Roush or Koni

[CammedS197]

Hey guys,

Dropping the coin on some new shocks and struts still got the stocks and its rough and bouncy. Looking for just more of replacement. I have about $500 to work with and have come down to the two now. Looking for above OEM performance and reliability/longevity. I'm not pushing it in autoX or road course. It's more my daily. Yeah I'll hit a course for fun every now and then if I can make it. Not to be competitive, just fun.

Between the two one monotube and one twin tube whats better when lowered at 1.5" with BMR springs (160lbs/in and 150lbs/in) for longivity, comfort, and performance.

Thanks guys

 

[Sky Render]

I love how my Koni shocks handle, but the car rides like a damn brick.

 

[redfirepearlgt]

I'm running strange single adjustable up front. The rears are a fixed drag shock. The strange are nice and have 10 levels of adjustment. I am running the same spring rate BMR's on my car. I wouldn't personally buy or recommend Roush. BMR sells Strange btw. Koni has a decent long standing reputation and if you recall Koni was used in the 1984-1986 Mustang SVO and were the adjustable models which was major new technology in 1984 when that car was released.

 

[JJ427R]

I have a 2010 Roush with the Roush sport suspension, not the track pack. I like the ride on the street and handling on the track and only a front sway bar bushing replaced in 50,000 miles and 20 track days. You'll find it cheaper from other vendors than directly from Roush....

I see guys talk down the Roush suspension, but on the track I out corner just about every similar model Shelby or Saleen I've run with, and it's not my driving ability...

 

[Pentalab]

The roush mono tube shocks + struts work superb, provided your roads are good, and not trashed. Beware, the front roush struts will lower your car 1/2" at the front. That's on top of what ever front spring drop you have. The distance from the bottom of the roush strut..to the spring perch, is exactly 1/2" shorter than oem. Roush front springs provide for the 1st 1/2" drop. Roush struts provide for another 1/2". Roush front springs are around 200+ lbs. Combined with roush front struts, it's a stuff front end. I could push as hard as I can with both hands on top of the wheel well, and it will not deflect. Nor will it deflect, with my 154 lbs sitting on it. The rear roush shocks + springs provide for a 1.25" drop..and not as stiff as the front end. IMO, the front is over dampened if roads are lousy. Great on smooth roads. Combined with roush front + rear sway bars, it won't lean on corners. Front end won't lift when u punch the gas, rear end won't squat. Mash the brakes, and front end won't nose dive, rear end won't lift. After a few years, my pass side front roush strut sheered clean off. Succumbed to metal fatigue, too many hits on speed bumps, odd pot hole etc. I replaced both front struts with ford oem types. Now the front end at least has a bit of give to it, better for around town. Front end came up 1/2".

If you are already lowered 1.5" in front.... you may well not want another 1/2" front drop with roush front struts. IMO, a 2" front drop is way too much. Koni's even on full soft, still have stiff compression, only the rebound is adjustable.

 

[CammedS197]

Thanks guys, I really appreciate that info. May not do the Roush since I do not want to drop another 1/2" and Most of my roads I drive are kinda crappy and harsh. Florida, the rain isn't kind to our roads. I want less harsh then my current OEM are and they have over 100k on them lol. I know they are definitely overdue!

@redfirepearlgt , I'll checkout the strange and talk to BMR about them. They are also only 2.5 hours from me. What does the adjustability change, rebound or compression? How long have you had your strange?

@Sky Render have you used them on full soft for daily? What springs do you have? I can't remember from your build thread. I'm not sure what effect different spring rates may have with the same shock or strut for driveability. I know I have heard on here that the biggest thing related to driveability or harshness is the dampers.

 

[CammedS197]

Can roush struts be had without that 1/2' lower spring perch?

 

[CammedS197]

As a reference, whats more harsh or stiffer? FRPP non adjustable or bilstein? Car is daily and its the weekend date car with the wife. Also two kids under 3.

But I will most likely go koni orange for budget and have seen lots of good reviews for a daily.

