Hi There,
Just as the topic states i want to buy shocks for b-stock. I wanna order them tonight, so quick answers are greatly appreciated.

i tried searching for a while but couldn't find and concise answers.

what is the best deal without spending over $1,000?

Im a little confused about the koni yellows, as koni lists them for like 500 a pair, and other sites are listing them for around 170 a pair????

is there anything better than the yellows without going over a grand?

if you could include the best place to purchase whatever shocks u recommend, that would be greatly appreciated.

thanks,
Jordan

 

Get the koni yellows. I got my new set from an Ebay vendor for ~$600 shipped.

 

ya i'm kinda leaning towards the yellows.

I was jsut talking to my cousin who said he used to run a set of bilstein autocross shocks on his saab back in the day (he was extremely competitive with that car). do they make such a thing for the rx-8?

 

Yep...and there's a whole, long thread dedicated to the subject...search is your friend.

Most National RX8's run the Koni yellows, whether that is a lemming effect, based on ULLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLOSE consistently kicking everyone's axx in Topeka, or whether it is a pragamatic choice?....only the shadow knows...

 

They are bilstein's which fit this car - come stock on the 40th anniversary model and the '09 R3 model iirc (maybe the Shinka as well???). Either way, the bilsteins are non-adjustable and will need to be revalved. Unless you use a shop that's experienced with autocross revalves, what you get back could be hit or miss.

Konis are the best for your money. A set of 4 shouldn't cost $1,000.00 but somewhere in the $600-$650 range. Koni rebuilds them for free at Solo Nats and they have a great warranty program.

 

ok sounds like its konis. Any reccomendation on where to buy them?

 

www.stranoparts.com

Sam Strano has them for a few bucks less than Tirerack and he is an autocrosser (5 time National champ), very helpful and always available by phone for questions. Tirerack is also a great place to do business, though...

 

This may be a stupid question but why not Tokico D-specs?

 

+1 Just a satified customer.

 

It's not a stupid question, but search is your friend...it's been discussed quite a bit on this board

btw, I don't think you'll find one winning National level RX8 on D-specs, fwiw.

 

I think only the 40th Anniversary Bilsteins are B Stock legal; the HDs are not legal for B Stock. Unfortunately, the 40th Anniversary ones are not snap rings and so are quite a bit more difficult than the HDs to revalve.

 

Then again there's only one RX-8 that's won on the National Level at B Stock.

 

I should have been more clear...by "National level", I meant Tours, Pros, Pro Finale and Nationals.

 

www.tirerack.com

 

For a thousand bucks, you could probably get some used konis and then have them degassed, revalved, etc.

 

A customer of mine gave me a heads up about this thread, so I swung by to check it out.

I do have Koni's and D-specs too. In fact I've use and won on both. I have my preferences and reasons why, but those are details that are a little to complex for forum chatter.

Cost. On Sept 1. Koni had an approximate 10% price hike across the board due to the weak dollar vs the Euro and inflation in general. Before that the shocks were about 10% less than they are currently are. I sell for a more than fair price. And we currently offering free shipping on the Koni's as well. And unlike most places you call you can't get advice from folks who actually use and compete on the products.... that's not the case here because I own and run my business and take the time to talk to customers and seek to understand their needs and can give input you can't get just anywhere.

As for Ebay and so on. It's very hard to compete with places that don't have overhead because they work out of their kitchen, or are all about selling on volume to get the greatest possible discount. That's Wal-Mart type service, not the family business model. The way I and businesses like mine do it is by offering the best service we can. Ebay can't help you with car setup, driving advice, a primer about how the damping works and what changes you can expect from it and how to adjust the shocks for a specific change.

I have to say that I'm a little disappointed by a previous post from someone I race with running to Ebay when at the time it might have saved about $40 vs. going with me. I didn't even have the chance for the sale, and can't offer the services I would have at any time.

As you can see a few folks here are customers, and it makes me quite happy to see they are pleased enough with my service to recommend me. I know I can't get everyone, but this is not a side business for me like it is for a number of Ebay type places. I'm also not a huge company that can get the biggest discounts and make the margin up on volume. I just try to sell for the fairest price I can, and back it up with the best service I can.

 

Sam,

I'll have to say, at the time when I bought my RX-8 I had no clue that you sold parts for the Mazda RX-8. My searching on this forum lead me to a vendor which had gone out of business (DPE) and Ebay. I'll definitely check your store in the future. I always try to support my local autocross peers/mentors.

Chike Dellimore

 

Sam i'm really sorry, i was in a hurry and bought them on tire rack before i saw your post. I get really impatient sometimes Anyway, next time i need anything i will most certainly give you a call. I really appreciate you taking the time to respond.

thanks,
Jordan

 

^you can always cancel w/Tire Rack...no harm.

disclaimer: I spend thousands every year with Tire Rack. I just like to share the love...

 

If you mean "winning" as in 1st place, I suspect you are right.

But, I have trophied at Packwood in '06, '07, and '08 on D-Specs, and finished .5 sec out of the trophies at nats in '06. In '07 I did nats in Joe Goeke's car, which is koni-shod but otherwise setup very similarly to my car, and finished 1.2 sec out of the trophies.

Not saying the Konis slowed me down (I had a bad day each year - don't most of us?), but I've driven Joe's car enough to say that I can't tell a difference. Could Jason? Probably. But I think the difference would be very small - which is of course super important for Jason, but at the noise level for me.

If I were looking to take my driving to the next level, other than entering a lot more events, I'd consider replacing the D-Specs, but not with Koni Yellows. I just don't think it would make that much of a difference. I'd look another direction, but that's just me.

I know the OP has already purchased Konis. This is just a FWIW for anybody else who may read this thread.

 

when i looked, d-specs are like a grand. if yellows are $400 cheaper and what the pros are running, why wouldnt i want them?

 

d-specs are $500.. and there are even several group buys from vendors atm with springs.

 

When I bought them, I wasn't looking to make a killer BS car - I just wanted adjustable shocks, front and rear. When I started running them in solo, I assumed they would be slower than Koni yellows, but, at least at my driving ability, that has not proven to be true. They are very effective in solo, and I get to soften them up for street use. That's why I like them. I know lots of folks are happy to drive around on full-stiff Konis, and that's fine. But, at my level of commitment to the sport, that's a sacrifice that I don't believe is neccessary.