Koni Yellow Sport Shocks - 2010+ Legacy Fitment

[ahkenaden]

Teaser, after the comments in my Koni serviceability rebuild thread, I'm shocked more Legacy owners aren't flocking to them. I wonder if it's because they don't have a full perch model specifically for us. You were in talks with them a while back, have you heard anything further on a specific integrated model for us or was the WRX full strut design pretty much where it all stops?

[Zee199969]

TBH some dont have the tools and/or ability to cut the front struts and have the confidence that they are doing it properly. I am one of those people lol, and I had GTEASER cuz the front struts and install the KONIs. From there I assembled the rest and installed cuz I'm comfortable with turning nuts and bolts.

[Humble Rumble]

Yeah, I am in the same boat, and have all the parts I need gathered in my back room waiting to save up enough money for a shop to do it. If they made a ready-assembled unit for the front of our cars, I promise you many more 5th gens would be running them.

[GTEASER]

No word yet for our platform, but after many discussions, I doubt we will see a Legacy specific full strut option because Koni has verified that the 1447 insert will work for us and they have no plans to discontinue that.

[Golferdude1087]

Honestly we probably never will, getting the insert back was a big win for us but there just is not enough demand to justify the R&D costs required to make a strut for our specific application.

[dgoodhue]

Honestly we probably never will, getting the insert back was a big win for us but there just is not enough demand to justify the R&D costs required to make a strut for our specific application.

 

I agree, unless a strut assembly can be re-used for another model. I sometimes wonder if all the initial R&D for 5th Gen performance parts was vendors thinking that it would have a similar market share as the 4th Gen LGT.

[EuroVWGTi]

So I am going ahead and purchasing a set of 1453s inserts. Question is, do I need to get from 19 to 27 in parts? And should I do the same I did with my rears and get the springs for a 2013 2.5i instead? Edited October 9, 2017 by EuroVWGTi

[Wild Bill]

Just did mine and I replaced the 20326AA000 strut spacers and 20323AG00B upper spring seats. For the $30 a piece I would upgrade the springs.

 

I did not replace the strut mount which has the bearing. At 115k my bearing was pretty gunky. I cleaned it up and hit it with a decent amount of Tri-Flo lubricant and it freed up nicely.

[GTEASER]

The upper spring seats are a non-wear item, there is no point in replacing them. All I would really recommend replacing is the tophats because they will come with a new bearing. Yes, go with 13+ springs.

[EuroVWGTi]

Sounds cool. So I order things correctly, what numbers am I ordering then?

 

Also, did we determine the length of the cut to do on the housing?

 

Thx gteaser

[GTEASER]

Question is, do I need to get from 19 to 27 in parts?

 

What diagram are you looking at?

 

Sounds cool. So I order things correctly, what numbers am I ordering then?

 

Also, did we determine the length of the cut to do on the housing?

 

Thx gteaser

 

You just need stock tophats if you're cutting your stock struts. You can reuse everything else assuming all the tophat nuts, dust boots and bump stops are undamaged. IIRC, I usually make the pipe cutter cut about 1-1/4" below the silver cap on the top on the top of the stock strut, and then use a bench mounted belt sander to grind the top down so that the measurement from the inside bottom of the strut tube is between 11-7/8" and 12" to the top of the tube (made with a standard 3/4" tape measure). Before you make the first cut, do your best to measure from the bottom of the strut to make sure you have at least 12" before making the cut.

[EuroVWGTi]

Sorry, Gteaser. Here's the link

https://www.subarupartsforyou.com/auto-parts/2011/subaru/legacy/2-5i-trim/2-5l-h4-gas-engine/front-suspension-cat/suspension-components-scat

[GTEASER]

All you need is #24, the tophat, which comes with a new bearing. You can reuse everything else from your car.

[EuroVWGTi]

Ok, cool. I will get part 24, 1453s and springs from 2013 2.5i. Thx again.

[Val Demar]

Yeah, I am in the same boat, and have all the parts I need gathered in my back room waiting to save up enough money for a shop to do it. If they made a ready-assembled unit for the front of our cars, I promise you many more 5th gens would be running them.

