Back in January 2002 I installed brand new OTS Koni Sport shocks, with about 105,000 miles on my car. Now my car has 238,000 on it, and the shocks have been through H&R Sport springs, Koni GC's with 380/450 rates, and now for a little over a year they have stock springs in front and ITR springs out back, all shocks set to the lowest perch.

I'm just wondering if it's possible that the shocks could still be good with that many miles on them. It's been pretty much just daily driving for the past 135K miles. What does a worn-out Koni shock feel like when you adjust it from full soft to full stiff? If I set mine to full stiff, it still feels pretty darn stiff even with factory springs. If I set it on full soft and push down on the rear of the car, it comes right back up with maybe just the tiniest bit of residual motion, almost none at all really.

The problem is that I've had them for so long now, I don't remember what they were like when they were brand new, or if it's really that much different from how it feels now. I do know that even with the stock springs (ITR stock in back) at full soft, the ride feels decent, and at full stiff I can feel every little bump in the road.

Thoughts?

 

Well, they're definately not blown. If you have never autocrosses or tracked with them it's very possible they are just fine. Maybe a little worn but still operational.

 

put some load on them without the springs, and if the strut comes back all the way on its own, ur good

 

not necessarily. the shock shaft popping out on its own really fast can be an indicator that the rebound valving is shot. The stiffer you set the shocks the harder it should be to pull on the piston. the compression and rebound stroke should be controlled and smooth.