Technical 100HP Rear shockers

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Technical 100HP Rear shockers

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babbo umbro

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I'm still waiting to frighten myself with the back end of the 100HP setting off on its own, and I don't mind the ride - I've done 2500 miles and I gather that the ride improves for a while - presumably the bump stops bedding in - the engine is certainly still freeing up. However - as ever on Fiats - the back end needs more damping on rebound. Has anyone tried Konis on the back of a 100HP - and are they available, the brief look I've had at suppliers' sites is inconclusive? When I used to play about with these things I invariably changed to Koni struts and shockers and they were always an improvement. Also put Spax all round years ago on a 500D that I fitted with a BMW 700 engine. Bilsteins seem to be another option.
 
I had the exact same problem with my 100HP and after having it step out on me a few times on the track, I had it fitted with a KW Suspension variant 1 coilover kit. Major improvement, would definitely recommend it.
 
Thanks for the input. I've been firkling around on the 'web and still have to come up with a damper specialist that lists the 100HP - I'd really prefer Koni, partly because of good experiences in the past, but they only appear to list Panda 1.1/1.2.

I've used coilovers in the past and they are a good solution - could be some saving in unsprung weight and you get adjustability of ride height as well as damping. However, apart from the concern about warranties with a major mod like this, I also have two major technical reservations as a result of experience.

Firstly, the top bush and the structure round it is normally designed only to take the loads from the damper, with loading from the spring taken by a spring pan that may or may not be concentric with the damper; if it's concentric you can normally have a plate made up to feed the loads into the spring pan rather than the damper mounting on its own. When I put a BMW 700 engine in the back of a 500D I had to reinforce the rear bulkhead and the cross member that takes the load from the dampers when I put coilovers on the back. I had continual problems with top bushes on a very hot Uno Turbo ie and ended up resorting to stiffer, non-coilover, springs. Secondly - and it's only a minor irritation - I've found that the springs used on coilovers settle over a period of time and you have to make use of that ride height adjustment to compensate until they've bedded in fully.

So - the question remains - has anyone tried a rear damper swap for something - preferably adjustable - that controls rebound better?
 
As the 1.4 500 and the 100hp are pretty much the same chasis wise (bar the springs, shocks and bumps stops) in theory, should any suspension kits made for the 5000 fit the Panda? It's just there's lots of options out there for the 500, but very few for the 100hp.
 
Personally I would avoid Spax. Though they are cheap, there is a reason for it it seems.

Koni's are good dampers and normally adjustable which is a bonus.

they are not cheap, i do not understand why you keep saying that:confused:

SPAX has been making suspension for the past 50 years, we are one of the best known manufacturers in the world. Named after a Somerset village called Spaxton.

SPAX were the first company to produce on-car adjustable dampers and patented the idea.

Manufacturing has been in Jersey, West Midlands, London and in the 1990’s it was moved to Formula 1 country in Oxfordshire
By the 1970’s SPAX was the market leader in performance road car suspension in the UK.

By the mid 1980’s SPAX was the market leader in suspension for racing and rallying also. In the early 1990’s export orders started to grow worldwide.

SPAX are heavily involved with racing at all levels and supplied the land speed record car, Thrust 2. So successful was this project that Thrust SSC chose SPAX to break the land speed record at 771 M.P.H. (1.231 Km/H).

In late 1999 SPAX was sold to new owners. A new factory with modern systems was introduced at a cost of close to £1 million and the production facility was transformed into a world class manufacturing unit
In 2001, SPAX became one of only a handful of British manufacturers to be granted the German TUV seal of approval for quality – A tribute to all the hard work put in the factory.

SPAX has recently been appointed the official and sole supplier to Cooper for the Mini Cooper Challenge race series.
 
