Hello all, I just became a owner of a 2004 VUE with AWD. It has the 3.5 Honda engine and has a lot of miles on It (225000). The Vue is in really nice shape and the previous Owner(original) Maintained it well. It has the leather seats and a sunroof. Since the struts and shocks are original I am thinking of replacing them with the KYB Brand. Has anyone used this brand and are you happy with them ?. Any suggestions for ones that give a better ride?.
Thanks
javsam

 

Welcome to the forum. As for the KYB's, being poor white trash, I've never been able to afford them, BUT, I do know several people that run KYB's on their various trucks and SUV's and they all love them. Stay away from Gabriel as they tend to rust very quickly. I usually purchase Monroe's, because they're good shocks and struts and not that expensive. It all depends on if you're going to keep the vehicle and how much you want to spend. Compare prices on amazon, fleabay and rockauto.

 

KYB's are pretty much the standard replacement of choice on the S cars. Not a ton of decent stuff out there.
Can't say I know anyone who has a Vue w KYB's. Get the spring rates for the stock shocks from a chevy dealer and compare them to the spring rates of the other brands.

I HATE Monroe hardware.

You probably will need to replace the upper bearings and mounts (front), so make 100% sure you have either stock or aftermarket ones in hand before you order struts. Bump stops in rear should be inspected but unless dry rotted they should be fine.

And as much as I hate Amazon, they are starting to carry things that RockAuto no longer does or the same items that, if you have Amazon Prime, cost less because of the free shipping.

And Welcome! Where in Cheeseland are you?

 

Thank you for the welcome, I have been doing some more research and I think am going to replace the struts and shocks with AC Delco from the Rockauto site. I live in Appleton Wi.