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I am contemplating of switching air shocks to ebay spring shocks.
Anyone here have purchased this SUNCORE spring conversion kit? Please post review.
I never had any issue with the air ride system except for occasional air suspension faults that associated with the air compressor in extreme cold weather. However, for my wife peace of mind and I have read Don's guru here that he had an accident due to the air system failure. The Jag had accumulated 70K miles. The same ebay seller have kit for Ford system that cost less than $300.00. Jaguar costs $722.00. Go figure.
As long as your 2004 has not had an ASM software update, you should be able to unplug the ASM module under the rear seat. Even if that doesn’t work, you can rig up resistors to trick the ASM to not throw a fault message. Either way you’ll be okay without the plug in. Here is a thread on the subject:
I am contemplating of switching air shocks to ebay spring shocks.
Anyone here have purchased this SUNCORE spring conversion kit? Please post review.
I never had any issue with the air ride system except for occasional air suspension faults that associated with the air compressor in extreme cold weather. However, for my wife peace of mind and I have read Don's guru here that he had an accident due to the air system failure. The Jag had accumulated 70K miles. The same ebay seller have kit for Ford system that cost less than $300.00. Jaguar costs $722.00. Go figure.
I had the Suncore kit installed in my 2004 xj8 about a year and a half ago after my front end dropped. Had a shop do it since I can't work on cars where I live (boo-hoo). Installation went without a hitch and has been my daily driver ever since. No problems so far. I'm sure the air suspension is great, but it's nice knowing I don't have to worry about it anymore.
As for ride quality, on anything but a smooth road it's pretty stiff. That, along with the 50 series tires means you feel every bump. And there's virtually no "bounce". The "Jaguar" ride is pretty much gone. But in all honesty I really don't care as this car now handles like a corvette. I can take a turn about as fast as a want to. Very little lean or nose dive. This is more like a performance suspension then a luxury ride. I really enjoy the drive now rather just going from one place to another. Handles flat as a pancake.
I also think it raised the front end about a 1/2 to 3/4 of an inch but I'm O.K. with that too.
BTW, my mechanic was very leary about the Suncore products. Affraid they wouldn't fit. But they did.
As for the message on the dash, it's been there for two years already and I've kind of gotten used to it. Doesn't hurt anything and if I want to see the odometer or any other things I just push the button until it pops up. One of these days I'll pull the back seat and disconnect the wires. Maybe when I finally install a couple of 6" subs in the factory rear deck spots.
Over-all I'm very happy with the Suncore springs. There are issues, as with any bottom-feeder product, but the pluses far out-way the minuses. For me anyway. I doubt Suncore as a company is in the same league as Arnott or Strutmasters and I'm also sure I would have been as happy, or even happier, with them, but if you want to save some money you will get what you pay for with Suncore. But not much else. Just be prepared for a stiffer ride. Then enjoy it!
There are issues, as with any bottom-feeder product, but the pluses far out-way the minuses.
what kind of issues are we talking about? creaky? stuff like that? obviously theyre all issues that are something you can live with but dont effect safety and rideability ...
did you measure the raise right after installation? maybe the height settled a little bit more after a couple hundred miles
what kind of issues are we talking about? creaky? stuff like that? obviously theyre all issues that are something you can live with but dont effect safety and rideability ...
did you measure the raise right after installation? maybe the height settled a little bit more after a couple hundred miles
No squeaks or rattles, no installation headaches. Just things like the stiff ride, maybe a bit taller ride height, poorer customer service (never did get the return shipping lables to send back the old air bags), no message removal, things like that.
I couldn't measure the ride height prior to installing the Suncors as my front suspension had dropped and wouldn't go back up! But looking at some pictures I took before the change-over it really doesn't look any taller after the Suncors . But looking out the windshield it just seems to be a bit higher. I'll measure mine later today and members can compare the results to their own cars. Maybe some Arnott/Strutmaster owners can do the same?
Again, over-all, very happy with the results. But some might be disappointed in the stiffer ride, loss of active suspension, etc. If I had a high-dollar, later model XJ8 in better condition (mine has a salvage title) I might stick with the air bags. But on a higher mileage, older car that's not worth that much anyway, $722 seems like a better option, all things considered.
First three pictures are before Suncore, last three are after Suncore. It must all be in my head as it doesn't look any higher from the pictures. Perhaps little lower even.
I think Suncore Industries just slapped their brand on the Chinese made copy cat set up. They probably a wholesaler that able to buy large inventory cheaply and in return, they inflated the price for profit. There is nothing wrong with Chinese parts if they are well manufactured; and there is nothing wrong of making a profit.
FYI
I saw same set up with same yellow sticker on Alibaba.
I don't know anything about this brand suspension, but I did convert from CATS to BC Racing adjustable coilovers on my XJR. I don't regret it.
You can get rid of the suspension fault message by disconnecting the harness behind the back seat, this is not difficult to do unless you have had that software update. I had vehicle too low message after I got rid of the fualt and I then just disconnected the height sensors. All clear now for over a year and a half. You can't beat the comfort of CATS, but I agree with you in that I don't have to worry about suspension reliability like I did before. Take the $$$ hit once and you're set for a long time.
I had strutmasters on my XJ8, never had any issues either. The ride is not the same but it's not terrible by any means.
Just how stiff is the BC coilover set up? I didn’t realize they are so close to the Strutmaster price. I did some perusing on their site, it looks like they have different stiffness options. Which did you choose and what is the drop at the tallest setting? Do they ise their own brand strut/spring?
Unfortunately I don't remember any of the specs. I know they are adjustable in both height and dampening. As you have probably seen I currently have it pretty low, although I have had it a little higher in the past.
I currently have it set to close to maximum stiffness. I had set it like that a couple moths ago when I was going to go to the dragstrip and never changed it back. The dampening is really easy to adjust, just a knob that clicks on top of the coilover.
What I like about them is the fact that you can change settings as you wish. I drove from Florida to Tennessee and had the ride height just a bit higher and set the dampening to soft. It made a nice ride, especially through the curves on the mountains. Recently Ive been doing more car shows so I have it set to low and stiff.
Only drawback is that its possible to throw your alignment off when you adjust the height because you are altering the geometry of the suspension. So after learning that the hard way and having to change tires, I take it to get an alignment whenever I change the height.
Overall excellent quality though. For anyone looking to convert from CATS, I would highly recommend these for just a few bucks more than you would pay for the other brands that are not adjustable.
12-27-2017, 02:39 PM
SUNCO - EBAY Spring shock conversion kit review?
. But looking out the windshield it just seems to be a bit higher. I'll measure mine later today and members can compare the results to their own cars. Maybe some Arnott/Strutmaster owners can do the same?
