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Hello all. Looking at buying my first Corvette, a 2017 Grand Sport with 39,000 miles. Had the dealer take it to a local shop (not a vette specialist) for a pre purchase inspection and they are saying the magnetic ride control shocks need replaced. I have read several places that these shocks will weep some fluid and that doesn't always mean they are bad. We had a 2020 Suburban that had magnaride and those lasted well over 70k miles. Also said the motor and transmission mounts are starting to fail, and the tranny, brake and coolant fluids all needed to be replaced, as it has been 2 years since these fluids were changed out (4000 miles). I am buying out of state...the car is in AZ and I am in CO, so can't run down there and check it out in person. Thought this would be the best place to get thoughts. Thanks in advance and we are very excited to get a vette and join the community!
That does not look excessive to me and I would not be replacing them unless the ride is suffering as a result. Good luck with the purchase if you decide to go with it. I'm in Tucson. If it is in that area, I would be willing to hop on a motorcycle and go take a look at it.....I am no mechanic, but have had a couple Corvettes and replaced mag ride shocks.
Thanks fellas. My neighbor is a mechanic and also has a 17 GS. He said he was not worried about them based on the pics. Sometimes I think the mechanics doing a PPI feel they have to find some issues! Think I will move forward.
Has anyone experienced motor and transmission mounts going out so soon? That seems more odd to me than the shocks. I talked to the sales guy and asked if there was any shuddering, shaking, or thuds upon acceleration or braking and he said no.
I don't think those MRC shocks look bad as they will weep like that. GM published a diagram that shows what an acceptable amount of weepage is. The GM TSB describing acceptable weepage is attached to this post.
Bill
Last edited by Bill Dearborn; May 22, 2026 at 02:35 AM.
2017 is a good year for C7s. The mileage is OK. (these are cars and meant to be driven). Just on principal i would also recommend fluid changes. that way you are sure of what you have and how old it is. Check tire wear. (GM is famous for putting an aggressive alignment on these cars with the result that inside tire wear is horrible. Great for track. Sucks for street). MSR shocks are very expensive to replace (both parts and labor) Hence the justified concern. How critical is it to you to have the MSR shocks? Many owners have replaced these shocks when they wear out with high quality standard shocks from Bilstein, KYB, or other brands. You will lose adjustability. But you will save a lot of money and very little in performance except at the track, where MSR firms to the point of discomfort.
I find it hard to believe that at 39,000 miles the motor and tranny mounts are bad.
That depends on how it was driven. That is the one observation on this car that would give me slight hesitation. Motor and tranny mounts can quickly be destroyed with the proper inputs. But they are almost 10 yrs old and not actually failed at this point. The test drive is always the final test.... a nice, long, unbiased test drive..
Based on your shock pics, those shocks do not need a replacement, the coolant & trans fluid do not need to be changed out every 2 years. Buy yourself some cheap test strips on Amazon & check the brake fluid quality yourself
I believe GM says seepage down the top 1/3 of the shock is normal. I had one fail and it was puking fluid all over. The rest of my shocks look similar to that one. ~$400 from Rock auto and super easy to swap out.
I had all of that recently done on a corvette that has 10k less miles. Before doing that, I had issues with bump steer and it came back as an issue with not the alignment but the shocks / motor mounts. I would not buy the car without them replaced.
Is the car A8 or M7? With the M7 I guess it might be possible to punish the motor and transmission mounts into submission if every launch/shift is competition spec. I've got an A8 Z07 that just turned 44k and has had some rough road time and autocross, etc. and as far as I know my transmission and motor mounts are just fine.
As an aside, based on what I know, the shock in the photo looks okay to me as well.
Magnaride bad? Need thoughts...
