Bilsteins

[feraldisco]

Hi - Tony from Sydney Shock Absorbers (the oz importer for Bilsteins) got back to me with the following for a 99 Td5 Disco:

'We have had a few problems with our email; I’m not sure where the form went!
We have part numbers BE5 B994 & BE5 B995 front and rear respectively. RRP $462 a pair plus freight and fitting. We would charge $350 for install in Sydney including wheel alignment. Coils normally go for $400 to $440 a set.'

Has anyone fitted this part # shock and are they suitable for a 2-inch lift? Has anyone managed to obtain cheaper prices than these? Any recommendations on suitable coil part #s to give a fairly conservative 40 mil lift and thereby avoid any issues with brake lines etc?

[Xtreme]

You could try -

Wholesale Suspensions
Contact: Craig
129 Coreen Ave
Penrith 2750
(02) 4721 2112

They supply both Bilsteins and Konis and I believe are pretty good on price.

The price for the coils and fitting seem a bit excessive for such a simple job.

[tdiBrad]

HI,
Just an option, I have a D1 with Koni dampers and a Bilstein steering damper. After 120,000+ kms only problem was a leaking rear damper, replaced out of warranty (the installer replaced the damper and labor for free, even though it was two years old !) :)

I have seen the Koni advertised for around the mid $300 a pair.

[CraigE]

In short they should fit and be ok. The pricing is about what I would expect in Australia. They are about 1/2 that out of the US and this is the way I went as I could not justify spending more than double to get them in Australia. Not good economics even though I would much rather buy in Australia.

[cucinadio]

HI,
Just an option, I have a D1 with Koni dampers and a Bilstein steering damper. After 120,000+ kms only problem was a leaking rear damper, replaced out of warranty (the installer replaced the damper and labor for free, even though it was two years old !) :)

I have seen the Koni advertised for around the mid $300 a pair.

hi brad,
mate what size lift do you have with your koni's?
cheers

[tdiBrad]

hi brad,
mate what size lift do you have with your koni's?
cheers

Hi Cucinadio,
The only lift on mine is about an inch in front springs to offset the steel bullbar.
There may be a set of Koni for standard and a set for two inch lift, but I think its the same set I have.

Try this link. I didn;t buy from this guy and can't verify if they are a kosher dealer, but my standard Koni are pretty damn good.

The price must have gone up a fair bit since I purchased mine !:o

Land & Range Rover Discovery Koni Adj Shocks Set of 4 - eBay, 4x4 Accessories, Car Accessories, Tuning, Cars, Bikes, Boats. (end time 21-Jan-08 22:25:36 AEDST) (http://cgi.ebay.com.au/Land-Range-Rover-Discovery-Koni-Adj-Shocks-Set-of-4_W0QQitemZ220175327255QQihZ012QQcategoryZ30862QQc mdZViewItem)

[procrastination inc]

I bought mine from this seller (before he had to put the price up to RRP...)

Very good seller, quick good communication, nice to deal with

I bought coil spacers after the shocks and I'm considering buying a RTC damper from him too

Trustworthy dude I reckon

[Xtreme]

Hi Cucinadio,
The only lift on mine is about an inch in front springs to offset the steel bullbar.
There may be a set of Koni for standard and a set for two inch lift, but I think its the same set I have.

Try this link. I didn;t buy from this guy and can't verify if they are a kosher dealer, but my standard Koni are pretty damn good.

The price must have gone up a fair bit since I purchased mine !:o

Land & Range Rover Discovery Koni Adj Shocks Set of 4 - eBay, 4x4 Accessories, Car Accessories, Tuning, Cars, Bikes, Boats. (end time 21-Jan-08 22:25:36 AEDST) (http://cgi.ebay.com.au/Land-Range-Rover-Discovery-Koni-Adj-Shocks-Set-of-4_W0QQitemZ220175327255QQihZ012QQcategoryZ30862QQc mdZViewItem)

Price hasn't gone up that much, we bought four sets from Wholesale Suspensions mid last year at quite a lot less than that and they even deliver direct to your door. So even though they are a long way from Brisbane, it could be worth a phone call.

Wholesale Suspensions
Contact: Craig
129 Coreen Ave
Penrith 2750
(02) 4721 2112

[2 rocks]

Koni's, Koni's, Koni's...

Mike

[cucinadio]

Koni's, Koni's, Koni's...

Mike

yes I'm still procrastinating about them!, l want a 3" lift to the d1 but i cant seem to find a the length l will need for
3" kings springs

cheers

[CraigE]

Koni's, Koni's, Koni's...

Mike
Great shocks but $ $ $ $ $.
Bilsteins close second.

