Suspension renewnal : Age , Mileage or the old bounce test ?

[Stoatman]

My car is coming up to 120,000 miles and 10 years old. I just cant decide to start renewing suspension parts , specifically dampers. Due to me not having the car from new and the gradual nature of their wear I just dont know if they would feel much improved if replaced. My garage and the bounce test suggest they are "OK", but what is ok 50% as good as new , 80 % ? If it matters my car is a Honda civic aerodeck VTI. Sort of sporty but no ferrari. What are peoples views on this , i have heard manufacturers reccommending changing dampers at 40 or 60,000 miles. SO mine should have probably been changed twice by now but never have.


Thanks

Chris

[bullitinhead]

when I get a red sheet from the MOT man for them..... Is that bad???????


bullit

[Dr Doofenshmirtz]

To be honest, if they aren't leaking they're probably fine.
My Celica's suspension is original and done 18 years/180'000 miles service - the car still feels at tight as a Nuns fa...erm, yeah. It still feels fine.

[Stoatman]

Ahh ok , I mean thats good from a cash point of view. But do you ever get that nagging feeling if it would handle better or not. Maybe its because my car is a little wallowy and I think thats just how it is anyway. Although I had my rear bushes done and it made a big difference to stability and a creaky noise dissapeared at the rear. They were diagnosed as "OK" too , which they probably were but changing them did improve things.

[cptsideways]

It'll have Tokico shocks from the factory which will be as good new at 150k miles. As is the case for most Jap cars.

[HellDiver]

I'll be putting dampers in my Mondeo in January. It's a 54-plate with 62k on the clock. It felt OK until I drove another similar 54-plater that only had 35k on the clock. Mine's like driving a boat in comparison.

[cpl_payne]

Horses for courses - if it's just means for getting from A to B leave them alone until they leak. If (as I suspect) you're interested in getting more driving enjoyment - definitely change them, you will notice the difference.

[RobM77]

Two garages said that my old 325i was fine at 110,000 miles by driving it, bouncing it and even measuring it with fancy equipment, but I thought it was an absolute deathtrap. I got them to change the suspension and it absolutely transformed it. Driving is the onyl reliable way to check suspension in my modest experience. Most performance cars have noticeable damper wear at 30-40k miles, may need changing at 60-80k miles and definitely need changing at 100k miles. It varies according to the type of driving done and the roads the car is driven on though. For a daily driver, I'd shift things on a bit from those estimates.

[angusc43]

In my experience they are usually getting pretty worn at 50k and are shot by 75k.

This was certainly true of my C43's and 200 SX's.

The giveaways are big body movements when you hit undulations at speed, excessive roll, chatter under wheelspin, etc.

At 120k I'd deffo replace them - it would make a big difference

[monthefish]

HellDiver said:

I'll be putting dampers in my Mondeo in January. It's a 54-plate with 62k on the clock. It felt OK until I drove another similar 54-plater that only had 35k on the clock. Mine's like driving a boat in comparison.

This is a very good way to check (although can be tricky to arrange).

[Stoatman]

Thanks for the replies , I suppose 50 quid for each rear and 60 quid for fronts (Bilstein) is not to big a gamble for improved ride and enjoyment. I think my car deserves it for loyal service and the mileage I have ploughed into it !

[J4CKO]

Ebay coilies FTW

[Stoatman]

Ha , Ha . Hmm, well I have seen people put them on but I really want to keep it standard and not lower it and I value my teeth, my cars underbelly and dont want to look ridiculous !.

[Stoatman]

Well big update , I am sure people were on the edge of their seats !. ALthough I suppose it may be of interest with those of us with older cars.

Changed all 4 dampers , definately helped the ride you can really tell its reacting quicker and feeling the road. As I went standard they were not too expensive , if I paid out a couple of grand on a set up for a more expensive car you could say I would be a little disapointed but I am pretty pleased with the value for money aspect.

I changed the rear trailing arm bushes a few months ago and strangely enough they seemed to improve the ride more than the 4 dampers. I have also added a rear anti-roll bar as the estate version of my car did not come with one (but had all the fixing points available, so it was easy).