WRX Koni's installed in 04 STI - REVIEW - Page 5

V8killer2pt5 · 10-18-2006, 11:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kinger

H9rade - you cannot go wrong with the konis, they are simply awesome for performance and comfort. I'm still tickled with them!!

Hey this thread was a great help in my decision. My 04 sti still rides great on stock but looking to get the parts for this conversion. DomozitoLK is giving me a hand, so I need the 04 Wrx housing and all the Sti oem parts swap over, bumpstops, top perch bushings, etc? I can get the group n hardened mounts to make this a sweeter deal and the Koni's obviously. What part number are the Koni inserts and are there different insert versions for the 04 Wrx housing?

kinger · 10-18-2006, 11:24 AM

All you need is the koni's for a 04+ WRX and wrx donor struts. Everything else swaps over. i'm going to check on the bump stops I may have left them off but I can remember! ha ha I'll double check.

V8killer2pt5 · 10-19-2006, 09:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kinger

All you need is the koni's for a 04+ WRX and wrx donor struts. Everything else swaps over. i'm going to check on the bump stops I may have left them off but I can remember! ha ha I'll double check.

Is there a good place you can recommend for the koni setup? Best deal I found was 630.00 for the set.

stretch · 10-19-2006, 10:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by V8killer2pt5

Is there a good place you can recommend for the koni setup? Best deal I found was 630.00 for the set.

Bought mine here: http://www.ajusa.com/cgi-bin/koni/de...SPORT&lookup=1 (Link is for rears, $149 each, best price I could find and they arrived quickly.)

My install plans for Saturday may be postponed, as I found out that Red Bull's Flugtag is that day.

kinger · 10-19-2006, 11:13 AM

That is a good price I got mine from Alex performance, PM him on NASOIC. I think it was $630 a set.

silver arrow · 10-19-2006, 05:30 PM

http://store.summitracing.com/partde...5&autoview=sku $131 ea at Summit

stretch · 10-20-2006, 05:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by silver arrow

http://store.summitracing.com/partde...5&autoview=sku $131 ea at Summit

Wrong model, those are for a Tiburon. The WRX struts are models 8610-1440 (rear) and 8610-1351 (front).

kinger · 10-21-2006, 10:19 AM

Here is where I got mine, rears work on any year and there are 04+ model specific fronts.

http://www.alexperformance.com/products.asp?id=10&pg=2

stretch · 10-23-2006, 06:27 AM

I just put Koni's with Group-N tops in the rear of my '05. As has been discussed before, there is no easy way to put Koni's in the front of this car. The rears fit fine when using WRX inserts, which I bought on eBay for $25.

The ride quality is great yet they match very nicely with the stock front struts. I installed the Koni's at the same time I installed front and rear Group-N tophats, winter tires, and trimmed my front bump stops, so I unfortunately can't really comment on what Koni's alone did. I have them set 1.5 turns (75%) from full-stiff, so they can get much stiffer if needed. Despite the improvement in ride quality (which no doubt also came from other modifications done the same day), the car seems very well damped with no secondary oscillations and good body movement control. It's very smooth and never harsh.

I haven't been able to push the car hard yet though because I stripped the threads from a camber bolt in the front suspension. I'm taking it easy until the replacement arrives, and then I'll start testing car control. I have no doubt it'll be fantastic.

The install was pretty painless. I didn't measure exactly how much, but the Koni's definitely have more suspension travel than the stock equipment. I think most of it is bump travel. Unfortunately, the stock bump stops are made for the tiny stock strut shaft and nowhere near big enough to put on the Koni's, so right now I'm running bump-stop-less. This makes me a little nervous, so I'll have to add some soon. To those planning on installing Koni's, have new bump stops ready! They can be bought here:
http://www.ground-control-store.com/...tion.php/II=10

However, my tapping noise in the rear is still there, so it turns out it was never strut related. Damn. It sure sounds like a strut problem to me- like bolt holding the strut to the tophat is loose. But that's not the problem, and hell if I can find what is.

V8killer2pt5 · 10-23-2006, 08:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by stretch

I just put Koni's with Group-N tops in the rear of my '05. As has been discussed before, there is no easy way to put Koni's in the front of this car. The rears fit fine when using WRX inserts, which I bought on eBay for $25.

The ride quality is great yet they match very nicely with the stock front struts. I installed the Koni's at the same time I installed front and rear Group-N tophats, winter tires, and trimmed my front bump stops, so I unfortunately can't really comment on what Koni's alone did. I have them set 1.5 turns (75%) from full-stiff, so they can get much stiffer if needed. Despite the improvement in ride quality (which no doubt also came from other modifications done the same day), the car seems very well damped with no secondary oscillations and good body movement control. It's very smooth and never harsh.

I haven't been able to push the car hard yet though because I stripped the threads from a camber bolt in the front suspension. I'm taking it easy until the replacement arrives, and then I'll start testing car control. I have no doubt it'll be fantastic.

