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For those whom like to read and understand more about whats actually the purpose of springs and shocks on your car and what can or cannot be done to it. Springs Springs are primarily responsible for keeping the tire in contact with the road surface over bumps and dips. In the realm of physics, springs are noted as being efficient machines for storing mechanical energy. When a spring is compressed, the energy required to perform the compression is stored. When the compression force is removed, the spring returns to its original shape. No additional energy input is required. A spring can also be stretched (to a point), and it will return to its original shape. All this depends on the use of effective materials of course. What does a spring do? In a car, compression of the suspension spring is caused when the wheel travels across the front side of a raised bump. A portion of the energy used to cause forward motion of the vehicle is redirected causing the wheel to travel up, which compresses the spring. The spring stores the vertical energy, and as the wheel travels down the backside of the bump, the energy stored in the spring pushes the wheel back down. For safety and handling, this has the significant benefit of keeping the tire in contact with the road surface as the tire travels over a bump. A similar process occurs for dips, except that the spring elongates rather than compresses to start with. Without springs, the wheels would transfer the redirection of the vertical energy into the vehicle chassis and cause the vehicle to bounce off the bumps. This would both be annoyingly uncomfortable to the passengers (a concern to street car manufacturers), and the driver would momentarily lose some or all of the ability to steer, accelerate or brake as traction from the tires would be lost (a safety concern for all, and a maximum performance concern for racing). With springs, the vehicle body can maintain a relatively linear path (providing comfort for the passengers), while the wheel travels up and down over the bumps (allowing for continuous safe vehicle control, and continued traction for maximum racing performance). Therefore, the purpose of the spring in an automobile is to isolate the wheel assembly from the body, and allow the tire to maintain contact with the road over surface imperfections. Spring Stiffness Relative to its shock absorbing function, the spring must be stiff enough to prevent full compression or elongation in large bumps and potholes. However, it must also be soft enough maintain good contact with the road. The softer the spring the better the road contact over bumpy surfaces. However, the stiffer the spring, the better the resistance to bottoming out on large bumps. Somewhere between these extremes is a range of good spring rates (stiffness) to work for the expected environment. Wheel Travel & Body Roll In order to handle bumps and dips, the entire wheel assembly is designed to have a certain amount of vertical travel length from full extension to compression. The rougher the road, the more wheel travel is needed, and the longer the overall spring length needs to be. Factory passenger cars are designed to function well over a broad range of conditions, and the suspension system in particular must be prepared to compensate for potholes, freeway expansion joints, rutted gravel roads, and other less than ideal road surfaces. Therefore, a street car is designed with quite a bit of suspension travel length (think of how far you have to jack up a car's body to get the wheel off the ground--that's about half the wheel travel)). In a high performance sports car (i.e. of the Porsche, Ferrari, Viper, and NSX type), manufacturers assume a more limited range of road surfaces, and design in less wheel travel by a of couple inches. In the typical sports car or sports sedan of the Mustang, Camaro, Eclipse, Integra, and BMW 3 types, the suspension is a little better than the general sedan, but it's really not a great deal different. In racing, we can assume a certain degree of ideal conditions, or at least more ideal than public roads. In a stock street car, even notoriously "bumpy" race courses feel glass smooth compared to most public roads. In these conditions, the purpose of the spring can be focused to maintain maximum and consistent contact of the tire with the relatively much smoother road surface. Under these conditions, very little wheel assembly travel is required. The spring can be optimized for smaller wheel travel conditions. For example, a CART or Formula 1 race car driven on smooth courses may only have 1/4 to 1/2" of total suspension travel! How does wheel travel impact handling? Well, just from the CART example given above, we might assume that shorter wheel travel is better. And, of course, it is. Though the wheel assembly travels up and down, it does not do so on a linear path. The wheel assembly is at some point fixed, and the wheel assembly actually travels in an arc. Whether the body stays put, and the wheel travels (through bumps), or the wheel stays put and the body travels (body roll), this has impact on the camber angle of the wheel which changes the tire contact patch shape. Therefore, for racing conditions, limiting the wheel travel distance is a desirable thing. For street cars, the use of lowering springs (shorter and stiffer) is one method to reduce wheel travel. In extreme cases, it will also be necessary to use shorter shocks. Roll Stiffness So far we have used bumps in the road to illustrate how springs behave. Springs are also acted upon by the forces of acceleration, braking, and cornering. The momentum of the vehicle body in cornering, braking, and acceleration transfers into the springs causing compression and elongation. This is an easy to see effect of weight transfer as it results in visible body roll -- both the side-to-side roll we're mostly familiar with during cornering, but also front-to-back roll -- particularly the "nose dive" under hard braking. Body roll by itself is not necessarily bad. If the four tires remain flat on the road surface with balanced downforce, who cares whether the