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MG MGF Technical - Aftermarket Shock Absorbers

I've just fitted a full set of Powerflex bushes to my MGF, but handling is still not that good. Better than before, but still shakes its head on bumpy surfaces. I've noticed that the bushes on the shocks are past their best, and I'm considering replacing the lot with some aftermarket units. I see that there are a few choices out there (Bilstein, Koni, Spax, Avo), but don't know which ones to go for. Any advice would be greatly appreciated, as would details of reasonably priced suppliers. Thanks in advance,
Andy.
Andy Mayne

Andy, shock absorber bushes are also replaceable if you buy from Mike Satur or Brown & Gammon. MGR do not sell bushes separately.
John Ponting

Andy, poly bushes alone will not transform the 'handling' as such they tighten up the play in the stock bushes and make the car more predictable on braking/cornering/accelerating. The biggest improvement can be made by new adjustable shocks,rear-tie bar poly bushes, four wheel alignment and lowering.Don't forget about the poly bushes for the drop links as well if the rest have been changed.HTH.
Mike.
mike

Thanks Mike and John for your comments. Just to clarify things, I have fitted a complete set of poly bushes, including tie bar, drop links, anti-roll bar, lower arm, etc, etc. I was considering just changing the shock bushes with some aftermarket items, but got to thinking that the shocks themselves are probably past their best (65,000 miles on the clock). This is why I'm considering replacing shocks and bushes in one go. I'm just not sure which ones to go for!
Andy Mayne

AVO, Bilstein or Koni. This is the question :)
I don't think any of them are bad. Just shop around.

Best
Dieter
Dieter K.

Koni 8041 1218 Sport at the front and Koni 8041 1219 at the rear. Very easy to adjust, access when opening the front and rear bonnet. 3īrd place for 2002 SVKG Roadsports C season cup award placed on the shelf in my livingroom shows that they do work ;)
But as mentioned several times before - reinforcement welding at the rear upper mounts is essential if trying the harder settings with any brand... Mike has the answer to that!

BR, Carl.
Carl Blom

I run on Koni's but only 'cos that was all I could get my hands on at the time four years ago ,they were expensive though. I would try Spax if the koni's are out of your price budget. The top adjuster is handy though on the Koni's.Don't have any awards though:-(
Mike.
mike

In an ideal world, you could turn up to a show room and try an MGF with each of the suspension set ups listed above and decide which suited you best.

Unfortunately, it is not possible to do this. Instead, you'll need to rely on other's opinions, which are usually founded without having sampled the other options.

Fact is, almost any aftermarket damper is going to be far superior to the slices of Dundee cake masquerading as standard dampers.

So how to make a choice?

1. Cost.

Huge variation here - Avos and Spax occupy the budget end of the market. They are also adjustable (one size fits all - so you see how the costs can be cut). But in the world of dampers (and springs, which is relevant to TF owners), you get what you pay for.
Koni is an excellent mid-range damper. Like the Avos and Spax, they're adjustable. You could also go for Eibachs or Bilsteins. The latter is non-adjustable. If purchased from Tech-speed, they're already tuned for your MGF.

2. Adjustable or fixed rate dampers?

Mentioned adjustability above. Many of the aftermarket dampers are adjustable. IMO this is probably so that the damper manufacture doesn't have to spend all that much money tuning their dampers for specific applications.
But adjustable dampers also appeal because, well, they're adjustable! If you do track driving, then you can set up your dampers to suit the conditions.
However, on a road car, once you've got a set up you're happy with, that'll be the last time you ever touch them - so you might as well have fixed-rate dampers in the first place.
Adjustable dampers also give rise to the possibility of getting things very wrong. At least in terms of chassis balance, you can adjust them again to correct the situation. But adjustable dampers wound up to maximum hardness has resulted in the rear damper pick up points fracturing. They're not really designed to work with 'proper' dampers, so Mike Satur's damper re-inforcement plates become essential.
The least hastle option is therefore fixed rate dampers that are already tuned for the MGF. I've mentioned the Bilsteins above, and I am sure that there are other options too that I've not yet come across.

3. Longevity

Not much data available regarding this. I've seen Spax dampers with completely corroded adjustment screws - but this rarely causes problems with damper performance. I can only guess that the more expensive dampers last longer - but then you'd hope that they would.

So should you do it at all? Definitely. Replacing the dampers is the single best thing you can do to improve your car's handling, after ditching the NCT-3 tyres that your car came on if it was fitted with standard 15" alloys.

New aftermarket dampers = big time grin factor. Just be wary of how stiff they are with an eye on the integity of the rear damper mounts.
Rob Bell

Thanks everyone, especially Rob. Very useful and informative!
A Mayne

Andy,
If you wish to test the Spax shock absorbers give us a call, you can test ours which we think are superb. We are in Baschurch (Shrewsbury). Any evening is no problem. nikanita@btopenworld.com
anita roberts

This thread was discussed between 06/07/2003 and 07/07/2003

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