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Do adjustable shocks 'wear in'? #1802581
04/13/15 07:05 PM
04/13/15 07:05 PM
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BigBlockMopar Offline OP
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Dan, or others... Do the Hotchkis shocks 'wear in' some over time and get slightly softer?

I'm still not quite sure if it's just me, getting used to them, or that maybe the adjustable Hotchkis front shocks I'm running since November '14 have gotten slightly softer over time.
I have a feeling the adjusters need to be stepped up again, but I'm already running them at setting 17 or 18 I recall, from the possible max 22? steps.
Last year I started out with the shocks at 15-16 steps up from their shoftest setting.

The Dart still has the 1" JustSuspension torsionbars, but I'm a bit worried I might be running out of adjustment when I install the 1.10" FirmFeel bars in the near future.

(Since the installation I've also swapped the castiron 2bbl intake for a alum. 4bbl intake on the otherwise bone stock 318)




Re: Do adjustable shocks 'wear in'? [Re: BigBlockMopar] #1802627
04/13/15 08:29 PM
04/13/15 08:29 PM
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Trojmn Offline
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they certainly wear out. look for leakage. unless you SEE evidence or its plainly obvious the only real way is to know put it on a shock dyno. those are single adj rebound so your saying the car is wobbling after bumps?

how many miles since Nov?

Last edited by Trojmn; 04/13/15 09:08 PM.
Re: Do adjustable shocks 'wear in'? [Re: BigBlockMopar] #1802666
04/13/15 09:08 PM
04/13/15 09:08 PM
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BigBlockMopar Offline OP
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No not (noticably at least) wobbling and certainly not feeling worn out or leaking somewhere.
It's just I *think* the car doesn't feel as firm anymore on the rebound (at speedbumps) as after I just installed them, which was around 3000 miles ago.

The car sees a lot of speedbumps everyday. I'm hitting around 7 speedbumps just getting out of the 2-3 streets in my neighborhood heading to work.
A rough guess is the car sees about 20-30 mixed height speedbumps per day.

I wouldn't be that surprised if the shocks indeed would have lost some internal friction because of that.
Might set them a click or 2 firmer to see if that feels better again.

I've been wanting to install one of my action cameras near the suspension for a while now, so I guess this would be a good time as ever.

Re: Do adjustable shocks 'wear in'? [Re: BigBlockMopar] #1802697
04/13/15 09:38 PM
04/13/15 09:38 PM
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i had this big explanation of slow speed/fast speed valving etc... hows the regular ride on the street? cracks, bumps at cruising speed? turn them FULL soft + 1 click. drive around. tight up evenly until all the wobble/pogo is gone after hitting bumps at say 30+MPH is gone. is that really 2/3 the adjustment?

if moving the slow speed rebound adjustment is making speed bumps more comfortable, i just resist judgement. I don't know anything about your setup but if your getting into the bump stops that would be jarring. if rebound adj is helping that on speedbumps, id wager it is also adding some compression resistance,(fairly common).

put some chalk/paint on your bump stop and then go over your speedbumps at your normal rate (slow right?) that will at least tell you where you are. and if you re hitting hard, more spring and/or more travel in this case might make it more comfortable.


Last edited by Trojmn; 04/13/15 09:40 PM.
Re: Do adjustable shocks 'wear in'? [Re: BigBlockMopar] #1802699
04/13/15 09:39 PM
04/13/15 09:39 PM
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72Swinger Offline
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Shock performance can vary with ambient temp. The oil can stiffen up when its cold out.


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Re: Do adjustable shocks 'wear in'? [Re: 72Swinger] #1803496
04/14/15 07:21 PM
04/14/15 07:21 PM
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If you look at the valving in a shock, there is only discs with holes to flow the fluid, so not much to wear out there. The piston seal can wear however and will "loosen" up the shock a bit. Temp as someone else pointed out can definitely make the shock oil viscosity change.

I suspect you're getting used to the ride and as summer heats up you're feeling the change. But who cares? That's the beauty of adjustable shocks. Crank in a click or two every week until it's too stiff and then back it off a bit.

Re: Do adjustable shocks 'wear in'? [Re: BigBlockMopar] #1803687
04/14/15 10:45 PM
04/14/15 10:45 PM
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67autocross Offline
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Do the shocks not come with some type of instructions and the rebuild interval? Most Fox shocks need to be rebuilt every 200 hours or once a year to maintain the original performance. The first oil change is the most important to get the contaminants out of the shock, at that time if you could find out the stock oil weight and put something a bit heaver in it to get more rebound damping.


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Re: Do adjustable shocks 'wear in'? [Re: BigBlockMopar] #1803982
04/15/15 05:32 AM
04/15/15 05:32 AM
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BigBlockMopar Offline OP
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Good point. No instructions noticed in the box.
I'll probably contact Hotchkis about the maintenance procedure if Dan doesn't check in before that.

