Time for some new shocks.....what to do?

Apollyon12

Apollyon12

Active member
I think it's about time for some new shocks for my wagon. I also want to improve the handling, so I am thinking about the KYB GR-2's from FastWRX.com

http://fastwrx.com/kybgrshforwr.html

I don't want to shell out the money for coil-overs, that would be overkill. I am looking to go a step or two over stock. Am I looking at the right product or are there better options out there? OEM ones through Patriots parts website (subaruparts4u.com) are $107.96 so for about the same price why wouldn't I upgrade?

Does anyone have any experience with the KYB's ? Should I shell out the extra $150 for the adjustable ones if I don't have any plans to AutoX (though I would like to...)

The progression that I am thinking about is: shocks, endlinks, swaybars.

Is my plan off base and I should put my money somewere else or is my thinking correct? Thanks in advance to all the scooby-guru's.

 
well i can speak from experience that they are not bad for the money.

depending on what you use them for, daily driver sure they are a great replacement. they are also good for entry level motorsports too, autox, rallyx, or what ever, they are wel rounded good oem replacements.

one thing i did notice and Nigel Prodrive told me this but had to see for myself, on gravel they get REAL floaty around 75-80mph. feels like you drift back and forth with no control if you are flat out in the straights. on pavement i didnt notice anything like that, so....dont go balls out on gravel and you should be fine.

i need to get a set on the RS soon. shop around too, some sellers on Ebay are REALLY competitive in their price and offer free shipping.

i know my brother used Gr2's with OBS springs on his 93 L and it appeared to lift him a little. i used them on my old integra with big rear crontrol arms and poly bushings and a rear strut bar and the car was incredibly stiff.

im a fan.

that's our opinion, we welcome yours.

 
i have gr2s on my gc, ive been running them for about two years give or take and they are just starting to wear out. granted i also auto crossed on them for two season, putting them though much more abuse then normal driving. i like them they are a cheep alternative to stock shocks but there not that much better.

if you have the money i recommend the AGX's there only a but more and you get adjustablity

 
not 100% certain, but I believe that KYB does not have an AGX fitment for wrx wags...the goombahs!

at least they din't last time I checked tirerack.com :dontknow:

it's the rears that are in question. The wrx sedan AGX rear struts would bolt on, but who knows how ride height would be affected--I think the hidquarters would be a bit low and you'd lose some load capacity.

you could look at a modest spring upgrade like eibach sports, or takeoff STI pinks which would help a good bit but still work with stock struts or the GR-2s. I ran AGXes with STI pinks on my old GC coupe and it was an awesome setup.

The school subies at Team O'Neil run GR-2s. They are all on GC cars but handle the rough stuff purty good even with stock sproingies.

 
Thanks for all the input.

If the said shocks where done, what would get the most bang for the buck or be the next logical step....

Springs (STi pinks, probably)

Sway bars (front and rear)

End links (front and rear)

 
Or a full bushing kit

(I don't know about anyone else, but I really hate it when the rear diff bangs around..... :BangHead:)

 
I have GR-2s on the brighton and the fozz. They're not bad for the price. The only thing is that next time i would buy them from an authorized dealer, in order to be able to use lifetime warranty without an issue.

If you get new struts and need help changing them, LMK, between the compressor and Branick, we can get it done quick.

Good luck

 
i think that you would notice the most seat of the pants diffrence from sway bars personaly on that list even if you just do the rear, but a good alignment does wonders too. endlinks are not really a big concern until you have a stiff suspention and big sway bars, mine snaped in half after that so i replaced them then.

sport alignment

sways

springs

links

 
For perceived handling improvements-

#1 Replace worn out shocks, sky's the limit (GR-2's, AGX's, Koni's, STI takeoffs, Bilstein PSS9)

#2 High performance tires (wider, sticky, stiffer sidewall)

#3 Rear swaybar upsize (less push)

JT

 
the single best bang for the buck handling improvement is good tires. bar none. modest upsizing, like 225/50-16 adds a lot of grip without making your car a pothole time bomb like 35 or 45 profile tires/wheels would

then springs/struts (resist urge to go overboard here, stock is actually darn good all around, esp on rough Maine roads)

swaybars (if some extra thickness is good, more is not necessarily betta) upgrade rear bar first to help cure dread wrx understeer esp on wagons

endlinks, ALK, bushing upgrades, etc are well down the list

remember that hardware is not everything...$ spent improving the vehicle control software, aka De DroivA pays major dividends :bom:

 
I definitly have to agree with you Nigel, I am hoping to hit a track day this summer.

By the way, does anybody do the ice races with the BMW club? I really wanted to go last year but didn't get the chance.

 
Ice Racing, I have not gone but would like to do it sometime. I have read about the BMW club doing a good job at running the ice days.

 
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