[procrastination inc]

yes I'm still procrastinating about them!, l want a 3" lift to the d1 but i cant seem to find a the length l will need for
3" kings springs

cheers

I believe proven products in albury can custom build konis to suit your application. will be more expensive than off the shelf.

[Stepho_62]

Billies, :D
Billies, :D
Billies, :D
Billies, :D
Billies, :D
Billies, :D

Get the picture?

Heasman Steering - Sydney steering system and automotive wheel alignment service (http://www.heasmans.com.au/)

These blokes were pretty good after haveing been through the 4Wd1 BS machine.:nazilock:

[2 rocks]

Great shocks but $ $ $ $ $.
Bilsteins close second.

Agreed...but had Koni's in my D1 and wasn't going to stuff around on the D2 :)

Mike

[CraigE]

Agreed...but had Koni's in my D1 and wasn't going to stuff around on the D2 :)

Mike
Yep, had Konis on my RRC, great shocks, actually fantastic shocks, but budget would only stretch to billies for the Fender and only cause I got them form USA.

[tdiBrad]

I bought mine from this seller (before he had to put the price up to RRP...)

Very good seller, quick good communication, nice to deal with

I bought coil spacers after the shocks and I'm considering buying a RTC damper from him too

Trustworthy dude I reckon

Check out a bilstein steering damper too.
I had an RTC damper on for a week or two, ended up giving it away and grabbing a Bilstein. couldn't believe the difference it made (though the steerinf is a little more firm).

The RTC ended up being tossed in the bin by the person I gave it to ..Was a 4Way branded item, from memory.

The Bilstein is now over 100,000kms old .. and perfect condition.

[RoverOne]

yes I'm still procrastinating about them!, l want a 3" lift to the d1 but i cant seem to find a the length l will need for
3" kings springs

cheers

Koni's are not made for a lift on Land Rovers, they are only made for standard replacement lengths.

After my Koni's broke after 3000 odd K'ms they laid the blame on the 50mm lift, but they did replace them under warranty without any problems with a different Koni to suit another brand vehicle, but I had to use spacers as the thread pin (?) is too long and it hits the top of the axle housing. Talk to Koni in Melbourne they where very helpfull for my problem.

Stick with Bilstiens like I should have done, in my opinion having had both Bilstien a lot better...an expensive exercise to chop and change when you make a mistake though.

Like Xtreme said, Wholesale Suspension at Penrith are great guys, good prices great service and they supply both brands.

[RoverOne]

HI,
Just an option, I have a D1 with Koni dampers and a Bilstein steering damper. After 120,000+ kms only problem was a leaking rear damper, replaced out of warranty (the installer replaced the damper and labor for free, even though it was two years old !) :)

I have seen the Koni advertised for around the mid $300 a pair.

Best of luck if you can get them $150 odd each, try $250 each unless you can wangle a deal at Penrith?

I bought mine last July shopped till I dropped & got a good deal through Xtreme and the Land Rover Club bulk buy from Wholesale Suspension, but I could be proven wrong;)

[philco]

hi there, i was talking to my mechanic on the gold coast, Rick from Ricks 4x4 in nerang who has worked on Landrovers most of his working life and he said to stay with bilsteins as they are designed for the ride of Defenders etc to take the shock better than anything else. Rick is a wealth of knowledge, worked for MAXI DRIVE for a few years also and knows his stuff.

[rick130]

I believe proven products in albury can custom build konis to suit your application. will be more expensive than off the shelf.

yep, talk to Jeff, really knows Koni's inside and out and can modify anything. Last time I spoke to him they had four dyno's running and was looking at obtaining another.

Off the shelf, use a TLC 80 series front damper, pt. # 82-2385.
This will have to be modified slightly (probably shorten the bottom pin, can't remember if the top one needs chopping too ?) and the towers raised otherwise it will go metal to metal with standard bump stops.
There is a cheat with using thinner urethane bushes on the body side of both pins, but the towers still need to raised 1/4" minimum. This setup will give you maximum travel from the shock. (9.7" stroke)

In the rear, either a GU coil rear shock (82-2348, 660mm open, 405mm closed, ctr to ctr) or a 75 series TLC can be modified to pin mount on the bottom or run a pin to eye converter in the bottom mount.

OME N73 80 series front shock is a bolt in and will give you 10.3 travel. will also suit that lift. There is also a n N73L that has around an extra 1 inch of travel, but I'm guessing you will have to raise the towers to fit it.
In that vein, OME LTR 80 series TLC damper will also be a bolt in, and the valving can be modified.

