James Paventi

iTrader: (34)

Hi All,

I just picked up a set of four new OEM "hard" (R1) dampers for my 93 R1. They arrived in the mail yesterday.

Question for everyone: Are they bad? Has the gas leaked out? When compressed by hand one fully rebounds in about 60 seconds, two in about 120 seconds and one in more than an hour.

thanks all,

James

For the curious, I'm going back to stock suspension. Ray at Malloy sold them to me for slightly more than aftermarket dampers. I'm new to suspension and would like to start with a stock setup. My (nearly new) Megan coil overs will be for sale once I sort this out.

Josh18_2k

iTrader: (3)

WHether or not they self-extend isn't a good indication of anything.

Compress them all the way, then try forcefully extending them by hand (don't hurt your back...). If they put up a fight, they're probably fine. The harder you pull, the more resistance you'll feel. Blown shocks are easy to extend quickly.

James Paventi

iTrader: (34)

Thanks Josh 18 2k,

Ray just returned my call. He checked with Mazda (I think that he said "tech line") as well as a customer that recently purchased a set.

Ray's customer had the same experience as me. Well, the same as three of my dampers ...

The tech line said that as long as they extend in 15 min, they're fine. Also, check for fluid leaking as this would indicate failure. Ray's going to send me a replacement for the one damper that doesn't extend after an hour.

Gota love Ray's customer service. Checked with Mazda and then a real world example.

James

GoodfellaFD3S

iTrader: (213)

Ray's on top of it as always, glad to hear

James Paventi

iTrader: (34)

No doubt.