Anyone running Koni STR.T?

[bmwlaguna]

Interested to hear experiences/reviews.

I'm in a 128i non-sport right now.

[Matt@EuroJerks]

I am interested as well.

[1and1]

I've had mine in for ~4,000 miles, and am very pleased. Aggressive daily driver, no track time or autox for me these days. For my environment I'd get em again. chadillac2000 runs the same Koni as well, perhaps he'll chime in- he's got a crap ton more miles on em than I do.

Installed as part of the Koni Pro-Kit with Eibach springs, replacing all the normal wear parts while I was in there- spring seats, strut and shock mounts etc. Also added dinan camber plates, and now have m3 arms waiting to be installed.

[Tuxedo]

I have Koni STR.T on daily driver kept oem M-sport springs and upgaded TRW 1M/M3 control arms. have about 7k on this setup since April 18' very pleased. No track or autox

first 250 miles I was wishing I'd gone Bilstein B12 at 500miles very pleased

[bmwlaguna]

Originally Posted by Tuxedo

I have Koni STR.T on daily driver kept oem M-sport springs and upgaded TRW 1M/M3 control arms. have about 7k on this setup since April 18' very pleased. No track or autox

first 250 miles I was wishing I'd gone Bilstein B12 at 500miles very pleased

I'm looking at putting these on with the stock springs (non-sport) to get the car back close to stock. Was looking at B4's but shop is recommending the Koni Orange Str.t

[Gangplank]

The updated KONI Special Active FSDs are supposed to be pretty nice for DD duty. That said for just a little bit more you can get some very good set ups. Like TCK, KW or Ohlins.

[1and1]

So...., what are the goals for the 128? I always encourage determining the end goal, then reverse engineering from there. This process let's you get parts once and always build towards your target.

Will you be seeing any track time? Any autox? Drag?
Would you actually make use of adjustment capabilities, or no, not really?

That's what made the decision for me- I've done the autox and track time in the past, but know (knew?) that my 135 would be a simple commuter ride with a dose of bad attitude, so comfort was higher over peak cornering.

Over my many years I've been able to run KYB, Bilstein, Koni and a random selection of others. I'm fond of how Koni, generically speaking, handle small stuff compared to Bilsteins. The Koni STR.T is a perfect example of that.

In short, if you want track time of any kind, might as well increase your budget. If you'd actually use adjustment, or anything like that, move up.

OTOH, if you're simply looking for a great install & enjoy it's hard to beat orange Konis!

[bmwlaguna]

Originally Posted by 1and1

So...., what are the goals for the 128? I always encourage determining the end goal, then reverse engineering from there. This process let's you get parts once and always build towards your target.

Will you be seeing any track time? Any autox? Drag?
Would you actually make use of adjustment capabilities, or no, not really?

That's what made the decision for me- I've done the autox and track time in the past, but know (knew?) that my 135 would be a simple commuter ride with a dose of bad attitude, so comfort was higher over peak cornering.

Over my many years I've been able to run KYB, Bilstein, Koni and a random selection of others. I'm fond of how Koni, generically speaking, handle small stuff compared to Bilsteins. The Koni STR.T is a perfect example of that.

In short, if you want track time of any kind, might as well increase your budget. If you'd actually use adjustment, or anything like that, move up.

OTOH, if you're simply looking for a great install & enjoy it's hard to beat orange Konis!

No track, autoX or anything like that. Daily driver commuter. I made the mistake of putting cheap coilovers on- huge mistake. I did do one thing right and ditched the runflats for Ventus V12s. I have no interest in lowering the car to sacrifice handling. Not interested in adjusting either.

So now wanting to go back to my stock parts, but seeing as how they had 55K on them, I figure I'll reuse the springs (non sport) and refresh with a set of new shocks/struts. Which is probably what I should have done in the first place.

So I'm facilitating between the STR.T and the B4's.

