Effects of broken AGX bumpstops?

[wariosport]

I paid $25 with tax from the dealer. I have AGX and Intrax springs and I cut them around 1/4 of an inch. I've had two different types of struts(KYB) and none of them every came with bumpstops.

 

[MNGSX]

All Twin tube dampers can hit the BV's unless restricted... Either by using a bump stop or coil bind..... Jt you may have plent of pring rate to keep you off the bottom of the damper then again you may reach coil bind first I dunno.... I really dont care much about DSM's I just happen to rally one..... I just have built tons of shocks and know a thing or two about them..................

How much can be cut off is a unknow amount and is only relevent to that one shock type/brand.............

The important thing is that its not a great idea to cut jounce bumpers into little pucks! Keep in mind that most peoples bumpers are old and WAAAYYY softer than stock....


Cheers
Larry

The amount to cut is'nt unknown...

Remove the springs and put the shocks back in w/o stops... Car on jackstands of course...

Next run the suspension thru its motions.. You can see where the shock bottoms out..

Now make your stop length that size plus some.... I'd say atleast 3/4" beyond that minimum length.

 

[3literpwr]

The amount to cut is'nt unknown...

Remove the springs and put the shocks back in w/o stops... Car on jackstands of course...

Next run the suspension thru its motions.. You can see where the shock bottoms out..

Now make your stop length that size plus some.... I'd say atleast 3/4" beyond that minimum length.

Yes that could be done to find the point of contact.... One would need to do some calculation factoring in the rate of the specific jounce bumper used to figure how long it needed to be....... I have about 8 different types of jounce bumpers now pulled from the parts bins at SACHS and they all have drasticly different rate/durameters.........

One is like a puck its so hard while another is soft as could be......

Larry

 

[MNGSX]

I dont have alot of time on my new suspension but that is what i did...


Since I have GC's I just cranked the perch all the way off and let the spring drop down the shock body...

I measured the clearance to bottoming out and added about 3/4".. These are hard bumpstops so that should be plenty..

 

[HokieDSM]

Okay, I took the car in to get my camber adjusted and to have the new bumpstops installed. The thing is - my mechanic (whom I trust and always does work) insists that the bumpstops are merely an integral part of the dust shield and are not in any way responsible for protecting the shock from striking the body. He says they do not carry the strucutal rigidity (basically, they're just foam) to cushion such an impact.

I tried to insist that they did have a real function - but he claims to have them installed when nothing else is being done is just a waste of money with no performance benefit. Doing them when other work requiring decompressing the shocks/springs would be fine & recommended, but it's just too much of a PITA to get it done for no other reason than to just replace the bumpers.

I'm very confused as to what to do here... should I have it done or not?

 

[wariosport]

I thought the same thing. Until I put new ones in. Mine were completely gone and when I hit pot holes or bumps it sounded and felt awful. Once I figured out that it was the bump stops I bought them and installed them. Night and day difference. All I can say is that if yours are worn out like mine were you would be able to tell the difference.

 

[HokieDSM]

First of all, I gotta say, your car is one of my personal favs. I love those Voxx FAs! (if only they weren't a tad too heavy for my taste)

How much work was it to install them? I've read the tech article but it seems still like a PITA... the car doesn't ride badly 95% of the time.

 

[wariosport]

Thank you, your 1g is pretty damn nice as well. When I was buying wheels I needed something inexpensive in a 17" because I knew I was going to upgrade my brakes. So I chose that wheel for the price and spent the extra cash on the TCE Big Brakes. Later on I will probably get different wheels.

I have Intax(1.75") springs. So there is no compressing involved on my car. Basically you just follow steps for taking out your struts and slide the bumpstop over the piston. If you're not having any problems with ride quality I would worry about it. The funny thing is the bumpstop seems to be made out of foam, but it does the trick. I tried to find a poly bushing to replace it with, but I couldn't find anyone who made one.

 

[Sotarts]

I plan on replacing my shocks soon, so I thought I might as well replace the "bump stops". I called around 4 dealerships and NO ONE knew WTF a "bump stop" is, that's part of the strut/spring assembly. One reputable DSM shop didn't even know wtf "bump stop" is. . One of them finally figured out (I hope) that it's a DAMPER.

1g front strut damper : # MB349347
1g rear strut damper : # MB242352

One dealer wanted as high as $25 for each. Cheapest I could find was way out of city, $13.93 for fronts (apiece) and $14.12 for rears (apiece).

I think people should stop calling them bump stops or what not... Dampers is the part name. There's simply too much confusion.

Also, KYB says to cut the dampers when suspension is lowered, but NO MORE than 50%!!!
KYB also does not approve of their strut usage on cars lowered more than 1.5". They will simply void the warranty--as struts will wear out fast. They confirm improper usage by simply completely disassembling the strut and checking for relevant damage.

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For search purposes:
bumpstop
bump stop
bump stops
bumpstops
damper
dampers

 

[HokieDSM]

I thought I posted those part numbers above


That's the part that I ordered as well, the DAMPER - but also the same one that my mechanic said had no real purpose? (See above post)

 

[Sotarts]

I thought I posted those part numbers above


That's the part that I ordered as well, the DAMPER - but also the same one that my mechanic said had no real purpose? (See above post)

You posted only the front part #.

When you hit hard pumps in the road, they serve a very real purpose. Irreplaceable purpose, otherwise they wouldn't be there.
I guess your mechanic doesn't serve a whole lot of purpose either, when it pertains to suspension.

 

[HokieDSM]

I guess your mechanic doesn't serve a whole lot of purpose either, when it pertains to suspension.

*shrug* I dunno... I do know that I've never had bad luck with work that they've done, but this kinda stuff can be real dependent on what you're looking for from the car.