How can I tell if I need new shocks? My 2003 should have the sports suspension. It now has 98k miles. There is no leaking from any of the shocks. When I push down on each corner, there is good resistance and it rebounds and stays there. (No bouncing.) The ride is still good, but seems less stiff than when I bought the car at 37k miles.It just doesn't seem to have the solid, ground-hugging feel that itused towhen going over railroad crossings or rough roads.

I did a search on the forum and found lots of dialog on sports suspensions and coilovers, but nothing on this maintenance item.

Thanks!

 

Your shocks sound good to me! You performed the most common test that is very accurate believe it or not. You press down firmly above each tire and release. The car should raise back up and stop without bouncing!

OOOO

 

^^^ on the button, if you want performance shocks go with gas rather than oil filled ( gas shocks cost more though ) then there is everything else to consider, comfort/ride quality and much more

 

1st, I know I'm dragging this one out of the grave... Yet, I did a search and can’t seem to find the info I’m looking for.

2003 3.0 95K on the button. I did common "push test" for shocks which seems fine. Although when I go over speed bumps at work it I hear a knock, like the shock is bottoming out. My ride seems a little more rigid when going over a road with multiple pot holes (a bunch of little ones in a row, not the deep rim benders).


Not sure what direction to go in.

 

Hey RIA6,

Where do you hear the knocking noise from? Awhile back I heard the same thing coming from my passenger front when I drove over a speed bump. It turned out to be my lower front control arm. I purchased an entire kit, uppers and lowers and replaced all which corrected my problem. If it is a control arm, you would want to buy an entire kit because it will not only save you some money but when one control arm starts to wear, usually the other ones are due to follow. When I replaced mine, I also found that my upper rear was also wearing out. Hope this helps!!!

OOOO

 

Joeski

The Knock is coming from the drivers side front. Is there anyway sure why to figure out if it is the control arms or not?
DIY or no?

 

There sure is! You need to get your car on a rack and make sure your front wheel are straight. When you raise the car, gravity will of course stretch your suspension and you will have a wider gap between the top of the tire and the edge of your fenderwell. From there you can clearly see the upper front and rear control arms, they are silver in color (you should also see a little black bushing as well). Grab the drivers side tire from the bottom and pull up on it while you look at your upper control arms. If the control arms are good, you should not see any loose play. The suspension should move as one with the tire. Do the same thing with the lower arms but you will need another person to view the bottom because you will not be able to do it from your position.

Check out the pics. I circled the important areas in Red! Hope it helps

[IMG]local://upfiles/13659/A31696655D4844DCAC23DE4580143C90.jpg[/IMG]

[IMG]local://upfiles/13659/360E155A7F744BE8B9E3C8B87115CF72.jpg[/IMG]

[IMG]local://upfiles/13659/351F122463CC4B0D94609A0280A9F069.jpg[/IMG]

 

Good information. FYI, I'm at 115k and still running the same shocks.

 

Some will tell you to replace them after 100K, but I know guys with much more on their stock suspension. If you performed a push test and the car rebounds without bouncing, you should be fine!

OOOO

 

Great. Thanks for the info.