Koni Yellow Sport Shocks - 2010+ Legacy Fitment

[jkenefake]

I've got them both on full soft. I will say the rep at Koni said you really cant test these by hand. Only a dyno can tell if they are working properly. I just can't believe there would such a significant difference in the force required to compress the piston in 2 identical struts.

[Bootyologist]

You are thinking this over way too hard, mine were easy to compress and pull out but at a relatively slow rate. Just put them on and enjoy!

mine were the same way. I was....shocked.

 

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[GTEASER]

badum bum! tsss!

[Wild Bill]

Just pulled the trigger and bought the 8610-1453Sports for the front and 8610-1453Sports for the back. Convinced the accountant to take advantage of the $50 rebate in its final days.

 

Also picked up the WRX 20mm 20451VA000 sway bar for $67 on Amazon tonight. Can't beat that.

 

Already have the Eibach 7722.14 springs waiting in the barn, grabbed them at the closeout price of $93 that they have apparently been at for the last year. I got the WRX struts just in case I can't make the 1" drop work due to parking lot approaches and plowing snow in the winter. Hope I don't have to go back to OEM springs...

 

So the car has 110k on it. Correct me if I'm wrong, I think I'm supposed to replace the front strut spacer (20326AA000), Front upper spring seat (20323AG00B), and the rear upper rubber seat (20375FG000). Anything else?

 

Probably new bushings for the 20mm sway bar. Was thinking the 20464VA000 part from the 2015+ WRX.

[DugsSin]

Wild Bill if you are going to get a set of Front upper spring seats I have a spare set from Subaru brand new in the bags. They got put somewhere safe then I couldn't find them when doing my Koni switch so had to buy a second set.

[TRBOLGT]

Out of curiosity, how horrible would the ride be if Konis were intalled in wrx struts and paired with h&r springs in the front and Tein s. Techs in the rear. It should give it a level ride height but I'd imagine it would be a very unbalanced ride. I'm not doing this I'm just curious. I'm having the rear Konis machined to match the front wrx donors on h&r springs.

[fahr_side]

Out of curiosity, how horrible would the ride be if Konis were intalled in wrx struts and paired with h&r springs in the front and Tein s. Techs in the rear. It should give it a level ride height but I'd imagine it would be a very unbalanced ride. I'm not doing this I'm just curious. I'm having the rear Konis machined to match the front wrx donors on h&r springs.

 

 

 

Since the GH8 WRX strut is 20-30mm shorter than BR9 item, and the spring mount similar lower, I think the car would be lower by around an inch. If you're looking to slam the car it's a better solution than fitting very short springs I guess.

[GTEASER]

Out of curiosity, how horrible would the ride be if Konis were intalled in wrx struts and paired with h&r springs in the front and Tein s. Techs in the rear. It should give it a level ride height but I'd imagine it would be a very unbalanced ride. I'm not doing this I'm just curious. I'm having the rear Konis machined to match the front wrx donors on h&r springs.

 

You could do it, because the spring rates of the H&R's and Teins are probably very similar, so the ride should be fine. But I would recommend the route you are going with having the 8010-1055 rears machined with a slot 3/8" lower to match the 3/8" lower front spring perch on the WRX donors, and go H&R all the way around. Your donors are 08-10 WRX struts, right? If so, they're spring perch is 3/8" lower than ours, but if you accidentally use 11-14 WRX donors, you'll actually be 1/4" higher than you intend.

 

Since the GH8 WRX strut is 20-30mm shorter than BR9 item, and the spring mount similar lower, I think the car would be lower by around an inch. If you're looking to slam the car it's a better solution than fitting very short springs I guess.

 

This isn't entirely true and not sure where you're getting 30mm (1-3/16"). 08-10 WRX front spring perch is 3/8" lower than our BM9 perch, and 11-14 WRX perch is 1/4" higher. But I do agree, this is a better solution to get lower while maintaining some suspension travel.

