So im sure most of you remember my thread in regards to Koni's stock being on back order for our S197 (I placed my order on 6/30/09). I sent a follow up email today and this was the response I received...

you have to be kidding me...

 

bummer, in the same boat.

 

Still got nothing

 

So buy Tokicos. Money talks, bull**** walks.

 

Always an option.... but then when you break a Tokico the same can be said about their warranty.

 

the time frame is early december now

 

Does Koni have a better reputation or is it too early to know?

 

yeah that would be great except i have koni rears sitting in my closet

 

Throw the rears in there right now. I'm waiting on the fronts too but I threw the rears in with the factory springs and factory struts and they work great! At least you can get something done while you wait.

 

Koni has been around for quite a few years, and I've heard lots of good reports about their warranty and repair service, never needed to use it it myself though. The wait and expense can be an aggravation, but in the long run it is worth it IMHO. I have Konis on two of my cars currently, as well as another car I sold a few years back, and have plans to put them on two more of my cars in the next year or two. I'd put them on all of my cars, but they don't have an application for my Subaru.

 

I had a pair of Koni's warrantied on a different car a couple years ago, no questions asked. Emailed them, got a return number, sent them in, got a new set a week later.

 

That wouldn't have worked this year. You'd still be waiting for those replacements. That's what turns me off about their lame excuses and I doubt I'll do business with them now.

 

Even if they don't have any in stock for warranty replacements, they can still rebuild/repair them at their facility in Kentucky, and turnaround time could still be as little as a week.

 

That's what I'm going to do. I got my rears from Sam last night and they're going on this weekend. Anyone have a clean way of accessing the shocks for adjustment without destroying the trunk liner. I'm thinking of cutting a flap over the shock top location.

BB
Semper Fi

 

No cutting necessary... The side panels just fold down an there the tops of the shocks sit...

 

And since the whining continues.... I have to make a point:

There are a lot of companies short on a lot of parts right now. I'm not saying it doesn't suck--it does for me, but luckily my customers have been much more understanding about this. For example, the most popular brake rotors I sell for f-bodies, out of stock since August and will be until November. A customer just waited 5 weeks for warranty parts on a Solstice. Every time we turn around there is some part missing somewhere. Nobody likes it, and *****ing about it online doesn't help a damned bit (does it?). My suggestion, if Koni is so terrible--buy different shocks. We'll see how you feel if/when you need Tokico to warranty something, or when you wish you could tweak the settings on a Bilstein.

 

I think the fact that they said 4 weeks in July, then they said mid-September, now they're saying December and it has been 4 months and still not a solid ETA is what bugs me. I wouldn't have purchased $1400 dollars worth of suspension items in June if I knew it would be six months until the parts came in, and now winter is coming so by the time I get them I won't be installing anything until March!

 

And? Seriously.... what good is this doing? Maybe it makes you feel better, but it doesn't get the shocks built any faster. And I'll reiterate, if you are that pissed off--you have other options.

 

Exactly. I for one would cancel my order and go with a different set of shocks for the time being. Sure the Koni's are likely the best shock on the market, but realistically, unless you're going to be tracking the car and looking for that last 1/10th, there are other options available.

I'm not saying you shouldn't be upset, especially considering it sounds like Koni has your money, but instead of spending the time complaining about it, you can take a proactive stance. Go with another company for now. It's nobody's fault but Koni's at that point for losing you (and others) as a customer.

That's just my .02.

 

I saw the old thread and went the D-Spec route instead as i wanted them now instead of distant future (finally got to a HPDE day last month). They're quite a bit better than the crappy stock ones, and nice to be adjustable.

Now just have to make sure I never ride in a Koni equipped car and I'll never know what I'm missing. Ignorance is bliss!