shocks and struts, what kind??

[MegaVibeGirl]

Hi,
I am new to this! Just bought my 2006 Vibe Base, 2wd, and I noticed a "clunking" sound coming from the front passenger side when hitting bumps. My boyfriend put it on the rack and checked everything, and could only come up with it needing new struts, boots, and strut mounts. I figured we would just replace all the shocks, struts, mounts, and boots since my vibe has 105k and they have not been replaced yet. Can anyone recommend a good brand??

[vibevic]

Tokico is good. KYB is another brand that is alright. I would stay away from Monroe.

[TerribleTim]

So Mega, did you replace the struts, and did the clunking go away? What brand??

I got the same thing on the LF.

I thought it was ball jts, but my alignment guys says this strut is leaking.
I'm looking for opinions on strut brands.
I also stay away from Monroe.

[SeattleJeremy]

Monroe and KYB both make OEM quality products, that are valved very similar to what came on the car new.

I purchased Tokico struts because they have a firmer ride, that is compatible with autocross duties.

[MegaVibeGirl]

TerribleTim, I haven't done anything yet, so i'm still not 100% sure if the clunking noise is coming from the struts, mounts, or something else. I am swaying towards buying KYB, but I am going to look into the Tokico brand also. Thanks for all the recommendations everyone!!

[TerribleTim]

Tnx for the input, Jeremy.
Mega, for the same money I would go for the Tokico, although I suspect they may be quite a bit more.
KYB 's are all over online for cheap.

I discovered Tokico has a line of adjustable shocks which may be the answer to front end sway on other car I have. I was looking for coilovers, but these are much cheaper, even at $500 per pair.
Tokico also has a std line which are firmer than OEM struts and non-adjustable.

[SeattleJeremy]

I should point out my car has the Tokico HP Series (blue) struts, and they've been very good.

What are your goals for the car?
What do you mean by front end sway? Does the car lean too much or is it under-steering?

[TerribleTim]

The Vibe is my wife's daily driver, so the plan is to keep it reliable and comfortable.

The car with the issue is an 07 Yaris. Not a performance car, which is why there's no coilovers, but the Tokico adjustables or maybe the blue HP's could fix it.
The problem is front end sway or roll at high speed (60+)under two conditions. A fast swerve such as a quick lane change or evasive manuever (junk in the road). The other is doing a steady turn /curve like on a highway flyover ramp and going over a dip or lump. The front end goes nuts. Definitely loss of control due to roll.
In troubleshooting the problem, I put on a TRD rear sway bar, which did nothing. I also tested larger wheel, low profile tires, which helped slightly. So it's pretty much the struts. Like most Toyotas, the ride is soft, and I don't want to increase the spring rate. Hoping stiffer shocks will fix it...
Any other ideas??

[SeattleJeremy]

The Vibe is my wife's daily driver, so the plan is to keep it reliable and comfortable.

The car with the issue is an 07 Yaris. Not a performance car, which is why there's no coilovers, but the Tokico adjustables or maybe the blue HP's could fix it.
The problem is front end sway or roll at high speed (60+)under two conditions. A fast swerve such as a quick lane change or evasive manuever (junk in the road). The other is doing a steady turn /curve like on a highway flyover ramp and going over a dip or lump. The front end goes nuts. Definitely loss of control due to roll.
In troubleshooting the problem, I put on a TRD rear sway bar, which did nothing. I also tested larger wheel, low profile tires, which helped slightly. So it's pretty much the struts. Like most Toyotas, the ride is soft, and I don't want to increase the spring rate. Hoping stiffer shocks will fix it...
Any other ideas??

So the the suspension is in working condition, it's just not performing well enough in these situations? Upgrading the struts sounds like a good solution. Like I said earlier in this thread I've been happy with the Tokico blues. I don't think the expense of adjustable struts is worth it.

[TerribleTim]

Thanks. Agree completely.
Will price the blues. The Yaris only has 35K on it, but I feel it's an unsafe condition.

[TerribleTim]

Update--

I replaced the LF strut mount to fix the clunking noise with a Gabriel from Rock Auto.
No dice,
The noise is still there, just slightly different sound and it feels tighter. I checked the shock with the spring off and it didn't look wet, but it felt funny, a little loose. I should have replaced it as the mount and shock were probably both bad. the mount wasn't that bad, but was apparently contributing. I should have caught on from a noticable wheel hop in the LF. Now I have to do it again. Will probably just put in a cheapo shock on the one side as the other side seems ok.
Live & Learn.

[vibrologist]

If you can swing it put decent struts and mounts on both sides and get a wheel alignment after mounting them.

[sideshowalan]

Update--
Will probably just put in a cheapo shock on the one side as the other side seems ok.

Struts and shocks should always be replaced in pairs, if one side failed the other isn't far behind.
You also don't want different handling characteristics from one side of the car to the other.

[TerribleTim]

Thanks, Guys.

I wondered about the alignment after taking out the two 22mm bolts on the strut. Someone in this forum has even mentioned the slack in these holes is a good camber adjustment which the Vibe doesn't have. And I've had a runaround with alignment inspections in the past.

Regarding pairs, I know this is proper maintenance, but I was shocked (LOL) at how much these suckers cost. Also, I'm pretty sure I blew out the left by subjecting it to 30 miles of potholes and washboards on a local ranch road. The other three shocks/struts look and feel ok. Plus, the Vibe now has about 140k on it.

The main reason I want to replace it is the wheel hop. I have a very expensive set of 90k Pirellis on the Vibe and I don't want to mess them up. I had a bad experience with Pirellis a long time ago so I was reluctant to go for these, but thet're awesome on the highway. They have real stiff sidewalls which apparently work well with the Vibe suspension and steering.

[vibrologist]

The main reason I want to replace it is the wheel hop. I have a very expensive set of 90k Pirellis on the Vibe and I don't want to mess them up. I had a bad experience with Pirellis a long time ago so I was reluctant to go for these, but thet're awesome on the highway. They have real stiff sidewalls which apparently work well with the Vibe suspension and steering.

And that exactly is the reason you should do pairs and wheel alignment $$ be damned. Besides, what's 140K for a Vibe? And while you are at it have the tie rod ends and control arm bushings checked.

I understand it can be hard to find a good alignment shop. I am lucky in this regard. However, even my favorite shop is not perfect. But they get it right the second time. I make a point of telling them to keep the steering wheel straight.

[TerribleTim]

So what's a good shock these days??

Since its the front, might as well go quality.

[vibrologist]

So what's a good shock these days??

Since its the front, might as well go quality.

The words "good" and "quality" have too many dimensions in this context. I am engaged in this discussion because I am not happy with the "ride comfort" of my original KYB struts (not shock absorbers). But, they are "good" in a sense that they do the job as designed at 90K miles of usage. Original equipment should be your bench mark. Therefore: KYB
If you want better handling: KYB GR2, Tokico blue, Bilstein, Koni.
If you want a more comfortable ride at the expense of a little bit of handling: Monroe Sensa-Trac and Gabriel. Someone

I have never seen any report where someone made a direct comparison between these struts on the same car on the same road in comparable conditions. Therefore I am basing this on comments by users who compare their new struts with worn old struts. Invariably, they are "better". But some guys were a bit more sensitive and could tell which ones improved handling, or comfort or even both: Tokico blue.

So get the Gabriel strut mount for the other side and choose the struts that has the best chance of matching your wife's driving requirements. For everyday driving Monroe Sensa-trac worked always well for me. (And I would not care if an anonymous snotty nosed teenager says on the web that these suck.)

[TerribleTim]

Tnx for the input, Vibro. Sounds good.

This is strictly a comfort car, so I may let price make the call.
Pretty sure the Monroes will win.
I had bad experience with Monroes years ago on Macpherson struts, but that was too long ago to be relevant.
You sure the oem shocks are KYB?? I didn't look while I had it out.

Another car is a Yaris which has real nasty front end body roll since new which I've isolated to the shocks.
I need better performance from this car (put on a TRD rear sway bar to help).
SeattleJeremy up above is keen on Tokico Blues for performance as well.
I've used adjustable coilovers on Civics, but they're way too expensive for a street car.
Sounds like the blues are the way to go for this problem.
I'm tempted to contact these manufacturers and try to get the tech specs on valving / damping / rates, etc.

[vibrologist]

TT:
I am pretty sure that the Vibe comes from the factory on KYB's. That's what I learned from several posts, here and on the Toyota forums. That would be the standard KYB's not the GR-2. Go tot he KYB website to learn the difference.
Just to nail down a price is hard work in itself. Typically you replace the strut and the strut mounts together. Most of the time you can reuse the dust bellows and the lower and upper spring isolators
(BTW: they are struts, not shocks. The difference being that the struts carry the springs and are the top anchor points for the suspension to the body and thus are involved in steering and control of lateral forces, where as shock absorbers don't. They only dampen the spring action of the suspension. But a lot of people use "shocks" as a generic term for both types.)

If your Yaris still sways too much consider beefing up the front sway bar. But not too much or the inside corner wheel will slip too often: the rear sway bar should be harder than the front sway bar in front wheel drive applications.
My approach for the Yaris would be:
1. upgrade the struts (Tokico blue if available)
2. beef up the sway bars
3. lowering springs
4. urethane suspension bushings
5. slow down

If you knew your endpoint when you will be happy you could achieve it the first time. If you do it step by step you will incur the same basic job several times. Every time you mess with the anchor points of the suspension you have to do an alignment. Only changing the sway bars does not require an alignment. Since you have done the rear swaybar already you may opt to beef up the front sway bar as a 2nd step. If that's not doing it you will need to yank the struts.

But I have to make a point here: I have not modified any of my vehicles for performance ever, except my moped 45 years ago. Therefore everything I say in this regard is accumulated theoretical knowledge.

Here is a link to an exploded view of the assembly:
http://www.microficher.com/2006-toyota- ... -diagram-2" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[TerribleTim]

Vibro-

Tnx for all the info and attachment. I use shock and strut terms interchangeably, but am aware of the mechanical difference. I usually say strut assembly and shock for the dampener part(without the spring / mount), but appreciate the need for accuracy and conciseness.

My boots are shot from the same ranch road that ruined the "shock" and mount. The isolator didn't look to hot either. My nephew did a front strut replacement on his sisters Pontiac Grand Am a while back and he bought a Monroe strut package that included the entire assembly, including the spring, for a surprisingly low price. Made the job take about 15 min. I may look into this since all the rubber is bad. He's an Army mechanic so time is of the essence and cost is no object. ;O)

Regarding the Yaris, you are right on. The best solution would be a stiffer sway bar on the front. This would leave me the soft mushy ride that an old man like me appreciates without as much roll. TRD doesn't have one so this is a diy job. Yaris is no performance car and aftermarket stuff is limited. It only has 35k miles on it. I am hoping Tokico has blues for it.
Tnx again.

[vibrologist]

Keep us posted.

http://www.tanabe-usa.com/rnd/category/ ... -Door.aspx" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[TerribleTim]

Ordered a pair of Monroe QuickStrut kits which is the entire assy from Rock Auto to speed up the job.

Fyi the guys at Rock seem to feel ACDelco is the oem strut on the Vibe. They may be confusing the Vibe with other Pontiacs, but its possible. The Matrix listing doesn't state which is the oem brand, but I guess it would be KYB. Can't see Toyota buying ACDelco.

That Tanabe sway bar is one inch diameter!! Think the one in there now is about 5/8 inch. I hope that would fix my roll problem by itself without messing with the shocks.

[ParknVibe]

The OEM struts for the Vibe are KYB...it is stamped on the body of the Struts and shocks... Made for Toyota.

[vibrologist]

A sway bar is the way to go. Do a little research, there may be something less severe out there. This one is definitely intended for racing. Too bad you have to drop the subframe to mount the sway bar.