 

[redfirepearlgt]

I've had my strange struts on the car for over a year now. All the tech information is on BMR's website just a search engine away.

I would highly recommend BMR because they are very service oriented and they don't play hide-n-seek games with their spring rates like it's some sort of top secret piece of information that could threaten our nation's safety. And their products are good.

 

[Pentalab]

Can roush struts be had without that 1/2" lower spring perch?

NO !

 

[Pentalab]

Thanks guys, I really appreciate that info. May not do the Roush since I do not want to drop another 1/2" and Most of my roads I drive are kinda crappy and harsh. Florida, the rain isn't kind to our roads. I want less harsh then my current OEM are and they have over 100k on them lol. I know they are definitely overdue!

@redfirepearlgt , I'll checkout the strange and talk to BMR about them. They are also only 2.5 hours from me. What does the adjustability change, rebound or compression? How long have you had your strange?

@Sky Render have you used them on full soft for daily? What springs do you have? I can't remember from your build thread. I'm not sure what effect different spring rates may have with the same shock or strut for driveability. I know I have heard on here that the biggest thing related to driveability or harshness is the dampers.

The strange are rebound only. 10 x adjustments ( 10 x clicks) for rebound, front + back. https://www.bmrsuspension.com/?page=products&vehicleid=1&maincatid=21&catid=251

Your BMR springs are only 160 /150 lbs..which is a bit more than oem spring rates ( I think oem is like 110). If the shocks /struts are rock hard compression, like my front roush struts, it's a rough ride, even though the front spring rate is c 200 lbs.

The spring is supposed to take the initial impact. The shock / strut just controls the rate the spring operates + releases at. With no shock / strut, the spring would osc, bounce like a pogo stick. IF the strut / shock is too stiff, then the strut / shock is taking most of the initial impact, and u are in for a rough ride on shit roads. It's a delicate balancing act between spring rate..and optimum shock / strut rate.

Flip side is... with your proposed 160 / 150 lbs springs..and also being lowered 1.5" at both front + rear, you will need the stiffer spring rate..and not too soft of a shock / strut, or u may find urself bottoming out on bad roads. Usual deal is, if the car is lowered, it also has to be stiffer, which implies stiffer springs than oem..and also stiffer shocks /struts vs oem struts / shocks.

 

[Sky Render]

The Koni Yellow shocks are only adjustable on rebound, so the adjustment has very little effect on ride quality. But, yes, I have run them in full "soft," and they still ride like crap. I would not recommend them for anyone who doesn't actively autocross or track their car.

 

[CammedS197]

I've had my strange struts on the car for over a year now. All the tech information is on BMR's website just a search engine away.

I would highly recommend BMR because they are very service oriented and they don't play hide-n-seek games with their spring rates like it's some sort of top secret piece of information that could threaten our nation's safety. And their products are good.

Agreed! They are fantastic and their products are fantastic as well! I will give them a call this week.

The strange are rebound only. 10 x adjustments ( 10 x clicks) for rebound, front + back. https://www.bmrsuspension.com/?page=products&vehicleid=1&maincatid=21&catid=251

Your BMR springs are only 160 /150 lbs..which is a bit more than oem spring rates ( I think oem is like 110). If the shocks /struts are rock hard compression, like my front roush struts, it's a rough ride, even though the front spring rate is c 200 lbs.

The spring is supposed to take the initial impact. The shock / strut just controls the rate the spring operates + releases at. With no shock / strut, the spring would osc, bounce like a pogo stick. IF the strut / shock is too stiff, then the strut / shock is taking most of the initial impact, and u are in for a rough ride on shit roads. It's a delicate balancing act between spring rate..and optimum shock / strut rate.

Flip side is... with your proposed 160 / 150 lbs springs..and also being lowered 1.5" at both front + rear, you will need the stiffer spring rate..and not too soft of a shock / strut, or u may find urself bottoming out on bad roads. Usual deal is, if the car is lowered, it also has to be stiffer, which implies stiffer springs than oem..and also stiffer shocks /struts vs oem struts / shocks.

