UPDATED: Replacing Rear Shocks: Reducing the rear end bounce.

[JohnFoxeSheets]

Cool, thanks!!

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[Tscates1]

First…a huge HUGE thank you to Mark, Erik and everyone else that’s put their time, effort and money into this project. The walk-through was great, especially in conjunction with the video.

I purchased the shocks from TireRack. I use them all the time for research but have an excellent Discount Tire near me that I always use, so whenever I can throw them some business I do. Shocks were $171.62 a piece. Interestingly, they held the shipment until I confirmed I did indeed want this particular shock as it is not listed as fitting the Mach E.

I had two issues. #1 Getting the shock mounts off the shocks. The shock ?rod wanted to rotate when I turned the nut on top. I used a vice to anchor the ?rod and it was all I could do to remove each of the nuts. #2 Drilling the holes in the shock mounts. My bits aren’t the best (especially not now!). My neighbor heard the racket and brought me over some letter bits (small differences between sizes) and that made it way easier.

Ride is MUCH improved over pretty much every single road surface. There’s only one area (Illinois Route 6 West of I 55) that the car still bounces, but the bounce is less severe (I didn’t get nauseated) and now I’m not sure if it’s coming from the front or the back. Areas I know were rough are not even noticeable anymore. I love the car all the more!

If the car came from the factory as it is now, the ride wouldn’t have been an issue. Of course, now that the back is settled and I’m examining it, I can tell the front is bouncing sometimes...

Thanks again guys!!

 

[i8iridium]

First…a huge HUGE thank you to Mark, Erik and everyone else that’s put their time, effort and money into this project. The walk-through was great, especially in conjunction with the video.

I purchased the shocks from TireRack. I use them all the time for research but have an excellent Discount Tire near me that I always use, so whenever I can throw them some business I do. Shocks were $171.62 a piece. Interestingly, they held the shipment until I confirmed I did indeed want this particular shock as it is not listed as fitting the Mach E.

I had two issues. #1 Getting the shock mounts off the shocks. The shock ?rod wanted to rotate when I turned the nut on top. I used a vice to anchor the ?rod and it was all I could do to remove each of the nuts. #2 Drilling the holes in the shock mounts. My bits aren’t the best (especially not now!). My neighbor heard the racket and brought me over some letter bits (small differences between sizes) and that made it way easier.

Ride is MUCH improved over pretty much every single road surface. There’s only one area (Illinois Route 6 West of I 55) that the car still bounces, but the bounce is less severe (I didn’t get nauseated) and now I’m not sure if it’s coming from the front or the back. Areas I know were rough are not even noticeable anymore. I love the car all the more!

If the car came from the factory as it is now, the ride wouldn’t have been an issue. Of course, now that the back is settled and I’m examining it, I can tell the front is bouncing sometimes...

Thanks again guys!!

Yes, taking the nut off the original shock is a pain. I should have added when I did mine, I wrapped the rod with several layers black electrical tape and grabbed on to it with a vice grip. Don't even have to grip it hard. Then I hit it with the impact. Spun the nut right off without marring the rod.

 

[Discount Tire]

First…a huge HUGE thank you to Mark, Erik and everyone else that’s put their time, effort and money into this project. The walk-through was great, especially in conjunction with the video.

I purchased the shocks from TireRack. I use them all the time for research but have an excellent Discount Tire near me that I always use, so whenever I can throw them some business I do. Shocks were $171.62 a piece. Interestingly, they held the shipment until I confirmed I did indeed want this particular shock as it is not listed as fitting the Mach E.

I had two issues. #1 Getting the shock mounts off the shocks. The shock ?rod wanted to rotate when I turned the nut on top. I used a vice to anchor the ?rod and it was all I could do to remove each of the nuts. #2 Drilling the holes in the shock mounts. My bits aren’t the best (especially not now!). My neighbor heard the racket and brought me over some letter bits (small differences between sizes) and that made it way easier.