The install was pretty painless. I didn't measure exactly how much, but the Koni's definitely have more suspension travel than the stock equipment. I think most of it is bump travel. Unfortunately, the stock bump stops are made for the tiny stock strut shaft and nowhere near big enough to put on the Koni's, so right now I'm running bump-stop-less. This makes me a little nervous, so I'll have to add some soon. To those planning on installing Koni's, have new bump stops ready! They can be bought here:
http://www.ground-control-store.com/...tion.php/II=10

However, my tapping noise in the rear is still there, so it turns out it was never strut related. Damn. It sure sounds like a strut problem to me- like bolt holding the strut to the tophat is loose. But that's not the problem, and hell if I can find what is.

From that link which bumpstop shoudl be used on the 04 wrx housing Koni insert for 04 in a 04 Sti...that link shows mulitple bumpstops. Also will a 03 wrx housing work with the 04 Koni insert?

stretch · 10-23-2006, 09:19 AM

I think the housings are the same, only the tophat differs between those years. I'd recommend the soft strut bump stop.

V8killer2pt5 · 10-23-2006, 09:30 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by stretch

I think the housings are the same, only the tophat differs between those years. I'd recommend the soft strut bump stop.

I assume that would be the 2nd from the right? I can't wait to get this done thanks to Domozitolk for his help and work. Can't wait to see my powdercoated housings! I don't have time anymore to do my own work with a marriage to plan, it's cool how the Suby forum guys are helpful and are an amazing source for info and tech. I know I am going to love this mod once I drop the setup in. Any advice on strut tops? Should I use my 04 Sti ones or go for the group N all the way around? I will be sure to take pics once Dom gets the housings out to me and I get the rest of stuff in. My 04 struts are working fine with 22k on them but after giving my inlaws a ride in the Sti my father in law said " damm this ride is harsh I need to go take a **** now!"
At that point my wife to be gave me a look, so at 33 time to turn down the wick on the harsh ride. The Koni's look to be a great solution with it's adjustability. I would go Bilsteins but they only make a coilover and not a insert.....miss them on my Range Rover! Hope the Koni's are just as tough with NY streets. Many thanks to Kinger for posting this mod!

stretch · 10-24-2006, 04:05 AM

Yup, that's the one.

I forgot to mention one other thing, and I think Kinger did too. These Koni's will lower your car a small amount.

The stock struts are high-pressure gas monotube struts. The Koni's are twin-tube hydrolic struts. In the stock struts, the struts themselves act as springs because they're always trying to extend, raising the car. Koni's don't do this, at least not to any meaningful amount. There is no pressurized gas inside them.

Total lowering will depend on what springs you have, but I'd guess each strut will lift about 60-75lbs. So, both the front and rear of your car will be lowered as much as if you had an extra 150lbs over both the hood and the trunk. On stock springs, that's about 3/8 of an inch, and a little less on firmer spring.

It's not a big deal, but something to consider. I want RCE camber plates up front now to match my minor drop in the rear.

benton0311 · 11-01-2006, 10:58 PM

After following this thread I'm pretty set on doing a Koni/GC setup.

They 8610s look good but I'd really like to run the DA 8611s. The 8611s have the same dimensions as the 8610s so they should fit in the WRX housing okay but they've got the bump adjuster on the bottom of the insert. Since this is where the bolt normally goes there's no easy way to lock it into the housing.

I was thinking if GC made a coilover sleeve with an enclosed top (only open for the rod) that rested on the insert and had set screws on the bottom where it goes over the housing then it should hold it in place pretty good. Has anybody found a way to lock these into the OE housings in a way that they can be removed again for rebuilds?

V8killer2pt5 · 11-02-2006, 04:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by stretch

Yup, that's the one.

I forgot to mention one other thing, and I think Kinger did too. These Koni's will lower your car a small amount.

The stock struts are high-pressure gas monotube struts. The Koni's are twin-tube hydrolic struts. In the stock struts, the struts themselves act as springs because they're always trying to extend, raising the car. Koni's don't do this, at least not to any meaningful amount. There is no pressurized gas inside them.

Total lowering will depend on what springs you have, but I'd guess each strut will lift about 60-75lbs. So, both the front and rear of your car will be lowered as much as if you had an extra 150lbs over both the hood and the trunk. On stock springs, that's about 3/8 of an inch, and a little less on firmer spring.

It's not a big deal, but something to consider. I want RCE camber plates up front now to match my minor drop in the rear.

I don't mind a lil lower ride actually comtemplating on RCE springs to finish this setup. Thanks again for the thread on bumpstops I think I will use that set on GC's site.

