Orthonormal

Steve, are you talking about a clatter or rattle at low speed over small bumps or ripples? That seems common with aftermarket shocks on the S2000. Or are you talking about single clunks from bigger individual bumps at higher speed?

sirbunz

I just spoke with Lee Grimes about this since the above quote was from 2003 and there has been further research into this noise by Koni since

Lee explained to me that this "clunking" noise has to do with the compression valving system. There are a lot of components in this and I have no clue what they all are. In general terms, the compression valve has a really tight seal and makes this sound when opening. Kind of like the sound when you pop your lips when opening your mouth after creating suction in your mouth. The fix would be to roughen the surface of the valve so there isn't such a dramatic opening. Koni has also tried strengthening and adding some pre-load to the spring that hold this valve in place to make the opening less dramatic and more of a smooth transition. This seemed to have worked based on the feedback from the BMW guys.

Other interesting facts....

-The clunking noise is only from the units on the BMWs and S2000s, not the Camero and 350Z even thought the units are the same.
-For the S2000, only 25 sets (or less) of 8242s were built from the factory in Europe.
-The valving in these units are pretty mild and have a lot of room for improvement.

-Marc

daverx7

Marc,

I cannot remember the details of what was said causing the light clunking I was experiencing in the rears... and it was mainly the right rear. Hmm... I cannot even remember that conversation, but I trust your memory over mine.

However after f'ing up that shock by over turning it (yes, I am a dumb@$$ and man handled it) and forced to do a rebuild.... it has NOT made that noise since. In fact, I totally forgot it having that issue until I read this thread.

-Dave

jpdrain

Mine rattle all over the place as well, especially at lower speeds. Performance at higher speeds, however, has been quite nice and well
worth a little clunking...

robinson

FYI, my shocks have already been revalved so that may have cleared up any issues.

DER MotorSports

We are one of TC's largest dealers. I take no responsibility for damage that may result from this DIY!!!

We have some insight into this issue: As lame as this is going to sound and not an official authorized fix by any stretch of the imagination, try the following: measure the rebound adjustor plate (round disk directly below the adjustor "tit" and above the threaded shock rod) then source an "o" ring of approximately same outer dimension. Lift the "tit" by gently using pliers and install "o" ring underneath.

We have hundreds of data points on TCK/KONI and can state this works in almost all cases although I do not take any responsibility for undertaking it. Email me if you want to discuss this or other TCK or suspension issues: dermotorsports@gmail.com

PedalFaster

Sorry if I'm being obtuse, but do you mean this thing?



I tried gently tugging on it with a pair of pliers, and it didn't seem inclined to go anywhere. Before I try harder, I wanted to make sure we're talking about the same thing.

Thanks!

DER MotorSports

Yes - in every case where our BMW D/A customers experienced noise - there was vertical movement between the rebound disk and the threaded rod. Try slowly pumping them to expose the movement. Perhaps it is not the case for the S2000 product but somehow I doubt it, same symptom/same manufacturer/same basic design/same product. Suggesting pulling using the pliers on the tit not the disk if that was what you were doing.

PedalFaster

Managed to slightly dislodge the plate by fiddling with it a bit more with a pair of pliers. Its outside diameter is 5/16", so I'm going to pick up a pack of McMaster part 9558K469 (direct linking isn't working for some reason) and give them a shot.

Thanks!

PedalFaster

No joy - the clunking continues unabated after adding o-rings as described above. I guess I'll learn to live with it.