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  1. #1

    Default Buying Shocks- best stock replacement option?

    Looking into getting new shocks when I replace my rear end with an 8.8. The car is a cruiser/stoplight warrior so I’m not super interested in Bilsteins/Konis/etc.

    Who has had good luck with any of the stock replacement type stuff? What was the ride quality like?

    The car is an 84 LTD LX, and I’m also swapping in Volvo rear springs to raise the rear end up a bit for tire clearance/ ride height.


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    1984 LTD LX, 160k mile Explorer 5.0, Comp XE264HR-14 cam, Alex’s Parts springs on stock GT40 3 bar heads, Unported Explorer intake, 1 5/8 shorty headers, off-road H-Pipe, Spintech 9000 mufflers, Holley Terminator X Max, J-Mod 4R70W, Mustang 8.8 w/ 3.73s, Tubular front and rear control arms, front coilovers, Turbocoupe rear coil springs

  2. #2
    FEP Power Member
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    Well, there is Motorcraft. The newer versions are gas charged.
    Fox Body/3rd Gen MCA Gold Card Judge
    84 SVO 24K miles, 85 Mclaren Capri Vert. 84 GT Turbo Vert.
    88 Mclaren Mustang Vert 20K miles, 89 Mustang LX Sport Vert,
    03 Mach 1 7900 miles, 74 Mustang II, 69 Mustang, 67 Mustang, 07 GT500,
    14 Mustang CS/GT, 15 F150 FTX Tuscany, 16 F250 Crewcab, 67 Tbird 47K miles

  3. #3

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    Quote Originally Posted by wdanison43103 View Post
    Looking into getting new shocks when I replace my rear end with an 8.8. The car is a cruiser/stoplight warrior so I’m not super interested in Bilsteins/Konis/etc.

    Who has had good luck with any of the stock replacement type stuff? What was the ride quality like?

    The car is an 84 LTD LX, and I’m also swapping in Volvo rear springs to raise the rear end up a bit for tire clearance/ ride height.


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
    I think the KYB's are a good value. Upgrade from stock but not super expensive like Bilsteins or Koni. Couple hundred thousand miles experience with them on my '91 GT.

  4. #4

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    I put the cheap kyb’s from rock auto on and summit racing lowering springs a d I’m really happy.
    Previously I had Monroe shocks and struts and they were smoother/softer.


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  5. #5
    FEP Super Member webestang's Avatar
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    I put Gabriel Ultra shocks/struts on both my 85 2.3 and 88 5.0. Very happy with them on both cars.

    Scotty
    1985 Fox Notch 4-banger Ranger tube header Eastwood Royal Blue
    1988 Fox LX 5.0 AOD Vert BBK 170mph speedo Candy Apple Red
    1999 Mustang Coupe V6 Auto Chrome Yellow -Daily Driver.
    Past Pony's.....
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  6. #6
    FEP Super Member bwguardian's Avatar
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    Been very happy with the Monroe units I put on the car...lifetime warranty to boot!
    HAD
    '82 GT monochromatic (red)...black cloth

    HAVE
    '85 GT vert two tone (white on charcoal)...white leather
    '00 F350 two tone (white on silver)...gray cloth
    '00 Excursion Limited two tone (white on tan)...tan leather...wifes ride
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  7. #7
    FEP Power Member mcb82gt's Avatar
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    I hated by Ford B springs and KYB Gas a Just. So hard and sucked big time.
    Mike

    Now stang-less.

    88 Cougar 5.0

  8. #8

    Default

    So it seems that pretty much any of the choices seem to be alright, but I’m probably going to avoid the KYBs because I have heard they are hard riding. Want something smooth for the kids


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
    1984 LTD LX, 160k mile Explorer 5.0, Comp XE264HR-14 cam, Alex’s Parts springs on stock GT40 3 bar heads, Unported Explorer intake, 1 5/8 shorty headers, off-road H-Pipe, Spintech 9000 mufflers, Holley Terminator X Max, J-Mod 4R70W, Mustang 8.8 w/ 3.73s, Tubular front and rear control arms, front coilovers, Turbocoupe rear coil springs

  9. #9
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    I went with the Tokyio Blues off ebay, they were an upgrade over the originals.

  10. #10
    FEP Super Member bwguardian's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by wdanison43103 View Post
    So it seems that pretty much any of the choices seem to be alright, but I’m probably going to avoid the KYBs because I have heard they are hard riding. Want something smooth for the kids


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    That's why I went with the Monroe Sensa Trac Premium units...they ride soft until you push them, then they firm up as needed.
    HAD
    '82 GT monochromatic (red)...black cloth

    HAVE
    '85 GT vert two tone (white on charcoal)...white leather
    '00 F350 two tone (white on silver)...gray cloth
    '00 Excursion Limited two tone (white on tan)...tan leather...wifes ride
    '08 Taurus Limited ice blue...tan leather...daughter ride
    '08 Edge Limited white sand tri-coat metallic...tan leather...other daughters ride

  11. #11

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    I second the Tokico HP's (blues) as a good value play.

    Bilstein HD's are light years ahead in terms of ride quality though - yes they work for corner carvers, but for daily duty, they are far better in every way than the part store replacement. That is what I run in my Volvo 245 wagon too - which handles much better than it should on paper. If ride quality matters, as does longevity, they are hard to beat (even though more spendy up front).

  12. #12
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    I'm not sure how appropriate my input is but.... I have built many cars for people, not many for me . I advise the owners when I build but ultimately install what the owner decides. For better or worse. My favorite struts are bilstein . Dollar for dollar the score best in the ride/performance/price triangle. They are not always my first choice. I had Koni reds ( hydraulic) on my 83 escort. It was an ish GT I built out of several cars. They were on that car for 500k. They replaced monroe sensitracs that I was happy with but only lasted 150k. It took a lot to get the valving where I was happy with it but as I commuted with the car for years it was worth it. I turned them 1 click harder every 100k to compensate for wear. Happy with that car but limited for options. I would only recommend for resto on a svo. Koni yellow are a more useful shock as far as performance but have run into longevity issues. All koni's are rebuild able but need to be sent out. For my 82 GT I have purchased tokico blues. The goal for my only current foxbody is to build a fun cruiser that does not deviate far from stock. Suspension is a dynamic artform and shocks should be used as 1 component in a package. I have found in the many cars I have used them in that they take out much of the impact harshness that poly bushing and harder springs have. That is the reason Mazda speced them for the Protege MP3 and Speed turbos. They used stiffer bushings and lowering springs for handling and the Tokico blue to perform well with a decent ride. I have installed shocks on cars that have ruined them. I installed KW variant 3's on a Mitsubishi Evo 10 that came factory with bilstein struts and eibach springs and it was a huge waste of money. At no point while tracking that car did I feel the car needed better suspension. There was very little difference in lap times and the ride suffered greatly. It was the customer choice. Anyway. Sorry this is long but suspension tuning is a huge subject. Be honest with yourself about your goals
    If you are only going to track the car occasionally you will be the happiest with the tokico blues. I haven't mentioned the tokico illuminas or kyb agx for a reason.... Unless you really want to tinker, stay away from adjustable shocks. You can create problems very easily. I will end here but if you want help just message me and I would be happy to help. Cheers

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  13. #13
    FEP Power Member qtrracer's Avatar
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    If the LTD has the same front spindles as the pre-87GT Mustangs, then your strut choices are pretty much limited to stock replacement. This is because of the spindle strut mounting flange being much wider than the later spindles. Bilstein, Koni and many other performance vendors don't make a strut for the wider mounting flange. FWIW, early on my 86 Mustang I used Monroe Formula GPs - these were Saleen spec strut/shock combo back in the day. These come with spacers so they can be used on both early and later MY Mustang spindles. Fairly good for what they are, but not when compared to a Bilstein or Koni.

    Also, you need to know that ride quality is a function of the stock rubber bushings used in the suspension. Ford use bonded rubber in all the articulation pieces which means they add wheel rate (more spring). As the arm moves through it's range of motion, the rubber twists (doesn't rotate) which acts like a torsion spring. The worst offenders are the rears if converging 4-link is used as on a Fox Mustang. So, if you increase spring rate over stock, expect the ride quality to degrade regardless of the strut/shock selected especially if stock replacements are used.

  14. #14
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    It is possible to narrow the stock knuckles. It has to be jigged on a mill and make sure to take the same amount off of both sides, ie split the width difference. Make sure to have a generous radius or chamfer on the mill line. It took a bit of fiddling around but we managed to do it on my brothers 84. However, changing to the 87 style front end would have netted better geometry and bigger brakes.....

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  15. #15

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    Quote Originally Posted by qtrracer View Post
    If the LTD has the same front spindles as the pre-87GT Mustangs, then your strut choices are pretty much limited to stock replacement. This is because of the spindle strut mounting flange being much wider than the later spindles. Bilstein, Koni and many other performance vendors don't make a strut for the wider mounting flange. FWIW, early on my 86 Mustang I used Monroe Formula GPs - these were Saleen spec strut/shock combo back in the day. These come with spacers so they can be used on both early and later MY Mustang spindles. Fairly good for what they are, but not when compared to a Bilstein or Koni.

    Also, you need to know that ride quality is a function of the stock rubber bushings used in the suspension. Ford use bonded rubber in all the articulation pieces which means they add wheel rate (more spring). As the arm moves through it's range of motion, the rubber twists (doesn't rotate) which acts like a torsion spring. The worst offenders are the rears if converging 4-link is used as on a Fox Mustang. So, if you increase spring rate over stock, expect the ride quality to degrade regardless of the strut/shock selected especially if stock replacements are used.
    I am actually running Strange 10 way coilovers on the front, with the 87+ 11” discs. My question is more directed to the rear shocks, of which I just ordered some Motorcraft replacements.


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
    1984 LTD LX, 160k mile Explorer 5.0, Comp XE264HR-14 cam, Alex’s Parts springs on stock GT40 3 bar heads, Unported Explorer intake, 1 5/8 shorty headers, off-road H-Pipe, Spintech 9000 mufflers, Holley Terminator X Max, J-Mod 4R70W, Mustang 8.8 w/ 3.73s, Tubular front and rear control arms, front coilovers, Turbocoupe rear coil springs

  16. #16
    FEP Power Member gmatt's Avatar
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    I just bought these for my LTD wagon, haven't installed yet. They are 'severe duty', spec'd for full size LTD(police, taxi). The mounting style, extended/compressed length, etc was the same as shocks that were specifically for the midsize LTD, so we'll see.
    https://www.rockauto.com/en/moreinfo...t=7556&jsn=463

  17. #17
    FEP Power Member gmatt's Avatar
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    Installed them today. Easy, peasy, no issues there. Haven't driven it yet.

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