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I figured I'd check with the experts here and see if anyone has a good recommendation before I reached out to a few manufacturers to see if there was a good option that might be 1-2" shorter that what's listed as a "stock replacement"
The Situation:
The PO definitely cut the front springs a bit on my 1981 and I've recently added 8" bolts to the rear to level her out a bit. I love the looks and the ride is decent. I'm not going for any major suspension upgrades at this point.
The rear shocks looked pretty spent to begin with but now with the rear a bit lower I've got one leaking.
The Question:
Has anyone found a good stock replacement that would incorporate the ride height being 2 inches or lower? I figure there isn't a ton of travel on these to begin with.
These are what I've found for stock options:
Monroe (Rear) 5850
Monroe (front) - 5906
neither one of those would be considered top choices.
have you looked at Bilstein, Koni, and QA1 ?
Not yet. I'm not sure which way I'm going with the suspension yet and want something that's inexpensive but won't bottom out just because the ride height is a little lower than stock
I personally do not like KYB's or Monroes...mass market retail shocks that are at best just OK. My 78 is lowered in the front about 1.5 inches with 550 springs cut 1/2 coil and a 360 composite rear spring in the back and I use Bilstein HD's in front and Sports in the rear with zero issues. KYB's were mushy and the Monroe Police struts that I use on my daily driver were leaking after 50,000 miles...not lowered. The Bilstein's on my suspension are firm but not harsh...great ride, handling, and steering response...
What you are looking for is the shortest shock body to make up for the lowering and a stiffer compression/rebound rate to make up for the shorter shaft stroke from the stiffer springs.
I do not know the answer to your question but I would start by looking at the Bilsteins.
Shocks Recommendation - For Slightly lowered C3