[rick130]

hi there, i was talking to my mechanic on the gold coast, Rick from Ricks 4x4 in nerang who has worked on Landrovers most of his working life and he said to stay with bilsteins as they are designed for the ride of Defenders etc to take the shock better than anything else. Rick is a wealth of knowledge, worked for MAXI DRIVE for a few years also and knows his stuff.

stock Billies are OK all round on a stock Disco and RRC and are OK on the front of a 110/130, but should be re-valved for the rear and definitely have to be re-valved for a 130 rear. The spring rate on a 130 is well over double a RRC, so how on earth can a damper valved for a RRC control the 130 springs ?
(and Koni do the same thing, but at least you can double the rebound on them)

[Jamie]

I have seen bilsteins on E-Bay in the U.S. Their prices for disco's vary from $270-315 for a full set F+R. The cheapest price I have been quoted so far for freight was $125. When converted to Aus$ the price is a tad over $500. Any thoughts ??

Jamie

[tdiBrad]

Hi Jamie,
Once the shipping is factored in it seems a little pricey.
Try this:

Land Rover parts - SHOCK - L/ROVER DEF (>HA)(REAR)(BILSTEIN) (http://roverparts.com.au/inc/sdetail/997)

Hmmm, on second glance, i think this is for a SINGLE damper only ... if so, then yikes ...

If it's a single shock, I would say grab Konis

[loanrangie]

For Koni's try Toperformance in Vic as they are the agent for koni ( i get them trade from them :D), i have had the same set of koni's in 2 vehicles over the last 6 years without an ounce of problem and Roverone is correct as off the shelf konis arent supposed to be suitable for a lift - my RRC was lifted and never had a prob.

[longreach]

I have seen bilsteins on E-Bay in the U.S. Their prices for disco's vary from $270-315 for a full set F+R. The cheapest price I have been quoted so far for freight was $125. When converted to Aus$ the price is a tad over $500. Any thoughts ??

Jamie
:cool: jamie,You would pay $700 plus,for the same in Australia....I find it cheaper to order from the USA.....I ve just received a pair of poly air bags from the USA.....half the price you would get them for here

[CraigE]

I have seen bilsteins on E-Bay in the U.S. Their prices for disco's vary from $270-315 for a full set F+R. The cheapest price I have been quoted so far for freight was $125. When converted to Aus$ the price is a tad over $500. Any thoughts ??

Jamie
For what I bought for the Defender (4 shocks) I was quoted $900 plus freight in Australia. Approx $100 Aud freight from Perth so $1000 all up for 4 shocks. Price was same from east coast.
Out of the USA $464 delivered to my door. Arrived in a week and a half. Not rocket science, do the math. May vary slightly due to exchange rate.

[longreach]

:cool:Just got a price on a set of rear bilstein heavy duty shock absorber,to suit a defender, from TRUCKSPRINGS.in the USA...(item #) B46-0253-MO delivered to my door,$230 .......wholesale suspension quoted my $395.00,delivered to my door....I think I,ll be ordering from truckspring in the US:D

[PAT303]

I have just bought a front set of Koni's for my defender and got all four for the disco and they were $200 each from Monaco Performance at Kotara in Newcastle.I have Billies on the back and the koni's are better in re-bound than billies and that is the big thing,when at speed it is the bounce after compression that causes you to loose control so if that is dampened out you are safer.

[pawl]

.I have Billies on the back and the koni's are better in re-bound than billies and that is the big thing,when at speed it is the bounce after compression that causes you to loose control so if that is dampened out you are safer.

Yep thats my main gripe with the billies in the back of the Disco as well, the fronts are OK. They ride OK but I did expect better from the hype surrounding them

[rick130]

I have just bought a front set of Koni's for my defender and got all four for the disco and they were $200 each from Monaco Performance at Kotara in Newcastle.I have Billies on the back and the koni's are better in re-bound than billies and that is the big thing,when at speed it is the bounce after compression that causes you to loose control so if that is dampened out you are safer.

I have the opposite problem with Koni Patrol fronts.
No where near enough low or medium speed rebound, even on maximum rebound, and insufficient high speed bump with stock springs (it crashes heavily into the bump stops, which is more a lack of bump travel, but i can control it with bump valving.)
I have a set here I have to re-valve soon. The front skitters on stutter bumps and corrugations, and always has.
Koni Patrol rears are fine as is.

Bilstein Patrol standard valving (not the ones with a 'K' suffix) are brilliant at speed on virtually any road, but the low speed bump is so great that even back when I was racing I quickly tired of it, hence why the new (six and a half years old now) Patrol has Koni's.

[rick130]

BTW, I've directed a few forum members to Gary Baker in Melbourne for Billie re-valving.
IMO he is probably the best Bilstein bloke in Australia and very reasonable re cost.

[mos]

The Billies are great for the price. Fitted them to my 2003 D90 and am very happy with them.:D

For a good price, see my previous posts about ordering them from the US. I got the 4 shocks and a steering damper delivered to my door in about a week for $580AU.

Cheers
MOS