ok everyone is telling me to get koni yellows for my crx. well i have struts not shocks but all the pics i have seen for koni yellows are shocks and i dont think they will fit do they? sorry if this is a dumb question

 

shock = strut. both words are (almost) interchangeable.

technically tho, our hondas dont really use struts because a strut is the term used for macpherson type suspension in which the shock absorber is a structural member of the suspension (like current civics/rsx). but honda double wishbone suspension uses a separate knuckle as the structural member, so its not technically a strut. but its just technical semantics.

 

Technically tho, your honda might not have struts but his might. I don't know what car he has but 84-87 civic/CRX had macphearson strut suspension. Thanks for trying to help though. Now, go have some fun in your car...

 

well i have a 1990 crx si so what do i have then ?

 

not a strut.

 

you should get the KYB AGX shocks those are pretty sweet... they have 4 different levels of adjustability... I found some on ebay for $304 shipped.

 

ok hjeh if they arnt struts then y do i have a strut tower? shocks dont have spprings that go around them they are seperate i thought

 

the shocks on our cars are called coilovers. the shock is the thingy inside the spring. Who told you that you had struts? That's just silly.
It is called a strut tower probably because nobody wanted to make up a new name for it. there isn't any difference between a strut tower and a shock tower. Yes, some shocks have the springs separate. I think honda was looking to save some room when they did the coilover thing. Some cars are big enough to have the shock separate from the spring. Have fun...

 

actually a coilover suspension takes more space. VW uses a rear torsion beam suspension (smaller spring separate from shock) in the rear of their golf/jetta to give more storage/passenger space.

 

You have dampers.

 

lets not confuse him to much guys

if u have a 89-91 Crx u have 4 struts, if u had the 88 that comes with struts in the front and shocks in the rear like Type R pretty sweet set up

so u my friend can get either KYB regular struts which are made in Japan, come with a lifetime warranty, and are stiffer then Tockio blue which many dig

hope this can help you

 

You think of them the same way I do, as the difference being in how they are mounted. To me, struts have no mounting brackets top or bottom, and must be mounted to other things before being bolted to the suspension, while shocks have eyes on the top and bottom, allowing them to bolt directly.

I'm sure there's a much better definition out there... Words suck.

 

There is a lot "cross-over" in the terms used for suspension stuff.


Regardless of the term, they do make Koni's for our cars ("our" based on what forum we are in)

Wes

 

krazie and disco, you guys got it backwards. 2nd gens and civics after 88 (to 2000) simply dont have struts because its a double wishbone suspension. a macpherson strut is defined as as a damper that also acts as a structural member of the that locates the wheel position. therefore it must have mounting brackets. some struts have removable shock absorber cartridges. our cars dont, and our suspension is not macpherson strut, its double wishbone. whats referred to as the knuckle performs the role of structure and wheel position.

but like wes said, theres a lot of crossover and misuse of terms which leads to confusion but youll still be able to find a shock for almost any honda, even if you called and said "i need a strut for my crx".

 

I told you someone would have a better definition. Alls I know is that I have dampers, no matter wtf you call them, it's not going to change what they do. You're not going to order a "front strut" for your civic and get the wrong thing. Good for pointing out my overlooking the macpherson struts locating the suspension though.

Words still suck.

 

btw, i like koni's answer.

Q: I often hear the terms strut and shock used interchangeably. Are they different?

A:Shocks and struts are similar in that they both damp (slow down) the vehicles motion. The key difference of a strut vs. a shock is that a shock only controls the cars motion while a strut is a locating member of the suspension. What this means is that if you remove a shock the spindle or axle will still be completely attached to the vehicle. If you remove a strut the spindle or axle will be able to move outside of its normal motion. Shocks and struts may or may not have a spring mounted to them either. It is often assumed that any damper with a spring is a strut, this is not the case.