car body is parallel to the road or not (aerodynamics aside). What body roll does though is change the angles of the suspension components to the wheel assembly (which we call suspension geometry). This is pretty much the same thing as we discussed above with wheel travel, except this is from the opposite perspective. With the wheel on the fixed plane of a smooth road, the body now travels, and causes the wheel assembly to travel in the arc we described. This changes the camber and tire contact patch particularly of those tires which are unloaded and the suspension elongates. Aside from bump absorption, the spring also contributes to the roll stiffness of the car--the ability to resist dive under braking, squat during acceleration, and body roll during corning. The anti-roll bars also play a roll in this, and the two combined create the total roll stiffness of the car. Stiffer springs will resist body roll more, reduce change in the suspension geometry, and maintain a more consistent tire patch size. Note: many people are under the misconception that body roll causes weight transfer. This is not true. See the weight transfer article for details about this. Spring Stiffness for Racing and Street Use The spring's roll resistance characteristics helps to resist the forces during dynamic changes, and make the car more stable during the transition. This implies a stiffer spring is needed to minimize the compression and elongation, and therefore minimize the change to the suspension geometry. However, even purpose-built race cars cannot simply use the stiffest spring available. If we return to the case of having no springs at all (the ultimate in stiffness), even a "smooth" race track would be violently bumpy without some suspension dampening. At some point the spring becomes too stiff for the road surface, and the vehicle will lose traction as it bounces over surface imperfections. The race technician and driver have to find the most effective balance between being soft enough to allow the tire to stay in contact with the road surface over bumps, and being firm enough to control suspension geometry and keep the tire as flat as possible on the road surface. A driving enthusiast's car which does double duty on the street and the track has a larger window to find compromise in than does a race car. Putting full race springs on your street car may seem the macho thing to do, and though your car should be faster on the track, it will make your life miserable on the street. In fact, it is quite likely to cause damage to other suspension components when you come across that surprise pothole. Today, after-market springs offer features that not too long ago would have been found only on race cars. The research done in sports car class racing has resulted in several manufacturers producing high performance progressive rate springs for virtually all sport enthusiast cars that allow an acceptable comfort level on the street yet significantly increase handling performance over the stock springs. Most factory stock springs have a constant or nearly constant factor of stiffness called the spring rate. As the spring is compressed or elongated, the force required to change the spring's length stays the same. The spring rate is linear as the spring goes from full elongation to full compression. This provides greater comfort across minor and major bumps, but does little to minimize body roll under hard cornering. Progressive rate springs have a softer spring rate during some initial portion of compression or elongation, but then get progressively stiffer as continued force is applied. This is typically accomplished by changing the shape of the spring. This ability to start soft and get firmer with higher compression allows the spring to accommodate typical street bumps with satisfactory comfort. On the track under high braking or cornering forces, the spring's stiffer region comes into effect to reduce the body roll compared to the stock spring. Compared to a full race spring, there is a little more body roll before the spring takes a firm set, but that's the compromise of a dual purpose car. Most after-market progressive-rate springs start out about 15% firmer than the stock part, and get stiffer from there. Though they offer acceptable bump absorption, they do give the vehicle a noticeably rougher ride, especially with larger bumps where the spring becomes stiffer. However, given the success of these springs, the comfort for performance trade off is considered well worth it by sports car enthusiasts. In selecting an after-market spring set, you should know how much stiffer than stock it is, whether it is progressive or linear, and how much it will change the car's ride height. If you're concerned about losing too much ride comfort, you should ride in another car as closely prepared to yours as possible. Some people stiffen their suspensions for periodic racing only to discover they really don't care for it the remaining 97% of their driving time. You should also know what other suspension changes you're going to make to the car including wheel and tire sizes, and talk with a technician experienced with your car type. Certain combinations of springs, shocks and tire sidewall sizes will function better than others. A mechanic from a specialist shop or race team may offer some advice learned from experimentation and testing. Using Springs to Lower the Car One other thing related to spring selection is that of vehicle ride height. On the street, the variety of road surfaces, speed bumps, drainage channels, and steep driveways requires the car's lowest point have a certain practical height above the road to avoid damaging the car. In racing, ride height has significant impact on the vehicle's center of gravity ("CG") which is one of the major influences in a car's weight transfer characteristics. Ideally, the CG should be as close to the ground as possible, and race cars will be lowered as much as allowed by the rules. Open-wheel formula cars are lowered as much as possible without bottoming out while racing which often ends up being 1/2" or less on very smooth tracks. The most straightforward way to lower