Koni -or- Bilstein?

[Eric_Shea]

I have both... What would you guys do?

I have a Koni suspension for the car now. The spindles have been raised 18mm.

I have another Koni suspension without the raised spindles and I have a Bilstein suspension without raised spindles sitting on the shelf.

I have already have a Koni suspension with raised spindles on my 911. I almost want to go Bilstein just to have a feel for both.

What do the other GT geeks out there have to say? :confused:

[JKH]

Boge with Koni inserts.

What bil inserts do you have ? the sports are stiff.

[Eric_Shea]

Boge with Koni inserts.

Huh??? :confused:

I have new "sport" rears I can use and I have unknown Bilstein inserts in the front Bilstein struts. Probably just regular. I could get sports for those to match the rears or I could just stay with the Koni's, especially if the sports are too rough.

It's just that the suspension is off and it could go either way at this point.

One other thought is to put the Koni's back on the 914 and use the Bilsteins on the 911RS recreation sometime in the future.

If I decide to go that route I'll have a new set of Bilstein sport rears for sale. Still in the box. ($205 plus shipping)

Green or Orange? :D Just getting opinions.

[dug]

This is all based on conversations I've had with my friend who got way into dampers and dyno'ing them a few years ago...
The bound/rebound ratio on sport shocks from Koni and Bilstein is overly stiff to create what the consumer thinks is a more performance oriented ride. For best performance, the ratios should be chosen based on the weight of the car and the spring rates chosen. If you stiffen the springs/torsion bars, then the shocks should be stiffer in both bound and rebound to stay in balance. Sport shocks seem to come with a 4:1 (or is that 1:4) where racers that setup their ratios use numbers like 2:1.

Koni's are all rebuildable for cheaper than buying new ones. If you send them in, you can request some good ratios. I think they'll even add double adjustability.

I'd love to get some real numbers from someone that really knows what they are doing.

cheers,
dug

[dug]

All that stuff said, I've had Koni sports with 19mm front t-bars, 21mm sway bar, 180lb springs, all in a 914-6 with a sand cast aluminum case and the car felt great. I did know to at least run the Konis all the way soft:)

cheers,
dug

[dug]

I also know the spec miata I bought and raced had custom valving on the shocks, which wasn't to the spirit of the rules, but hey it's racing:) And it felt amazing with the clutch-type limited slip.

Speaking of which, after that experience an LSD is high on my wish list these days!

dug

[Eric_Shea]

Post #5... I'm with ya. Almost spot on. I have the stock 911 t-bars. 18mm sway bar (unlike the 21), 180lb progressives and a rear bar that may or may not get hooked up. I almost always run Koni's full soft.

I too wish I knew more about these things. I spoke with a Koni engineer once and he said the 911 and 914 inserts were almost the same with a high speed rebound being the only difference.

I may send my inserts in and have them revalved and set up with the adjustable shaft (rears have them fronts don't). Again, I wish I knew more so I knew what to ask for.

I think I'll stick with the Koni's and save the Bilsteins for the 911 some day.

[dug]

Sounds like a good plan to me.

I did not have a rear bar on the six.
I did have a rear bar on my 2.0 four with 140lb springs in back.
Also ran Koni sports all the way around, but I was young and stupid and usually cranked them up full hard:)

cheers,
dug

[jim dorociak]

I do not remember where I read or heard this information, but I thought the Bilsteins are lighter and I ran koni shocks for years, and on my last front end I got brand new Borge struts and used Bilstein inserts. Because the weight on the 914 is less than the 911s I used normal shocks not the sports as I think they would be too stiff. Jim

[70Sixter]

Altho I'm an old (really old) Koni fan, I got convinced to switch to Bilsteins back in the late 70s or early 80s. Not happy with ride or handling on rough roads.

Since then I've switched the rears back to Konis and will do the same with the fronts when I install my Koni struts with 3.5 caliper spacing.

Sometime after my funds and stocks make a bit of recovery. 2015? :rolleyes: