Looking to get opinions on different types of shocks, mine are original, I don’t want to go oem but I don’t want a cheap ride quality, anyone found a good aftermarket brand? Just doing the front end pair.

 

I replaced mine (all four corners) with KYB and they are great, no complaints whatsoever. Make sure you replace ALL the hardware that goes with it - I replaced everything including the bump stops, etc. Try to go OEM for those parts.

 

How many miles since replacement?

 

What type of ride are you primarily looking for? Depends how sensitive you are as well. Some comment that the KYB are a bit stiffer while some find it equal to the original. There have been past comments about them blowing out though often with a heavy audio install situation. By 70K miles the originals in ours were dead and this is with the reasonable So. Cal roads. When you get the fronts out and if they are dead, the rears are likely too. You'll be able to inspect the hardware and determine if the mounts and other bits are required. Good to have them on hand to save time.

Ours has Bilstein with over 130K on them.

 

I've got 9 years and 30k miles on 4x KYB GR-2 struts in my '91. Very happy with them.

 

[QUOTE=RA40;10627615]What type of ride are you primarily looking for? Depends how sensitive you are as well. Some comment that the KYB are a bit stiffer while some find it equal to the original. There have been past comments about them blowing out though often with a heavy audio install situation. By 70K miles the originals in ours were dead and this is with the reasonable So. Cal roads. When you get the fronts out and if they are dead, the rears are likely too. You'll be able to inspect the hardware and determine if the mounts and other bits are required. Good to have.


i prefer a soft cushion ride, tight steering isn’t as important to me, I’ll look into those

 

This is all I’m finding on KYB, not sure what else I need to buy or if that is all and just bolt it in ?

 

Take a look at these highlighted-
Strut mount (top in diagram) expensive from Lexus but aftermarket options are available.
Bumper (middle) can probably be reused.
Insulator (Bottom in diagram) fairly expensive from Lexus but the aftermarket options, usually labeled as bellows, are crap. I'd replace these with new.

https://www.lexussouthatlantaparts.c...&searchString=

 

I went with KYBs on the front of my 97' and they rode just fine. Not overly stiff, but not super plush like Lexus OEM shocks, although I did have a bad LCA bushing on the driver side so I can't really compare to what a brand new Lexus strut would feel like since mine had 275k on them when replaced and still held a charge.

I'm going with BIlstein HDs on my 99' if I ever get around to replacing them, but I can tell my 99' w/ 151k, the shocks are plush but too soft, I want something more firm.

 

It's been almost a year (~12k miles) and absolutely no complaints. But I did change EVERYTHING including rear springs (from Lexus). The only thing that was not OEM were the strut mounts - I took a gamble and bought Sachs (Mercedes) and they worked fine, so far.
I've used Sachs for steering damper, installed 5 yrs ago and no complaints either. (yes, it fits, only one little mod needed, but is MUCH cheaper), so when it comes to non-OEM parts, I am OK with Sachs.
KYB strut mounts, on the other hand, are nothing but trouble from what I gather, and the same goes for most others too.

 

I replaced all strut mounts with KYB ... no probems. I have some ancient posts on this, with a full parts breakdown - doing all the parts Bradland mentions above, for my '91.

However, I had bought all the parts before taking things apart. If I had taken things apart and inspected carefully beforehand, I would have replaced a lot fewer things than I did, including the strut mounts. The Lexus ones I took out (around 170k miles I think) appeared fine and were not causing any problems. I made the decision to buy new ones just based on what others said. Then once I had them in hand, with everything apart, considering the cost and hassle of a return, I installed them.

So that can be a general comment for all the parts in this job, if you have the flexibility of having a car out of commission while parts are shipped. You may find things looking better than you expected. Mileage and climate dependent of course.

 

My only word of caution about re-using parts is the "while you're in there..."

A friend had their transmission rebuilt. Shop re-used the rear main seal to save a few bucks. Leaked oil for thousands of miles until it was eventually junked.

If something is mostly labor to fix, and you're already in there, IMO you're better off just replacing it even if it seems fine.

 

How long ago was that? I read from more than one poster , that KYB used to make nice strut mounts but not any more. I have no experience myself, so I cannot be sure, but it would be good to know one way or another.
As for their struts, they are really good, I've used them on both my LS and before on my Acura Integra and they were fantastic. (on Integra, they are a bit stiff first couple of thousand miles but then they settle in fine; on the LS, they were great from day one)

 

Try 1A auto and you can buy entire strut assembly.

 

I wanted to add, my KYB strut mounts that I purchased ended up tearing less than 2 years later. Their shocks are fine but the rubber components in the strut mount were subpar compared to a Lexus upper mount.