OEM Struts vs Aftermarket

Doug86

Forum Member
Joined
Sep 25, 2013
Messages
110
Location
Adelaide Hills, South Australia
Car Year
2006
Car Model
Forester XT
Transmission
Manual
Hey all,

There are a lot of threads around on this topic and having read most of them I have a general idea about most of it but there are a few things that I need clarification on.

Firstly, my car is an 07 XT which has the SLS in the back.

The car has done just over 80,000kms and the standard shocks in the back are knocking horribly. The previous owner fitted all aftermarket bushes and they have already destroyed two sway bar links and now it appears they have shortened the life of the struts as well.

I do use the car offroad and am getting some 2inch blocks so I do not want to get raised springs as well as that will be too much stress for other components so I will be sticking with standard springs but I need some new shocks.

Everyone seems to like KYB shocks, with a few others getting an honorable mention and Pedders genernally getting the ok by over prices review.

What about the OEM ones? How do these compare to the aftermarket ones. I generally dont tow anything and I normally travel light (swag, firdge and some clean underdacks) so heavy duty would only be for dealing with the knocks it gets off road.

Also, how do the aftermarket ones go with the SLS?

cheers in advance for the help
 
If you replace the SLS strut with a standard strut you need to replace the spring as well, as it is a light weight spring as the strut does the lifting. List price for KYB struts is around $240, but you can do a lot better by shopping around. You will need a set of standard height springs to remain legal if you are fitting 2 inch blocks (assuming you are in Victoria).
 
havachat said:
List price for KYB struts is around $240, but you can do a lot better by shopping around.
Click to expand...
My KYB's were $177 + GST each with almost no shopping around.
I think they're better than the stock Subaru stuff but we gradually forget what stock stuff was like new, especially when you go from a set that have done 250,000km.
 
That was one of the things I was unsure about. Does going to a KYB or similar aftermarket shock mean loosing the self leveling ability? Given that I do not need heavy duty springs and shocks cos im not towing heavy stuff (if anything) I like the idea of the SLS keeping things in check back there.

is the only way of keeping the SLS to replace the with OEM?
 
Gidday Doug

The Pedders I bought cost me $674 for the pair. $75 fitting. $66 wheel alignment.

They are a variable rate spring that's a bit heavier than the OEM SLS (+18%), but are not SLS units. They are standard length/height.

They are complete units, fully assembled with all new strut tops, bumps, struts and springs. Apparently failing to replace the bumps is a good way to destroy new struts and springs if fitted separately ...

The ride comfort is excellent. Handling is excellent. The vehicle dynamics are generally unchanged, other than having a feeling of far better road contact at all times. That is, the ride is not firmer, or harder, the car just feels more stable and that's it.

These sit with wheel arch top to wheel centre measurement of 425 mm with all my usual crap in the car. OEM spec for the MY06 N/A is 440 mm +12/-24 mm.

When I put the trailer on with a ball weight of 45 Kgs, the back goes down by 10 mm; with a ball weight of 80 Kgs, the back still only goes down by 10 mm ... :). I suspect that this is due to the variable rate springs doing their job.

Lucas warned me off putting heavy duty springs/struts in, telling me that I would love them when towing and hate them all the rest of the time. I suspect he's right about this.

If I need/want more clearance later, I will put 1" strut top lift blocks in, perhaps all round.

My next tyres will be 215/65 16" instead of the 215/60 16" I currently have. These will also provide a small amount of lift, around 8-10 mms. I do not want to void my insurance by exceeding the total lift from all sources of 50 mm.

If I go ahead with the 1" lift, the measurements will be 425 mm + 25.4 mm; with the slightly larger tyres +10 mm - a total of 460.4 mm without the trailer, and around 450.4 mms with the trailer. This equates to an increase in suspension height of only about 10 mm over the maximum specified by Subaru. My insurer is happy with these proposed alterations, but require notification in writing of the fitting of the lift blocks.

They were rather fierce about any changes of the rims from OEM to anything else, however; or fitting wider tyres than the OEM for the model.
 
If you wish to retain the SLS a new SLS strut will cost $424 for the strut only. That is why I replaced front and rear with raised springs and KYB struts. I gained around an inch of lift and the rear hardly sags with weight in it or the traler on. I will now be fitting a 1 inch Gorilla lift kit as well. This will take my total lift to approximately 50 mm ( 2 inches) which is the max suspension lift under the Victorian Road laws. On addition to this I have 215/65/16 tyres which give about another 9 mm of lift. Under the road rules you can fit tyres of upto a radius of 25 mm larger than standard.
The Forester is classified MC under the ADRs, it is stamped on your compliance plate. This coincidently is the same classification as a Toyota Landcruiser!
As you are fitting a 2 inch lift you need to be careful as to what springs you use if you wish to be legal.
 
^ HC, I would definitely make a phone call to your insurer.

Mine was VERY specific about the total increase in height from all sources not being more than 50 mm - tyres, suspension parts, they didn't care. Nothing over 50 mm allowed. I rang them this week about fitting 215/65 16" tyres, and talked about the other stuff along the way.

BTW, the classification of Foresters as "MC" is over-ridden by the description as " ... a passenger based vehicle ... ". Ask any lawyer - your insurer will ...

I am never overly worried about what the Police might think, but I am always extremely concerned about what my insurer thinks ...
 
