seantobin5

Hello everyone! I've been doing some research and cannot seem to find a good answer to my question. If it has been answered before, I apologize.

I have a 1998 Honda Civic HX with 174,000 miles on the odometer. Engine is great, body is in great shape, but I just realized quite recently that the struts and springs are original to the car. I did notice the ride getting a bit sloppy and just not quite as good as it used to be when I bought it 2.5 years ago. I want to restore the original ride height. I've decided to possibly change out the struts next spring (no pun intended) when the weather gets a bit warmer. Has anyone had good luck with either Monroe Quick Struts or KYB Strut Plus? I've been getting a lot of mixed reviews about both. Many people are saying the KYB Excel G/GR-2's ride harder than OEM and the Monroe strut bearings are garbage. I would like a soft, quiet ride but still handle well around turns and on the highway. Generally, I'm not a huge fan of using spring compressors and all that. I would like to get a nice set of front and rear shock absorbers that will last as long as the OEM ones did.

Any suggestions such as Gabriel, Bilstein, Koni are apprecieted as long as the company makes a complete strut, spring and bearing assembly and won't cost an arm and a leg.

Thank you!

B_Swapped93

OEM....they're really not as expensive as ppl make them out to be and last a looooong time. When I say that I mean go to the dealership 2nd suggestion KYB AGX's with OEM springs or a spring that offers a .75/1'' drop. spring compressors are over rated lol you don't need them for installing the spring(at least I never have had that need).

seantobin5

I did price out the OEM struts to be about $100 per strut. I feel like if I can get an aftermarket option that comes pre assembled with a new spring and bearing for the same price as just the shock itself, it would be a deal as long as it is equal or better quality than the Honda OEM. I am hearing better things with KYB than with Monroe.

You do need spring compressors for taking the spring off. The top nut will go flying across the street along with your ratchet. Learned that the hard way when I was changing the struts on my old '93 Ford Escort.

B_Swapped93

ohh I know you do most of the time, i got hit in the face with a breaker bar once lolz. i'd avoid Monroe I see it as over priced OE-Replacement. As for kyb's they're a good shock had them on my dd civic was a bit still with the springs I was running but they were good bang for buck.

tekfoc

go with the kyb strut plus .
I have them on my daily civic they are fantastic .
ride just as good as the original factory struts .
Also kyb shock is still made in japan while the Monroe's struts are out sourced meaning made in china !
with the kyb I'm able to do some very very high speed maneuvers with confidents and have a good quality ride .

seantobin5

How are the KYB's in terms of reliability? Have you had any issues with them squeaking or any noise from the bearings? I was afraid of having a super stiff ride and feel every bump on the road. Thanks!

canadaek

92-00 civic struts don't have a bearing in the strut. it is fixed the spindle move's on the ball joints

metalslug

I use monroe quick struts and they are great for my DD. Now saying that, I never rode with brand new honda struts, so I base it on just what I have.

Marvin1985

iTrader: (5)

Monroe gets their parts from autozone, advance and napa etc. Don't bother with them at all. They suck

seantobin5

By that I think you mean manufacture their parts and sell them to auto parts stores. I don't think a big company would buy parts from small auto parts stores... they would probably buy directly from the manufacturer if, in fact, they did use third party parts for their product.

Also, I hope you realize that many aftermarket brands are actually cheaper Honda OEM parts. I can walk into an Advance Auto Parts and pick up an Exedy clutch kit with a new throwout bearing, pilot bearing and grease for $120 rather than spend $200+ at the Honda dealer for the exact same product made by the same manufacturer. I also know that Honda uses Fel Pro for some of their seals, which you can also buy at auto parts stores. Also with bearings... Honda does not manufacture their own bearings. They use NTN bearings which can also be found in auto parts stores for much cheaper. NTN supplies many car manufacturers such as Toyota, Subaru, Mitsubishi, etc etc. Do you think Honda has a plant to make their own oil filters? No! They get Tokyo Roki to do it and buy them then put their own labeling on it.

I appreciate the comment and the time you took to write it, but please, if you really want to be helpful, do your research first before throwing names out there and how much they suck.

Marvin1985

iTrader: (5)

That's all nice and stuff but my statement was true. I used to work for autozone in my area and i know ALL the shops around me. Monroe buys from AZ and advance in my area (PA) so does our local Toyota dealer.

