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OK.....so i no someone in the mazda parts department and they told me that the OEM shock (kayaba/KYB) they carry is not the same as the outside auto parts places which also sells the so called "ORIGINAL" KYB shocks........ just wanted some feed back on if these outside parts shops shocks worth the investment.....

just lookin for that original manufactured ride and not something dat will give up in 3 months down d road... ZOOM ZOOM

I changed out my OEM BJ shocks for the KYB (Kayaba) shocks - bought them from Mathuras in St James some years back.

To me I noticed no difference in the ride quality - they rode exactly like the originals, and up to when I sold the car 18 months later they were still working great. I'd recommend getting it from outside the dealership, but stick with the good brands if you can find them (KYB, Tokico, etc.), especially given the price difference as S/Sales parts prices are ridiculous.

Just make sure you get the right shock for your car, as they're 2 different types of shocks for the BJ models we have here - the Japan and the Singapore models. The ride height of the JDM is slightly lower than the SDM, so the mount for the swaybay links on the shocks are different for both models.

So can I use JDM rear shocks on a SDM 323? Trying to get rid of that high rear look!

dredman1 wrote:I changed out my OEM BJ shocks for the KYB (Kayaba) shocks - bought them from Mathuras in St James some years back.

To me I noticed no difference in the ride quality - they rode exactly like the originals, and up to when I sold the car 18 months later they were still working great. I'd recommend getting it from outside the dealership, but stick with the good brands if you can find them (KYB, Tokico, etc.), especially given the price difference as S/Sales parts prices are ridiculous.

Just make sure you get the right shock for your car, as they're 2 different types of shocks for the BJ models we have here - the Japan and the Singapore models. The ride height of the JDM is slightly lower than the SDM, so the mount for the swaybay links on the shocks are different for both models.

thanks bro, i'll take such info into concideration.....

all the shocks are interchangeable
the prefacelift model had the lower mounting tabs which ended up with a shorter endlink
the jdm shock is lower than the sdm shock

I know the endlink tab on the struts for the '99 & '00 models are different, but isn't the JDM & SDM struts are different lengths? Can anyone confirm? What do I ask for when buying the JDM rear to ensure the rear isn't too high like the Singapore models?

boy GROOVE... i didnt even no it had JDM n SDM shocks until nw... bt i have seen sum higher mazda... swear they were stumplers.. lol.... about the the front stablizer links the 99 model (head and indicator seperate) link is shorter hence makin the shock bracket for the link higher or lower, cant memba...

I have one of those "stompers". On more than one occassion I was glad to have one.

I bought KYBs from Jurawans about 3 yrs ago. They still going so I don't know what the southern sales guy talking about unless he was referring to imitation KYBs.

i always thought oem was tokico...

Groovemaster wrote:So can I use JDM rear shocks on a SDM 323? Trying to get rid of that high rear look!

According to what the mechanic told me you can, but you'll have to get the corresponding swaybar endlinks as well. As you'd expect, the JDM endlinks are shorter than the SDM ones. I can't personally verify that it will work though since I've never tried it.

But I don't see why it won't as the only difference between the 2 shocks is the mount for the swaybar endlink. The mounting bolt points for the shocks themselves were the same for the both of them.

TurboDrive wrote:I have one of those "stompers". On more than one occassion I was glad to have one.

Mines was an SDM as well, and I too was happy for the extra ground clearance, especially during the rainy season with floods. Still handled nice and sharp, at least good enough for me. It was the best handling car I've owned to date.

ghostbusters wrote:i always thought oem was tokico...

nah kayaba is OEM...

I took Tokico OE off my car.

Stock Sport 20 has KYB up front & Tokico in the rear!

Strugglerzinc wrote:I took Tokico OE off my car.

likewise I, there was a reason tokico made the performance shocks for this generation vehicle. Mazda was already sourcing the OE shocks from them. They had contracts in place. Mazda switched to KYB on the BK chassis and that was a massive failure with the struts having a higher than average failure rate in trinidad on the MZ3.

Guys I thinking about going Tokico all round (beacuse KYB rides real stiff) and I want to get rid of the high looking rear. What's the part number of the japan kyb that doesn't give that high look?

i have no idea, but check lange trinidad, i think they are the tokico distributor.

Groovemaster wrote:Guys I thinking about going Tokico all round (beacuse KYB rides real stiff) and I want to get rid of the high looking rear. What's the part number of the japan kyb that doesn't give that high look?

Maztune has the correct match of KYB shocks that would give you that level look you want. give him a call.

Arite Thanks!!

mazda ppl... i have the same high looking rear on the japan model. i want to go lower. Ive seen many bjs all the same height and its lower than mine and i doubt everybody went and drop their cars to run stock rims. cud someone help. oh and where maztune is located? tanx

Cocoyea. San Fernando.