When I picked up my new rear Gabrial shocks at Autozone tonite for my 85 I noticed that they looked identical to my TPIS shocks that I was replacing.After looking at them side by side I noticed that they even have the same serial###on them???Could they be the exact same shock TPIS selling for alot more $$$

 

Did you buy the TPIS shocks new? Perhaps if they were used, someone didn't sell you what they said. : )

-Joe

 

You don't really believe TPiS MAKES shocks, do you?

RACE ON!!!

 

I purchased these dirrect from TPIS

 

And they purchased them direct from Gabriel and put their name on them.

Most aftermarket "tuners shops" buy a number of parts they sell as "theirs" from outside manufactures and just put their name on them.

 

Please let us know what you think of them. You may have just found a way for others to save some cash!

 

Yeah, That is what I was thinkin

 

I will post after I install them tomorrow.

 

They could have revalved them too though...

 

Gabriels are one of the best buys.... Front and rears are around $50.00 on Ebay. They ride great and are a good replacement.

 

if it is i will never buy anything from TPIS....

 

 

Every company sells another companies product. So remove the middle man and you save the $$. Like if you buy anything from Summit racing. If it sais Summit brand on it its somthing else. I bought summit 1.6rr and they turned out to be comp cams. But that may not be all the time.

 

I bought shocks from Mid-America a few years ago...turns out they were Gabrial. Helped smooth out the Z-51s harshness.

 

This morning I spoke to TPIS and they told me that they may possibly share the same cases but the internals were not the same and that they would have gladly sold me a replacment for $44.I said thanks but I already purchased two rear Gabrials.The guy was cool and said if I changed my mind to call back because NOBODYS shocks are like TPIS shocks.

Ok,When I took off the rear left(passenger) TPIS shock it was beyond trashed, it had absoulutly ZERO rebound left to it.These were installed as a set of 4 back at the beginning of the summer and this car is not driven every day or driven very hard.After I installed them at the beginning of summer I backed into a curb with my right rear tire.After this happend I removed the tire to inspect and I saw that the TPIS shock eye had slightly bent under the impact. I told TPIS about this and they told me that sort of thing was not covered by warranty.Also the man that I spoke to back then did not seem very interested in selling one shock.So what I did was replaced the bent TPIS shock with one of my old oem Bilsteins and off I went.

Over the next few months the car kept getting more and more sloppy.I was thinking that it was that old Bilstein( WRONG) When I went to replace my rears today thats when I noticed that the 20 year old Bilstein still had life but it was the brand new TPIS shock that was the culprit.So I plan to get rid of the TPIS fronts asap.


Also the Gabrials that I installed on the rear today dont seem half bad.Granted they are no Bilstien but some of these Connecticut roads are just too rough with my Z51 package. After I install new fronts I will repost.

 

I have always found that Bilsteins (either on my Vettes or Jeeps) are 100,000 mile shocks. The Gabriels I have used went the max to 25,000 miles. And during their lifetime the Bilsteins were clearly a better performing shock. Considering that shocks are a part that works every minute you use the car and how important they are to the driving experience (which is why most people buy a Corvette in the first place) and that Bilsteins last so much longer I can never understand why people do not pay the moderate price diifference to get the Bilsteins.

 

This topic has always bothered me. Why is it that some car owners will spend thousands of dollars on wheels and tires, brag on their performance suspension kits, and come to a dead stop when it comes to buying shocks? The shock is one of THE most important components of your suspension's performance and quality of ride. No flame intended, just trying to understand the logic of trying to save a buck when it comes to shocks?

 

Belive me, I spare hardly no expence on this car.I was just looking for a shock that was a little less harsh than my Z51 Bilsteins. If you know of a good one let me know

 

...and a car doesn't have to ride like a Tank to corner well, in fact they can be too stiff, and hurt cornering on rougher pavement.

 

You should really wait until they're finished with Rt.11 before you go racing around on it.