Struts/shocks for 850 GLT- replacement opinions?

Hi,
I'm in need of replacing my shocks and struts on my 93 850. My
local Volvo mechanic does not recommend OEM replacements, which I
believe are Boge. He recommends Bilstein Touring Shocks as
replacements. He seems to imply that the OEM shocks and struts are a
waste of money. Is this a common opinion? I can get a good deal on the
OEM shocks, just don't want to be wasting time and money if they are
not so good. Any input would be appreciated.

TIA,
JB

 

Just Make sure that he changes the upper shock mounts when he changes
the front shocks


--
"*-344-*Never Forgotten"
Is for the New York City Firemen who lost their lives on September 11,2001.
The official count is 343, but there was also a volunteer who lost his life
aiding in the initial rescue efforts. And I will never forget them as
long as I live,
nor should any American.

 

I put Boge Turbo gas struts and shocks on my 93 940 wagon and am very
pleased, only have 10 k miles on them so far.

 

I replaced the OEM shocks with the Bilstein touring shocks, they gave a
pretty decent ride - good solid road feel but a little stiffer than I had
expected from shocks not marketed as "sporty". I don't have any OEM
benchmark to compare it to however, when I bought the car the shocks on it
were beyond dead and I needed new front mounts on both sides. They were
noisily rattling around while I drove. Getting the weird little star shaped
nut off on the passenger side was *miserable* but the driver's side was a
breeze. I'd suggest the IPD tool.

This was on a wagon, a friend with an 850R sedan used the Bilstein top of
the line shocks and the IPD springs. Compared to the Bilstein shocks I had
they were rock hard though.

That being said I'd use them again, but for me the price was right for those
shocks. Figure in the cost of replacing the shock mounts too, in my case
they were needed all around.

 

What kind of a ride did he say they give, and what kind of a ride are you
expecting?

If you want a stiffer ride you can get stiffer shocks, if you want
compliant, get shocks that are known to be more compliant. Your mechanic
should be able to give you a recommendation based on how YOU drive the car,
get him to take a ride with you, let him see how you handle corners, if you
like to have some fun on winding roads, then drive on those roads, if you
carry 4-5 people a lot, talk about upgrading to firmer shocks and even
stiffer springs.

Went with Volvo stock on our 1993 960, just 1000kms ago (has 161K Kms)...
old shocks were getting, well... old... new stuff brought back the quality
ride.

Went with Koni adjustable shocks on our 1999.5 VW Golf (done at 95K Kms, car
has 123K Kms now)... These shocks make the car!!.... I never told people I
got those shocks and everyone was commenting on how nice my car drove down
the road - they are firmer then stock, but they seem to be more compliant,
especially with 4 people in the car... It's now a fun car to drive hard
through corners... SOMEHOW with the Volvo I will drive down the same twisty
roads faster - maybe because it's rear wheel drive/better balanced car...
maybe cuz they weigh about the same, but the Volvo is on a much larger
wheelbase? Who knows... The Golf leans less, but it understeers more.

 

I've had Blisteins on for three or four years now (nothing wrong with
the originals). They're a lot of money up front, about $400 just for
parts. They really do work better. For example, right away I
noticed the ABS would rarely kick on on bumpy surfaces. With the
original shocks it would often make a few sharp clicks in the brake
pedal during even moderate braking over things like train tracks or
manhole covers.

I'm not convinced they are worth the extra money for most people.
I'm still happy with them and don't regret my own decision at all,
but that's my car and my money, not your car and your money. If you
enjoy the act of driving any car, fast or slow, you may be happy with
Bilsteins. If you have the car because it has been a good appliance
all these years, you may not enjoy spending that much money on shocks.

 

I only used OEM replacements (only Volvo dealer service) on my '93 850
and frankly I don't remember ever replacing them in 180,000 miles. On my
'95 850 with 110,000 miles the same is true. They were so good and
lasted so long that it just doesn't ring a bell. Perhaps your mechanic
wants more work and profit than OEMs provide.

 

He's wrong. I don't doubt you might get _slightly_ better handling from
vastly more expensive shocks. If you have the money to throw away, good
and well.

I've just replaced my rear shocks at 130k miles (93 850 saloon) with
OEMs (you're right, they're Boge/Sachs) and they've restored the handling
of the car to what it was - pretty good for a car of that size and
weight. They didn't introduce any jarring, either - our roads are not
noted for their smoothness so that's important to me.

Let's face it, much as I love my 850 (and particularly the looks of the
early version) it's getting on now, and spending over the odds to achieve
dubious or fairly insignificant gains is just stupid.

I would say though, I wish I'd replaced the springs too - I think I'll be
doing that soon. I replaced the upper mounts because I'd ordered new
ones, but the old ones were actually in very good condition.

AJ

 

The OEM shocks are fine if you like the way it handles, Bilstein will give
you very noticeably more sporty handling, whether you want that or not is up
to you.

 

I replaced the OEM Sachs struts in my 2000 S80 with the "Touring" Bilsteins
and, frankly, I'm sorry I went that route. They are too stiff (too much
compression damping) for wet bumpy roads. I actually have less traction with
the Bilsteins than with the OEM Sachs with one blown damper. Worse on snow
and ice as well. On dry pavement they give a sporty feeling ride but I'm not
convinced they offer any more road-holding and they are quite jarring. I
know the proper struts were installed but perhaps Bilstein engineers
miscalculated the damping needed for the S80 and, being a low volume car,
nobody has bothered to correct the problem. The Bilsteins for another model
may be fine but, from what I've heard from others, the Bilstein Touring
series are more sport than touring and, in the case of the S80 replacements,
I wouldn't even say they are more sporty if they don't give more
roadholding. I would hate to find out what the "Sport" Bilsteins feel like
on an S80.....

If I did it again I would either use the OEM Sachs which actually worked
very well had one of them not blown out at 60,000 miles or I would see if
Koni makes something to fit.

Spanky