[filipinium]

i have a 4dr civic with a lot of junk in the trunk. i ordered a set of GC coilovers and kyb agx shocks from ground control. i told them i wanted about a 1.75inch drop and a smooth ride. so they sent me coilovers with spring rates of 200 in front and 175 in the back. (i think those are the spring rates...that was the number on the springs. i could be wrong tho, cuz that seems kind of soft) anyways, after a year of driving around in them, my ride is really bouncy. my shocks are blown.

i want to order new shocks, but i don't know which ones to get. i had the kyb agx's for a while, but they blew. i would order the same kind, but i don't want to end up with another blown set.

any suggestions? should i buy new shocks? if so, what kind for my application? i just want a smooth ride with a moderate drop. i have a long commute to work and school. i would like to use my gc coilovers if i can to save money.

i don't mind getting nonadjustable shocks. i'm just looking for a nice ride. i wouldn't mind the adjustability.

thanks for the help.

 

[kommon_sense]

koni's or bilstein's are your best bet.

 

[Daemione]

Have you thought about looking into the guarantee on the AGX's? That's not a very extreme application for them to be going bad on, you might have a good chance of getting an new set.

 

[cyman83]

no warrenty if used with coilovers, i tired asking kyb that same question.

 

[filipinium]

Re: Re: GC spring rate: 200/175 front/rear; 1.75in drop; what shocks?

Have you thought about looking into the guarantee on the AGX's? That's not a very extreme application for them to be going bad on, you might have a good chance of getting an new set.

that's not a bad idea, i'll have to look into it. this may be a dumb question, but how would they blow in the first place? it's not like i had an extreme drop. one mechanic told me that some dirt probably got on the shaft and it just wore away at the seals in the shock. is this possible? when i installed them, i had to cut the dust boot. in doing so, it exposed the shaft to the elements.

 

[filipinium]

koni's or bilstein's are your best bet.

i thought about the koni yellows. i figured i couldn't go wrong with them, but they cost a little more. what do you think of the koni reds? will i be able to use my gc's with them?

 

[cyman83]

from what i know..you have to drain the oil to use coilover sleeves?

 

[CivicEx1998]

Are u sure u are reading the spring rate right?
IS 200 and 175 the last numbers or the first number listed on the springs?

 

[filipinium]

Are u sure u are reading the spring rate right?
IS 200 and 175 the last numbers or the first number listed on the springs?

i could be reading them wrong, but the numbers on the springs were something like GC200.??.?? for the front and GC175.??.?? for the back. does that sound right?

i wrote the numbers down, but they're at home. i can check again later.

 

[kommon_sense]

i thought about the koni yellows. i figured i couldn't go wrong with them, but they cost a little more. what do you think of the koni reds? will i be able to use my gc's with them?

The yellows are going to cost you about $500 for a set, so yeah, they are a little steep. I don't know about the reds. There are people on the board using the reds with GCs, but I don't have any first hand experience with them myself.

 

[iLLeFFeKt CiViC]

no warrenty if used with coilovers, i tired asking kyb that same question.

they dont have to know u used them with coilovers. just tell them you were dropped with neupseed soft sport springs or something or just plain stock shocks. they dont know.


hey man i suggest you get the bilstein hd's. i think they are the best non adjustable shocks out there. and they would be my second choice after the koni yellows.

 

[CivicEx1998]

Ok check again, u may have higher sprin rates then that.
To what i know, eibach ERS springs goes like this.

the first # are the free length,
second are the inner diameter.
third # are the spring rate.
I do beleive that GC offfer 350F 250R in most case and this spring rates arent all that stiff.
Anyway, i agree, bilstein are the second choice before konis.

 

[filipinium]

Ok check again, u may have higher sprin rates then that.
To what i know, eibach ERS springs goes like this.

the first # are the free length,
second are the inner diameter.
third # are the spring rate.
I do beleive that GC offfer 350F 250R in most case and this spring rates arent all that stiff.
Anyway, i agree, bilstein are the second choice before konis.

here are the numbers that i got off my springs:

front - GC200.64.58
rear - GC180.64.44

you probably have a better idea than i do about what these numbers mean. i just assumed the first number was the spring rate. yeah, the numbers i have seem alittle soft <shrug> are there any other numbers that i should be looking at on the springs?

iLLeFFeKt CiViC & CivicEx1998 - i'll check out the bilsteins tonight.

 

[CivicEx1998]

Ur spring rate are roughly aroud 325F and 245R.
If u are happy with that, the bilstein should be more then enough. If u want stiffer rates u might want to go with konis.

 

[filipinium]

hey guys, thanks for all your help.

i looked back at my reciept for my agxs and they are not under warrenty anymore...maybe if i would've checked up on it when i blew them a long time ago...oh well, live and learn...

iLLeFFeKt CiViC, CivicEx1998, kommon_sense : thanks for your rec's. i ended up buying some bilstein hd's. after doing some research, i've read nothing but good things about these shocks. the suck part about it is that i had to order new sleeves and adapters for these shocks (100$ from ground control) so i could use my coilovers with them. on the other hand, i think (hope) i got a decent price on the bilsteins (348$ shipped for all four)

 

[shorthand]

I have GC's at 300F, 275R on KYB AGX's. The AGX's barely handle that rate, but they do hande it.

AGX's should have absloutely no problem with 200F, 175R. Let me know how it rides compared to stock, as I'm considering backing down to those spring rates.

 

[Daemione]

Ur spring rate are roughly aroud 325F and 245R.

How do you get that . . . . .

from this:

front - GC200.64.58
rear - GC180.64.44

?

 

[shorthand]

The spring rates for these springs are 200F, 180R.

My part numbers for 300F, 275R are

300.XX.XX
275.XX.XX

(The other two numbers are diameter and length, though I can't remember which is which at the moment.

 

[filipinium]

shorthand - this may sound dumb, but i think my shocks have been blown for so long that i had forgotten what it had ridden like when i first installed it. so, sorry, i wouldn't be able to tell you how they used to ride. (right now everything is really bouncey) i am now going with bilstein hd's.

 

[CivicEx1998]

The spring rates for these springs are 200F, 180R

Those are not that rate.
The first number on the springs represent the free length in mm, second number represent inside diameter in mm, third represent the spring rate in newtons.
200.64.58 would be 200mm,64mm,58 newtons/mm
Converting to imperial(inch) would be 200/25.4 or ~7.87 in, 64/25.4 or ~2.5 in, 58*5.7=~330

There are other measurements as well, like in inch and pound/in for the spring rate.

How do you get that . . . . .

from this

There is a formula to covert that into pound. The last number on the spring represent the spring rate in Newtons/mm
This page show the formula: http://www.nmc.ie/ Web-NMC1b/C-Table1.htm

But simply multilply the number by 5.7 shoud give the numbers as 330 and 250.

U can also assume that those are repesnted in KG/MM, 58=5.8kg but the numbers would be slightly off from newtons but close enough for reference.