Thanks for breaking it down some.

The Koni Yellow shocks are only adjustable on rebound, so the adjustment has very little effect on ride quality. But, yes, I have run them in full "soft," and they still ride like crap. I would not recommend them for anyone who doesn't actively autocross or track their car.

Okay thanks Sky.

If I had the time and money would be easy lol. Just test many but that's never the case.

 

[stevbd]

As a reference, whats more harsh or stiffer? FRPP non adjustable or bilstein? Car is daily and its the weekend date car with the wife. Also two kids under 3.

But I will most likely go koni orange for budget and have seen lots of good reviews for a daily.

Because of their digressive valving, the typical Bilstein ride is firm but not harsh. The internal valving blows off pressure on high speed shock movements so that sharp impacts like a pothole, railroad tracks, or expansion joint aren't as harsh. You don't get that sharp slamming feeling. On slow speed shock movements, though - like going over a speed bump, or when the car is wanting to dive, squat, or roll because you're going quickly - they are firm. So handling is way, way better. Vorshlag has a Bilstein ride along video somewhere on their website that is sort of useful. Hope that helps, good luck.

 

[redfirepearlgt]

Agreed! They are fantastic and their products are fantastic as well! I will give them a call this week.

Thanks for breaking it down some.


Okay thanks Sky.

If I had the time and money would be easy lol. Just test many but that's never the case.

If I had money, I'd have plenty of time. LOL!

 

[CammedS197]

If I had money, I'd have plenty of time. LOL!

Hahaha.

May think about steeda ultralites and getting the roush dampers to make an even 1.5" up front.

Car had SR springs and was okay. Could be a bit rough then got the bmr springs cause a friend swapped to the stiffer ones and gave me these. Now I also have a rear set of steeda ultralites lol. I like the rates on them as well but the fact they are 1.25" drop in the front I'm not a fan of. But would be great with the roush struts lowering an extra .25 or .5 up front.

 

[Juice]

I put the Roush stage 2 struts, shocks, and springs on mine. Very happy with the street manners/comfort/ride quality (daily driver). One thing I found, the setup didn't really lower the car much if at all (stock V6 suspension replaced). My next track day is in 4 weeks, I will have a full report on how the Roush stuff works on track, and yes, I have high expectations! That said, a whole bunch of other upgrades (brakes, tuning & aero) were also done to the car along with the suspension, so any/all gains are not just from the shocks/springs.

I installed TrackAddict, and hope to get everything on video with OBD telemetry!

 

[beefcake]

the roush don't ride bad, strange singles aren't bad either, we can make those work with your combo near your budget. they can go from soft to hard, and give you a good amount of adjustability depending on what your doing with the car

 

[Vorshlag-Fair]

Now the OP says he isn't looking for autox/track setup but he did ask in the corner carvers section... and he might do a track day.

Its no secret that I am not a fan of twin tubes. We see the poor ride quality Sky mentions and high failure rates. There is a place for these lower cost Konis - maybe only with fully stock ride heights and a lower budget cap.

The drag shock option seems even more dubious. The valving used for drag shocks is very unusual and usually the opposite of what you want for street ride or of course handling. We don't see the Roush bits on many cars, especially on a road course.

So here's where I'd normally pitch you the shorter Bilstein monotube "StreetPro" setup we've sold for several years. Great compromise setup that is great for street use, monotubes for longevity and ride, a variety of Ford Racing spring options, and camber/caster plates for $1500 complete. Problem is Bilstein stopped production of virtually all of their shocks for almost a 8 month period. But the latest update is they should start shipping the parts we need in "June". When that happens we will turn this kit back onto our website.

Still might be too spendy for the OP, but just in case the rest of you are wondering where our StreetPro and TrackPro Bilstein options went... global backorder on everything we order since last Fall. We wiped out every wholesale supplier of the front struts months ago. Frustrating.

Good luck to the OP on his search.