Edited May 23, 2017 by GTEASER

[TDWPgtp]

GTEASER, do you have any updates on the timeframe for full strut availability for the 5th Gen? There is a set of used inserts for sale that I am considering, but if it is only going to be a couple more months until the full struts are released, I'd prefer to wait.

[GTEASER]

GTEASER, do you have any updates on the timeframe for full strut availability for the 5th Gen? There is a set of used inserts for sale that I am considering, but if it is only going to be a couple more months until the full struts are released, I'd prefer to wait.

 

I have not had any updates in a month or so, but it's not very likely that they will produce Legacy specific full struts. They are working on the 2011-2014 WRX struts which will still have the incorrect bracket for our the ABS sensor and raise us 1/4". Your best bet is to get 4th Gen inserts (8610-1447S) and use the WRX rears (8010-1055S) as they have recommended.

[TDWPgtp]

I have not had any updates in a month or so, but it's not very likely that they will produce Legacy specific full struts. They are working on the 2011-2014 WRX struts which will still have the incorrect bracket for our the ABS sensor and raise us 1/4". Your best bet is to get 4th Gen inserts (8610-1447S) and use the WRX rears (8010-1055S) as they have recommended.

 

I plan on using the '13-'14 oem springs, which you said would be too difficult to compress to fit the 4th gen konis, plus someone said earlier that they are a bit stiffer than the WRX ones. I have a line on low mileage used WRX inserts, thanks to one of our forum members, that I am considering. But like I said, if the Legacy full struts aren't too far out, I think I'd rather wait. Then again, these used ones are pretty cheap in comparison.

[GTEASER]

it's not very likely that they will produce Legacy specific full struts

 

I would recommend picking up the deal that you found on the 1453's. If I am correct, they are the ones for sale on NASIOC with 8k miles on them. Practically brand new and a great price. Otherwise, Koni are stocking the 8610-1453S again for a limited time. You can either buy them thru Koni or try calling Emnotek to see if they can get them for a better price.

 

I had forgotten that you wanted to run OEM springs. And I'm not saying it can't be done with the 1447S, you're just going to have to compress the springs more, ie more work. They will fit, the 1453S is just going to be a little easier.

[TDWPgtp]

I know this may be taboo, but I was wondering if anyone had any experience/input on running the Koni dampers on 2011 OEM springs. I honestly am hesitant to use the '13-14 springs, as the roads around me have MANY buckled joints, and I already feel like the softer '11 springs are fairly harsh on the small buckles and bumps.

 

Would the Konis still benefit the '11 springs, or am I really better off getting the '13-14s?

[cww516]

A lot of the harshness you're getting is due to the lack of damping from the stock shocks- instead of damping out the motion, they more or less let the tires bounce. You should see an improvement with the Konis even with stiffer springs, so you can have your cake and eat it, too.

[dgoodhue]

I would get the '13/'14 spring if you want the stock height. You could always test drive a low mile 13/14 Legacy to get an idea of the stiffness. [iMO you could probably adjust Koni to ride better than the factory 13/14 struts.]

[Bootyologist]

I know this may be taboo, but I was wondering if anyone had any experience/input on running the Koni dampers on 2011 OEM springs. I honestly am hesitant to use the '13-14 springs, as the roads around me have MANY buckled joints, and I already feel like the softer '11 springs are fairly harsh on the small buckles and bumps.

 

Would the Konis still benefit the '11 springs, or am I really better off getting the '13-14s?

I just installed the 13/14 springs on my konis a few days ago. over the past 9 months, I've used the konis with rce blacks and eibachs. the rce were awful with koni. after a month of that combo, I went to eibachs as they had a similar spring rate as the 13/14. they were more comfortable than the rce, but on the rough Minnesota roads, they were still quite harsh.

 

the 13/14s are waaaay more comfortable and the car still corners quite well. I'm rather pleased with the setup. I miss that wheel gap reduction of the lower springs though :/

 

golferdude has had the same setup since last fall, and he loves it.

