The left stock shock is failing and I need to find front replacement shocks for my 08 S.

When I purchased the car I ordered the "Sport Suspension", now I'm wondering what kind of shocks were installed and what should I replace them with. Springs and shock mount look good, I guess just need to replace the shocks.

 

Nike sport sox

 

ha ha

 

Replace them in pairs is recommended. Is the front corner bouncing a little.

Here are the OEM part number , you can check the shocks an there should be a little white sticker that has the part number, if its not these number it might be an older part number. With those I can find out if you have the sport suspension or stock S suspension.

Here is an example of the sticker : should be 11 digit number between the top and lower metal bracket for the brake hose / abs.



#1

Strut Assembly - Priced Each - Front - Left "Sport" Part number 31316782211


http://www.ecstuning.com/Search/SiteSearch/31316782211/


Strut Assembly - Priced Each - Front - Right "Sport" Part number 31316782212


http://www.ecstuning.com/Search/SiteSearch/31316782212/


Thanks

 

Thanks, I'll look it up when I get home

 

My car came with the sport suspension, and the labels said 'cooper S Sport'. I replaced them with stock shocks, and the labels said 'Cooper S'.

My ride and perceived handling improved greatly with koni yellow shocks. Others here have good things to say about the koni FSD shocks.

Unless you are in love with the way that you car rides, I would seriously think about a set of aftermarket shocks. I would guess that the pricing is similar, but I don't know for sure.

Like the ECS guys said, replace both in front. If you are going aftermarket, I recommend replacing all 4.

Have fun,
Mike

 

So handling improved with the Koni Yellow shocks? now what do you mean by improved ride, because I would think the Koni yellow sports are stiffer.

Did you upgrade the springs and mounts also? or just the shocks to the Koni?

And no, I'm not really I'm love with the ride on my car, it is too hard, I like the handling with the MINI "Sport Suspension" the not the ride, that's why I'm asking you if the ride is somehow smoother with the Konis

Thanks!

 

I went through several iterations. I started with stock sport suspension, then added tsw springs. Ride went from stiff to harsh. I then kept the tsw springs and put the 'normal' cooper S shocks on, and the ride improved. I drove it like that for about 10-12k miles. This spring I picked up a set of yellows and put them on with the TSW springs. The yellows are adjustable, and I have them set to the 'normal' setting recommended by Koni (not the stiffer setting). The car is more controlled over bumps with these shocks, and a bump in the middle of a corner is less unsettling. The car absorbs the small bumps better than the stock dampers.

I would not hesitate to recommend the tsw/yellow setup to guys that want a small drop and more controlled MINI.

Have fun,
Mike

 

Thanks for this info. I find my non-sport shocks very unsettling (half a lane change) when I hit a bump in a corner, and very harsh in general. I'll plan on getting the Koni yellows.

 

There are guys on here who have recommended the Koni FSD for vehicles that are not lowered. Its worth doing the research and searching history here to get more opinions.

For my style of driving and needs, I'm really satisfied with my setup.

Mike

 

With repeated exchanging of the rear shocks, how much truth is there in having problems with the bottom strut bolt stripping the aluminum trailing arm and failing while driving?

 

I stripped one when trying to torque it to 120 ft lb. I drove with the stripped bolt for a couple of days before repairing, it did not loosen or break.

Personally, I think that the torque value for that feature is too high. The issue is that the bolt is not truly round, it is slightly triangular in shape. This creates a self-locking feature when it goes into the aluminum arm. Therefore, there is some interference with the bolt, which results in some aluminum being removed every time that the bolt is removed and reinstalled. There are a couple of different threads here about repair methods.
I think that if you clean the bolt and control arm, install the bolt with some blue loctite, and torque it to about 80-90 ft lbs, you should not have problems.

Mike