 

Now seems like about the time these cars will need new struts no matter what, which could create a business case for Koni to consider? I will need to replace mine soon as they are slowly leaking, and given a choice between stock and Koni I think the selection would be pretty obvious.

Edited October 11, 2017 by Val Demar

[linksusmaximus]

Installed my Rear Koni/H&Rs setup this weekend, finally! I was lucky to have had experience replacing springs in my old Legacy, so this was a breeze. 1h 45m total, jacking one wheel up at a time with the spare tire jack. Zero issues. Really a satisfying mod.

 

As for the feel of the setup, as you can see I replaced an old Bilstein/RCE setup and I've immediately noticed an improvement.. and that's without the Fronts installed yet. I'm 1/2 turn from full-firm and so far I think it's perfect. Tighter feel around turns and I think the quality of the combo, even so close to full-firm, has mitigated the teeth-chatter significantly. We'll see how she rides overall (hopefully this weekend) when the Fronts are in.

[Val Demar]

Shock replacement is looming. I don't race, driving style is moderate aggressive, not looking to drop the car, the car is more of a commuter than anything else. Do I want the Koni inserts and rears with the extra cost and time to put them in or should I just get the KYB OE replacements and call it a day?

[GTEASER]

Shock replacement is looming. I don't race, driving style is moderate aggressive, not looking to drop the car, the car is more of a commuter than anything else. Do I want the Koni inserts and rears with the extra cost and time to put them in or should I just get the KYB OE replacements and call it a day?

What year / model car are you driving?

[Val Demar]

What year / model car are you driving?

It's a 2010 LGT, all stock, original shocks. Edited October 22, 2017 by Val Demar

[GTEASER]

Val Demar, if you're not looking to drop the car then I would suggest the KYBs with 13-14 OEM springs. You could go with Konis with those springs as I think the Konis will last longer and perform better, but the KYBs with the 13-14 OEM springs will be a dramatic improvement from what you're use to now.

[Val Demar]

Val Demar, if you're not looking to drop the car then I would suggest the KYBs with 13-14 OEM springs. You could go with Konis with those springs as I think the Konis will last longer and perform better, but the KYBs with the 13-14 OEM springs will be a dramatic improvement from what you're use to now.

Thank you, this also answers my next question if I should replace the springs at the same time. 13-14 OEM springs would be for the standard Legacy as the Gt hasn't been offered in the US, right? What makes them better, are they stiffer than the 2010 springs?

[TwoTone]

Val Demar, if you're not looking to drop the car then I would suggest the KYBs with 13-14 OEM springs. You could go with Konis with those springs as I think the Konis will last longer and perform better, but the KYBs with the 13-14 OEM springs will be a dramatic improvement from what you're use to now.

 

Thank you, this also answers my next question if I should replace the springs at the same time. 13-14 OEM springs would be for the standard Legacy as the Gt hasn't been offered in the US, right? What makes them better, are they stiffer than the 2010 springs?

 

 

I'll take it a step further since you mention it's a daily driver. Honestly even on stock springs it's a huge improvement.

 

Mine isn't a GT, I all I did were the inserts and I'm more than happy. I'd say it has the Stock German handling I wanted based on my experience with a few VWs.

[Zee199969]

Thank you, this also answers my next question if I should replace the springs at the same time. 13-14 OEM springs would be for the standard Legacy as the Gt hasn't been offered in the US, right? What makes them better, are they stiffer than the 2010 springs?

Yes the 13-14 springs are stiffer than the 2010-12 springs

[GTEASER]

And it doesn't matter what 13-14 Legacy the springs are for, they are all so similar that there is no discernable difference.

[Val Demar]

I'll take it a step further since you mention it's a daily driver. Honestly even on stock springs it's a huge improvement.

 

Mine isn't a GT, I all I did were the inserts and I'm more than happy. I'd say it has the Stock German handling I wanted based on my experience with a few VWs.

I wonder how much of the perceived improvement was simply due to going from used tired shocks to new. I'm still debating so the advice is much appreciated.