Hi everybody. I'm a longtime lurker who's just signed on. Thanks to all of you for your collected enthusiasm and wisdom.

I have a '92 Maxima SE (automatic, black) bought new, and I've tried really hard to take good care of it. It still has the OEM springs and struts. Needless to say, it seems wise for me to source my next set of struts now before the old ones fail. (As a former Detroit and VW owner, I'm frankly amazed they didn't crap out three years ago.)

In reading your and others' posts on the Maxima.org forum, I see my choices are limited. Thing is, I come at this from a different perspective than most of you folks. See, I've always felt the car is just a little bit stiff in hammering over the small stuff. I bought it because I thought the GXE was scary-soft in highway transient maneuvers, with the car floating up and down as if it was doing deep knee bends. But I frankly wouldn't mind if my SE became a bit softer than it's always been, especially over small expansion joints and the like.

So, the people posting say that Koni is "extremely stiff, though adjustable." Tokico, apparently the first choice for most, is "stiffer than stock," which obviously holds no appeal for me. That leaves KYB. But I see people here criticizing not only its softness (which apparently vanishes undesirably in cold weather anyway), but its quality/durability as well.

Alternatives? Thoughts?

 

i would still go with KYB for stock ride quality. toks do break in after some time and they might feel more stock.

i believe* they both carry a lifetime warranty. as long as you get them for an authorized dealer you're ok.

personally i use shox.com.


also you might want to keep the "going soft" thing on the DL.

 

KYBs would be the choice for a decent replacement shock. Konis will be stiffer. Even on the soft settings, it might be too stiff. Plus why purchase them of you only want to use them on their softest settings? Plus they are harder to install and a pain to adjust (although I run Konis)

 

Er... in the automotive sense, of course.

 

since you are local to me (or at least in the same city). I can hook you up on the KYBs and you won't have to worry about the shipping.


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