Ride is MUCH improved over pretty much every single road surface. There’s only one area (Illinois Route 6 West of I 55) that the car still bounces, but the bounce is less severe (I didn’t get nauseated) and now I’m not sure if it’s coming from the front or the back. Areas I know were rough are not even noticeable anymore. I love the car all the more!

If the car came from the factory as it is now, the ride wouldn’t have been an issue. Of course, now that the back is settled and I’m examining it, I can tell the front is bouncing sometimes...

Thanks again guys!!

We appreciate the support, Tim and glad to hear our sister company was able to fix you up with the new shocks!

 

[azerik]

Yes, taking the nut off the original shock is a pain. I should have added when I did mine, I wrapped the rod with several layers black electrical tape and grabbed on to it with a vice grip. Don't even have to grip it hard. Then I hit it with the impact. Spun the nut right off without marring the rod.

There's also this overly engineered option from some guys.
https://www.steeda.com/steeda-555-8911-mustang-socket-18mm
I want to say when I did mine I used a odd spark plug socket I have that has a nut end on it. I was able to slip that on to the nut, the flanged tip of the stock shock stuck out past it and I could grab that with a pair of vice grips. I can't even find the thing now (some of my totally random tools have taken a vacation from my garage it seems, or rolled under some wood I have in there.)
The stock shock nut really just needs to be bumped loose and then a normal socket and you holding the shock shaft should be enough. But all milage varies

and now I’m not sure if it’s coming from the front or the back.

Thanks again guys!!

It's possible the front might be bobbing now. I noticed with the front tires at low pressures the front suspension was no longer taking much of the work but that the tire was. I aired the fronts up to 37~39 cold. They come up to 42~43 when warm (spring time, might have to air down a bit again in summer) the front suspension starts soaking up the bounce more. This comes at a slight cost of feeling more of the road imperfections as the tire is harder. This is a balance each person will need to play with to figure out what they like. If the front suspension doesn't take the brunt of the movement the tire acts like a ballon and there is no rebound control. Just the bouncy ball effect. Try airing up maybe 1 psi at a time. Unless you're on the AS3's then you might sadly have to be in the 32+ psi range. I know a lot of us Prem AWD people did the 27~32 psi fronts to try to help with the bounce.

Also I'm very glad to be a part of this forum and happy you are happy with the results.

 

[Dadams]

Yes, taking the nut off the original shock is a pain. I should have added when I did mine, I wrapped the rod with several layers black electrical tape and grabbed on to it with a vice grip. Don't even have to grip it hard. Then I hit it with the impact. Spun the nut right off without marring the rod.

I just hit it with an impact gun with just holding the rod by hand and it spun right off. I did use an 800 ft lb air impact gun so maybe that did the trick.

 

[Dr Obnxs]

Question @markboris: Was at my Ford dealership getting my 10k maintenance done and am now wondering if changing suspension will void the warranty?

While waiting at service I talked to the parts guy to see if *they* would be able install aftermarket shocks like the Kona’s or Bilsteins. He said nope…they don’t install aftermarket products *unless* they are sanctioned by @Ford Motor Company as it would otherwise void the warranty.

No idea but will now read the warranty…but wanted to ask to see if anyone might know.

This is not true in law but can be a fight. For a warranty to be voided they would have to prove that the aftermarket parts contributed to the failure.

In the real world, they can say this and it takes a lawyer to prove them wrong. But there are large volumes of case law about aftermarket parts and the like. One just have to be willing to fight for one's rights.

 

[Dadams]

Thanks for your review on the Koni’s Darrin. Glad to see all have been positive so far. Looking forward to see what your wife has to say. ?

So the wife has 3 days of commuting and she is enjoying the less bouncy ride much better now. She said she gets less whiplash and is very happy with koni's. Would not hesitate to do again.

Again thank you for the time to do this.

