Replacement Shocks for Daily Driver

[Becker135]

95% of my driving is in town on crappy roads, so I want to replace the OE shocks with the softest riding shocks available for my 95 993.

Does anyone have any recommendations?

[G60SuperCharger]

I'm in this same boat with my 993, and from my research our choices are few. Bilstein HDs are the only non-stock replacement shocks available unfortunately, and reports are that they ride hard as a rock. You can also spend $2500+install for Bilstein PSS10 coilovers, which have 10 user adjustable settings including very soft.

The '95s are fortunate to have decent quality Boge shocks instead of the junk Monroes that Porsche used starting in 1996. Other than the PSS10s, the stock Boges are the softest riding shocks I'm afraid.

[autobonrun]

You can always go back with stock shocks. Mine had Monroes.

I recently went with Bilstein HDs with M030 ROW springs. It's not overly stiff but on the other hand it's not my daily driver. Now the Bilstein sports on my SC is another story. I consider that ride stiff.

As G60 said, you can always put on Bilstein adjustables and set it on the softest setting. To me though, this is a very expensive option to get a soft ride. I'd probably just go the least expensive route if lowering or performance is not a prerequisite. But if you get Monroes, be prepared to replace them again in 20k-30k miles.

[Becker135]

Good feedback. How many miles do the Boges normally last?

[patela]

+1

I'm also wondering how long the boge's last.

[AL Z]

Becker 135,
I still have the original shocks and springs that came out of my 95 993 at 19k miles. As you mentioned before. You can have them for 100 bucks plus shipping.
They were in fine shape when I removed them. I just upgraded to a coil over adj suspension.
Thanks,
AL

[autobonrun]

Originally Posted by Becker135

Good feedback. How many miles do the Boges normally last?

I'm not sure how long Boges last. What I did find with the Monroes is that the old test of pushing down on the car and watching the rebound doesn't work. I think the springs hide a lot of the deficiency. On the car, I couldn't detect they were bad. When I took the shocks off, I could press the pistons in by hand. On one shock, the piston slowly returned to the original position but on the other it just stayed down.

I can tell the difference now that the new ones are on. There's less crashing over bumps, turns are flatter, and bad roads are smoother. The word smoother can be deceiving however since it is definitely a sports car suspension but is not what I consider overly stiff.

If I had to guess on Boges, I'd say 50k miles. They are a better quality shock than the Monroes no doubt.

[Leo O'Farrell]

Good Thread. I have an early 95 built in March of 1994 so I assume that it's running the Boges. Are these still available as a replacement?

[autobonrun]

Boges are sold by Sachs now. However, to my knowledge, there are no Boges for the 993. Someone more knowledgable may chime in. I couldn't find any when I searched. Koni makes shocks for the 993 but only front shocks. Go figure.

I confirmed that the dealer replacements for my 1996 were going to be Monroes. They may offer Boges for other years if they were OEM, not sure. That's why I went with the Bilstein HDs.

[lucittm]

I just checked, out of curiosity, and the Boge rear shocks for my 1991 965, P/N 965-333-057-00 are no longer available either. The only ones our sponsor stocks for the normally aspirated 964 are Boge, P/N 964-333-051-05 at $115.50 ea. And I see that the lower spring perch on the shock body is different on the 993.

Mark