Hootieuk

Spoke to KYB today - I was given incorrect info - no wonder I was confused. He had no idea what the other parts were, he's never seen them in the UK. Correct parts (as many of you already knew) is Front: 334371 L / 334370 R Rear: 334345 L / 334344 R I just think their online Euro catalogue is confusing for UK and is probably the same part, just different numbers!

I'm after some guidance please fellas... I have a 2006 SG 2.5XT and I want to replace shocks and springs with KYB Excel-Gs and Springcoil springs. I have leaking SLS rears and want to lower a little while I'm at it and refresh all round. Looking on eBay and on some of the posts on these forums the following part numbers are given...which according to the KYB catalogue are for Subaru Forester SG 2.0, 2.0 S Turbo, 2.5 RX Nato 1.03 onwards Front: 334371 L / 334370 R Rear: 334345 L / 334344 R and they list the following for my vehicle: Subaru Forester SG 2.0, 2.5XT and 2.5 9.05 - 5.06 Front: 334469 L / 334468 R Rear: 339150 L / 339149 R I emailed KYB and asked the question, which ones were right for my car and they said the latter. My question is what is the difference between these parts...and why do I see the 334345/334344 part numbers for rears for example given as parts needed for similar cars on this forum. I wasn't actually aware of a difference, but since there's different part numbers clearly suggests there is. I am therefore a little confused Can anyone with more knowledge than me help clarify please?

Just thought I'd update you - I emailed Pedders to see if they could do a SportsRyder kit for the Forester and they said that they're working on a Forester SportsRyder shock - they've fitted Impreza SportsRyder kit to a Forester which they say worked really well but they feel the rear needs to come up 10mm and so are currently developing a revised rear spring to achieve a specific Forester SportsRyder kit. Below is image they sent me with the Impreza kit fitted - note they fitted to an STi rather than an XT. Do you have any experience of the Impreza SportsRyder shocks?

OK - after much thought and reading your words of wisdom, I'm going to go for the Excel Gs - I won't be tracking it...I just want a fast road set-up better than stock. So, just a few more questions if I may...(forgive me if I've misunderstood your last post): I'm planning to order springs from Spring coil and I know they already have a spec for a progressive set to fit an SG XT - do you know if these will be 30mm lower - if not, do you have a spec that I need to request? Also, a contact name who'll likely know what I'm talking about would be useful too. Do you know where I can get group N rear mounts? I've found ICP do STi group N front top mounts here but not rears. Is the pillow ball mod to the front control arms? Reference the rear stabiliser mod - I have the Perrins HD mount but it's for an Impreza and is only around 60mm high rather than around 9mm - I presume I'll need to fabricate an ally block to mount it onto, yes? I presume you mean the FRONT strut brace? Can you recommend a decent one for the money? (and same for the lower brace please?) As always, your advice is much appreciated.

Mr B, since you've fitted the SF spec Ultra SRs to SG Foresters, are they a direct bolt on - if so how do they differ in that they're not officially listed for SGs? When you say they would require custom springs - would the progressive springs from Springcoil that would/could be used on the Excel-Gs be the same...or would they need different specs? I'm thinking that, having never experienced coilovers, for my daily driver use they'd likely be more hassles (set-up and maintenance) than I'd want. I therefore just want a better than OEM strut set up and don't mind paying a little more than Excel-Gs if there is an option.

front and rear

Some good info here - many thanks! I have no intention of tracking, just fast road use only - in Devon, so you know the sort of roads we're talking about! If you don't mind, I have a few more questions... Any suggestions on where to source KYB Ultra SRs - and what would be the real world benefits over Excel-Gs? Where can I get alloy control arms and are they specifically for SG XT or are they Impreza or FSTI bits? Can you recommend suitable polybush bushes that in your experience aren't too hard? Where can I get pillow ball bushes for the front? Need to see if the extra lay-out for the SRs are worth it - would the same progressive springs from Springcoil be the same regardless whether Excel-G or Ultra SR?

Appreciate this was an SF question Mr B, but I have a 2006 facelift 2.5XT with leaking SLS - currently SORN until end of September. Owned over 5 years and all stock (in Plymouth). I would like to improve the suspension and have a Prodrive (Eibach) 21.x mm rear ARB and HD mounts to fit. I would like to replace all four struts, ideally to better than OEM. I just missed out on some excellent, almost new Bilstein B14 coilovers. I just have a couple of questions if you don't mind me asking: I've read your advice about KYBs and Springcoil (progressive) springs Is there a better quality shock than the KYB Excel-G that I could source that you're aware of? I'd like to replace the top hats too - ideally to group N STi - any suggestions on the best place to buy? I would also like to replace some key bushes - do you know the ones I should be looking to replace as there's a few of them?