Koni STR.Ts In Rear Only?

[Kazz]

I intend to get my new, '16 FiST to the autocross course this spring. I want to remain in stock class for now. That means no springs and no coilovers.

My wife just had her first more-or-less extended ride in the car and complained about the ride. I knew she would. When I went coilovers in two other cars she hated the ride. And the roads here ARE awful - no kidding. I really want that jounce to go away and I tend to think it's rear-only. I understand Koni STR.Ts and Koni yellows can tame that bounciness, the latter, when properly adjusted. However, I'm not inclined to remove the rear before and after events to adjust the ride, which is required with the yellows. And I've heard that the STR.Ts reduce steering feel and ability to put power down coming out of turns.

So what if I put the STR.Ts on the rear only and leave the fronts as OEM? Has anyone done this? I've searched off and on for two days and can't really find anything but supposition. Is there anything terribly wrong with this "mixed" suspension proposal?

Thanks!

 

[Plainrt]

I have heard of people just running yellow rears. I wouldn't touch the cheaper konis.

 

[neeqness]

I ran the str.ts for awhile on rears only and oem dampers front. I had it lowered with Eibach springs too though. Yes, it did help a lot for the bumps without the floaty turn-in but I personally think most of the float was from pairing them with progressive springs. I am currently using the str.t all around on oem dampers and they are fine. Overall, I think I prefer this setup so far. I do not track or autocross though.

That said I believe the bilstein dampers (b6 or b8) would be better so I'm considering getting them next. These seem to work best for me because I do not like the idea of adjusting them either and I do not want to shell out the extra coin for coilovers...but again I have no intention of racing track or autocross.

 

[1azst]

I run Koni orange in just the rear. It got rid of the head rest punching the back of my head feeling. They are softer though, so I added a rear torsion bar. I don't track it, so it's good for me.

 

[Kazz]

Thanks, folks. I guess I need to look into the Bilsteins for due diligence.

My thinking remains that the front's OK. And hearing that some of the turn-in and feel goes away if you put the STR.Ts on the front made me think just switching the rear would do. I still have a good month in which to make up my mind.

 

[neeqness]

Thanks, folks. I guess I need to look into the Bilsteins for due diligence.

My thinking remains that the front's OK. And hearing that some of the turn-in and feel goes away if you put the STR.Ts on the front made me think just switching the rear would do. I still have a good month in which to make up my mind.

I know what you mean because I felt the same. Which is why I went that route after using konis with Eibachs. Keeping in mind that most who said the fronts was floaty, etc. (including me) were pairing them with progressive springs at the time. However, the Str.t was made for the oem springs and the Eibach springs were made for oem dampers. For some reason a lot of forum topics paired the str.ts with Eibach Springs as if they were intended for each other. But after looking it up, I found the hard way that they don't work well together at all. This was why I went back to oem springs myself for my konis. Turn-in has been fine now for me. The konis are sport tuned just with less stiffness as the oem dampers.

I like it better with the konis all-around than just on the rear becaude it has a slightly "squirrely" (for lack of a better word - if it even is a word) feel, especially at higher speeds of bout 70+, if you put them on the rear alone...but its not really that noticeable. I noticed it most after I switched back to all konis.

If the stiffness of the oem suspension annoys you, either setup will be a significant improvement. But in comparison with each other, the all konis just feels...better like it has a better fit or something. Sorry, I can't really describe it too well now. It's been awhile since I made the switch but it's probably all subjective so maybe it's best if you tried them both for yourself to find out which you would prefer.

 

[Kazz]

I think I follow you OK. And I posted looking for folks with real experience to speak up. Do you do or have you done any autocross or road course racing with your car in any configuration, as well?

Thanks for the reply!

 

[neeqness]

I think I follow you OK. And I posted looking for folks with real experience to speak up. Do you do or have you done any autocross or road course racing with your car in any configuration, as well?

Thanks for the reply!

No, no racing at all. Just some occasionally spirited driving, commuting, and road trips.