[Gentleman Driver]

Hello all,



I am currently performing the koni insert conversion on my stock struts. I have two questions that I could really use some help on before I move forward:



1) Does the insert need to fit snug to the bottom of the original strut housing? In other words, how close does the bottom of the insert need to get to the end of the original strut housing?

- I ask because I measured fairly precisely before I cut and it does not appear that the new insert reaches bottom of the original housing, where you thread the new bolt



2) When re-installing the entire assembly, how far does the top of the insert have to extend out through the strut tower? In other words, when screwing down the top nut, how far out should the top of the insert be?

- This is probably tied to the first question...



I hope this makes sense. If not, I can post some photos of what I am talking about.



Thanks in advance for your help.

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[jaap]

Hi,



As far as I remember from doing the conversion, yes the insert should fit snug onto the bottom of the strut housing. However if you did the measurement correctly the insert will first rest on its three? small raised tabs and you use the bolt through the bottom to pull it down. This way it forces the insert in and the tabs provide a snug fit near the top of the strut housing. I had to use a slightly longer bolt than the one provided and after a few turn replaced it with the one provided by koni.



How far the insert will extend through the top of the strut tower does not depend on how deep the insert sits in the strut housing because only the smaller diameter tip will fit through the top strut bearing.



Hope this makes sense



Jaap

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[doggonit]

I just completed the conversion myself a couple of weeks ago. They do need to fit snugly. Make sure you file down any excess metal edges that may be sticking up from the any of the edges you had to cut or drill on the old struts. Also take a look at the new inserts....especially the bottom weld points. I had one that had I had to grind down a little to make it fit properly. You can tell real easy if you are having that issue.....look at the new insert and you can see where some of the yellow paint has rubbed off slightly.

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[Gentleman Driver]

[quote name='doggonit' post='50041' date='Mar 30 2008, 10:26 AM']I just completed the conversion myself a couple of weeks ago. They do need to fit snugly. Make sure you file down any excess metal edges that may be sticking up from the any of the edges you had to cut or drill on the old struts. Also take a look at the new inserts....especially the bottom weld points. I had one that had I had to grind down a little to make it fit properly. You can tell real easy if you are having that issue.....look at the new insert and you can see where some of the yellow paint has rubbed off slightly.[/quote]



OK, thanks. It sounds like I need to get the original housing length correct rather than force the insert into the housing over the bump stops (that didn't sound like it would be good for the system).



Also, the original rubber "cone" at the top of the strut, which I guess was there for bottoming out, is completely shot. Do I need to re-use it and find a re-conditioned piece, or are you not supposed to re-install it with the new setup? None of the instructions say so...



Thanks again gents!!!

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[jaap]

[quote name='The Gentleman Driver' post='50043' date='Mar 30 2008, 05:57 PM']OK, thanks. It sounds like I need to get the original housing length correct rather than force the insert into the housing over the bump stops (that didn't sound like it would be good for the system).[/quote]



... force the insert into the housing over the bump stops ... However this is what I did and makes the insert fit nicely without play. If you cut down the strut even more and the bump stay above the edge there will be alot of play because the diameter of the insert is smaller than the internal diameter of the strut. Therefore I think the strut should be a bit longer to allow you to slighty pull the insert in by means of the bottom bolt



Edit:

Just had a look at the paragon website tech sessions and they show the tabs should actually stay visible just above the edge and not pulled in all the way???. So apparenly I did not follow these instructions (although I torqued the bolt to the correct spec which pulled in the insert) and haven't had any problem after 5 years.



Jaap

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[Gentleman Driver]

[quote name='jaap' post='50049' date='Mar 30 2008, 02:02 PM']... force the insert into the housing over the bump stops ... However this is what I did and makes the insert fit nicely without play. If you cut down the strut even more and the bump stay above the edge there will be alot of play because the diameter of the insert is smaller than the internal diameter of the strut. Therefore I think the strut should be a bit longer to allow you to slighty pull the insert in by means of the bottom bolt



Edit:

Just had a look at the paragon website tech sessions and they show the tabs should actually stay visible just above the edge and not pulled in all the way???. So apparenly I did not follow these instructions (although I torqued the bolt to the correct spec which pulled in the insert) and haven't had any problem after 5 years.



Jaap[/quote]



I think you are right. The instructions are confusing, but I am going to tighten the bolt and wedge the bump stops into the original housing. I had to cut more because the bolt didn't even reach the insert after initially cut (even though I measured three times, but still had to cut twice!).



Thanks for the help.

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[Ryan]

The "cone" you are talking about is the bump-stop and it should be replaced if it is crumbling. When I purchased my inserts,I also ordered new bump-stops and the plastic "bellows" that acts as a guard to keep road debris out. Looks better if nothing else.

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[Gentleman Driver]

[quote name='Ryan' post='50105' date='Apr 1 2008, 08:21 AM']The "cone" you are talking about is the bump-stop and it should be replaced if it is crumbling. When I purchased my inserts,I also ordered new bump-stops and the plastic "bellows" that acts as a guard to keep road debris out. Looks better if nothing else.[/quote]



Damn, wish I knew that ahead of time... anything else I need to know?



Also, did you order them from Paragon or should I go OEM through Sunset?



thanks!

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[Ryan]

I got the works at Paragon

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[Gentleman Driver]

[quote name='Ryan' post='50125' date='Apr 1 2008, 02:02 PM']I got the works at Paragon[/quote]

Good deal, I just ordered the Koni competition bump stops. Cheaper and don't require the dust shield, which was also destroyed on my car...



I just hope it all goes back together!



Thanks

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[Gentleman Driver]

OK, I have one last question (I hope). I finally got everything installed in the front and rear, but I still have concern about the top nut on the strut. Original strut had a cap over it on top of the strut tower that was removed to get to the top nut, but with the new insert and the lower springs the strut protrudes way too far to be able to place the cap back on it...



Is this normal? I had assumed you replaced the cap... Thing is, even when I dropped the control arm without the nut on the top threaded part of the strut (so it would hang freely) the entire assembly would not drop far enough for me to get the cap on.



Sorry for clogging up the forums, I just don't want to mess this up!



Thanks

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[banditsc]

I drilled a hole in my cap so it would fit on again. The Koni adjuster head prevents the use of the original cap in the unmodified form.

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[jaap]

I replaced the caps with the M030 version which are designed to fit over the adjuster head



Jaap

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