7 months to get my shocks rebuilt now this....

Prepping car today for Idaho and found this on one of my rear shocks. I sent these in to KW in September and by the time they got new sliders and parts back from Germany and assembled, it was April. One race, High Desert Trails, which is not a rough road at all (no big jumps, one big downhill that loaded suspension at bottom then uphill).

Any armchair diagnosis from this picture?

Whip them off, get the springs off and pull the insert and plung it.
Pull the bump stop and slide the insert back into the tube and plunge it.
Feel for bind or any dead spots.
Look at shaft after plunging and see if there is any obvious leak of oil.

Armchair analysis and picies ain't going to help, doing the above should take 20 minutes.

Then report.

Whatever it is, it sucks but better now than service after SS4

---

John Vanlandingham
Sleezattle, WA, USA

Vive le Prole-le-ralliat

www.rallyrace.net/jvab
CALL +1 206 431-9696
Remember! Pacific Standard Time
is 3 hours behind Eastern Standard Time.

they "wet dirt" is where the shock fluid sprayed/leaked. pressure in the shock was at 90 (down from 150 pre race)

thanks for the reply, John.

I have never torn down a shock before and the only thing I have plunged is my toilet after a morning constitutional. If I run it the way that it is now, i just have bad (or no damping) on that corner. If I tear it down and find I cant fix it with parts on hand before thursday AM. then I am running with Plan B shocks, which are Mopar cheap-o coilovers.

If I do find the testicular fortitude to tear this down, can I just go to the local motorcycle store and get shock oil to put into it? I also need to figure out how much it takes.

Ugh

Quote
SeanP
thanks for the reply, John.

I have never torn down a shock before and the only thing I have plunged is my toilet after a morning constitutional. If I run it the way that it is now, i just have bad (or no damping) on that corner. If I tear it down and find I cant fix it with parts on hand before thursday AM. then I am running with Plan B shocks, which are Mopar cheap-o coilovers.

If I do find the testicular fortitude to tear this down, can I just go to the local motorcycle store and get shock oil to put into it? I also need to figure out how much it takes.

Ugh

READ CAREFULLY (time is tight) I am saying pull the insert out of the lower tube, NOT disassemble the insert. To do that look up the bottom of the tube --the slider and there is probably a 17 or maybe 19mm nut. Spin that off and then see if the bottom of the slider is threaded and if there's an allen or a slot in to shaft, screw it in and then pull the insert out of the tube/slider/lower thang.

This is all you should do:


Then proceed as above.

I don't know what you are doing checking gas pressure. If you simply put a gauge on you piss away gas and there's only a tiny volume of gas anyway so don't fawk with that.
Only way to muck with gas pressure---if i understand you---is with a special chuck with a shut off valve...

---

John Vanlandingham
Sleezattle, WA, USA

Vive le Prole-le-ralliat

www.rallyrace.net/jvab
CALL +1 206 431-9696
Remember! Pacific Standard Time
is 3 hours behind Eastern Standard Time.

Even if you can't figure it out throw some stockers on there and run anyway. Idaho is smooth enough to safely run stock suspension.

Last year, the roads were graded just before the rally. It was very smooth.

What about that huge jump I have seen in years past videos from Idaho Rally? That scares the crap out of me when it comes to these Mopar coilovers.

and John, thanks for the help. These coilovers are remote resevoir and disassembly would involve disconnecting the the hose and relieving pressure. I have a feeling that whatever I find is leaking, I won't have the parts to fix it and KW won't sell them to me. I am just annoyed because this is the same shock that was leaking prior to Gorman, which precipated me sending all 4 back to KW for a rebuild. 7 months later, one race and the damn thing is still spewing fluid.

That huge jump is not making an appearance. Old road.

It would be safe to run stock stuff. Provided you keep it within the ditches.

---

Brap Brap.

