[Racer Boy]

This is something I've done a bit of research on, as I am going to completely rebuild my suspension eventually (more on that later). From what I understand, the Bilstein HD shocks are the same as the M030 sport struts as far as the valving goes. The Sport shocks are shorter than the HD shocks, which works well for shorter springs, and the damping rates are the same as the HD's. Also available are Bilstein Touring shocks, which are the stock base suspension valving.

I don't have any experience with the Konis, but that $860 price seems like a screaming deal. I got my set of Bilstein HD's for just over $800 on sale from ECS Tuning. At that time, the Konis were a LOT more. If they had been on sale when I was shopping around, I'd have chosen the Konis.

The rebuilding service that Bilstein offers is something I don't know about, so I can't help out there.

I ordered my Bilsteins in October, and the rears have been on backorder that entire time. Every month I get another email from ECS telling me that the expected ship date is another month out. If you do decide to get the Bilsteins, make sure the vendor you order from has them in stock. I recently checked Pelican, and they did have them in stock.

Hmm, now I'm mulling over sending my front shocks back to ECS and getting a refund, and getting those Konis! If the Bilsteins are still on backorder for March, I think that is what I'm going to do.

EDIT: After some more research, I decided that the Koni sport shocks would be more of what I'm looking for, as they are adjustable (the Bilsteins aren't) and are more suited to performance applications. It sounds like the FSD's are mostly aimed at moderate street driving, and since I intend to do track days, I'll be skipping the FSD's. I may ask ECS to change my my order to the Koni's if the Bilsteins are still on backorder.