Shocks and struts?

[I Vtec, do you?]

I've googled but I can't find it so I'll just ask here - can someone tell me what each of these two things are? I'm assuming a lot of people on here dont' either because people keep using the words interchangeably. Some people say the shocks blow, some say the struts. Do they both?

The reason I'm asking is because I'm dropping my car a bit soon (got my camber kit hopefully ordered by tomorrow), plan on probably getting eibachs and most likely tokico shocks in the future. I just need to know if there's anything else (struts?) that I'll need to buy to keep everything in working order?

Thanks a lot

[20civic07]

same thing. shocks = struts on our cars.

[jpv027]

Shocks and struts are not the same thing. We have struts in the front and shocks in the back.

"strut -- basically a shock absorber mounted inside a coil spring. Struts perform two jobs: They provide a dampening function like shock absorbers, and they provide structural support for the vehicle suspension. That means struts deliver a bit more than shock absorbers, which don't support vehicle weight -- they only control the speed at which weight is transferred in a car, not the weight itself." Howstuffworks "Dampers: Struts and Anti-sway Bars"

[jpv027]

"Q: I often hear the terms strut and shock used interchangeably. Are they different?

A:Shocks and struts are similar in that they both damp (slow down) the vehicles motion. The key difference of a strut vs. a shock is that a shock only controls the cars motion while a strut is a locating member of the suspension. What this means is that if you remove a shock the spindle or axle will still be completely attached to the vehicle. If you remove a strut the spindle or axle will be able to move outside of its normal motion. Shocks and struts may or may not have a spring mounted to them either. It is often assumed that any damper with a spring is a strut, this is not the case."

Copied from koni
Frequently Asked Questions - KONI North America Shock Absorbers are the shocks to choose for performance.

[aki]

When people say shocks/struts blow, usually they mean shocks--but both can technically blow (eg the shock portion of the strut).

[I Vtec, do you?]

So when you're buying Tokico shocks, for example, you're really buying two shocks and two struts?

[2.0si007]

^ yes and koni sucks= dspec. the energy of fluid friction dessipates as heat to the atmosphere. shock absorbers steady the ride, reduce sway and pitch, and resist rapid (jerky) movements of the vehicle. < shocks. ask me!

[tomasro]

uh...ya. basically those gas piston things are shocks/struts...but mounted differently in the car's suspension. Struts usually cost more to replace because they are more vital.

with those tokico "shocks" you will have to disassemble the front coil-over (spring over the "strut") to replace it with the tokico "shock". the rear is a simple replacement.

PS - recomend hfp sport suspension over tokico "shock" swap. just my opinion though :)

[rbsjnh]

your car has front struts and rear shocks...see why they are used interchangeble?

[rbsjnh]

Originally Posted by 2.0si007

^ yes and koni sucks= dspec. the energy of fluid friction dessipates as heat to the atmosphere. shock absorbers steady the ride, reduce sway and pitch, and resist rapid (jerky) movements of the vehicle. < shocks. ask me!

pretty bold statement