: all that i read is good things. but their ads...just look at this for instance:
https://www.lmperformance.com/708092...hock-rear.html
for some1 that wants to buy 1 rear shock, what do you see? there are 2 pieces. quite different. do you get both?
besides, as far as we know, these are adjustable, right? now, tell me where in the ad tells this.
for some1 that just wants to buy an adjustable rear shock absorber, what do you think he will think?
even i, am not sure what i will get !