for a 2004 w/h w-22\ Bilstien set of 4= 319.00
Koni set of 4= 572.00
is there that big of a difference in the Koni ride to be almost twice the price?
any pros and cons?
Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in
a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside,
thoroughly used up, totally worn out, loudly proclaiming---WOW WHAT A
RIDE!!!
I'm having the same problem deciding if the Koni's are worth the extra dollars also. Mine is a 2003 W-22 chassis. Came with Monroes and haven't decided yet which way to go, either the Bilsteins or Koni's.
Curt 2003 Allegro Bay
* This post was
edited 04/12/09 04:57pm by CurtisG *
CurtisG
2003 34' Allegro Bay
WH(W22)/GM8.1/Allison
Don't know which chassis you have, but if it's a Ford F53, personally I would recommend the Koni's if only for the front suspension. I realize $253 is quite a difference, but in the long run may be well worth the money for ride improvement if that's what you're looking for.
Good luck with which ever way you go,
Jim & Sherry Seward
Las Vegas, NV
2000 Residency 3790 V-10 w/tags & Banks System
2003 Suzuki XL/7 toad
I just ordered some Koni FSD's for my 2004 W-22 chassis. From my reading here and on other forums, it seems those that have had BOTH the Koni's and Bilstein's on recent vintage gas chassis motorhomes seem to say the ride is better on the Koni's. Those that haven't had both generally speak good things about both.
My W-22 came with Monroe's (I think, they're black) and they are/were pretty inadequate. WH switched to Bilstein's a couple months after my chassis was made. (CurtisG, if you have Bilsteins your OEM shocks must have been replaced already, correct?)
As I said, those people that had Biltsein's from WH and upgraded to the Koni's seem to think it was well worth it. Those who had the OEM Monroe's stated that upgrading to either Bilstein's or Koni's resulted in a better contolled rig.
Since I'm doing the installation myself I figured what I'm saving on labor I'll put toward the Koni FSD's.
~Rick
2005 Georgie Boy 3625 DS on a Workhorse W-22 (Class A)
Rick, Gail, 1 girl (15-Angel, Lexi96.org), 1 girl (10), 2 boys (11 & 8).
2001 Honda Odyssey, Demco Aluminator tow bar & tow plate, SMI Silent Partner brake controller.
Hi Rick, I just edited my last post, my shocks are Monroe's. They are yellow in color.
Thanks,
Curt
Rick Jay wrote:
I just ordered some Koni FSD's for my 2004 W-22 chassis. From my reading here and on other forums, it seems those that have had BOTH the Koni's and Bilstein's on recent vintage gas chassis motorhomes seem to say the ride is better on the Koni's. Those that haven't had both generally speak good things about both.
My W-22 came with Monroe's (I think, they're black) and they are/were pretty inadequate. WH switched to Bilstein's a couple months after my chassis was made. (CurtisG, if you have Bilsteins your OEM shocks must have been replaced already, correct?)
As I said, those people that had Biltsein's from WH and upgraded to the Koni's seem to think it was well worth it. Those who had the OEM Monroe's stated that upgrading to either Bilstein's or Koni's resulted in a better contolled rig.
Since I'm doing the installation myself I figured what I'm saving on labor I'll put toward the Koni FSD's.
I have run all three, Bilstien, Monroe and now Koni.
The Bilstiens were a gas shock and had a fairly strong valving for both compression and rebound. Very stable ride, harsh ride. OEM Shocks
The Monroes came with as part of a new suspension package, softer front leaf springs and airbags. The Monroes had very little resistance to compression and strong resistance to rebound.
The Konis were the same valving as the Monroes and I did not notice much difference.
Unfortunately did not have the Bilstiens with new springs to see the difference, but there is a difference in how all the shocks are valved and perform.
Had Bilstein's on my coach with only 8K miles. The ride was very firm but harsh on choppy,seamed roads. Put on 4 Koni FSDs and noticed a big difference during the first drive over the same roads that I drove the Bilstein's. They are firm but much more forgiving on harsh roads.
This is simply my seat of the pants opinion and not scientific. I highly recommend the Koni FSDs.
Frank O.
Frank and Vicki
Niwot, CO
2006 Itasca Sunrise 35A on WH Chassis W22 8.1L
2006 CRV
Roadmaster Falcon Towbar and Baseplate
States visited/camped in, not just driven through.
I have no opinion, but I need new shocks on mine. So I'm posting a comment so that I can subscribe and keep up with you guys. I've heard a ton of comments on the Koni's about how good they were. But i'm like you, is it worth the money?
Dave
Our DSDP came with Bilsteins, took them off and put Koni's on, much better ride and handling as far as the DW and I are concerned. Had to use the "older" adjustable Koni's on the front as they don't make FSD's for it. Put FSD's on the rear though.
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