Problem with Koni coilovers
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Junior Member
Joined: Mar 2008
Posts: 29
From: Westport CT
Problem with Koni coilovers
Wow... I have had almost nothing but trouble with these.
First of all, the shop who installed the Konis is ICS Performance in Stamford. These guys seem to be real experts with Audi and Porsche among others. I brought them the car and coilovers looking for two fingers of clearance. They "raised it as high as they could" and we had one finger at best and the car rubbed a lot - even with my nearly stock-sized OZ 18s. Back to ICS and they added a cup or washer or something to give it another 1/2 inch. The also put new, shorter bolts in the wheel well to save another couple of mm of clearance.
The car was perfect. But not for long. I took it out one night and drove it ...like a sports car.
After a short time, all kinds of noises develop - clanking and crunching, for lack of a better description. I took it back to ICS. They did something to fix it and it was perfect ...briefly. Another night of spirited driving and it got all out of whack again - basically, the same thing. They have the car again, but I'm at a loss.
Does anyone have any experience with this? Is is the coilover, the instalation or both? Is the Koni better for looks or performance? I bought it for performance but am beginning to have my doubts.
Any thoughts or suggestions?
First of all, the shop who installed the Konis is ICS Performance in Stamford. These guys seem to be real experts with Audi and Porsche among others. I brought them the car and coilovers looking for two fingers of clearance. They "raised it as high as they could" and we had one finger at best and the car rubbed a lot - even with my nearly stock-sized OZ 18s. Back to ICS and they added a cup or washer or something to give it another 1/2 inch. The also put new, shorter bolts in the wheel well to save another couple of mm of clearance.
The car was perfect. But not for long. I took it out one night and drove it ...like a sports car.
After a short time, all kinds of noises develop - clanking and crunching, for lack of a better description. I took it back to ICS. They did something to fix it and it was perfect ...briefly. Another night of spirited driving and it got all out of whack again - basically, the same thing. They have the car again, but I'm at a loss.
Does anyone have any experience with this? Is is the coilover, the instalation or both? Is the Koni better for looks or performance? I bought it for performance but am beginning to have my doubts.
Any thoughts or suggestions?
1st Gear
Joined: Aug 2008
Posts: 15
If I'm reading this right, your trying to make the Koni's ride higher than they were made to do? Why not just buy a coilover that rode at the height you wanted in the first place? I'm betting your problem has a lot to do with making the car sit higher than the coilover was designed to do.
1st Gear
Joined: Feb 2007
Posts: 127
From:
More info required:
What size OZ Wheels?
What offset?
What size tires?
With 225/40-18s. you should be able to run at 25.25" ground to the inside of the fender arch all around with no clearance problems IF your wheels have better than 48MM of offset. With aftermarket wheels and suspension all the clearances need to be known in advance.
Are you sure the sound is from rubbing? It is possible that the suspension was never properly installed and is simply moving under load. That would explain the temp overnight fix, the clanking and crunching sounds.
In any event, I would have a serious heart-to-heart with the shop manager. Koni is a big, quality company and doesn't make products with inherent problems like you describe. But they can't control installation quality.
My SR suspension uses Vogtland springs and Koni-based shocks and is dead silent, even after an 800 mile road trip with 3 people and luggage. Yours should be as well.
What size OZ Wheels?
What offset?
What size tires?
With 225/40-18s. you should be able to run at 25.25" ground to the inside of the fender arch all around with no clearance problems IF your wheels have better than 48MM of offset. With aftermarket wheels and suspension all the clearances need to be known in advance.
Are you sure the sound is from rubbing? It is possible that the suspension was never properly installed and is simply moving under load. That would explain the temp overnight fix, the clanking and crunching sounds.
In any event, I would have a serious heart-to-heart with the shop manager. Koni is a big, quality company and doesn't make products with inherent problems like you describe. But they can't control installation quality.
My SR suspension uses Vogtland springs and Koni-based shocks and is dead silent, even after an 800 mile road trip with 3 people and luggage. Yours should be as well.
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