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So - the question remains - has anyone tried a rear damper swap for something - preferably adjustable - that controls rebound better?

yes - SPAX RSX kit as i said, fully adjustable for height and damping

http://www.spax.co.uk/selector_html.php

What you need to know
...about Controlling Ride Height & Handling

If you want the ultimate suspension kit to transform the handling characteristics of your car and to adjust the ride height too, then SPAX RSX is the answer. RSX kits contain all of the key features and benefits of our PSX kits, plus allow you to adjust the ride height of the car using 100% Stainless Steel Height Adjusters. RSX also allows you to set the corner weights of your car, which means you can control the weight distribution, improving the balance and grip of the car. Because RSX is a “Coil-Over” design, it comes with narrower, uprated race type springs, which means you can fit larger diameter wheels.

Controlling the damper stiffness allows you to alter the suspension set up to perfectly suit your style of driving. The result is more driver confidence and this means more enjoyment!

Some suspension kits may give your car cool looks and adjustable ride height.
SPAX RSX Suspension Kits deliver SO MUCH MORE
 
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I have absolutely nothing against Spax - it must be about twenty years ago that I fitted the Spax units all round on an Uno Turbo ie, mentioned in an earlier posting on this thread. In themselves they were satisfactory (though they were replaced by Konis on the back after a while - see comments below) but they did confirm my doubts about fitting coilovers as the problems with the top damper bushes proved a real pain and I put Koni dampers on with uprated springs. I was quite happy to experiment and mess about in those days, playing with ride heights and swapping springs and so on, but nowadays I just want to fit a replacement damper - in this case - adjust the damping if necessary, and forget about them. I gather the RSX setup involves coilovers - can't find anything via the web site that mentions either the Panda or the new 500 - so it's not for me. I know the floorpan's the same and realise that 500 bits would fit the Panda but that's not the whole story - I don't know about weight distribution, spring rates, and so on and expect the initial settings would differ from the 500 to the Panda and I want someone else to have done the fettling. Perhaps a tame Fiat parts person could confirm that the 500 rear springs and dampers are, in fact, different from those on the 100HP.

I would be quite happy to fit Spax units and would recommend them to anyone - I don't doubt that they work well on a 500 but they don't appear to be what I'm looking for in this case. I'd still be very reluctant to put a coilover unit where there was previously a damper on its own unless I could be reassured about the bushes and the structures round them - so close, but no cigar.
 
they are not cheap, i do not understand why you keep saying that:confused:

SPAX has been making suspension for the past 50 years, we are one of the best known manufacturers in the world. Named after a Somerset village called Spaxton.

SPAX were the first company to produce on-car adjustable dampers and patented the idea.

Manufacturing has been in Jersey, West Midlands, London and in the 1990’s it was moved to Formula 1 country in Oxfordshire
By the 1970’s SPAX was the market leader in performance road car suspension in the UK.

By the mid 1980’s SPAX was the market leader in suspension for racing and rallying also. In the early 1990’s export orders started to grow worldwide.

SPAX are heavily involved with racing at all levels and supplied the land speed record car, Thrust 2. So successful was this project that Thrust SSC chose SPAX to break the land speed record at 771 M.P.H. (1.231 Km/H).

In late 1999 SPAX was sold to new owners. A new factory with modern systems was introduced at a cost of close to £1 million and the production facility was transformed into a world class manufacturing unit
In 2001, SPAX became one of only a handful of British manufacturers to be granted the German TUV seal of approval for quality – A tribute to all the hard work put in the factory.

SPAX has recently been appointed the official and sole supplier to Cooper for the Mini Cooper Challenge race series.

Do you work for Spax or something?
 
I would be quite happy to fit Spax units and would recommend them to anyone - I don't doubt that they work well on a 500 but they don't appear to be what I'm looking for in this case. I'd still be very reluctant to put a coilover unit where there was previously a damper on its own unless I could be reassured about the bushes and the structures round them - so close, but no cigar.

rear is still seperate dampers and spring on adjustable platform

my car was used by SPAX to develop the kit and it will be realeased for sale imminently, give them a call - they will likely have you car in to check it fits and you might even get a free trial like i did
 
RobW "rear is still seperate dampers and spring on adjustable platform

my car was used by SPAX to develop the kit and it will be realeased for sale imminently, give them a call - they will likely have you car in to check it fits and you might even get a free trial like i did"

Thanks for that info - I'd assumed that the rears were coilovers - not interested in changing the springs but properly set up dampers do sound interesting - no cigar yet, but a hint of havana in the air.
 
they are not cheap, i do not understand why you keep saying that:confused:

SPAX has been making suspension for the past 50 years, we are one of the best known manufacturers in the world. Named after a Somerset village called Spaxton.

