Rear shock replacements

[Go Mifuni]

QUICK! Get your :twocents: in on this!
I am coming to the conclusion that the general concensus is that the Monroe Sensa-Trac's are a good replacement over OEM's. Is this true? I'm buying shocks TODAY and need to know what has worked, as well as what hasn't.

[SID210SA]

Check with Wes....he has a short write up on them....you can PM him... here is his post on them....I am sure he has more information on them... http://www.mercurymarauder.net/forums/showthread.php?t=39281

[magindat]

I am very satisfied with the Monroe Sensa Tracks.

[Grifter]

I have the Monroes. They are a decent shock, but I think they are way too soft for the MM.. They are better than the blown stockers I had, but I wish I would have spent my money elsewhere.

[Go Mifuni]

I have the Monroes. They are a decent shock, but I think they are way too soft for the MM.. They are better than the blown stockers I had, but I wish I would have spent my money elsewhere.

Oh well. I just bought 'em. We'll see.

[JACook]

My experience with SensaTracs (on other cars) is they were fine for the first few hundred miles or so,
but after that, they're a bit too soft for my liking. Maybe I'm just being to rough with 'em? ;)

When Blue needs new shocks, I'll likely stick with OEM...

[magindat]

When using control arms with poly bushings, I think the softness helps offset the harshness of the bushing to end up with a more precise than stock, though slightly less compression than stock ride.

[Grifter]

Good point. Someday I will get some control arms and test that :)

[burt ragio]

Don't hesitate on the upper & lower control arms. It is one of the best mods I have made. The car will not wander as it does with the oem cotrol arms that flex under pressure. You won't regret the mod.

[Grifter]

Its the wallet thats hesitating. If that stupid leather money holder would cooperate, they would be on the car already :D

[kode3]

Naake QA1's....

http://www.naake.com/MercMarauder.html

Rear kit is $369, but I'm sure you could call and get it for less.

Here's what they look like on my Crown Vic...
http://kode3.smugmug.com/gallery/2656013#140483790

:)

[lifespeed]

It has always been my impression that Monroe makes cheap, consumer-grade stuff. Better than blown shocks, or none at all, but surely not up to the bar set by the factory Tokicos. I have used Monroe before, although not on a Panther. They were OK, but not great.

I really like the firm ride I get from the 30K mile Tokicos. When they wear out, I would likely replace them with the same. It would be interesting to hear more about the Naake QA1 shocks. I have had good experiences with Bilstein and Edelbrock shocks also.

[Stranger in the Black Sedan]

I had a Monroe sensatrac strut blow a seal and lose all of its resistance after about 15,000 miles of normal driving (no catastrophic curb jumping, etc) on a different vehicle. Even before the strut blew, the struts were spongey stock.

If you look at the design of the sensatracs, they have grooves cut towards the center of the strut's travel, that taper off in depth as they get further from the center of travel. The strut is basically designed to have the soft wallowing ride at equilibrium for "comfort", and then the pressure is allowed to build only as it is compressed significantly. It is not a performance strut by any stretch of the imagination.

[BirchMarauder]

I'm using monroes front and rear. my experience is they are too soft. the front bounces too easy and the rear bottoms out. I don't carry much weight. my car doesn't have that stiff ride that oem gives. soon as I can, i'm going back to oem. only reason I didn't get oem installed was because of the price. but you get what you pay for.

[Bradley G]

I went OEM for a replacement on the rears.
Kind of a waste, I thought they were noisy.
after replacement, The thumping sound is still there.

[Raudermaster]

I'll most likely stick with the Tokico's. The Naake's are way too pricey.

[Paul]

I went OEM for a replacement on the rears.
Kind of a waste, I thought they were noisy.
after replacement, The thumping sound is still there.


Maybe its not the shocks. Are you feeding your trunk monkey according to instructions? :lol:

http://www.trunkmonkey.com/content/category/4/68/51/

[Stranger in the Black Sedan]

Yeah sounds like you were chasing a problem w/ shocks, that isn't shocks... not the shock's fault.

[ts-pa]

I have Bilstein shocks & I like them very much. They could be a little stiffer in my opinion.
They "break in" in about 1,000 miles & stayed the same ever since. Going on about 90k miles now.

[ts-pa]

I went OEM for a replacement on the rears.
Kind of a waste, I thought they were noisy.
after replacement, The thumping sound is still there.

Could that be your jack rattling around under the spare wheel?

[Stranger in the Black Sedan]

Oh is that where the jack is supposed to go? LOL mine is just flying around on the package tray, sometimes it decides to rain down hard on the groceries.

[hbarrett]

I have to agree with you about Monroe shocks. I had the original rear shocks changed out about a month ago, right side was leaking. And while the Monroe shocks are OK, the original equipment shocks seem much more responsive - up and down. When these Monroes finally give out, I will go back with original equipment.
It has always been my impression that Monroe makes cheap, consumer-grade stuff. Better than blown shocks, or none at all, but surely not up to the bar set by the factory Tokicos. I have used Monroe before, although not on a Panther. They were OK, but not great.

I really like the firm ride I get from the 30K mile Tokicos. When they wear out, I would likely replace them with the same. It would be interesting to hear more about the Naake QA1 shocks. I have had good experiences with Bilstein and Edelbrock shocks also.