Read the above again.
Remote reservoir is for the internal of the shock. You have INVERTED design so the shock body is upside down. What John is saying is to remove the shock from the external casing which has nothing to do with the internal system or remote reservoir.

http://www.amfmotorsports.com/pdf/mit_evo.pdf

Read this excellent write up by Jon Burke.
http://www.dirtyimpreza.com/forums/showthread.php?t=6527

---

Grant Hughes

Is that a large groove that you are trying to picture?
You could always try to get ahold of Odi at Feal and get a rush check out. Most likely just a rock or something got through a shitty seal and maybe a bad bushing now. Damper is probably fine, unless you messed it up getting whatever pressure measure you report.

---

Grant Hughes

Quote
NoCoast
Is that a large groove that you are trying to picture?
You could always try to get ahold of Odi at Feal and get a rush check out. Most likely just a rock or something got through a shitty seal and maybe a bad bushing now. Damper is probably fine, unless you messed it up getting whatever pressure measure you report.

pretty sure it's the wet dirt that he's pointing out.

---

KF7RWG
http://www.utahrallygroup.com

Quote
Aaron Luptak

Quote
NoCoast
Is that a large groove that you are trying to picture?
You could always try to get ahold of Odi at Feal and get a rush check out. Most likely just a rock or something got through a shitty seal and maybe a bad bushing now. Damper is probably fine, unless you messed it up getting whatever pressure measure you report.

pretty sure it's the wet dirt that he's pointing out.

Good gawd.
The satin could be one blob of excess grease that got spat out and then melted, ran down..

That's what spinning the bottom nut off and sliding the slider/lower tube off was recommended to see if there is OIL in the tube, running down the shaft whatever...

---

John Vanlandingham
Sleezattle, WA, USA

Vive le Prole-le-ralliat

www.rallyrace.net/jvab
CALL +1 206 431-9696
Remember! Pacific Standard Time
is 3 hours behind Eastern Standard Time.

Alright, I put my big boy panties on and removed the shock and took it apart.



Relieve tension on the coil seat (after measuring first) and impacted the nut on the bottom.

Pulled it apart and, sure enough, there was dirt/decomposed granite in the shock body





Hosed out the body


Measured the travel for John since he will want to know. 6.75"





Found another problem. The swivel fitting on the remote res. is leaking at the fitting. I am wondering if the fitting is also leaking at the top of the shock.


Questions from me:
1) How much grease do I need to put on the inside of the shock body for the slider?
2) Could all that grease/dirt in my first pic on this thread come from grease spewing out the top of the wiper seal?
3) Would I have a problem drilling a small drain hole in the bottom of the housing to make sure no water builds up in there.


Thanks, all. I wouldn't have had the balls to take it apart without reading this thread.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/04/2012 02:09PM by SeanP.

Good. Sean I won't suggest anything you shouldn't do, OK? Now you've done it you see it was really easy... trust me. You may not like HOW I say things but even if it seems mean, the INTENT is always pure, and in all relationships---even clicky clacky ones intent is important and so is a good deal of trust..

OK first thing: if there is currently no hole then immediately drill one. I try and clock the hole so its at the lowest point and the nut doesn't obscure it---or the bump rubber, so nearer the edge than the center.
Under 1/8 will do.

Grease: choose a color. I use some green stuff, goes with the paint scheme.
I use an old LONG shoe horn that has a curve and I fill the space between the two bushings inside the tube. Kinda like this is the inside of the tube and the shoe horn: Cc
Do it good. Shove the insert in as a wiper and pull it out and wipe the excess off. Grease around the upper wiper. and put a dab on the threads of the insert.

Now, this is that part that drives me nuts, repeating things.
Did you stroke the insert?
Did you wipe the shaft and then stroke it again?
Did you see a ring of oil all round the shaft/rod/whatever the skinny thing is?

Also ---again---what did you do to come up with the PSI you quoted at the beginning?

And as for the travel, what is with these people who sell such short crap? 170mm (6.687 or 6 11/16th) That's what I supply for road cars.
If they don't grasp the concept of travel, I have to seriously question what they are thinking on damping and spring rates...That is basic stuff.
Pobrecito.

---

John Vanlandingham
Sleezattle, WA, USA

Vive le Prole-le-ralliat

www.rallyrace.net/jvab
CALL +1 206 431-9696
Remember! Pacific Standard Time
is 3 hours behind Eastern Standard Time.