I know there are some Chinese knockoff strut assemblies that I would be leery of but has anyone used Gabriel or Monroe Strut assemblies?  I know KYB is OEM but It would be easier to replace the whole assembly instead of getting some shop to swap the springs over.

Car is a 2008 Impreza Wagon

are you keeping the car? If so, get the KYB. Very likely you also need strut mounts.

KYB may have some assemblies now, but I forget what years.

1 hour ago, 1 Lucky Texan said:

are you keeping the car? If so, get the KYB. Very likely you also need strut mounts.

KYB may have some assemblies now, but I forget what years.

That was kind of my thoughts but just wondering if anyone has actually used the Monroe of Gabriel units

 

i tried monroes once on one of the 4 Subarus I have had - honestly, was not all that happy with them - too soft

If you are keeping the car, it is worth the extra effort to go KYB

And if you really like the car (and a well-controlled ride) you should treat yourself to the Bilstein B4.

Think I'm going to do what I thought I should and just get the KYB struts and tops.

 

On 6/18/2021 at 3:45 AM, Mike104 said:

That was kind of my thoughts but just wondering if anyone has actually used the Monroe of Gabriel units

 

A friend had 4 new struts installed on her 2004 Outback and they were complete bolt in units.  I’m not picky with suspension but they were awful, they were soft and floaty. I don’t know what brand but they were complete bolt in units installed by Firestone so I think they were likely a Monroe or Gabriel.  If they performed that bad new I didn’t have much hope for long term quality either. 

yeah, there are no shortcuts for a good ride on a Subaru..

as much of a pain as it can be, it is worth it to put the right struts in and have the ride, and handling, be on the money

Dunno how it is in the US but over here OEM KYBs are oil filled - only available through dealerships that charge and arm and a leg over here!

The “aftermarket” KYB units are gas filled. I’ve got a set on the back of my L series and they go quite well. Once they start leaking they’ll be dead in no time unlike the oil units that keep going for some time after they start leaking.

Cheers 

Bennie

1 hour ago, el_freddo said:

Dunno how it is in the US but over here OEM KYBs are oil filled - only available through dealerships that charge and arm and a leg over here!

The “aftermarket” KYB units are gas filled. I’ve got a set on the back of my L series and they go quite well. Once they start leaking they’ll be dead in no time

Very cool, thanks. How did you figure this out?

20 hours ago, idosubaru said:

Very cool, thanks. How did you figure this out?

A mate at a dealership or a forum told me, can’t remember which. That’s when I noticed I could only get gas KYBs in stores or online.

The gas shocks sit higher than the old oil units with the same springs, there could be a difference between the two for height but other than general observation on this one swap I don’t have any strong basis to say this is a sure thing that will change. It could’ve been the new rubber bush at the base of the shock that wasn’t crushed that made the difference in my case. It still sits a bit higher (which I like).

Cheers

Bennie

4 hours ago, el_freddo said:

A mate at a dealership or a forum told me, can’t remember which. That’s when I noticed I could only get gas KYBs in stores or online.

The gas shocks sit higher than the old oil units with the same springs, there could be a difference between the two for height but other than general observation on this one swap I don’t have any strong basis to say this is a sure thing that will change. It could’ve been the new rubber bush at the base of the shock that wasn’t crushed that made the difference in my case. It still sits a bit higher (which I like).

Cheers

Bennie

I always felt like the cars don’t drive quite as good as I’d expect after installing new KYBs.  I wondered if they weren’t quite up to OEM specs but figured it was more likely because I’m installing them on older cars.  Can a 10 year old Subaru with new struts drive like a brand new one? Maybe  I’ll try an OEM set one day. 

I’ve been told that gas and oil filled struts will behave differently but not really noticeably unless you swapped from a good/new set of one type to a good/new set of the other type etc. 

I was just glad to stop my L’s rear end trying to crab walk during high speed cornering. That wasn’t fun!

Cheers 

Bennie

My 2 experiences was that I felt a little improvement. Not unexpected since new struts should feel better than old/worn ones?

I have read that KYB claims new struts from them are 15% stiffer than Subaru's OEM spec. Not sure if that's across all years/models though.

for me, personally, i have zero complaints with the KYBs. Firm, without being harsh. and yeah, if you are replacing worn out units, there is a BIG difference..

Gabriel and Monroe are just too soft for my liking. They might be fine on Grandpa's old land yacht, but not on a Subaru. lol

3 minutes ago, heartless said:

for me, personally, i have zero complaints with the KYBs. Firm, without being harsh. and yeah, if you are replacing worn out units, there is a BIG difference..

Gabriel and Monroe are just too soft for my liking. They might be fine on Grandpa's old land yacht, but not on a Subaru. lol

Well as I am a grandfather but my Impreza isn't an old land yacht I'm going to go with the KYBs 

8 hours ago, Mike104 said:

Well as I am a grandfather but my Impreza isn't an old land yacht I'm going to go with the KYBs 

LOL, yeah, i hear ya... I am old enough to be a grandmother, but the Forester is no land yacht either.. so KYB for it, too

however, we do have a land yacht hiding in the garage... a 1973 Lincoln Mark IV 

17 hours ago, 1 Lucky Texan said:

My 2 experiences was that I felt a little improvement.

 

10 hours ago, heartless said:

for me, personally, i have zero complaints with the KYBs. 

Absolutely. I do too and like and use KYBs almost exclusively on Subarus.  Sorry - I didn’t mean to sound like I didn’t like them or theres no improvement. They always feel much better.  

I think I’m hopeful for a pre-2010 with new KYBs to feel like a newer Subaru with only 50,000 miles and factory original struts so they don’t drive quite as nice as I expect. my expectations are too high, there’s more to it than just struts. 

6 hours ago, heartless said:

LOL, yeah, i hear ya... I am old enough to be a grandmother, but the Forester is no land yacht either.. so KYB for it, too

however, we do have a land yacht hiding in the garage... a 1973 Lincoln Mark IV 

 whoa!!!! My dad had one, I swear aircraft can land on that hood! It's kinda like driving a waterbed down the road. You can be doing 80-90 and it's just like doing 50. You look down at that weird speedo and go , yikes, better ease up....

parking it was a challenge at times.....

17 hours ago, 1 Lucky Texan said:

 whoa!!!! My dad had one, I swear aircraft can land on that hood! It's kinda like driving a waterbed down the road. You can be doing 80-90 and it's just like doing 50. You look down at that weird speedo and go , yikes, better ease up....

parking it was a challenge at times.....

oh yeah! they are big, and that hood goes on forever!

I also had a 77 Mark V once upon a time.. the longest production 2 door made... had a lot of fun with that one, too. Used to get teased it would pass everything but a gas station - my standard reply was that it would pass every OTHER station, LOL. In reality, it was not that bad on gas for its size, especially if you kept your foot out of that 4bbl, lol