SPAX were the first company to produce on-car adjustable dampers and patented the idea.

Manufacturing has been in Jersey, West Midlands, London and in the 1990’s it was moved to Formula 1 country in Oxfordshire
By the 1970’s SPAX was the market leader in performance road car suspension in the UK.

By the mid 1980’s SPAX was the market leader in suspension for racing and rallying also. In the early 1990’s export orders started to grow worldwide.

SPAX are heavily involved with racing at all levels and supplied the land speed record car, Thrust 2. So successful was this project that Thrust SSC chose SPAX to break the land speed record at 771 M.P.H. (1.231 Km/H).

In late 1999 SPAX was sold to new owners. A new factory with modern systems was introduced at a cost of close to £1 million and the production facility was transformed into a world class manufacturing unit
In 2001, SPAX became one of only a handful of British manufacturers to be granted the German TUV seal of approval for quality – A tribute to all the hard work put in the factory.

SPAX has recently been appointed the official and sole supplier to Cooper for the Mini Cooper Challenge race series.

I'm sorry but Spax are not quite up there with Bilstein or Koni and they certainly weren't market leaders in rally or race suspension in the 80's. Look at photos from the 80's and you'll see most cars have Bilstein stickers on them.

Spax will probably be better than OEM but they're still not Bilstein's or Koni's.
 
Better than OEM is probably good enough for most of the people on the site who want an improvement at a reasonable cost for road use. Not everyone want to go on the track in an Integra or a 306maxi. If spax are going to the trouble of supporting the Panda/500 in the UK with a decent kit then why not support them.
Might stop a few people moaning when there are no jobs, or the italians come over and take the work. (ah, that has been done already)

The advantage of the adjustable springs would be that you could lift the rear slightly to make up for the short travel if it is still a problem.

I would worry more about the rubber at the top of the front strut, our diesel would have failed its next MOT on this after 33000 miles. A 100 with an engine that is easily as heavy and tougher springs and shocks with give it more grief, especially as they can be driven far harder. Although I think the 4x4 is meant to have a stronger front strut mounting so the 100 might have this.
 
Better than OEM is probably good enough for most of the people on the site who want an improvement at a reasonable cost for road use. Not everyone want to go on the track in an Integra or a 306maxi. If spax are going to the trouble of supporting the Panda/500 in the UK with a decent kit then why not support them.
Might stop a few people moaning when there are no jobs, or the italians come over and take the work. (ah, that has been done already)

The advantage of the adjustable springs would be that you could lift the rear slightly to make up for the short travel if it is still a problem.

I would worry more about the rubber at the top of the front strut, our diesel would have failed its next MOT on this after 33000 miles. A 100 with an engine that is easily as heavy and tougher springs and shocks with give it more grief, especially as they can be driven far harder. Although I think the 4x4 is meant to have a stronger front strut mounting so the 100 might have this.

I don't buy British for the sake of buying British, I buy products which are good. Given a choice of British or foreign for a similar price I'll go British but if the quality is not there I won't buy.
 
i didn't say they were 'better than...' or for the track:rolleyes:
i am sharing 10 years experience on 'centos. bilsteins failed miserably, as did Konis

RSX kit is for fast road, SPAX do a seperate range for track(y)

the standard spring was found to be far too stiff on the 500
 
i am sharing 10 years experience on 'centos. bilsteins failed miserably, as did Konis

Sadly mate, experience seems to count for very little as there are 'certain people' who insist that their opinion is always right and anyone who disagrees doesn't know what they are talking about.... (n)
 
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