The Koni I bought did not come with any instructions. Hence, the reason for this thread in the first place. You can go back to what edj wrote in the beginning or refer to my post: https://www.rx8club.com/1328278-post/ where I wrote about the order of items to piece back what you need.

(subscribing)

Question???
 

Can the rear shocks be removed enough to get to the adjuster on top without taking the lower shock bolt and lower control arm loose???
Can this be done by removing the side carpeting, the 2 14mm nuts from the top of the shock, the 12mm from the bottom, the gold bracket and its 2 14mm nuts?

yes, if you undo the bolts it will drop down enough not to undo the rear suspension, the rear shocks need to be converted to externally adjustable though because the standard Koni-RX8 rear shock is the internally adjustable compress & turn style

Thanks Team. I have the Tokicos and I just bought the adjustment extensions from Goodwin. I was just hoping I wouldn't have to take everything back apart in order to install them.

lots of useful info here... (bump)

What does it take to externally convert the SA Konis to be externally adjustable? Does Koni do this or would a suspension shop have the ability?

Koni, Tri-Point or True Choice are the only places that can do it. I think it is like $150+ ea.

Thanks for the quick reply. I just realized how redundant my question was. Thanks mostly for being kind and not pointing out my idiocy. :)

Getting ready to install my Koni's, so I was checking tools vs. the list at the start of this thread. I have everything except a 24mm (15/16") socket. Anyone know what this is used for? I don't see it mentioned in the description. I'm not sure if I need to run out and get this, or is it actually supposed to be 21mm (13/16") which is the size of the lug nuts?

Thanks

I'm pretty sure I remember using a 24 mm at some point during my install. What the hell was it for??? hmmm....

If I can find the instructions I put together, I'll let ya know.

Don't think you need it....I can't remember a 24 for anything ?

You're thinking of your Diff fluid change maybe?

You need a 24mm to change fluid in the transmisison and differential, but not for installing shocks.

lol

10mm, 12mm, 14mm, and 17mm should just about cover it

^^ and most of the rest of the car as well :lol:

When they are converted where is the adjustment?

Rebound adjustment is at the top using the typical Koni knob, so you still have to drop the rear assembly down to make the adjustment, but not take it all the way off or apart.

Compression is at the bottom using a flathead screwdriver in a rotating slot. If they put the adjuster in the right place you can make the adjustment easily from under the rear bumper area

Thanks for all the advice. I did all 4 shocks last night and it was mostly straight forward using the instructions provided. I tried ULLOSE's approach of undoing the shock on the car, but when I couldn't fit the allen wrench inside the opening in the trunk, I figured it was easier to drop the control arm. FWY I didn't need the 24mm socket, but I had picked one up since I had to stop by Lowes anyway.

Understatement.

Took me god damn 6 hours to do it today :-O

the 1st time is always a b-tch

with the coilovers I can do it in well under an hour, they slide in and out easily since they are shorter and smaller diameter, the rear suspension doesn't have to be dropped but the upper front control arms still have to be unbolted from the chassis

with the OE setup probably under two hours including swapping springs etc.

call me stupid
 

Didn't think I would have the time, so I had a client of mine, who manages a local tire and alignment shop install my new Koni's. $454 later i got my car back. At 50% in the rear, definatlely feels stiffer. Not sure if the additional noise I hear over bumps is just the stiffer susp. transmitting. The mechanic said he torqued while the car was on the ground, but I'm not so sure. Should have done it myself.

Installed Koni's today. It helps to have a mechanic friend with all the right tools and know how. It took about 2.5 hours to do, pretty sure I was slowing him down.:) He was going so fast I'm not sure how we did the rears, I think we just undid the lower endlink bolt. Fronts we removed the upper control arm bolts. Set the rears at full stiff and boy what a diffrence, can't wait to autox this car.

just installed my Stock Class DA's last night, what a total PITA compared to the 2812 coilover race setup

IMO the sleeves allow the shock mount bushings to overcompress (the sleeves are too short), which causes noises and excessive wear on the shock shaft and seals. I back off the nut four full revolutions after full compression to allow some compliance

Hey there, just wanted to add a little something from my replacement install today. My front left was blown, I paid to get a replacement beforehand and I'll return the blown one for them to confirm it as a warranty issue. I was in touch with Stoney and one other from Koni NA. They were really cooperative.

Anyway, it looks like edj's instructions are missing a Step 6 (from post #2 in this thread). I don't know what should have been there, but I'll propose a Step 4.5. I'll propose that it should say to detach the sway bar linkage. After Step 5, I realized that there was too much torque on the linkage and it was preventing the lower control arm from dropping down far enough. Without removing the linkage, there wasn't enough room to remove the strut.

Hope that makes sense. Thanks to everyone that contributed.