the CG is to lower the car, and the most direct way to do that in a street car is with shorter springs. Most street cars can be lowered somewhat from their factory setting, but there are several practical limitations in the design of the suspension system. A realistic compromise needs to be made that considers the clearance needs for the street, and the suspension system of the car. Extremely low cars ("slammed" in today's vernacular) may look good (or at least look like the racing sedans they seek to imitate), and if done right will handle better on the track, but there are some limitations on the street. Springs which are too short may cause interference problems with other suspension components such as the shocks. Additionally, the suspension geometry (the connection points, and lengths of it parts) are designed with a certain spring length in mind to keep the wheels in proper alignment. A severely lowered car that does not also alter the suspension will cause the wheels to have excessive camber for sure, and will likely also adversely affect the castor and toe. You might think it looks great, but this will severely reduce the handling performance of the car. You should consult someone experienced with your car type before just buying the spring which seems to lower your car the most. Such a spring may also require a specific matching shock or other suspension changes to actually improve the handling performance. Speaking of shocks, it is generally necessary to buy stiffer shocks at the same time you change the springs. Springs alone will lower the CG, and will reduce body roll, but neither is the primary function of the spring. For road imperfections, shocks work in conjunction with the spring, and are designed with each other's ratings in mind. Going over bumps, a stiff spring may resist the first compression well, but without sufficient shock capacity, the car will bounce more than it should afterwards which ultimately reduces the car's handling performance. Also, stiffer springs will prematurely fatigue stock shocks. They'll last a while, but will eventually get weaker and decrease the handling performance. If you can only afford shocks or springs, either keep saving to get both, or start with the shocks. Performance shocks alone which provide firmer bump and rebound control, and greater control over weight transfer rate, will improve handing performance more than stiffer springs alone will. Another Option: Coil-Over Springs There is increasing availability of coil-over suspension setups for street cars. The coil-over is a combined assembly of the shock and spring where the spring rests in a height-adjustable base. Coil-over setups were designed to optimize racing performance, and so several characteristics of coil-overs seem to make them the ultimate choice in suspension modifications. First, coil-overs allow the car to be lowered more than conventional shock and progressive rate spring upgrades. This of course is a good thing for weight transfer control, but as we mentioned earlier, can cause real comfort and damage-potential problems for a street car. Secondly, the spring rates are usually much stiffer than even progressive rate springs, and they're usually linear. On the race track, there's no need for a progressive spring rate, and coil-overs with their racing purpose, aren't intended to use them. This also allows the spring to be shorter which is where the greater lowering potential come from. The main purpose and advantage of the coil-over design is to allow independent ride height adjustability of each corner of the car. This ride height adjustability allows manipulation of the center of gravity of the car. In particular, by manipulating the front to back or side side to side location of the center of gravity, weight transfer can be controlled to influence specific tires on the car. If you can pre-dispose the car to distribute weight transfer a certain way, you can optimize the grip of certain tires and improve the overall speed of the car through corners. Raising the back of the car puts the CG more forward. Raising the front of the car pushes the CG more rearward. The left or right side could also be independently raised or lowered. With these adjustments, you can reduce the amount of grip lost to specific tires during weight transfer. For example on a race track with a high percentage of high-speed right turns, you could set the car up to reduce the weight transfer to outside left tire, and increase the weight that remains on the right rear. Compared to the same car with fixed ride heights, the one with the adjustable coil-overs will be able to increase the overall grip through more even wieght distribution during the dynamic load of the right turns. So, this sounds like an awesome modification to run out and get, right? Well, yes it is -- for racing. Like we say, for the street this is an extreme modification. You may be die hard, and live with the harshness of the ride, but you'll likely have very grumpy passengers. It is possible to minimize the harshness by using softer springs, or even progressive rate springs for that matter. However, those springs will tend to be longer, will not allow the car to be lowered as much negating some of the advantage. Some people will use stiff springs for the track, then swap to softer springs on the street between events. Summary Springs allow the wheel to remain in contact with the road surface over bumps. The bumpier the road surface, the softer the spring needs to be. In a street car, it's not likely you'll be set up to change springs easily, but in selecting an after market spring, you should understand the balance of ride comfort and track performance you want, and identify the spring best suited to that compromise. Lowering the car with shorter springs will also reduce weight transfer, but excessive lowering (beyond the design range of the other suspension components) will cause other problems that will diminish handling performance, and potential create very unsafe conditions if the suspension bottoms out easily. Progressive-rate after-market springs are designed to reduce body roll to maintain better tire contact patch