[NorthernDancer]

Installed the Koni SRT.T struts today. Shocks will be done within a week or two hopefully. Front end feels more tight, more solid. I have an 2008 128 with about 60K miles & sport pkg. Altho a 2008, it sits in winter storage 4-5 months a year so maybe the wear & usage of a 2011. It's not a DD as I'm retired. I kept my stock springs. All mounting hardware was reused altho I would have liked to use new dust boots ($5 each). I try to do a day or two of HPDE each year at our local track.
For now, I'll hang on to the old struts & shocks as I think there is still some life left in them. Maybe in 10 years or so I'll re-install them, or?

[Matt@EuroJerks]

Originally Posted by NorthernDancer

Installed the Koni SRT.T struts today. Shocks will be done within a week or two hopefully. Front end feels more tight, more solid. I have an 2008 128 with about 60K miles & sport pkg. Altho a 2008, it sits in winter storage 4-5 months a year so maybe the wear & usage of a 2011. It's not a DD as I'm retired. I kept my stock springs. All mounting hardware was reused altho I would have liked to use new dust boots ($5 each). I try to do a day or two of HPDE each year at our local track.
For now, I'll hang on to the old struts & shocks as I think there is still some life left in them. Maybe in 10 years or so I'll re-install them, or?

Cool. Keep us updated. I am a bit skeptical on reusing hardware. What does everyone else do/think?

[shawnyeeah]

I use Koni Yellow adjustable shocks and they were a big upgrade on my 135i w/stock springs. The SRT seem like a good bang for the buck type of set-up. Bilstein B6 or B8 or the Yellows are my recommendation

[FLATBMW]

I found this info to be interesting. According to one of Koni's tech support/prod engineers,

In terms of the valving/stiffness of the Str.t, they are similar to the Koni Yellows (Sport) AT 1/4 turn from soft. Still aggressive but not full stiff. The streets were valved right in between two and 3.

IMO if you don't care about the adjustment feature of the Yellows the Str.t is a really good bang for the buck. My stock shocks / struts need to be replaced so I actually ordered the Str.t setup for myself after finding this out... They will be paired with Dinan Performance Springs and front lowering spring perches.

[FLATBMW]

I finished installing the Koni STR.T x Dinan Performance Springs x Dinan Camber Plates x Custom M friendly Lowering Perches yesterday and finally took my car out for a test drive and the Koni STR.T x Dinan setup is very smooth, way more comfortable than stock! I went over the same bumps and slight dips in the neighborhood I live that I felt before with the stock setup and the Koni STR.T floated right over the bumps. The car also felt good on the freeway and a lot more responsive. I installed a front strut bar also and it feels a little tighter / heavier in turns. The Dinan Camber Plates added enough camber so I can visually see I have more negative camber. I am happy with my setup and I highly recommend the Koni STR.T. I like them enough that I thinking about getting a set for our Lexus IS250 F Sport.

[Matt@EuroJerks]

Thanks!!!

[darkrom]

Originally Posted by Matt@EuroJerks

Cool. Keep us updated. I am a bit skeptical on reusing hardware. What does everyone else do/think?

Originally Posted by Matt@EuroJerks

Cool. Keep us updated. I am a bit skeptical on reusing hardware. What does everyone else do/think?

I wouldn't do it. Just got this setup installed today but can't comment on it until after winter and I replace a bent control arm anyway but I feel like they were a great value. I definitely wanted high quality static over lower quality coil overs that I wouldn't adjust anyway.

[2013BMW128i]

Any more 1st-hand feedback on the Koni STR.T orange shocks?

Just did a 5500mi road-trip down thru NC/SC and across (think crawdad etouffe) to DFW area, then on to the NM Rockies and back along US60/50. Great trip that left me wanting two things........ better rear suspension (better compliance over large bumps) and faster variable steering in the tight switchbacks on those great mountain roads. Am thinking a change of the rear shocks to Koni STR.T with new bump-stops and other bits would be a good first step. Would like another inch or so of ride height, as well. Car is my DD and will likely never be tracked, etc.

The STR.T shocks are easy to find. Any suggestions on where to make the install kit purchase (bump-stop, bushings, etc.)?