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Yeah, those are very likely interchangeable. On the stock upper shock mounts, there isn't a provision for a bearing to locate and hold the shock shaft as it passes through the big hole in the center. The shock shaft is basically held in place from the friction of the fastener at the top of the shock shaft and washer-like parts that sandwich things up in the stock setup. That rubber sandwich of parts is soft enough to allow some articulation as the suspension moves during compression and rebound.
The aftermarket shock mounts will typically have a bearing there to locate the shock in position and allow for articulation. The bearing inner diameter obviously needs to be the same as the outer diameter of the shock shaft passing through it. Given those upper shock mount uses off the shelf bearings, there is probably some standardization of sizes where some interchange could work.
Just find out what the thread pitch is on the top of your shock. It's often different than the published shaft diameter.
Cusco sells different pillow nuts that act as a thread on spacer for the bearing. Be aware, some have a very large nut hex... you want to use a 17mm, not 22mm hex as the hole in the shock tower isn't big enough.
Just find out what the thread pitch is on the top of your shock. It's often different than the published shaft diameter.
Cusco sells different pillow nuts that act as a thread on spacer for the bearing. Be aware, some have a very large nut hex... you want to use a 17mm, not 22mm hex as the hole in the shock tower isn't big enough.
I'll probably just end up buying another kit that comes with upper mounts.
The dampers on the coilovers I have a far too soft for my liking.
Might just get some HKSs... except they are really bad about rebuilding older models.
Generally a bad idea for a shaft to bear on the spherical bearing directly if that's the thought. Of the various mounts here, shouldered and non-shoulder bushings and tube nuts were used. I think shafting ranged from 10 to 12mm in the area of concern depending on shock brand.
If minor lathe work is carried out, should be able to make virtually any top mount work on an FD if that's the desire......unlike struts with big variations in diameter.
Re-reading your earlier comments, you probably won't be able to re-use the stock upper shock mounts with your typical 2.5" coilover / race type spring. There is nothing there to locate / hold the spring in the correct position.
The big, consumer oriented brands like HKS and Tein probably don't rebuild. They tend to replace from I've read over the years.
The race oriented brands do tend to either rebuild in house or have associated companies to handle rebuilds and custom valving for race cars. Ohlins, Bilsten, Koni, Penske, JRZ etc all have multiple vendors rebuilding and revalving here in the US. For purposes of longevity, you might want to have the ability to 'service' the shocks periodically. I have 2 years on my Penskes in my Miata and I'd probably benefit from sending the in for an oil change and general look over.
Re-reading your earlier comments, you probably won't be able to re-use the stock upper shock mounts with your typical 2.5" coilover / race type spring. There is nothing there to locate / hold the spring in the correct position.
The big, consumer oriented brands like HKS and Tein probably don't rebuild. They tend to replace from I've read over the years.
The race oriented brands do tend to either rebuild in house or have associated companies to handle rebuilds and custom valving for race cars. Ohlins, Bilsten, Koni, Penske, JRZ etc all have multiple vendors rebuilding and revalving here in the US. For purposes of longevity, you might want to have the ability to 'service' the shocks periodically. I have 2 years on my Penskes in my Miata and I'd probably benefit from sending the in for an oil change and general look over.
Don't Ohlins Road and Track have the option of doing exactly that? That's why they sell them with and without upper mounts, I think.
There's at least one company here that will rebuild HKS shocks even after HKS stops offering rebuilds (three years after they go out of production, so basically none of their old models are rebuildable now). I think they're actually cheaper than HKS.
I could always just buy some new shocks for my coilovers, but I don't think whoever specified these shocks (they're custom jobs) got the shock length right in the rear, so I figure I'd got with a set of newish track-ready coilovers with helper springs in the rear.
Something stiff, since it's a race car.
Don't Ohlins Road and Track have the option of doing exactly that? That's why they sell them with and without upper mounts, I think.
Don't know. Never seen them. If they do reuse the stock upper shock mounts, I imagine they probably use a spring that starts at 2.5" at the bottom and increases in diameter to the stock diameter. I know Tein makes some because that is what I used on my custom Fat Cat setup. That style spring is a bit more expensive than traditional 2.5" springs. For race car, I'd prefer to use the 2.5" and be able to swap them out. I'd also prefer to use a solid upper mount to improve responsiveness of the shock and eliminate some smooshiness of street car stuff.