during cornering, and reduce weight transfer while sacrificing only a little ride comfort. A coil-over spring and shock assembly is generally the ultimate set up for racing. The car is lowered significantly, the springs are usually much stiffer for body roll control, and the ride height of each corner of the car is adjustable allowing tuning control over the center of gravity and weight transfer. Coil-overs are an extreme modification for street use, and renders the ride comfort intolerable on the street for most people. For all changes to the spring stiffness, especially coil-overs, be sure to test drive a car that has a setup similar to what you're looking at. Ride stiffness is a definate try before you buy situation to make sure you can live with it the 97% of the time you're not racing. Shocks The primary function of the shock is to dampen the oscillation of the springs after the wheel travels over bumps and dips. If you've read the springs article, you know that the spring's job is to allow the tire to maintain constant contact with the road surface. It is the spring that actually absorbs the shocks of surface roughness. So, contrary to their popular name in the U.S., the purpose of the "shock absorber" is not to absorb the shock of bumps on the road. That is the job of the springs. The purpose of the shock is actually to dampen the oscillation of the springs. Reflecting this function, those outside the U.S. refer to shocks as dampeners. We mentioned that a spring retains energy to allow it to return to its original shape after being compressed or stretched. Unfortunately, a spring will not just return to its original shape and stay there. You've probably witnessed yourself that if you compress or bend a spring it will oscillate back and forth in smaller and smaller increments until finally coming to rest. If you have ever seen an old car bounce endlessly after going over a bump, you have seen what springs will do in a car with ineffective shocks. This is not good for safe control of the vehicle, and it's certainly not any good for effective handling while racing. The shock's primary purpose is to control this oscillation. In a passenger car, the designer has the choice of just how fast the shock dampens the spring. If the dampening is immediate, the car will have better weight transfer rate control, but a harsher ride. If the dampening is a little slower allowing perhaps 2 to 3 oscillations, the ride will feel much smoother. In racing, we want the dampening to be almost immediate. A vehicle's bouncing on the springs creates erratic shifts in the tire contact patches and mechanical downforce on the tires. Both of these conditions reduce the effective grip the tires have. Any bounce in the body of the vehicle must be eliminated quickly to allow full grip to return as fast as possible to the tires. However, like springs, it is possible to have too stiff a shock. First, if the shocks are stiffer than the springs, the springs will be overpowered, and will not actually fulfill their bump absorbing function. Secondly, a shock has a major affect on how quickly weight transfer occurs in the dynamic changes of accelerating, braking, and cornering. The stiffer the shock, the faster the weight transfer occurs. This will help the vehicle have very responsive steering, but the transfer can be too fast for the driver. During cornering in particular, the driver must be able to induce smooth weight transfer and feel the tires reach their maximum grip. If the weight transfer occurs too fast, the driver will not feel the tires approach that peak grip, and will likely overshoot the traction capacity of the tires causing excessive sliding or spins. When modifying your car, starting with the most awesome race hardware you can buy is not likely the appropriate starting point. Full-race shocks are going to be too stiff for the street, and will likely cause the car to bounce off of bumps. Additionally, you'll probably not have the sensitivity to feel the grip level of the tires when cornering at maximum speed. To help with the dual purpose street/track car, and to provide some adjustability for tuning handling performance, there are several after-market shocks that are adjustable. A manual (or even electronic) dial allows selection of several settings which are progressively stiffer. These shocks can be turned to their softest setting (they're still going to be stiffer than stock) for a smooth ride on the street, and their firmest for the track to minimize body roll and increase the steering responsiveness. The adjustability also allows finer tuning of handling performance for a given track. As discussed in the weight transfer and the handling tuning sections, adjustable shocks can be used to help adjust out small amounts of oversteer and understeer. If you can't afford adjustable shocks, don't assume that stiffer is better in a fixed rate shock. Shocks should be selected knowing the springs they will be used with. Too stiff a shock will overpower the spring reducing its effectiveness. If the shock is not adjustable, then matching the shock to the rating of the springs is even more critical. You sould consult a shop experienced in this matching. Talk with a technician familiar with your car, and find out what shocks offer the best performance for you car's degree of modification. The "killer" shock for someone else's car may not be the best one for yours. Summary The shock's purpose is to control the oscillation of the spring's response to bumps and dips. The stiffer the shock, the faster the dampening. The shock also controls the rate of weight transfer. The stiffer the shock is for compression (or "bump" as it is often called), the faster weight transfer occurs which determines how fast the tires will take their "set" in a corner, and the resulting steering responsiveness of the car. It is possible to have too stiff a shock which will overpower the springs, and results in weight transfer being too fast for the driver's experience and sensitivity to feel when maximum tire grip is achieved in a corner (generally resulting in a lot of spins). Shocks need to be selected knowing the ratings of the springs.

