Anyone running Carerra Shocks?

[ydphtwl]

My 96 CE has 98K on it. I am planning my 100K tuneup. One of my best friends is the tech rep for Carerra Shocks in Atlanta, Ben Abernathy. He says that his shocks are 7 valve and will outperform Bilsteins on his shock dyno. Ben said he sell to a Corvette shop in Louisiana who sets up cars for Autocross, Solo I &II, and road racing and he only uses Carerra's
My Car is a Z51 and with the high mileage I am considering the Carerra's. Just wanted to see if any of you guys have tried them and your opinion.

 

[Ken]

^^^

 

[Hib Halverson]

Well...if your autocrossing or road racing, the Carreras will work pretty well.

On the other hand, if you drive on the street and seldom autoX or do trackdays, you may find the Carreras pretty harsh on the street.

With the OE Z51 Bilsteins a better choice.

If you stay with Bilstein, after 98K mi., rather than buying new ones, send them to Bilstein for rebuild. That's usually cheaper and...if you want different valving...they can do it during the overhaul.

More info?
Bilstein Corp. of America
800 537 1085
Ask for Bill Hindorf

 

[XS650]

With the OE Z51 Bilsteins a better choice.

If you stay with Bilstein, after 98K mi., rather than buying new ones, send them to Bilstein for rebuild...

Can you get a rebuild and revalve with the Delco-Bilstein shocks on a '96 convertible with standard suspension?

Dick

 

[vms4evr]

A freind has Carerra coilovers on his 95 coupe. He also added poly bushings and heim joints in places. The main use for the car is track. He drives it on the street and it is stiff and not very forgiving. I replaced the Bilsteins on mine after about 90K miles with the Bilstein Sport (Z51) version. I'm pretty happy with them and I autox the car a bunch. It's also my daily driver otherwise I would consider coilovers.
Graham

 

[ydphtwl]

Thanks for the replies! In talking to my friend Ben who is also the streetrod rep for Carrera, his specialty is making streetrods with various weights and chassis components, ride and handle. Their shocks do not just come in one flavor. He can vary the dampening and spring rates to match the application. I am sure if someone ordered his shocks and told them they were for a race application that they would probably get a higher spring/dampening rate. He supplies shops like Boyd Coddington, FatMan and others in the streetrod industry. These cars are interested more in how they ride than performance use.
Bottom line, I think he can custom tailor me a setup that I will be happy with. I just wanted to know if anyone else had been running them on Corvette's. Thanks

 

[Hib Halverson]

Can you get a rebuild and revalve with the Delco-Bilstein shocks on a '96 convertible with standard suspension?

Dick

Yes.

 

[vms4evr]

ydphtwl,
Hey there Ken. I'd like to talk to your buddy about getting a set of coilovers for my car. I'd be curious about the cost to get setup for autocrossing (Solo II) and street use. Being able to make adjustments to ride height, stiffness, and corner weight the car sounds interesting, depending on cost of course.
How would I get in touch with Ben?
You can PM or email me if you would like.
Thanks.
Graham

 

[ydphtwl]

Graham,
I sent you an email with details.
Ken