Yes there are few things you can buy at local auto stores like the clutch you mentioned. I didn't say go buy honda ones. I just mentioned that Monroe does in fact cheap out and get third party crap.

Autozone has moved all it's brakes manufacturing for the most part to Mexico for example.

To sum it up, unless you buy Monroe's higher end price tag, you will be getting 3rd party poop

94EG8

There are no strut bearings on these cars as they don't have struts, they have shocks.

You best bet is a set of KYB Excel-G/GR-2s reusing the original springs and hardware. That's about as close as you'll get to a set of OEM Showa shocks in terms of ride quality and longevity. That said if you must go with a complete all in one type solution go with KYB's, Monroe quick struts are junk (so are just the shocks on their own)

KYBs are mostly, possibly all, made in Malaysia now. They still seem to be made the same though.

Honda does not now, nor have they ever as far as I can tell used Fel-Pro seals or gaskets. Seals are normally NOK or Arai. Gaskets come from Nippon.

For what it's worth Fel-Pro, much like Monroe, has been coasting for years on their past reputation.

ej1995

sounds like you are confusing Monro with Monroe...lol

seantobin5

Yeah, I was going to say... It doesn't seem plausible that a massive factory would buy from Autozone. They would buy directly from the manufacturer and not have to go through the middle man.

seantobin5

Thank you for the clarification. Quick question if you don't mind, I'm having my transmission rebuilt next month (bad input shaft bearing making a loud grinding and clicking noise) and I'm also having the shop replace the clutch and flywheel as well. Is it wise to also change out the rear main seal? Seeing as the seal itself is less than $20, I might as well. What brand seal would you recommend? Should I ask the shop to make a trip to the Honda dealer and see if they can put a warranty on it because they purchased it? Thanks!

B serious

iTrader: (1)

As far as seals go, I would buy OEM honda. I have had good luck with Timken seals as well. You could also buy something like a Koni STR-T shock and have a shop install springs and top hats. Better than debating which low quality, overpriced parts store brand to buy.

It seems like parts store inventory has been turning into expensive junk. Felpro gaskets that are garbage...but maybe a few bucks less than OEM, for example. I feel like most behind counter stuff from parts stores is for people that don't know better.

I shop at dealership websites (bernardiparts.com, hondaautomotiveparts.com, etc) or rock auto or ebay or amazon. Better selection of better parts for less money.

Someone said you can go buy an Exedy clutch kit from autozone for $120. False. That kit is usually MORE expensive at autozone than anywhere else. And no...the after market exedy parts are not as good as the Honda spec'd Exedy ones. They are very good quality kits...but they're not as good as the dealer specific ones. Although the price difference more than makes up for it for a general use clutch.

94EG8

Always replace the rear main seal if you're doing a clutch job. Always use an OEM Honda seal. It's such a pain in the *** to get to it's just not worth saving a couple of bucks over if a cheap seal leaks.

canadaek

on my y7 it was cheaper to buy the rear seal/housing together then to buy just the seal.

ej1995

I hear a few people say how terrible Felpro gaskets are, and not to try and pick an arguement with you on the topic, but I just don't why people say that. I guess just personal back luck. I've used TONS of Felpro gaskets and honestly can only remember 2 incidents where I have run into issues and they were manufacturing defects.

tekfoc

I ABSOLUTELY HAVE NO NOISES AT ALL AND I LIVE IN NYC . POTHOLE CITY LOL

IVE PUT 6000MILES ON THEM ALL 4

tekfoc

THE strut body was stamped engraved with made in japan . also stickers saying made in japan put together in the U.S.A in Cali .
I highly recommend these struts .

94EG8

When did you buy them though, and were they new old stock?

The last set and pair of KYB shocks I bought were both made in Mylasia (bought a set of Gas-A-Justs in late August for an F-150 and a rear pair of Excel-Gs for a Kia Rio about a month ago) I do have an older pair of Gas-A-Justs that are made in Japan.

tekfoc

I purchased 2 from tirerack and the 2 complete set from rockauto.com

don't know what to say all four are made in japan .
I guess I got lucky then .
performance and comfortability is off the hook with the set I have .
I installed them myself in Aug. this year .