Hi! I took over a Fiat Grande Punto recently and found out that the previous owner had changed the shocks to Koni Sport 8741. Not sure about the springs though.. I find that the ride is a little too stiff and wanted to make it softer. Understand that I'd need a white coloured knob to turn the top axle to tune it. It wasn't included with the car when I purchase it from the dealer though.. It cost $50 from ebay. Hence, trying my luck here to see if any brother/sister out there has one to lend it to me for a day or two?

A set of 4, how much will it cost?

My car(Stream) suspension is starting to give sound and i think the shock is going to wear out given my mileage of 85K now, should about time to change. Any good workshop to recommend? How about Autosaver? Anyone tried their service? Any feedback?

Hi, Anyone knows where to get/do Bilstein? Thanx in advance... Jon

My friends driving civic fd 1.8l & Fit GD1 just fixed up Tokico shocks, total cost including labour is only approximately $4xx nia. I was quoted nearly $6xx for KYB shocks early this year for my stream, up from $5xx quoted last year. Total damage is more than $7xx with labour !!! Anyone knows what is the difference between the two brands? Too bad I found out Tokico does not carry for Honda Stream....sianz

Guys, can recommend cheap shocks, 1 more year before scrap ?

Any Kia Forte owner who has replaced their original shocks? Appreciate yr feedbck on wat's good out there for a firm and good handling... don't like coilover though. Tks!

OMG!!! just a bread n butter small hatch back, tracked for fun once and covered only 40,000km in five years but now f shocks gone.... My only "abuse":- sometimes accelerated hard half way going thru road humps but got slowed down a bit before humps. Any bros' shocks lasted shorter?

I saw this on my Facebook. The story seems to be getting a lot of attention in cyberspace. It's all about a Moulmein resident's unpleasant encounter with PAP candidate Lui Tuck Yew. Dear Friends I am forwarding you an email I sent to the incumbent MP for Moulmein, Mr Lui Tuck Yew, and his subsequent reply. (They are reversed in order below). I have only deleted my name/addresses and Mr Lui's address for the sake of privacy in the event that you may wish to forward this to your own friends. I trust you will not use this email to "flame" (hope I used the term correctly), but instead to educate and perhaps generate informed discussion. I am sending my friends this because I feel that it is important that you hear what happened to me personally, and how Mr Lui reacted to me during what I thought was a simple, agreeable conversation. Those of you who know me well know that I do not go around deliberately antagonising people or creating trouble of any kind. So the flow of the conversation that took place left me shocked, and I must admit, sad. Mr Lui explains his "disengagement" in his reply attached below. I will leave you to read the whole story and the two emails and then come to your own conclusions. First, the background to this whole incident. I have been a resident of Moulmein my whole life, and not once have I ever had the chance or privilege to vote. So you can imagine how excited I was when I realised that there may be a strong possibility that Moulmein would be contested this time round. Prior to Mr Lui being the walkover MP, our MP was Mr Khaw Boon Wan. If Mr Khaw had still been our MP, I would most likely have voted for him as Mr Khaw had made his presence felt strongly in Moulmein, even at a social level, and it had always been a very reassuring presence. Mr Lui, on the other hand, has not had much of a presence. So, on a recent walkabout in Moulmein, I happened to have what I thought at the time, was the privilege, to meet Mr Lui and get to know him better. He started off very friendly and handed me the Moulmein newsletter. He asked how long I'd been living here, and I let him know that I have been in Moulmein my whole life, and that this was the first time I may get a chance to vote. His immediate reaction was, "Yes, blame the Opposition! I don't know what they ..." and he went on to say something more which I couldn't hear because my brain was trying to process the fact that he had actually openly said, "Blame the Opposition" in a serious tone, laced with annoyance. He might have sensed my confusion (I'm guessing here). I then changed topic and pointed out to him that I had felt Mr Khaw's presence much more than his, and I requested for him to let me hear some of what he had done for Moulmein. He told me to refer to the newsletter. I then said that I really wanted to hear from him, and not read what other people (ie his grassroots team) had created. He immediately started listing all the playgrounds they had done up (there was always the word "We") and spoke about a unique-to-Moulmein schools programme, which I liked very much. I interrupted him a few times to clarify a few things he had said. I next asked him to let me know why I should vote for him. (I'm serious about voting, and I have thought this through so carefully. I told myself that no matter what, it was my duty to try and understand each candidate and approach them one-to-one before I cast my vote. And it was, and still is, my resolve to ask each candidate this question - why I should vote for them.) I'm now going to recount the dialogue word-for-word as it is still clearly playing itself over and over in my head: Me: Could you please tell me why I should vote for you? Mr Lui: You should NOT vote for the Opposition because they ... Me: The Opposition? No, I want to know about you. Please tell me why I should vote for you. Mr Lui: You should vote for the PAP because we .... Me: The PAP? No, no. I'm not interested in the PAP or the Opposition. I'm interested to know about you. Why should I vote for you? At this point, Mr Lui shot me a look of pure anger, waved his hand about in the air, declaring, "We could spend all night talking about me!", pointed to the newsletter and snapped, "It's all in the the newsletter!" He then swung round and stormed off. I remember standing there, in total shock, wondering what on earth I had done wrong to deserve such an intense reaction. I watched as he couldn't get beyond two or three steps as he was stopped by someone else wanting to meet him. I watched as he switched on his smile, said a few polite words, thrust the newsletter into her hand and disappeared, still angered. (Those who know me well, know I did my MA in nonverbal language, and know how accurate I am with "vibes".) I watched as his posse scurried after him, not one of them daring and/or caring to turn to look at me or say goodbye, not one of them. I had asked a simple question. I was not expecting rocket science for an answer or any deep psychological profile to be shared. Just a simple answer from the heart would have sufficed, or even a more measured response. But not anger, never in a million years would I have thought anyone would have, or could have, responded to my simple question with anger. And I feel sad. Sad that after all these years, what people have been saying has finally been proven true to my face, literally. I then turned to the Moulmein newsletter, ploughed through it in the hope that perhaps there was a lot about Mr Lui in the newsletter. No, there wasn't. Not a thing. Instead, I was left very impressed with the Moulmein Citizens Consultative Committee, the various Neighbourhood Committees and the Residents' Committees - all of which I am sure will not disappear if there is a change in leadership. So I sat down, and penned an email, which I have since sent, to Mr Lui. I chose to be polite and measured in the email, and not angry nor accusatory because to be angry would have been to stoop to Mr Lui's response towards me, and that would not do anyone any good. If he's going to continue as Minister (and it does look like he's on the PAP fast-track if he's voted back in), then really, he needs to hear, he needs to understand, he needs to be educated. And he needs to learn how to answer simple, non-threatening questions! It's such an irony that prior to the dissolution of Parliament, he was the Minister for Information, Communications and the Arts. You'll find the email below, and Mr Lui's response (in reverse order), which I just received a short while ago. If you should choose to share my experience with any of your friends who need or would wish to read this, I request that you not include my email address and name. Love and hugs everyone. - ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Tuck Yew LUI (MICA) Date: 22 April 2011 16:53 Subject: Re: Moulmein Walkabout To: Dear - , i am sure this may not apply to you given that you have now taken the trouble to write this note but unfortunately I encounter some people whose minds are made up and whose main intent seem to be to slow us down in our outreach. And nothing, we say, no explanation we give whether to do with cost of living, etc will ever be good enough. The pragmatic way to deal with this is simply to disengage at an opportune moment. Dont worry, it didnt leave a sour note with me nor a poor impression of you. Regards, Lui Tuck Yew Sent from my iPad On Apr 21, 2011, at 10:18 PM, "-" wrote: > Dear Mr Lui, > > We met briefly at the walkabout at xxxxxxxxxx last evening. Unfortunately, I seem to have upset and angered you which was not my intention at all. > > If I appeared rude or aggressive in any way, then I apologise. I don't usually take too well to answers that are off-tangent, they tend to confuse me, and I always re-direct answers back to my original question which often means that I can appear too direct or clinical and therefore somewhat aggressive. As a teacher by training, I have always emphasised the importance and merits of listening carefully and answering to the point questions that are addressed to my students. > > I hope you understand that this is the first time in my life as a Singaporean I may be asked to vote. I take that responsibility very, VERY seriously, weighing all factors involved. Each political party has its own aims and objectives and track record (or none where some of the opposition are concerned) all of which I am very well aware of. The ONE thing which is not clear, and which is difficult to determine, is the individual politician - the person who will represent me in my constituency. It is this individual politician that I am genuinely interested to know. I need to know and understand what this individual can bring to the table. > > That is why I was so keen for you to convince me why I should vote for you. Not why I should not vote for the opposition. Not why I should vote PAP. But why I should vote for you. I was genuinely interested to hear your answers. Instead, not only did I not get direct a reply from you, I caused you to turn away in anger. Maybe it was the end of a very long day for you, maybe my tone and questions threw you off-centre. Either way, it left a sour note behind, I believe, for both of us. > > Right after you left, I immediately sat down to read the Moulmein newsletter cover to cover (the bits in English) exactly as you suggested I should do to find out more about you. Unfortunately, it doesn't shed any light on your as an individual or as the leader of Moulmein. It tells me instead about the wonderful grassroots teams and wonderful committees that have come up with truly great ideas, which I like very much. But it doesn't tell me about you. And so I am still left clueless. > > The questions I asked you will be the same questions I will be asking whoever decides (if at all) to stand against you in the elections. If the opposition candidate is equally stumped and/or angered by me, then you can rest assured that I will be forced to find another way to come to a decision well-thought through. > > Before I end, I would like to stress that I am not against the PAP in any way, nor am I for any particular opposition party. I am merely a Singaporean, proud and excited at the thought of a chance at finally being able to exercise my right to vote. > > > > With Regards > - I couldn't help feeling surprised by Lui's email reply to the Moulmein resident. Specifically the part where Lui wrote: "Don't worry, [the incident] didn't leave a sour note with me nor a poor impression of you." In my opinion, it is Lui's own behavior which would leave a sour note with voters, and a poor impression on them. Singaporeans don't owe you a living, Mr Lui. Posted by Gilbert Koh aka Mr Wang http://mrwangsaysso.blogspot.com/2011/04/l...during-his.html