 

[azerik]

I’m still trying to put in the good fight with the Vikings. I think they’re viable for a tracking solution at an increased cost. I’ll probably attempt to make my own rubber bushings for the bottom. Hopefully this pretty amazing weather hangs in here for a bit longer so I can.

 

[mkhuffman]

Rear solved.

The front is next in the agenda!

 

[markboris]

Rear solved.

The front is next in the agenda!

Like I said, if we keep getting positive reviews (so far they all have been) I may look into working on the fronts when I return from Europe at the end of this month.

 

[Tscates1]

Like I said, if we keep getting positive reviews (so far they all have been) I may look into working on the fronts when I return from Europe at the end of this month.

My wife was extremely skeptical of this project...now that she's driven and ridden in the car, she's asking questions about the front!

 

[Holdem]

Oh my. Just found this thread.

I just purchased a 2023 GT and I wish I’d done more research. I test drove it extensively near the dealer but after one week I’m ready to take the hit and trade it in. I drove a leased Jag I-pace for three years, loved it, but was excited when I picked the Mach-e as my new vehicle.

My issue is like I’ve seen in some posts here (I’m new on this forum). The car drives like a dream on smooth asphalt roads, drives like a sporty car on not so smooth asphalt…but once I get on a concrete road (highway or surface road) and at low speed or higher…the car bounces like I’m in a bouncy seat..riding the waves of the road. It’s so bad I have to find alternative routes to avoid concrete roads. Passengers get “seasick“. However I read that many People love the ride and don’t notice what I do?

It looks like many responses are saying this is a “normal” feature of the design and there is nothing to do to mitigate it except “maybe” replace the shocks on my brand new car or load up the cargo area with bricks.

is this true?

 

[i8iridium]

Oh my. Just found this thread.

I just purchased a 2023 GT and I wish I’d done more research. I test drove it extensively near the dealer but after one week I’m ready to take the hit and trade it in. I drove a leased Jag I-pace for three years, loved it, but was excited when I picked the Mach-e as my new vehicle.

My issue is like I’ve seen in some posts here (I’m new on this forum). The car drives like a dream on smooth asphalt roads, drives like a sporty car on not so smooth asphalt…but once I get on a concrete road (highway or surface road) and at low speed or higher…the car bounces like I’m in a bouncy seat..riding the waves of the road. It’s so bad I have to find alternative routes to avoid concrete roads. Passengers get “seasick“. However I read that many People love the ride and don’t notice what I do?

It looks like many responses are saying this is a “normal” feature of the design and there is nothing to do to mitigate it except “maybe” replace the shocks on my brand new car or load up the cargo area with bricks.

is this true?

Between the two threads you posted in, they explain, in-depth what you're experiencing.

So I guess your TLDR for this thread is... Yes, it's true.

 

[mkhuffman]

Oh my. Just found this thread.

I just purchased a 2023 GT and I wish I’d done more research. I test drove it extensively near the dealer but after one week I’m ready to take the hit and trade it in. I drove a leased Jag I-pace for three years, loved it, but was excited when I picked the Mach-e as my new vehicle.

My issue is like I’ve seen in some posts here (I’m new on this forum). The car drives like a dream on smooth asphalt roads, drives like a sporty car on not so smooth asphalt…but once I get on a concrete road (highway or surface road) and at low speed or higher…the car bounces like I’m in a bouncy seat..riding the waves of the road. It’s so bad I have to find alternative routes to avoid concrete roads. Passengers get “seasick“. However I read that many People love the ride and don’t notice what I do?

It looks like many responses are saying this is a “normal” feature of the design and there is nothing to do to mitigate it except “maybe” replace the shocks on my brand new car or load up the cargo area with bricks.

is this true?

It is the way the suspension is designed, but, as you can see from this thread, there is a solution. The other solution is more expensive - KW coilovers. I don't have any concrete highways in my normal driving area so the suspension doesn't bother me very much. However, I am very happy with the Koni shocks in the rear. The car definitely drives better with them on.

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