Shock mounting ?

[jts359]

I recently purchased a MKII and it has a few issues and recently when another forum member posted about brake issues I noticed his shocks were mounted 180 from mine . I noticed this when I purchased the car but considered it minor. So can these shock run either way or are mine in wrong ? Ed153118153119

[svassh]

Hard to tell from your photos as they sometimes turn in weird ways when you post on here. For reference my shocks are mounted fat side down, are yours mounted fat side up?

Since neither of us built the cars I'm hoping they can be mounted either way.

[PhilO]

From what I have read here on the forums, it normally depends on the brand of the shock. Base Koni should be run reservoir side down, Dual adjustable Koni can be run either way, QA1s can be run either way. Design of the valve system dictates. Your photos show "Pro Shock"? Not sure if that was the standard item from FFR for MkIIs or not, maybe someone else on the forum knows and can point you to a reference, but the orientation of the shock does not matter to the suspension.

[Jim1855]

You might want to seek other opinions on the orientation of the QA1s. I believe that these need to be installed with the controls down.
Jim

[jts359]

Mine are mounted FAT side up , Ed

[PhilO]

You might want to seek other opinions on the orientation of the QA1s. I believe that these need to be installed with the controls down.
Jim

NAZ commented on a thread in 2018 that stated all but the stock mount shocks could be run in any orientation. On Summit QA1 answered a question about a specific model and stated that it could be run upside down. So you are right, always verify if the specific item you are ordering is capable of what you want, but still makes my point of "it depends on the shock"

[CraigS]

One way to know if orientation is optional is if they are a gas shock. Gas shocks will always expand to full length when let go after being compressed some. This isn't 100% though because QA1 double adjustables can be mounted either way and are not a high pressure gas design. So I guess the rule might be that gas shocks can always be mounted either way and some others can too. BTW Pro-shocks were OE from FFR back in the MkII days.

[Papa]

This has been discussed many times and I dug this out of my build thread:


Jim @FFR cleared it up:

"Monotube shocks like the red ones that come with roadsters and came with older 33 kits can be mounted either direction. Twin tube shocks, like the current 33 nickel plated ones or the optional aluminum body double adjustables, must be mounted body down. "

The full discussion can be found starting on post #32 in my build thread:

https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/showthread.php?24916-Papa-s-MKIV-Roadster-Build-9115-(Graduated)-18-Month-4000-Mile-Check&p=285839&viewfull=1#post285839

[Jeff Kleiner]

...Dual adjustable Koni can be run either way...

This is incorrect. It’s actually the opposite; single adjustable Konis either way and DA with the body down.

Jeff

[jts359]

Hi Guys , I just called Pro shocks and the gold colored ones can be mounted either way , But during our chat we determined my front springs are to strong , So I have to remove 1 and find out what i have in that dept. Thanks , Ed

[CraigS]

You might get lucky. Look at your picture #1 and see the band around the spring top left of the pic. That 'may' be a tag w/ a number on it denoting the spring rate.

[jts359]

I see that band , Thanks for the info Craig , Ed