I've been focusing a bit more on the way the car handles and it could very well be a combination of things and but also the increasing outside temps now and that I installed them near the winter in November last year.

Re: Do adjustable shocks 'wear in'? [Re: BigBlockMopar] #1804516
04/15/15 11:11 PM
04/15/15 11:11 PM
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Santa Fe Springs, CA
Dan@Hotchkis Offline
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We are working on a rebuild and possibly a custom valving service. As delivered, the Fox shocks SHOULD be good for about 20k miles.

Re: Do adjustable shocks 'wear in'? [Re: BigBlockMopar] #2803862
08/01/20 06:45 PM
08/01/20 06:45 PM
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BigBlockMopar Offline OP
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----- 2020 Topic update -----

Stumbled onto this topic again and decided to update it with info.


Over the 5 years I've been daily driving with the adjustable Hotchkis shocks, I've recently ended up at their max and 'adjusted' them to their tightest setting (24 clicks).
I guess it will be time to rebuild them in the near future.

Re: Do adjustable shocks 'wear in'? [Re: BigBlockMopar] #2803942
08/01/20 08:39 PM
08/01/20 08:39 PM
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Are they a pressurized shock? Unless they are visibly leaking fluid, I can't see them "wearing in" unless you have already wore out say a set of ball joints, etc first. You have same tires, pressures, car weight, roads, etc from back in '14?


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Re: Do adjustable shocks 'wear in'? [Re: jcc] #2804034
08/02/20 04:37 AM
08/02/20 04:37 AM
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Same conditions as 5 years ago. "wearing in" was not the issue. They are just wearing out.
I don't think they are pressurized.

I have adj QA1 shocks on the rear, and while they are valve 'heavier' because I'm still in the low-range of their setting, I'm not noticing any or much wear on those.

Have a compleet set of double adjustable Viking shocks coming my way in 2-3 weeks, so I can open up the Hotchkis shocks and have a look at why they seem to be losing their effectiveness.

Re: Do adjustable shocks 'wear in'? [Re: BigBlockMopar] #2804064
08/02/20 09:06 AM
08/02/20 09:06 AM
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I'm thinking internal seals wearing and leaking by. So you have a leak partially bypassing the adjusters and that's why you have been able to tighten up the adjustment to keep the performance, well until you ran out of adjustment. Probably not an issue a rebuid won;t fix, but till you open it up it's all guess work.

Re: Do adjustable shocks 'wear in'? [Re: BigBlockMopar] #2804084
08/02/20 09:46 AM
08/02/20 09:46 AM
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IIRC, you have an extra few hundred pounds (or more?) of alternate fuel equipment on your car. Extra weight means accellerated wear, which would seem consist with your need to consistently crank up the resistance in the shocks if they were valved for a lighter weight A body and you are closer to fully loaded B body weights.

Re: Do adjustable shocks 'wear in'? [Re: TC@HP2] #2804199
08/02/20 01:46 PM
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BigBlockMopar Offline OP
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Correct, but all that weight is in the rear where the QA1 shocks are.
2 steel propane tanks with metal frames.
The QA1 should have worn faster.

But all in all, this is where 'adjustable' shocks also shine. Their working-life can be extended by adjusting them.


Last edited by BigBlockMopar; 08/02/20 01:46 PM.
Re: Do adjustable shocks 'wear in'? [Re: BigBlockMopar] #2804656
08/03/20 12:34 PM
08/03/20 12:34 PM
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Originally Posted by BigBlockMopar
----- 2020 Topic update -----

Stumbled onto this topic again and decided to update it with info.


Over the 5 years I've been daily driving with the adjustable Hotchkis shocks, I've recently ended up at their max and 'adjusted' them to their tightest setting (24 clicks).
I guess it will be time to rebuild them in the near future.


Thats about right. Marketing would like to tell you that they're good for 100k miles, however with actual daily driving and the monthly autocross/track time 2 years/25k miles has been my observed service interval. I've seen seals get killed in less miles leading to failed shocks in a shorter time span.

Re: Do adjustable shocks 'wear in'? [Re: 68rrunner] #2805096
08/04/20 04:14 PM
08/04/20 04:14 PM
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BigBlockMopar Offline OP
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Just looked up when I installed the rear adjustable QA1-shocks and that was halfway in 2015.
I recall they have about 18-settings but I've still got them at set at 5 or 6-clicks I recall.
Maybe over time I adjusted them 2 clicks up perhaps.

Re: Do adjustable shocks 'wear in'? [Re: BigBlockMopar] #2805717
08/06/20 11:59 AM
08/06/20 11:59 AM
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Should also mention that they ARE a pressurized shock, so DO NOT attempt to take them apart. They use a specific valve to service them.

Re: Do adjustable shocks 'wear in'? [Re: 68rrunner] #2805770
08/06/20 02:25 PM
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Ok, thanks for the info.







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