Front Dampers - Rebuild?

[MadUsa1]

I bought a used Trophy recently that had been fitted with KW V2 coilovers for track use.

I'm thinking of switching back to the OE sachs dampers.

The sachs were taken off at around 40k miles - should I get them serviced before I re-fit them?

Is there any way to tell if they need doing while they are not on the car?

 

[shiftspark]

There is a thread on here but I think its around £400 to have them serviced but if there is no sign of leaks and move up and down alright they maybe OK for a while.All down to cash really.

Do you know why they were taken off in the first place as they may have been faulty?

Also register your car in the owners register and grab your 3rd star

 

[MadUsa1]

You mean I should be able to push the damper in fairly easily?

I thought it should feel solid?

Any other way to check for wear?

 

[shiftspark]

You mean I should be able to push the damper in fairly easily?

I thought it should feel solid?

Any other way to check for wear?

Yep you should feel good resistance both up and down.

 

[artdealer]

Two out of the last three for me have had rebuilds. Circa £380 incl carriage and VAT, but I did strip them of springs before sending. Plus on and off costs of course. I think there will be an epidemic!

 

[BenG]

Hi mate.

There are a few checks you can do to check the condition of the dampers, first of all check for any leaks, then check the resistance of the damper rod like shiftspark said.
If the dampers pass both these tests then they should be ok to fit to the car. However, as I have found out this is only half the story of the condition of the dampers. I have recently had my dampers serviced at 30K as I was having handling problems. Ben Fricker at BG Motorsport said one had air in it and the other was low on pressure. Since I have had them done it has transformed the car.

The next step after the visual checks would be to fit them and see how they feel, if you feel confident that there ok then you can get away without servicing them. Personally if they have done 40K and are already off the car I would send them off for servicing. I got mine back within 4 days.

Any pics of the Trophy on coilovers ?

Ben

 

[MadUsa1]

thanks for the input guys, I'll be sure to give them a good check before fitting (don't want to service them if I can avoid it).

I do have some photos, will upload them when I get a chance

 

[tractor]

Hello mate

Ive just bought a trophy like you but i didnt realise the dampers needed a re-furb until after - doh. :roll:

I noticed the front of the car 'bobbing' when at speed on the motorway (think old american cars).
After looking at the shocks I noticed an oily residue on the reservoir bolted to the side of the damper and feared the worst. Like BenG i have now had them serviced by BG Motorsport and the deference is amazing. £420 well spent! I asked Ben the damper tech there about how often these shocks should require attention and this was his response:

Hi Dave,

I can change the adjusters to unpinned ones under the assurance this is for track use only, this will cost around £20 on top of the normal cost. As to how regularly to have them serviced, it’s a job to say as most of the issues that I have seen isn’t so much how much work the dampers have seen, its more the amount of salt spray/ road dirt that has been left on them. I’d of said it would be wise to at least have them checked every 10 to 15K.

Kind regards,
Ben Fricker.
Damper Tech.

Well they would say that as its their business but im sure theyve seen enough of them to make a fair judgement. I dont think ill be sendin mine back up there in 10k time tho!!

By the way mine has only covered 25k and he said similar to BenG that one damper had lost all of it's oil and one it's gas pressure. Also when i bounced the front of the car before it would just go up and down merrily, now it's almost solid - although not rock hard as some have reported.

Good luck with yours. I'm sure if you fancied selling your coilovers on somewhere like cliosport you could re-coup some of the spondoolies for a re-build?? 8)

 

[MadUsa1]

thanks for the input folks - I'll do the visual checks and fit them if they seem ok (can always take them out and get them serviced later on if necessary).

Definitely planning to sell the coilovers on cliosport, can then put that cash towards the rest of the stuff that needs sorting (ABS, cruise, ESP, airbag light, front bumper, exhaust hanger, etc...)

I don't have any pics of the car on coilovers unfortunately and it's on winter steelies at the moment so not really worth taking any new ones!

 

[Jonc]

Does anyone know whether the rears can be refurbed or should they just be replaced. If replaced anyone have an idea how much the rear dampers cost or could they be replaced with 182 Cup dampers? Cheers.

 

[shiftspark]

Does anyone know whether the rears can be refurbed or should they just be replaced. If replaced anyone have an idea how much the rear dampers cost or could they be replaced with 182 Cup dampers? Cheers.

Dont think they can be refurbed but heres the thread with the correct part numbers and prices
viewtopic.php?f=25&t=7021&p=61607#p61607

 

[Cue]

no the rears are consumables - not refurbish-able. Is that a word?

 

[MadUsa1]

Right, no signs of any oil leakage on the fronts.

Pushed down on them and there's good resistance (they slowly go down if you really lean on them and then smoothly come back up). Maybe I'm being a little over-sensitive but it felt like one side went down more easily than the other, would that be catastrophic?

 

[BenG]

Not catastrophic no !
Have the dampers been unpinned ? as one could be set differently than the other. If there both set the same and one has more resistance than the other then obviously they are not going to behave the same and the handling and balance of the car will be compromised. The damper with less resistance could be lower on pressure than the other, They should both be the same.

 

[MadUsa1]

right, did a slightly more scientific damper test yesterday and all seems to be well, think I was just being a bit paranoid before...

I'll stick 'em on when I get a chance, the ride on the KW's is getting tedious...