Got the new front struts on the 01' PA

A while back, there was a lot of talk about replacement struts on the later models (97-05) Park Ave's. I replaced mine and wanted to give the report.

I hemmed/hawed forever about replacing mine, but finally broke down and got them replaced. I got the Monroe SenseTracs (front only...the rear autolevel air shocks are working perfectly and didn't need replacing).

My car never rode particularly soft (even with the FE1 "SoftRide" suspension). But it wasn't very punishing, either. It just rode like a Camry. I have 101K miles on the car and was scraping the front on driveways, entrances, parking blocks, etc...so figured I better just do it. When I went over bumps, the front felt like it was "worn" and not tight. But it wasn't wallowing by any stretch of the imagination.

Now, the car sits higher than it did, noticably higher. It rides firmer than before, but again, it isn't what I'd call "punishing" at all...and I think it will soften a little bit as the new struts break in. The car now seems to ride very "flat" and "tight", with little side/side or up/down motions. It even stays very noticably flatter on turns/curves. On the highway, it is very stable...almost seems as though I am sitting still. I even noticed I was driving faster than usual, thinking I was going slower than I was. The bumps are absorbed just fine, with not nearly as much noise from the suspension. It's like the car is just sitting there and the wheels are going up/down without involving the rest of the car that much. The car now feels somewhat isolated from the road, but not completely. There's no "floatiness" at all...none.

Overall, I still prefer a more floaty ride, say from the 85-90 or 91-96 models. If I could get that kind of ride on my 01', it'd be the perfect car...but that's apparently just not possible with this car's suspension setup. But this new ride is not bad. It is comfortable. I wouldn't say that I am kicking myself for not doing it sooner, but I can say that I now realize that I needn't have worried myself so.

Hopefully, this helps those who were/are trying to decide on new front struts.

Thanks for the report. I went with the KYBs on a 99 and from what you described I would guess that the KYBs are a "little" more firm than the Monroes. Just a guess though.

Others have said that the Monroes are pretty close to OEM (but less expensive). It really is hard to tell when you go from worn to new...then at some point if the car lasts long enough, try a different brand.

TopherS:

when i changed my struts, (monroe sensa tracs) it stiffened up the ride and gave me some height, but like you, it was never floaty...I like the more firm ride myself...after about a month, the struts "broke in" and i love the ride....not floaty...not firm...just right....

Northstar

Bigsky - I think you're right...the mechanic I talked to when buying my struts told me that I could have bought KYB's from them, too. But he told me that they will ride stiffer than the Monroe's, so I didn't choose them. And going from worn to new... I didn't think there'd be this much of a difference. But I bought the car with 64K on it already, so I couldn't say how the Monroe's compare to new...I suspect about the same.

Northstar - I've had the new struts for 2 wks and have put about 300+ miles on them...I think they're starting to break in now (or I'm just getting used to the different ride :grinyes: ). I'm really starting to like the ride, though. I still like floaty rides, but this "sitting atop tall springs with horrible things going on underneath the car, but all the while hardly feeling a thing" ride is definitely SWEET.