Originally Posted by Valkyrie
There's at least one company here that will rebuild HKS shocks even after HKS stops offering rebuilds (three years after they go out of production, so basically none of their old models are rebuildable now). I think they're actually cheaper than HKS.
I could always just buy some new shocks for my coilovers, but I don't think whoever specified these shocks (they're custom jobs) got the shock length right in the rear, so I figure I'd got with a set of newish track-ready coilovers with helper springs in the rear.
Something stiff, since it's a race car.
That sounds like a good plan. I hear that the valving on the HKS shocks is actually quite good.
Ohlins has a ton of different choices, but in the US we basically just get the one
I know I should buy new just to be safe, but there are just so many used coilovers for FDs here... I could get some decent ones and have them built for half the cost of new HKSs. So temping.
I know I should buy new just to be safe, but there are just so many used coilovers for FDs here... I could get some decent ones and have them built for half the cost of new HKSs. So temping.
i bought a set of Teins in Japan, overnight in fact, and sent them to Tein here to get rebuilt.
if you do buy in Japan, IMO, its nice if you can get them fixed here if needed. i want a set of HKS's but i'm not sure they can be fixed, and they all seem to need it
shipping is silly, either bring them on the plane with you or write auto parts on the box.
I'd be tempted too
Worth considering if you get a decent price and have readily available rebuilders / servicing locally.
Have you ever posted any videos of your adventures?
No, I can't stand being recorded. Haha. My GoPro also takes pretty terrible videos, so I only put onboard videos on Facebook.
My car does appear in a handful of YouTube trackday videos taken by friends, though.
i bought a set of Teins in Japan, overnight in fact, and sent them to Tein here to get rebuilt.
if you do buy in Japan, IMO, its nice if you can get them fixed here if needed. i want a set of HKS's but i'm not sure they can be fixed, and they all seem to need it
shipping is silly, either bring them on the plane with you or write auto parts on the box.
Tein doesn't currently make any track day focused coilovers for FDs.
I almost put a set of used Teins on my MR2 back in the day, but they were blown, so I decided against it.
Eventually I bought some used Apexis and had them rebuilt once or twice.
Kind of regret selling that car so cheaply...
I'd be tempted too
Worth considering if you get a decent price and have readily available rebuilders / servicing locally.
Have you ever posted any videos of your adventures?
I just realized that posting YouTube videos would let me write my build off as a business expense.
If I post some, the theme of my channel will be "Rob Dahm from Wish.com" hehehehehehe.
I sent a couple of emails to Tein and TF Works (US distributor) to see if their upper pillowball mounts would work with Penske shocks having a diameter of 0.500", but no reply. Did anyone get a confirmation that their mounts have a provision to work with different shock shaft diameters?
generally speaking it’s usually not to hard to take the OE mounts and have monoball cups welded on them in the appropriate size , spacers, etc.
if you’re after every last gram though then they’re generally available in aluminum from various sources; typically a universal racing shock type organization or someone who specializes in that particular vehicle. Here in the USA in might be Pro Parts in California if they’re still around. Not sure since covid. The monoballs are typically oversize for a higher load rating (likely 5/8” or 3/4” ID bore size) and then misalignment spacers that match them up to the specific shock shaft size (likely 10mm, 12mm or 14mm) in the lengths needed are chosen to bring it all together.
Stay away from 1/2” ID if possible unless you want to be swapping them out often. It is a common size on race shocks that have an integral monoball mount on the body though. For shock load only they can last, but in a true coilover carrying the spring rate and body weight force the lower load rating is going to suffer wear.
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I got a reply from TF Works, who said they didn't know for the Teins.
They offered that they have their own Stance brand of mounts but those do not have the bushings/spacers, and are 0.55" ID whereas the Penske shaft diameter is 0.500". I don't know what the usual tolerance for this application is, but 5 hundredths seems not bad. Thoughts?
The Cusco mounts seem well thought out, with a ball ID of 21mm (about 0.827"), so plenty of room for the bushing.
The other option is to weld something like these into the stock upper mounts, or maybe just flat steel plate with the mounting studs pressed in:
