My rear shock absorbers :(

Ok in the past couple of weeks I noticed an odd sound every time I go down from a hump. It's very clear in most cases... but of course when you take a Porsche technician it disappears! So they said they'll inspect it and confirm back. Anyway, I just got a call that both rear shock absorbers, the bearings and something else I don't recall need to be changed. The spare parts alone would cost 1500 USD. The car's butt doesn't nudge when pushed down by hand. At 68000 km is this normal? In my Land Cruiser I changed them this month but at double the mileage and of course at a fraction of the price Anyway, the spare parts aren't available and they need to order them from Germany. My question, how do you know in a Porsche that your shock absorbers need to be replaced? PS oh and they're changing my break pads after 10,000 miles only. Is this possible? Hmm... Well, yeah I guess. Right? PPS mine has PASM in case that's relevant.

I'm guessing your car is off warranty.. Why dont you go for an aftermarket suspension kit?

+1 on aftermarket. I'd get the Bilstein damptronics since your car is PASM . And that way you get 4 new and adjustable shocks instead of two. For what its worth, my two rear shocks too need replacement soon. They dont make sounds, but they're not lasting longer!

Go Bilstein , I had the fronts on mine done recently, £1750 for everything, labour, shocks, gators, bearings, springs, bumpstops, top mounts and nuts, the works! The car feels great! :cheers:

Hassaan... it's possible that the shocks on your car have gone out due in part due to the additional heat in your engine compartment. The dampers sit incredibly close to the engine and exhaust. Good luck with whatever route you choose... OEM or aftermarket.

Is that all? Four responses! It seems everybody at P9 is busy with the new 981 girls on the block No more love for us 987 boys Just kidding... But the question remains, how do I know that my absorbers need replacement? And how far one can go before changing them? I remember the sound from the rear on a hump was similar to the breathing of one with asthma. Is this it? Thank you guys in advance... PS Rubber Duck, my guess it could be the happy tails. Her butt is 25% of the time off the line.

Stand in the trunk and jump up and down to get the back end moving up and down, it shouldn't move much and when it does start to move, it shouldn't bounce at all once you stop. Then, visually check the struts for leaks

When to know when to replace shock absorbers? When your trusted tech tells you to. So far my trusted techs have not told me the struts of my 03 Turbo with over 102K miles need replacing. And my trusted techs have not told me the rear (or front) shocks (struts) of my 02 Boxster with over 262K miles need replacing. either. Both cars were road tested by the techs and both cars received a thumbs up in all areas including the struts. However, I realize like many wear items and not so obvious wear items different different cars, different drivers will have different results. If the struts aren't leaking, if the car isn't feeling squirrelly, if the bushings/sway bar links are in good shape, if two guys working as one can't get the rear end bouncing up and down like a lowrider with hydraulics on meth, if you have a sharp corner with ripples that when taken at speed doesn't have the rear or front tires skittering on the ripples in the pavement, if you take a multitrack rail road crossing at speed and the car doesn't dance sideways a couple of feet, I'd say the rear struts are ok. But I'm not at the car...so, replace the hardware the tech tells you needs to be replaced.

FWIW, Someone at an autocross last year wanted to "feel" how stiff my shocks are. Pushed down on my front fender and left a goose egg sized depression over the headlight bulge. Fortunately fixed by paintless dent removal. Be careful if you use this method to check your shocks!

You did not mention what type of wierd sound you have. I get a squeak in my passenger rear when I go over speed bumps, but only when it is cold out. Summer months...quiet. I wondered if my shock was dead but I should have the sound all of the time. So then I was thinking a squeaky bushing on the sway bar. Have not tried to lube it yet, but maybe this is your issue as well.

OEM shocks are not something any manufacturer spends big money to source. They start to degrade from the first mile of use, but the degradation is so progressive that most of us never notice how bad they are until we put fresh ones on our cars. Heat and mileage are the enemies, and at 40,000 plus miles, and in your climate, your shocks are likely toast. As others on this thread have already noted Bilsteins are built to a much higher standard and will make a dramatic difference in ride and car control. You won't regret making the change.

Thank you guys for your inputs... with my paranoia from aftermarket demons I opted for stock brake pads that are already on now and made a deposit for the dealer to order the stock absorbers.

The stock shocks are Bilstein but they're not made to the same spec as the aftermarket items, they're built to a cost for production.

Hello HassaanAbdeen, I installed the Bilstein Damptronics on my 2007 CS w/ PASM and was very impressed with the improved performance over stock. A significant improvement in overall stability and particularly better on the track during the transition from hard braking to turn-in. The front rebound is slowed just right so you can better manage the car's front to rear balance. Control under hard braking is greatly improved too. As Nitro8472 said, the OE is also Bilstein ...Damptronics are OE on steroids. The control shaft on the OE is about the diameter of an average thumb. The control shaft on the Damptronics is almost the full section width of the strut body. Plus it's an adjustable coil-over for either corner balancing or for fender gap adjustment (aesthetic). Also, Damptronics is virtually an upside down OE when you consider the internals. They put all of the heavy valving and etc. at the top of the shock so it becomes part of the "sprung" weight rather than "unsprung" as in the OE. As you lighten the "unsprung" weight, you allow the suspension to react (move) faster. Best regards, Joe Joseph S. DeSimone Owner Central Optional Products 511 14th Street Arnold, PA 15068 Ph: [phone removed] [email removed] To order the 2006-2008 Cayman LED Spars with Radiator Guards : Enthusify Marketplace

stealerships will say anything to get your $$$$. i.e. Toronto, Canada Dealership, Oil and filter change $380 + 13% tax, Oh and it takes 2 hours. DUH Local Porsche / Mercedes repair. maintainance shop, $120+ 13%tax, time, little over 30 minutes. Second Opinion from a local Porsche / Mercedes expert. btw: there is a video online showing that the oil and filter CAN be changed in 33 minutes. Assuming the oil was hot prior to. My 2008 Cayman , 27,000km DOES ride a little hard (on 'semi-smooth' roads with tar strips and small frost heaves, in Canada) , in the back end, WHEN IT IS COLD OUTSIDE. By cold, I mean only about 0deg. C or lower.

Tell ur trusted tech to save all parts replaced for ur inspection. It's easy to check to see if the shocks r shot. Just exercise them and see if they r loose and leaking. Pads r simple to measure. I like to change my pads when worn 50%, maybe 40% of u don't fibre it hard. But 10k mi on rear brake pads is hard to believe unless u track the car. In all my years of doing I've never needed to change pads in less than 75k miles, unless running track events. I use engine braking a lot and it saves brakes. And never let them turn ur rotors. If they r warped, just replace them. Some shops use turning the rotors as a profit adder as it costs them chump change. U will find out how trustworthy ur tech is if u check ur old parts. That's my pinion and others may differ. But I'm sticking to what works.

This is a 3+ year old thread. Gordon dug it up because dealerships stole his candy.