Who hasn't re-furbed the dampers yet ?

[son of solo]

Having been looking for another trophy for around a month now and there seems to be quite a few that still havent had the dampers re furbed yet.
Just wondering how many on here are still running their cars without problems?

 

[hoolio]

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[hoolio]

file://localhost/Users/julianhowes/Documents/DPP_71139.JPG

Well that went well, this is the only site that I have problems uploading pics
Anyway no still not had mine done, checked last week and they both seem fine and I'm obviously sensitive to the fact as it's seven years now even though it probably helps that they have only done 15k, they are unpinned but never tracked.

 

[ed55j]

Mine have not been done yet, still in good working order. 56k miles.Hopefully got a couple more years in them, although they do get some abuse on these rural roads.

 

[keo]

Mine havent been done, still in good working order. 42k miles

 

[Trophy#110]

Mine haven't been done, #110 has 41k on the clock. I barely use the car so don't feel I can justify £500 when there doesn't seem anything glaringly wrong.

To those whose dampers have failed, is it obvious and how do you tell??

Many thanks in advance.

 

[son of solo]

you'll know, it starts off feeling not quite right a bit like the tyre pressures are all out, then as the dampers fail and the springs take over it gets quite bouncy on which ever side has gone, some owners report a corkscrewing effect but i dont really know what that means -
with the door open you can push at the top of the A pillar - you shouldn't be able to get much movement at the front if they are ok.
i had a video of me doing this when mine went on my old trophy - the movement was quite excessive. If i can find it i'll post it.

 

[Trophy#110]

you'll know, it starts off feeling not quite right a bit like the tyre pressures are all out, then as the dampers fail and the springs take over it gets quite bouncy on which ever side has gone, some owners report a corkscrewing effect but i dont really know what that means -
with the door open you can push at the top of the A pillar - you shouldn't be able to get much movement at the front if they are ok.
i had a video of me doing this when mine went on my old trophy - the movement was quite excessive. If i can find it i'll post it.

That would be appreciated. I'll do the A-pillar test next time I get the chance. The problem is I've not driven many cars so its hard to tell what's normal and what's not.

I'd describe the ride as fairly crashy at low speeds, front end grip is good but to me the car never feels that "planted", does this sound familiar? I've been in Imprezas/911/exige/Sagaris so maybe my perception is warped somewhat.

I've driven a fair few miles in a Clio 200 (non-cup chassis) and it inspired more confidence but without feeling as sharp. Does this sound plausible? Never thought the ride in the Trophy was bouncy and I like the way it goes/handles...just looking for a bit of verification that its normal if that makes sense!

 

[aucky]

Mine haven't been done yet (60k).
Still working fine.


I do have a new set ready go on soon though.

 

[rickywilly]

Not done mine, 65k still fine, checked every time i wash it, no signs of leaking etc yet, drives well, but am looking to get them done when a spare 500 pounds appears.

 

[DaddyMac]

Not done mine yet and currently on 48k. I wasn't entirely sure what to look out for either so had Mark Fish have a look last time it was with him and he confirmed all working fine.

 

[stormduck]

While people look for leaking, all dampers will contain oil, but our Sachs are Nitrogen pressurised. It's when the gas goes that the damper looses its integrity, which is pretty much impossible to tell visually. Of course, seals do wear and oil may appear which is a sure sign, but it can be that the oil stays inside, and the gas dissappears. When this happens, the car's handling behaves strangely. I was driving country roads and taking long, slight bends at speeds of 50ish, and the car felt as though is was moving in directions it shouldn't be...i could only tell this through what i assume was the balance in my ears, like on a theme park ride where you sense movement but aren't sure in what direction or how! Other than that I had no idea there was a problem! Oh and when i took the offending item off the car i could push the damper rod in with my hand - that's not good!

 

[Will#I#Ams]

mine havent been refurbed either....but 1 is a tad soft.

whats the best upgrade???? id rather spend good money on new items than refurbs tbh. ast's are out the window due to their lack of customer service....where next??

 

[hoolio]

mine havent been refurbed either....but 1 is a tad soft.

whats the best upgrade???? id rather spend good money on new items than refurbs tbh. ast's are out the window due to their lack of customer service....where next??

Well the refurb should make them as new, there do seem to have been some problems recently but like everything people are only vocal when they have a problem not when everything is perfectly fine. For your planned budget (you say £1k in the other thread) you will not get anything as good apart from a new set of Sachs.

 

[Carbon Chaos]

mine havent been refurbed either....but 1 is a tad soft.

whats the best upgrade???? id rather spend good money on new items than refurbs tbh. ast's are out the window due to their lack of customer service....where next??

As a motor sport derived damper they are designed to be 'serviced' periodically,not like the usual mass produced throw away items there fore as hoolio say they should be as new.

You wouldn't change your engine when it needed a oil change or timing belt ?

 

[Will#I#Ams]

lol.... budget of a grand is just to get the oe susp refurbed. i would rather spend 2 grand on uprated new items. tbh. for that kinda money im sure something decent can be had which will better the unadjustable sachs tbh. its like with the williams. new susp for that would have been around 5-600 at the time, for about the same money a set of avo's was purchased. the oe setup was good, but the avo's were streets ahead of it. and they are still going strong over 8 years later, without a refurb, although they could do with doing now like, but at 40-50 quid a pop, rather than the sachs 10 times that....


and just for the record.....the williams needed a new clutch.....2.5 grand, new engine/box/uprated cams later...it had a new clutch as well so yes....i dont mind spending a bit of coin on uprating things ...

 

[Will#I#Ams]

and the warranty of at least 12 months for new stuff is very appealing compared to the ....errrr...none??? that you get with the refurbs.

 

[hoolio]

" but tbh, id rather spend a grand on new uprated items,"
That's where I got your budget from.

Don't get me wrong I understand where people are coming from and tbh it stems from unreasonable refurb costs. I don't even know the guy from BG and he irritates me as I see him charging A LOT OF money for old rope. i realise expertease costs and I'm willing to pay but generally we are taliking GAS, OIL and penny SEALS for £700???????? Just makes me cross.

 

[stormduck]

That doesn't make any sense £700 for the refurb, I think wires must have been crossed there. That's the sort of money required to replace the damper rods as well, but this is only necesary if they're scored, which isn't likely as the dampers have a good plastic cover to stop dirt ingress. Sure it can happen, but after 6 years driving mine were spotless in that area. The usual rough cost of the refurb including new adjusters that actually adjust is £500 from BG. I had a problem with mine within a year, returned them, he inspected, found a faulty part, replaced it, re-gassed them, dyno-ed and returned to me free of charge. Ben's not a fleece in the slightest.

People assuming refurbs do not last are speculating surely? It's only been the last say 2 years that this refurbishing business has come about as common place, surely one would need to give it another few years before judging the longevity of the refurb issue?

The whole purpose of the Trophy was for the Sachs front dampers, this makes our cars current value around £6 as opposed to an equivilant 182 cup of what..£4k? Why ruin a Trophy and fit alternatives when you can run a cup and do what you like? It's not even my opinion, it's just economics.

 

[MarcB]

I have just got these -



I have also still got the ones on the car so i will be getting round to doing mine at some point.