10-23-2006, 06:27 AM	#69
stretch Silver Member Car: Aspen 2005 STi Fav Mod: TurnInConcepts.com Coilovers Location: Silver Spring, MD Posts: 1,811 Join Date: Mar 2006 Trader Rating: (2)	I just put Koni's with Group-N tops in the rear of my '05. As has been discussed before, there is no easy way to put Koni's in the front of this car. The rears fit fine when using WRX inserts, which I bought on eBay for $25. The ride quality is great yet they match very nicely with the stock front struts. I installed the Koni's at the same time I installed front and rear Group-N tophats, winter tires, and trimmed my front bump stops, so I unfortunately can't really comment on what Koni's alone did. I have them set 1.5 turns (75%) from full-stiff, so they can get much stiffer if needed. Despite the improvement in ride quality (which no doubt also came from other modifications done the same day), the car seems very well damped with no secondary oscillations and good body movement control. It's very smooth and never harsh. I haven't been able to push the car hard yet though because I stripped the threads from a camber bolt in the front suspension. I'm taking it easy until the replacement arrives, and then I'll start testing car control. I have no doubt it'll be fantastic. The install was pretty painless. I didn't measure exactly how much, but the Koni's definitely have more suspension travel than the stock equipment. I think most of it is bump travel. Unfortunately, the stock bump stops are made for the tiny stock strut shaft and nowhere near big enough to put on the Koni's, so right now I'm running bump-stop-less. This makes me a little nervous, so I'll have to add some soon. To those planning on installing Koni's, have new bump stops ready! They can be bought here: http://www.ground-control-store.com/...tion.php/II=10 However, my tapping noise in the rear is still there, so it turns out it was never strut related. Damn. It sure sounds like a strut problem to me- like bolt holding the strut to the tophat is loose. But that's not the problem, and hell if I can find what is. Last edited by stretch : 10-23-2006 at 06:33 AM.

10-24-2006, 04:05 AM	#73
stretch Silver Member Car: Aspen 2005 STi Fav Mod: TurnInConcepts.com Coilovers Location: Silver Spring, MD Posts: 1,811 Join Date: Mar 2006 Trader Rating: (2)	Yup, that's the one. I forgot to mention one other thing, and I think Kinger did too. These Koni's will lower your car a small amount. The stock struts are high-pressure gas monotube struts. The Koni's are twin-tube hydrolic struts. In the stock struts, the struts themselves act as springs because they're always trying to extend, raising the car. Koni's don't do this, at least not to any meaningful amount. There is no pressurized gas inside them. Total lowering will depend on what springs you have, but I'd guess each strut will lift about 60-75lbs. So, both the front and rear of your car will be lowered as much as if you had an extra 150lbs over both the hood and the trunk. On stock springs, that's about 3/8 of an inch, and a little less on firmer spring. It's not a big deal, but something to consider. I want RCE camber plates up front now to match my minor drop in the rear. Last edited by stretch : 10-24-2006 at 04:11 AM.

10-18-2006, 11:24 AM	#62
kinger Professional STI Driver Car: 04 STI Fav Mod: Koni shocks Location: BFE Iowa Posts: 497 Join Date: May 2004 Trader Rating: (1)	All you need is the koni's for a 04+ WRX and wrx donor struts. Everything else swaps over. i'm going to check on the bump stops I may have left them off but I can remember! ha ha I'll double check.

10-19-2006, 11:13 AM	#65
kinger Professional STI Driver Car: 04 STI Fav Mod: Koni shocks Location: BFE Iowa Posts: 497 Join Date: May 2004 Trader Rating: (1)	That is a good price I got mine from Alex performance, PM him on NASOIC. I think it was $630 a set.

10-19-2006, 05:30 PM	#66
silver arrow Professional STI Racer Car: 05 STi PSM Fav Mod: Scooby Sport DP Posts: 729 Join Date: Sep 2005 Trader Rating: (0)	http://store.summitracing.com/partde...5&autoview=sku $131 ea at Summit

10-21-2006, 10:19 AM	#68
kinger Professional STI Driver Car: 04 STI Fav Mod: Koni shocks Location: BFE Iowa Posts: 497 Join Date: May 2004 Trader Rating: (1)	Here is where I got mine, rears work on any year and there are 04+ model specific fronts. http://www.alexperformance.com/products.asp?id=10&pg=2

10-23-2006, 09:19 AM	#71
stretch Silver Member Car: Aspen 2005 STi Fav Mod: TurnInConcepts.com Coilovers Location: Silver Spring, MD Posts: 1,811 Join Date: Mar 2006 Trader Rating: (2)	I think the housings are the same, only the tophat differs between those years. I'd recommend the soft strut bump stop.

11-01-2006, 10:58 PM	#74
benton0311 Junior STI Driver Car: 08 335i Graphite Fav Mod: Subaru delete Location: SW Asia/Maryland Posts: 172 Join Date: Jan 2004 Trader Rating: (0)	After following this thread I'm pretty set on doing a Koni/GC setup. They 8610s look good but I'd really like to run the DA 8611s. The 8611s have the same dimensions as the 8610s so they should fit in the WRX housing okay but they've got the bump adjuster on the bottom of the insert. Since this is where the bolt normally goes there's no easy way to lock it into the housing. I was thinking if GC made a coilover sleeve with an enclosed top (only open for the rod) that rested on the insert and had set screws on the bottom where it goes over the housing then it should hold it in place pretty good. Has anybody found a way to lock these into the OE housings in a way that they can be removed again for rebuilds?