What Are Shocks and Why Are They Important?

In their simplest form, shock absorbers are hydraulic (oil) pumps that help control the impact and rebound movement of your vehicle's springs and suspensions. In addition to smoothing out bumps and vibrations, the key role of the shock absorber is to ensure that the tires of the vehicle remain in contact with the road surface at all times, ensuring the safest control and braking response from your car. 

As mentioned above, shock absorbers are oil pumps. The piston is attached to the end of the piston rod and acts against the hydraulic fluid in the pressure tube. As the suspension travels up and down, the hydraulic fluid is forced through the orifices (thin holes) inside the piston. Because the orifices allow only a small amount of fluid through the piston, the piston slows down, which in turn slows down the movement of the spring and the suspension.

Basically, shock absorbers do two things. Apart from controlling the movement of springs and suspensions, shock absorbers also keep your tyres in contact with the ground at all times. At rest or in motion, the bottom of your tyres is the only part of your vehicle in contact with the road. Whenever the contact of the tyre with the ground is broken or reduced, your ability to drive, steer and brake is severely compromised. 

Despite popular belief, shock absorbers do not support a vehicle's weight.

How Will I Know if the Shocks Need Replacement?

• Instability at highway speed. Your vehicle never feels completely stable on the highway and keeps moving up and down. It may be a slight movement, but you notice it. 
• Vehicle "tips" to one side in turn. When you take a sharp turn or off-ramp, your vehicle leans or "tips" to the outside of the turn and feels buoyant. 
• The front end dives more than expected during tough braking. You may not notice this until you've got to jump hard on the brakes. 
• Back-end squat during acceleration. You will notice that the front end of your vehicle is rising while the rear "squats" during a hard acceleration. 
• Tires bouncing over. You can feel a tire (or tire) reacting or "bouncing" for a while after you hit a bump. You might hear a clunking noise, too. 
• Unusual wear of tires. Because the tire is not held firmly to the road, it is worn in a waved manner instead of evenly.
• Leaking fluid from shocks or struts on the outside. This is a sign that the seals are broken and that the internal fluids essential to the proper operation are escaping.

Vivid Racing offers struts, bearings, bellows, bump stops, and struts without springs. Our replacement shocks and struts are designed to deliver OE quality ride and handling, so your car or truck will have the level of suspension performance it had when it was new. 

For better performance, we can offer you enhanced shocks and struts for a firmer ride and more responsive handling. 

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