88 rear struts (Page 1/3)
mcguiver3 SEP 02, 02:56 PM
I know the Koni rear struts are no longer available for the 88 or earlier cars but is there an alternative to them?
I have mine as coil-overs and would like to know if there are any other applications that Koni does make that could be adapted?
qwikgta SEP 07, 01:03 AM
You can still get Koni rear struts. Check out west coast fieros, or FieroGuru.
mcguiver3 SEP 07, 10:09 AM
WCF site said they are not available and Fieroguru's site doesn't list them at all
fieroguru SEP 07, 12:01 PM

quote
Originally posted by mcguiver3:

WCF site said they are not available and Fieroguru's site doesn't list them at all



They are discontinued...

I have correspondence from the Product Manager at Koni US over the Fiero product line. They were discontinued last year due to the stamping supplier for the strut/knuckle attachment bracket going bankrupt. They haven't found an economical supplier for that part in Europe at the volumes the Fiero product needs. The Fiero was the only application they supported that used that specific attachment bracket.

A lot of places still list them, but if you ask if they are in stock or if they can order them, they will come back with nothing. I have contacted pretty much every vendor or distributor that Koni sold to in the last year of production... every one of them is out of stock.

[This message has been edited by fieroguru (edited 09-07-2019).]

cvxjet SEP 07, 04:46 PM
I have a somewhat Crazy idea; Bilstein makes some very good strut >>INSERTS<< that you can easily set up for the Fiero in whatever tuning you need- but the problem is fitting an insert to a Fiero Knuckle.

Could someone make an Insert holder/adapter for the Fiero which would allow us to have the better Monotube shocks? I know a guy had posted a how-to of cutting an old strut apart and welding/modifying it to be an insert adapter- but it seems someone could make a good one and then sell it- I would really enjoy having the modern "Good ride AND good handling" that newer shocks give you....

Just a crazy idea......
wftb SEP 07, 06:40 PM
http://www.ns355.ca/struts.html

Former member here used QA1 struts, did a search on QA1 for part HS606S-1235 no results found. Another dead end.

On my 91 civic wagon I bought D2 racing coilovers and they work well, could use lighter springs but I am happy with them and the price for a set of 4 was around 800.00. The reason I mention these is the way the bottom mount threads in to the tube for initial ride height adjustment. An adapter could be made to take advantage of this feature so they could bolt up to a Fiero spindle. The spring adjustment is further up the shock on its own threaded perch. The ones I have are not really struts but a multitude of different companies make struts like this.

QA1 does make actual struts for Camaros and Mustangs but they are around 1000.00 plus for double adjustable including springs. Too much money for me considering the amount of modifying they would need to work.

------------------
86 GT built 2.2 ecotec turbo
rear SLA suspension
QA1 coilovers on tube arms

Notorio SEP 14, 01:04 AM
The Fiero Store has the KYB struts, that I plan to get later this year (I hope).
qwikgta SEP 14, 07:38 PM
I spend lot of time walking my local pick and pull. I see stuff all the time that would be great on a Fiero. I don't have the time and skill, but someone could make a lot of money if they could figure out how to take the new GM suspension, brakes, steering, control arms, struts ect... and make them work on our cars. I daily drive a 18 year old car w/ 200K miles on it and it still drives better than my 75K 88 Fiero. Getting a larger rotor to fit our cars is one thing, but getting control arms, steering, struts/shock to fit would be awesome. I'd love to have new bearings w/ the 5x115 bolt pattern.

New GM spindles for FWD cars are aluminum, the cradles are aluminum and they already have 1" thick, vented rotors. I have an 88 so those "old style" spindles would not work for me, but if I had a 84-87 car i''d have purchased a few of them and test fit them. I know this may sound ignorant, but it cant be that difficult to make that stuff fit the rear of a 84-87 car.

OK, im off my soap box.

Rob
wftb SEP 15, 09:11 AM
GM, Ford and Honda all make a spindle that has an extra pivot point at the top that allows the strut to not have anything to do with the steering of a front wheel drive car. This feature allows a scrub radius of almost 0, all but eliminating torque steer from high powered front wheel drive cars. None available in the pick and pull near me, I keep checking their car list and no luck so far. A spindle like that would make a big improvement for the rear suspension on my car .

------------------
86 GT built 2.2 ecotec turbo
rear SLA suspension
QA1 coilovers on tube arms

fieroguru SEP 15, 10:49 AM
Rob, I can assure you that there are people out there working on finding a workable combination of later model aluminum suspension parts. This setup will likely replace the front suspension components on my 88 (custom fab work for the crossmember required - or just build a tubular setup). Its primary purpose is to allow AWD, but I also like the idea of all the components being aluminum, the knuckle will allow larger stock wheel bearings in multiple bolt patterns, as well as increase available brake rotor and caliper options.


The aluminum W-body uprights as well as a modified aluminum rear cradle have already been used (Mwhite's LS4/F40 buid). But it has its own share of challenges...


I am always looking for methods to get the best compromise with handling and ride quality since I daily drive my modified Fiero 9 months of the year and put about 8,000 to 10,000 miles on it annually. I recently started to pay more attention to which end of the car has the more significant impact loads and on my car, it is definitely the front.

Which brings me to why is that the case. The front is lighter, has narrower tires with more sidewall, lower spring rate, etc... than the rear. The big difference is the front has poly bushings and the rear has rod end lateral links (which don't contribute to road harshness) and rubber bushings in the trailing link.

I am beginning to think that many of us are approaching this issue wrong. The use of poly bushings to reduce suspension deflection predates the extreme low profile tires and super stiff side walls that are not very common. So when poly was first introduced, the added stiffness potential increase or ride harshness was largely absorbed by the taller and more flexible tires. Now you can buy tires that will significantly tighten up suspension response and handling... is switching to poly bushings really worth it anymore?

All the new cars that we rave about ride quality and performance, none are running poly bushings from the factory... Once of these days, I think I will swap back to rubber bushings in the lower control arm and see what happens.

[This message has been edited by fieroguru (edited 09-15-2019).]