Aloha,
Looking for some consensus on new shockers for Bolt.
I finally traced a strange thumping noise to LF and RR shocks having worn bushes.
As they are probably original, and I have 155k on it now, I may as well replace all 4.
I have Arnott Gen IIs on it, so no extra height.
What do we like these days for shocks?
Cheers.
Tom
Boge original, although only the fronts seem to be available these days (£25 each from Island4x4) and there was a recent discussion on the best match for the rears but I don't remember what the verdict was. You could always risk £18 each on Britpart.......
Monroe front and rear - they're gas filled, rather than oil filled like the Boge, and dont cost much more. The Bilsteins (which I don't have) seem to come up hard on the RR according to others eg Clive IIRC
Yup Bilstiens are a bit harder but they are either growing on me or settling in a bit with miles.
Frankly my OEM Boge set were so clapped out after surprisingly few miles that its hard to be sure how much stiffer the BIlsteins are than decent factory shocks. Certainly not unacceptable with standard wheels. I suspect the big wheel'n rubber band tyre fraternity might be in Morgan territory with Bilsteins tho'.
Bilstein steering damper is significantly stiffer. Not nice if you have play in the steering box. I really need to get my old one properly re-built soon as the used one I put on when mine lost power one way is clearly getting old.
Clive
I haven't any experience with Bilsteins on a P38 but they are excellent quality.
Over the years, I have used Monroes and Bilsteins.....I have liked both. Boge, I have no issues with
I have Bilsteins on the 85 and it has been truly off road rallied in the Outback.
Good performance in the worst conditions on the planet! (I tend to drive it like I stole it)
Any particular models of either that are liked or despised by anyone?
I fiited Bilstein shockers on mine, the ride is good, alot better than the originals they replaced!
Expensive though..
Bolt,
Re models: Monroe fronts I used were STC1882M. Rears were STC3671M. About £180 for all 4.
I'd like to drive the car like I stole it, but in London they've introduced 20 mph speed limits everywhere, so now I barely exceed 1000 rpm
Thanks, Rob.
I lean towards Bilsteins, however as I do not get to drive the P-38 like I stole it, possibly Monroes will be just fine.
Cheaper too!
Sorry to hear that your traffic laws are getting even more draconian!
I have loosely followed the slow degradation of the driving conditions over there via Clarkson's rants on Top Gear over the years....
Not quite that bad here, in fact, if you do less than 80mph on most freeways, you are road kill!.
That's why when I want to go have a good solid off road hooning session, I go down to Oz and break out the trusty '85
Virtually no rules or regs once you leave the sealed roads! How cool is that??
On a recent 20,000km trip round Oz, about 50% off sealed roads, we saw exactly 3 cops, all parked in towns......Beaut!
I would love to get hold of a P-38 down there and do the trip again clockwise this time.....Just as a comparison.
Bolt wrote:
I would love to get hold of a P-38 down there and do the trip again clockwise this time.....Just as a comparison.
Can't you build a platform on the Waveney to strap Bolt onto? Something a bit like a helipad should do nicely (although I'm not sure how you would load it without a crane).
I've been driving in Central London today and yes, lots of roads now have a 20mph limit on them. Not that it really matters as there's so much traffic you can barely go that fast most of the time. My 7 hour working day today consisted of 4.5 hours driving and 2.5 hours work......
I got my Bilsteins from Paddock Spares as they were getting on for half the price of other vendors. Still show at a little under £70 for fronts and £75 for rear. About twice the price of Monroes, which in turn are about half as much again as blue bag specials.
Clive
Bilsteins on mine. Happy with them.