The Bilsteins are a good shock, well made and as you pointed out, have that all-important warranty. I was going to get them myself (well, at least the Hotchkis HPS1000's, which are the same basic shock with some minor adjustments by Hotchkis) but ended up going with Koni adjustables front and rear- but only because I got a great deal on them.

 

Hi - I got a question on the Koni: Will they slightly stiffen a soft front end? I have long tube headers and the Moog springs I have are a little soft. Ride height is correct, she just dips a little too easy. I have no experience with the Koni, just wondering if they would help the situation. Thanks

 

Scott, it's not easy to say if the ride with Konis would be different, without knowing how your car's already set up, what type and age shocks you currently have, how you drive and where (track, street, etc). However, the Koni shocks that are typically sold for Camaros (the "Classic" range) are only adjustable on the rebound stroke, not the compression stroke, so you can adjust the feel of the way they recover from bumps/dips etc, but not really the rate at which they compress. Your coil springs will have much more of an impact on how the front end behaves in terms of stiffness and compression rate. David Pozzi (member here at TC) has some great info on this - and other handling and performance - areas here: http://www.pozziracing.com/first_gen_suspension.htm

 

My 5 69's all have Gabriel gas shocks with energy poly front suspension, new springs with the larger front sway bar. My cars are street driven and they handle very well. Not a lot of money from autozone with a lifetime warranty. The speciality shocks cost too much for me and when I tried them could not really tell the difference for the type of driving my cars get. I am sure if I was road rally racing and such it would make a difference. I have gotten to the point with 35 years experience with 65 cars that the most expensive "name" cool stuff it always worth the $$$$. Shocks are only one component of the suspension, and I would say the least important? Just an old guy talkin.
_____________________________________
4 69 SS Restored Camaros by me
1 69 Chevelle SS, restored
1 69 C-10 SWB BB built and restored
05 C-6
09 STS
99 Z-28 Vert

 

Shocks are only one component of the suspension, and I would say the least important? Just an old guy talkin.

Bruce, I'm with you on that - the best shocks in the world won't fix a badly set-up car. Also, a lot depends on the expectations of the driver, and how they like a car to feel; some people want comfort as their #1 priority, and others seem to want the car so stiff that you feel every crack in the asphalt, and leave your top teeth on the seat when you get out. Go with whatever feels right to you, that's all that matters really.

 

I run Bilsteins (HD's) up front on three 69's and on all four corners on two Corvettes. Couldn't be happier.

 

Tim

Which Koni's did you get, I ordered the Special D's $93.75 each, front and rear, but they are back ordered until the end of March. I was called with the option to change my order, not sure what to do! Not sure if I should wait until March or change the order to Bilstein Shock, any advice guys?

Jered,

I am with you not sure which brand to get, without overkill. I will not be road racing, but spirited driving will happen!!

 

Tim
Which Koni's did you get, I ordered the Special D's $93.75 each, front and rear, but they are back ordered until the end of March. I was called with the option to change my order, not sure what to do! Not sure if I should wait until March or change the order to Bilstein Shock, any advice guys?

Jody, I'll get the part numbers when I get home from work and post them. However, they will probably not cross-reference with the Koni USA part #s, as they are from the Asia/Pacific catalog for the Australian market, and interchange with some of our domestic cars - mostly GM Holden.
In terms of the shocks you ordered being on back order, I guess the question is - can you wait until end of March for them? I read one of your posts in this thread that you don't have a rear end yet, so maybe it's not all that urgent in terms of the rest of your resto's progress?

 

I've got Bilstein's on my 69 and I'm happy with them...
I had Edlebrock IAS's on my 77 Camaro(sold it) and those were also nice shocks.
So, I would recommend either of those.

BTW: what have you got on the rear??

 

I do not have a rear end yet, I am doing a ground up restoration. I only got the Body and front sub frame. For the rear if I can find a stock 12 bolt I will get that, otherwise probably buy a Moser 12 bolt.

By the way AJusa.com is having a very good sale on Bilstein's now. I do not work for AJUSA.

 

I can wait until March. Just wondering if the Bilsteins are just as good. As they are on sale for a good price. My main question is am doing an over kill on shocks being that I am not going to race the car? Will I be pleased with these for using my car for shows and spirited driving or am I spending too much money on shocks?

 

I haven't driven my '69 Z28/RS since 1980; I wonder if the Gabriel Striders are still good?

 

When I removed the Gabriel Red Ryders from my Z (unused since early '70s) last year, they were still good, apart from light surface rust; I'm also about to remove the original front shocks from a '67 Firebird, and they are the same. Not sure how they would perform if I actually drove on them though :noway:

 

The part number on the shocks I have on order are:

Front, Ajustable Special D, twin tube, Hydraulic, (KON 80 1914)


Rear, (KON 80 1953)

The expert helping me restore the car said I should get GAS shocks, I just caught that these are hydraulic as I wrote this, so I should probably cancel the order and look at something else.

QA1 purchased Edelbrock and they said they new QA1/Edelbrock should be out at the end of Feb or beginning of March. Maybe I should wait for those or get Bilstein's.

I wish I knew what to get!!!!

 

Jody,
The part #s you quoted are the Koni Classic range, which are a good shock. IMHO, hydraulic shocks are fine for street/strip use, and gas shocks only start to prove beneficial if you are doing serious track racing, or going on long journeys. In those scenarios, the heat that builds up in the shock tube of a hydraulic shock can cause the oil to thin and create bubbles, which reduce the damping effect and lead to a more "choppy" recovery from spring compressions.
I'm certainly not advocating the Koni shocks above any other brand, but I have used them before and found them to be very good. As mentioned previously in this thread, the Bilstein/Hotchkis, Edelbrock IAS and others are all worthy shocks for your Camaro.
In case it's of interest, I came across this site a while ago, and found that it is very interesting reading (it may be reproducing an article produced originally by Monroe):
http://www.shockshop.co.nz/HowShocksWork.asp

 

The largest shock manufacturers are Monroe and Gabriel and they make the other name brands as well. They run about $30-$35 each for the HD at autozone and have a lifetime guarantee. Unless you are doing some racing these are fine. I have Delcos on one of my 69's and they are good as well.

 

I run kyb that I purchased at my local advance auto and they are just fine in the front and that's with a heavy big block. My dad has Monroe load adjusting in the front of his and it bounces all around even with new springs and that has a small block. Both are just street warriors.

 

I went and got a set of the Gabril HD shocks with a lifetime warranty. Just could not spend $200 on a set of Bilsteins, still have to get leaf springs as the current ones/mono are worn out I think, I have to use my air shocks to level the car, as the front sits 1.5-2 inches higher with the new coil springs as the old ones were both broke in half at the bottom. Thanks, Jerod

 

Get those rear springs and you will be all set. I have Gabriel HD on all 4 corners with new stock springs with poly bushings, large front sway bar and 82 Z-28 steering box. The car is a bb with AC and handles like a dream. I have 15x8 Corvette Rally wheels with 225-60 in the front and 245-60 on the rear . . . the extra width of the wheels and tires work well and look great with the 67 flat caps. Black on white 4 speed. Now on to my next project . . . a 69 Chevelle SS

 

i have kyb gas adjust. decent shock but on the firm side. the hardware supplied isn't the best. i've had kyb on a few cars and for some reason the bolts supplied for the rear are always on the short side. I like to have the screws go through the nuts. The past two sets of kybs rear shocks or struts, the screw is either even with the nut or a thread or two short. it works, but I won't buy again for that reason