New springs and struts - just checkin'

Very good to hear, Tannin.

And my good lady wife wonders why I never throw anything away that has the slightest chance of being useful ...
Most of it isn't, of course, but I cannot predict which one will be ...
 
So how is the setup going Tannin?
I am looking into some suspension at the moment.

Out of interest, were the rear springs a RR sufix or an RRSP suffix?
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The RRSP are a special order only, and the wait at the moment is late Jan 2014.

I think I will go with KYB struts and King springs.
 
Hi Subaruby,
I fitted KYB struts and raised King springs in August to my 2002 xs Foz and could not be happier. I have done one serious high country trip since, the additional clearance was noticeable and I negotiated the Blue Rag Range track without any difficulty as well as other tracks.
On road I reckon the Subi handles better due to the stiffer suspension. When I get in my 2004 which has standard suspension it feels too soft by comparison. Trust this helps.
 
Subaruby, sorry to be slow getting back to you, been a bit tied up.

Short answer: do NOT mix King springs with standard shockers - the result is terrible!

Standard springs and standard shockers works great.

With the King springs, you need a harder-valved shocker otherwise the car handles like a pig on roller skates. Really nasty. Too much spring action, not enough control. Drives like a car with rooted shockers only the ride is harsh and jiggly. People who have Kings + KYB say that the combo works well. I'm sure you could have KYB + standard springs too.

Be aware that the King springs on the front will give you a very firm ride - in fact I wouldn't call it firm, I'd go so far as to call it harsh. Kings on the back is fine.

If you are getting Kings, buy mine! I have a pair of near-enough new Kings front springs, which I'll happily sell to you for whatever is reasonable. I'm in Ballarat.

PS: Kings on the front WITHOUT a lift block would give you a nice 1 to 1.5 inch lift. Probably best to stay legal and have EITHER a lift block OR HD springs at front, not both.
 
Now for the good bit: I have finally finished doing stuff to my Forester: pretty much everything needed is complete, all except fot the clock light and replacing the broken cup holder. (Ballarat Subaru are slack - they were supposed to call me with parts and to make a booking. They always say that they will ring, but they never, ever do.)

We have also discovered some other stuff to do, in particular the centre bearing - just worn and sloppy after 270,000k. They couldn't get the old one apart (same story with some other suspension bits that also hadn't been touched in 10 years or 270,000k and were very hard to budge, notably when we wanted to allign the rear wheels. In the end, they just put in a whole new tailshaft from a wrecker.

And the result? With the standard springs front, Kings springs rear, new standard shockers all round, and 1 inch lift blocks all round? Effin' brilliant! Smooth as a baby's bum to drive, just like a new one, soaks up bumps like a Citroen, handles very nearly as well as it did when it was new and closer to the ground - more than well enough for long, long days eating up the miles. And off-road, haven't done much but every early sign of being really good.

Taken a long time and a lot of messing about, but this is now an A1 car, good for another couple of hundred thousand kilometres.

Matter of fact, I'm towing a heavy trailer from Ballarat to Brisbane right now, and the old girl doesn't have the power she once had, but she is sweet and smooth and very precise regardless of the load. Good one lads!
 
Are you going to add 1" spacers too, Like Pedro & a few others?
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Not yet, stage 1 is springs and struts, then maybe front lsd then maybe strut blocks, strut brace ???? you know how it is the, list keeps growing!

Thanks for the comments havacaht, I have decided on the kings and kyb combo. Just out of interest how many k's did your foz have on it when you changed suspension?

Thanks for the feedback tannin, good to here you are all sorted and happy.
I like the idea of the firmness of the kings all round and will get the rear springs that dulagarl mentioned, as it will help when i tow my old jayco dove.
I will be in Ballarat between christmas and new year, send me a pm and we can talk about your springs.
 
Subaruby said:
Not yet, stage 1 is springs and struts, then maybe front lsd then maybe strut blocks, strut brace ???? you know how it is the, list keeps growing!
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Haha the list never ends lol :lol: DCCD box, Cusco/KAAZ plated diff rear, OBX front, 2nd set rims with muddies, camping mods, bullbar, spotties, lightbar, snorkel, supercharger, big exhaust... :rotfl:
 
Tannin said:
Now for the good bit:

. . .

Taken a long time and a lot of messing about, but this is now an A1 car, good for another couple of hundred thousand kilometres.

Matter of fact, I'm towing a heavy trailer from Ballarat to Brisbane right now, and the old girl doesn't have the power she once had, but she is sweet and smooth and very precise regardless of the load. Good one lads!
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Great to hear, Tannin. Safe trip, have fun. Watch out for young birds ... :poke: :biggrin: :lol:
 
Subaruby said:
Thanks for the comments havacaht, I have decided on the kings and kyb combo. Just out of interest how many k's did your foz have on it when you changed suspension?
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Subaruby my 2002 was fitted with the self levelling rear struts (SLS). At about 140,000km the left rear strut started to sag when parked and after a short drive would regain height but would then slowly sag again. After a trip earlier this year it failed completely at about 160,000km.
When the strut was removed you could pull the strut rod up and down with no restistance. The SLS has a lighter spring that does nothing when the strut fails compared with the standard strut spring set up where the strut does the damping and the spring supports the wieght of the vehicle.
My 2004 still has the SLS and has done around 145,000km and the SLS is working perfectly. The moment it fails I will be putting in KYB/Kings without hesitation. The OEM suspension is aimed at making it a nice car to drive for the average buyer who might consider a gravel road as off road!
 
