Strutmaster Rear Shocks

[9BlackN*Black6]

Just put some 17's on the eldo and they came with Nitto Extremes 245/45ZR. I figured it would kill the "caddy" ride with the low pro's, but Im actually quite impressed with the ride, I have a lot more road feel and handing (steering response) went way up. They are 8 wide rather than the stock 16x7, so this is probably my steering improvement. Well, I now need to do the struts and shock so the new tires dont get chewed up. My eldo is verry bouncy and have the service ride control message. ELC exhaust valve. When I go over a bump on the interstate the back end feel like it's gonna slide left and right. Ill also notice the LR shock leaks down overnight.

So to the point. Scored some rear shocks, Strutmasters, off ebay for $115 to the door. They are not air shocks like the Arnotts and others Ive research, they are spring shocks. Im all about a "sporty" ride, but I have not read much on them (strutmasters) and am wondering if ?

I really am not a fan of the air shock because obviously the OEMs dont hold up for crap, and 99% of cars today have a more reliable spring setup.
I rarely have anyone in the car except for me so the rear sagging probably isnt an issue. I was thinking of Stutmasters for the front too, because they sell the whole setup, strut and spring.
Any imput would be apreciative!

[Eldo1953]

Ive got the strutmasters on the rear of my 98 STS. They ride great. My compressor and shock were shot so i ditched the air entirely. I will get some for the front as soon as I can.

[jadcock]

It's unfair to say that the OEM air shocks don't "hold up for crap". BOTH of my cars still have the original air shocks ('01 STS at 58k miles and '97 SLS at 157k miles) and they work just fine. I would not install non-air shocks because the rear springs are designed to be used with air shocks...they're not really strong enough on their own...especially with anyone in the back seat, etc. There's a reason these cars came with air shocks from the factory...and normally...they hold up just fine. Any shock will wear out over time. If your original rear air shocks on a '96 model have lasted until now, I'd say that's a very good service life.

[Playdrv4me]

Originally Posted by jadcock

It's unfair to say that the OEM air shocks don't "hold up for crap". BOTH of my cars still have the original air shocks ('01 STS at 58k miles and '97 SLS at 157k miles) and they work just fine. I would not install non-air shocks because the rear springs are designed to be used with air shocks...they're not really strong enough on their own...especially with anyone in the back seat, etc. There's a reason these cars came with air shocks from the factory...and normally...they hold up just fine. Any shock will wear out over time. If your original rear air shocks on a '96 model have lasted until now, I'd say that's a very good service life.

I think you could argue both the usefulness and reliability of air-shocks all day long. Ive never liked them as they have been unreliable for me, and I prefer a little more road feel.

One thing I CAN say with certainty, is that the Cadillac design is MUCH better than the Lincoln design by leaps and bounds. Lincoln uses an entirely bag based strut design that is very prone to failing, especially in northern climates with salt. The metal towers rust and leave sharp edges, which then puncture the air bag. Their systems are also more expensive to R&R and the aftermarket replacements are only now becoming readily available.

[9BlackN*Black6]

Put the strutmasters on yesterday, had a hell of a time getting top nut broke loose. Its ok though, nothing the ol' air chisel couldnt handle. Other than that the only problem i had was compressing this beefed up shock, I had to put all my weight on it plus have my mom push down on my back while my dad put some wire on both sides to hold it in the compressed position.

I love the new stiffer ride and there is no sag whatsoever, even when I hammer it the rear hardly squats. I got a couple of "soprano" type buddies that im gonna have ride in back, so i can see if it will sag, i doubt it will though.

Code RS0038-ELC exhaust valve, is my only code, since i dont need the compressor anymore is it possible to disable the ELC in any way to get the RS0038 stop poping up service ride control?? Wasnt sure if i could disable it thru the DIC. Other than that code im "codeless"
Thanks for any info on this fellas!

[zanyzeuss]

just put strutmasters on the rear of my 96 eldo, and im getting the same code u did. did you ever find a solution to the problem?