Doug
Hi I have an 03 forester x and it dose not have self leveling rear suspension, when I lifted my car I used my oem struts which had 180,000km on them and installed 35mm ironman coils with 10mm strut spacers, then fitted 215 65 16 geolanders it lifted my car considerably and the ride is great! I take my car offroad frequently and the suspension always performs well.
 
Haha I got my KYB's for $87 +gst each at trade price. Gotta love working in the automotive industry :P

Im on my 3rd set of shocks in the foz, however they get hammered with my offroad rally style driving.
I flogged out a set in 60, 000km.
However this is not normally the case....
I'd recommend them to anyone.
 
hrmmm, this all seems like 1001 different ways to skin a cat. I like the idea of the complete package from pedders, over $700 for the rear shocks seems a bit steep though. I can't imagine that the shocks are all that rooted, though I too have heard that replacing the bumpstops is a good idea, and given that is where the noise is coming from currently I think it would be a double good idea.

I already have the 2 inch lift coming so I really dont want any additional lift (though I am getting some larger rubber soon too). That said $470 for a single strut seems a little like bending it over and copping it sweet from Mr. Subaru.

I assume that you can get new bumpstops to suit the KYBs?
 
Gidday Doug

Doug86 said:
hrmmm, this all seems like 1001 different ways to skin a cat. I like the idea of the complete package from pedders, over $700 for the rear shocks seems a bit steep though. I can't imagine that the shocks are all that rooted, though I too have heard that replacing the bumpstops is a good idea, and given that is where the noise is coming from currently I think it would be a double good idea.
Click to expand...

I went down this path on the recommendation of Lucas, one of our local Subaru specialists. I am sure there are cheaper options, but the variable rate springs and somewhat heavier duty persuaded me as well. The car handles and feels exactly like normal. Very smooth and comfortable (compared with doing the same speed humps in NL's car -except I was doing 60 kmh and he was doing 40 kmh ... ).

It also doesn't drop its bum and go possum hunting at the front when I put the trailer on it anymore ... :cool:.

The 'tracking' of the rear suspension over some fairly vicious local speed bumps is far more positive than it has ever been before, and the SLS etc weren't rooted when I first bought the car. That collapse has happened since I last measured the rear about 6 and 12 months ago, when it was within normal spec on both occasions.

When you start to factor in the labour involved in playing mix-n-match with some of the existing components, it probably comes out in the wash. It is extremely simple to just swap out the old units in their entirety, then put in the new complete assemblies. You can almost certainly buy these from other suppliers of your choice if Pedders don't appeal for any reason.

There is also the guarantee of fixing all the dead or failing components in one hit, so that there are no nasty surprises in the not too far distant future. Cuts down the labour costs in total, and sure minimises the number of wheel alignments required ...

I figured all that into my decision making process. The result I ended up with is everything I wanted.

I already have the 2 inch lift coming so I really dont want any additional lift (though I am getting some larger rubber soon too). That said $470 for a single strut seems a little like bending it over and copping it sweet from Mr. Subaru.
Click to expand...

AND bring your own lubricant of choice ... :iconwink: :lol: :(.

I assume that you can get new bumpstops to suit the KYBs?
Click to expand...

I don't know.
 
To clear up a few things, OEM is KYB!

OEM front struts are KYB & rears are sometimes Konico but these are rebranded KYB.

So there are 2 groups of KYB struts...OEM & aftermarket. OEM are oil-filled (softer ride) while aftermarket are gas-filled & give a firmer ride but better handling.

OEM have a thicker wall thickness & seem to be less prone to bending.

AFAIK, SLS struts are only OEM, which as mentioned are horrendously expensive!

I would suggest new aftermarket KYBs (just dont overload your Foz & hit bumps hard) with standard height Kings (same height but a little stiffer). This will give you better handling & with your 2" strut blocks your legal lift as well.

Yes you can get new bumpstops, pretty expensive from Subaru but I think you can get them on ebay too. Perhaps the Pedders ones fit?

Taza, you're making us all jealous lol :lol:
 
Right, well this is all starting to make more sense now. cheers for the help fellas.

on the other hand, it turns out that it was not the shock making the knocking noise after all. Something far more sinister has happened and I can't believe i didnt notice it before hand. The bracket that hold the rear sway bar on to the chassis has totally sheared from the chassis :O

I can't figure out how it happened because even though the bracket is only thin it is not a particularly load bearing structure. I have removed it totally from the car to stop it fouling on any of the other components and have booked it in next week to get it replaced as well as all new bushes in the back on top of a service. I dropped round to a local workshop this afternoon and they had a look at the shocks and springs and reckon they are fine and that all the effects i have been feeling have been due to the sway bar being a bit loose.

Looks like it will a granny drive down to the shop next week so i dont shear the other one or the sway bar links. Def slow as a snail round the bends!

any thoughts as to how it would have sheared? I'm picturing some nasty cross axle bump at speed (kind of like the exit of my driveway :s)
 
Its actually pretty common on Subies with upgraded RSBs. In your case, prob from repeated articulation. Imagine the forces involved as one wheel is fully articulated up & the other fully down with the RSB twisting, connecting the 2. You should also get your endlinks checked.

It should be safe to drive as the RSB will be taking less strain now (twisting), cant hurt to take it easy though :iconwink:
 
Doug86 said:
so the quick release sway bar links would be 100% advisable then?
Click to expand...

For offroad use they give more articulation & dont put the RSB through so much strain, so that would be a yes lol :iconwink:

Takes about 3min to disconnect & tie the RSB up out of the way, about 4min to reconnect :biggrin:
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top