Autosaver quoted the labour cost to replace 4 shock absorbers at $150+GST (incl. wheel alignment). Is this price reasonable? Any other moto diam to recommend? Thank you.

Hi all. Anybody knows where to get OEM shocks for 2005, 2.0lit Honda Stream? I need to change as 1 is already leaking. I prefer OEM instead of Original cos normally its cheaper. Is Stream shocks gas or oil? I prefer gas if u can advise where to buy from. Thanks.

To all the knowledgeable bro and sis, My car's shocks are starting to leak, and I need to start considering replacing them. I was thinking of replacing the springs at the same time with a set that is slightly lower and maybe a tad harder to give the car better handling. This is a Wish, so it doesn't need anything fantastic, just a small improvement would be enough - I would also need to sneak it past the FC who would veto any drastic performance mods. Was just tinking that while got the car in pieces for shocks, may as well do springs as well and save on labour... Thoughts?

i brought my mazda 3 in for servicing n end of warranty period inspection. they said rear shock absorbers were worn n changed them FOC! wow...i never seen this before. anyone got these FOC before....fr mazda or other makes?

Anyone did the above before and please mention the workshop that offers the service. Many thanks in advance

Time to replace the stock shocks on my Korean 2tonner 8seater. Not interested in stock shocks but aftermarket ones as I will most likely lowered the ride with Eibach Pro-Kit. Koni OE do not have the front MacPherson Strut, only the cartridge insert so not going for them. As mine is a MPV, they only made OE replacement, higher range of performance shocks are not available. All the 3 in the poll have the front MacPherson Strut so just want to know if anyone have any experience with them?

Hi guys, As the subject states; I'm intrested in getting the above in the future. My car is a lancer glx Please advise where I will be able to find it without getting ripped off(cos Im angmo leh)and how much I should be paying. for shocks I had the Tein mono flex in mind but have no idea on price or if it even fit the car. the Altenator upgrade is actually the real problem because not a lot of people do this in singapore(so i was told)...I'm looking at a output of around 150-200 amps thx in advance

here are e pics of my badly damage shocks. a bit late lahz.. but better late than never. lol

Anyone can advise on replacement cost for shocks at Borneo motors and Riverview Auto? Driving a coming 5 year old Corolla G9. Tks !

http://www.mycarforum.com/classifieds/clas...eds.pl?id=11173 my lost is ur gain! suitable for EP80s..S$150 neg. pay ur own labour, collect at sin ming(u noe where lah). deal 2nd week of may

My ride is getting more bouncy by the months. Other symptoms are the car seems to be pulling over to the left as well as it dips rather badly during the corners and I no longer feel safe. Could someone advise whether its the springs or the shocks that are dying? Of course, I could get new springs as well as shocks.... but if only the shocks are dying, then I'll re-use the springs and save the $500 or so.... do springs have a life??? Mine's done ~100K.... and the shocks 110K kms. Thanks for your feedback.

Guys i have one set - original TRD Shock absorbers and lowered springs for Starlet (EP80/82) *Note: NOT coilovers. damping stroke: shorter than orignal/koni sports damping/spring stiffness: comparable to D2 coilvers Height adjust: NO Damping Adjust: NO the set can definately clear 15/16 inch rims, not sure about 55 profile tyres thou. condition is very good, no leaks. lookin @ SGD$600. drop me a buzz/pm for more info.

of course, if cost is no object, coilovers... but what if the coilover goes kaput? then must replace that side.. isn't it cheaper to just install lowering springs and aftermarket shocks? i'm not gonna want to vary my ride height or stiffness. going more for lowering and stiffening to improve my cornering, but don't want to spend a bomb. my ride's a getz. what do u guys n gals recommend? for springs and shocks tt is.. have read up a bit on coilovers liao

Any one knows where I can get these ?

Hi Folks, I thinkin to get tat lowered look by changin to aftermarket springs (no budget for coilover). However, I heard that aftermarket springs tend to spoil your stock shocks. Is there any truth in tat? If really the case, must change spring and shock together?? Any advice? Cheers!!