^ But don't get too carried away. "Hard" does not equal "effective". Hard springs are good for racetracks and lap times, but more compliant suspension setup is better when the road is rough. For proof, look at my example. My pig of a car on hard front springs has transformed into a delight to drive on standard ones. It now drives ON the road instead of bounding around all over it.
 
Subaruby said:
Not yet, stage 1 is springs and struts, then maybe front lsd then maybe strut blocks, strut brace ???? you know how it is the, list keeps growing!

Thanks for the comments havacaht, I have decided on the kings and kyb combo. Just out of interest how many k's did your foz have on it when you changed suspension?

Thanks for the feedback tannin, good to here you are all sorted and happy.
I like the idea of the firmness of the kings all round and will get the rear springs that dulagarl mentioned, as it will help when i tow my old jayco dove.
I will be in Ballarat between christmas and new year, send me a pm and we can talk about your springs.
Click to expand...

I have the Kings and the RRSP in the rear and love them, great also when i am towing my old Jayco Swan. Soon to do an OEM strut change (my struts are just servieable) and the 1" Subtle lift as well.
 
Tannin said:
...
And the result? With the standard springs front, Kings springs rear, new standard shockers all round, and 1 inch lift blocks all round? Effin' brilliant! Smooth as a baby's bum to drive, just like a new one, soaks up bumps like a Citroen, handles very nearly as well as it did when it was new and closer to the ground - more than well enough for long, long days eating up the miles. And off-road, haven't done much but every early sign of being really good.
...
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Just did the front of our 05xt, kyb replacement with the original springs. Combined with the rear raised kings and standard kyb's (non self levelling) I did previously the handling and ride are perfect. Advice I got from Suspension City North Melb was on the same lines, avoid hd springs in the front (result will be harsh), and the stock oem front springs are worth keeping/reusing when the original front kyb's die.
 
Been a very interesting read.

At 250,000km 3 of my struts had started to leak on my 07 XT and the SLS rear had just started to sag. All springs were replaced with Kings heavy duty KSFR-32SP front and KSRR-43 rear and KYB struts all round. It gave a lift of 30mm which I wasn't really looking for but doesn't seem to have any noticeable effect on the handling. It now measures 770mm from the ground to the guards on each corner.

Generally I'm happy with the result. It's quieter, sits flatter and tighter and really the ride might be a bit firmer but is more controlled and is certainly better over all surfaces with a load of 4 people and the back filled. I rarely get around like that though and haven't towed my camper trailer with it yet.

The SG Forester, with its relatively short wheelbase and narrow track, will never win any prize for a great ride though (my Mk7 VW Golf shows what plush ride with incredible stability and steering precision can be achieved - it spoils me every other day I'm in it) and I accept that it will always be a bit choppier when driving one-up like I mostly do. The standard 17" 215/55 tyres also make it a bit harsher than the 16" 215/60 tyres on X & XS models but the extra precision is welcome.

Most of my driving is now on sealed roads but I would go to standard 16" Forester rims with 215/65 tyres if I do extended outback driving again. Those 17" 215/55 tyres did get me across the Gibb River Road towing my camper trailer without doing any damage though. Just bloody lucky I reckon.
 
Hi Tannin,
It has bothered me since you originally did the lift, why was the front higher and the ride terrible. Given myself and others who have put in raised King springs and KYB struts have not had the same issues.
The answer is obvious and I should have realised earlier given that I still have an SG with standard springs / struts.
Tonight both cars were parked nose to nose outside the house. When the outdoor spot light came on, there was the answer!

The standard front oem strut spring perch is a lot higher on the strut than the spring perch on the KYB excel G. The rear spring perch is at the same height on both.
Hence putting the raised spring on the oem strut at the front will cause excess front lift. That is probably why King springs make a standard height front spring as well as the raised front spring. I can not believe I did not see it before.
Cheers
 
King Spring do not make a standard height spring for the SG only raised or lowered for the front.

For the rear you can get Low/Std/High.

We fitted Std height springs to an SG XT in the rear. Kept the front stock. Standard shocks all round. 3" strut top lift kit. Drives mint, very good ride and handles good...
 
havachat said:
Hi Tannin,
It has bothered me since you originally did the lift, why was the front higher and the ride terrible. Given myself and others who have put in raised King springs and KYB struts have not had the same issues.
The answer is obvious and I should have realised earlier given that I still have an SG with standard springs / struts.
Tonight both cars were parked nose to nose outside the house. When the outdoor spot light came on, there was the answer!

The standard front oem strut spring perch is a lot higher on the strut than the spring perch on the KYB excel G. The rear spring perch is at the same height on both.
Hence putting the raised spring on the oem strut at the front will cause excess front lift. That is probably why King springs make a standard height front spring as well as the raised front spring. I can not believe I did not see it before.
Cheers
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I haven't thought of this before but you maybe have some SF struts front, they have the spring perch 15 mm higher and less stroke than the SG struts.
 
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