Anybody else able to hear your shocks when driving down a mildly bumpy street? When I had my Integra sedan, I never heard anything from the shocks (even when I had the rear seat folded down), but in my 2nd gen RX-7, since I switched to Koni Sports, I can clearly hear the shock when the suspension moves (it sounds like fluid flowing through a tight orifice).

Is this purely because the hatchback means the shocks are just that much closer? Or does the loudness of the shock indicate a problem?

(Reading through another thread about some shocks not being good for the street and needing yearly rebuilds got me thinking about this)

 

I have a set of revalved Konis and can hear the 'pssssst' loud and clear over bumps (the original OEM dampers made no apparent noise). I assume it's just the way that high pressure gas damper works, though I can't be positive.

 

FWIW I had some KYB AGX's on my old car and they were loud as hell. I didn't notice it in general driving so much, but bumpy roads and especially speed bumps they made a very loud PSSSSH SHHHHHP (however you spell that? ).

They were checked two years later when the suspension was ripped apart...they werent blown or anything...hope that helps.

 

i have never noticed anthing with my koni's. My exhaust is really loud though

 

Not uncommon depending on how much interior you have in your car that might be sound deadening, how quiet the car itself is, how close you are as the driver to the shock, and what the valving is in the shock or where you have it adjusted in the range (typically where your bleeds are or how much is being metered). Likely the single car consistent car that shock noice gets mentioned in is the BMW Z3 because it is only inched from your ear and there is not much isolation so it can play the shell a bit like a speaker. I'll be i don't hear more than two or three Z3 comments annually.

One of our R&D guys drove a mostly gutted VW Rabbit or Golf with no back seat and shocks with experimental valvings and they really mad a lot of low speed force and played the shell like a big speaker and made a lot of noise over high frequency, low amplitude bumps.

Slupring sounds like oil going through restricted holes is not indicative of a problem becasue that is exactly what is happeneing. Without more isolation or deadening, then you might hear it. That is about the only real noise a shock can make internally, clunks and thumps are almost always external and normally indicate somethihng loose or moving improperly.

 

I have a integra sedan, and can clearly hear the shocks on speedbumps (even at low speeds) oh and this is on omnipowers

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by bomber &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">FWIW I had some KYB AGX's on my old car and they were loud as hell. I didn't notice it in general driving so much, but bumpy roads and especially speed bumps they made a very loud PSSSSH SHHHHHP (however you spell that? ).

They were checked two years later when the suspension was ripped apart...they werent blown or anything...hope that helps.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Yup. KYB AGXs in my 240SX sound like they're inhaling and exhaling over speed bumps.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by AKADriver &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

Yup. KYB AGXs in my 240SX sound like they're inhaling and exhaling over speed bumps.</TD></TR></TABLE>

same here on my car with the KYB AGX's

 

Thanks guys.. the sound just sounded a little bit reminiscent of cavitation to me and sometimes cavitation is a result of too little system pressure.

I was worried that the cavitation sound had meant that I had lost gas pressure in the shocks.

If those are normal operating sounds (heck maybe cavitation is the normal operating regime of the shock too), then no worries!

 

I WOULD assume its just the stiffer valved koni and the lack of sound deading in the rx7......my 240sx was very "open" to road noise...so i heard my jic coilovers and hks coilovers when i had them.....i even hea rmy mazdaspeed protege factory tokico shocks if i listen for it......

 

Koni yellows in my E36 M3 would make that sound in the rear if the damping was turned close to full stiff. Went away at about half way in the adjustment.

 

The stock shocks on my '92 Civic Si don't make any noise. I think that's because all they currently do is support the spring. "Damping" is no longer on their to-do list.