 

basically it comes down to where you live. shitty roads? go stock springs. nice California roads? eibach all day long.

 

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[fredrik94087]

^^^ Just to add to this and to put the spring question to rest, the only spring with which it is not recommended to run Konis is Swift lowering springs. Now, if you get your hands on some 300# swift springs, that is a different matter.

[TDWPgtp]

So I attempted to cut the top off of the strut with a pipe cutter, as others have suggested, and fairly quickly the cutting blade wore out. We tried another one with the same results. Now, I had a guy in the shop helping me, just to make sure I wasn't screwing something up, and he was having the same trouble. The only thing he could think of was that maybe there was some abrasive particles embedded in the metal from when I sandblasted them.

 

Anyway, what brand pipe cutters have you guys all used? I will go buy the same just to be sure.

[GTEASER]

Most pipe cutters are made for copper, so softer material. I bought this one from Lowe's a few years back and have used it to cut open more than a dozen struts. It works just as good now as the day I bought it. It doesn't look like they sell it any longer but it can be had on Amazon for a reasonable price. It's capable of cutting steel chain link fence posts and conduit, so it's heavier duty.

 

https://www.amazon.com/Superior-Tool-ST-2000-Cutter-5-Cutter/dp/B0000DINDC

 

Make sure you leave an 1/8" extra in length because these cutters mushroom the strut tube metal and you can't get the Koni in because the strut tube ID becomes smaller. You need to take that last 1/8" down with a benchtop belt grinder so you have a nice clean edge on the strut tube.

[TDWPgtp]

The shop guy said he's used the blades we have to cut stainless. I can't imagine that the strut housings are harder than stainless, but who knows. After using up 2 hack saw blades, I finally got one strut cut, but that is only a rough cut. I still need to cut the final dimension. I cannot imagine it was this tough for everyone, was it? Also, the wall thickness of the strut housing is way thicker than I thought. I'm not sure the pipe cutter blades that I have seen would even cut deep enough. Is it possible that these OEM struts are thicker and/or harder than KYB replacements?

[GTEASER]

The OEM struts ARE KYB's. You might even see the KYB and KYB part number stamped on them. No they are not unusually hard, but yes they are thick, probably 4mm wall thickness, because McPhearson strut design utilizes the strut as the upper control arm, so it must be beefy to handle the suspension loads both vertically and laterally. Seriously, the pipe cutter I use takes 5 minutes a strut, tops, to cut.

[DugsSin]

I used a new Milwaukee hack saw and 1 DeWalt 32 tpi blade to make all 4 of my cuts along with some cutting oil.

The belt sander sure did a nice job for the final finishing. Get the housings super clean on the inside or wish you had before trying to install the inserts.

[TDWPgtp]

Okay, so I found a different brand of blades and managed to get through the other strut fairly easily.

 

I was wondering, though, you mention measuring from the inside of the bottom of the strut 11-7/8 inches. Am I right to assume that you are measuring from the lowest point on the domed inside bottom of the strut? For example, measuring with a 1" wide ruler will yield a different location than measuring with a very small diameter rod, since it will sit further into the end of the dome.

Edited July 11, 2017 by TDWPgtp

[GTEASER]

I always measure with a 3/4" wide tape measure and just make sure it's all the way down in to the lowest point inside the inverted dome that I can get it. If you shoot for the 11-7/8" measurement, I think you have about 1/8" of fluff either way, a little shorter and the nubs on the Koni still engage the donor fully, a little taller and you can still get the Koni to seat at the bottom before the top fluted section gets stuck on the donor.

[cww516]

I think I had asked the same question, and he said that's based on using a tape measure with the end as far down into the housing as it'll go. It'd probably be more like 12" with something that can go clear down to the bottom, but if you aim for 11 7/8", you'll be within the acceptable tolerance range pretty much no matter what.

 

Edit: beat me to it.