Quote:
Originally Posted by SmilyFace
Hi, what are the advantages/disadvantages of oil charged vs. gas charged shocks.
From what I understand oil is much more robust to change in volume than gas, so the design of the dampers must be radically different.
 |
If you're looking at off the shelf suspension dampers, don't think about it in terms of "oil filled" and "gas charged". All suspension dampers have oil in them, and "gas charged" is a marketing term that's used to mislead people. What you're really asking here is the difference between twin tube and monotube dampers.
If you want to know what the differences are and enjoy looking at textbook cutaway diagrams, have a look at this article from minimania:
http://www.minimania.com/ArticleV.cfm?DisplayID=1047
If you don't have a whole lot of time to spend reading a long article about a car you don't own, download this powerpoint instead (and skip to slide 52):
http://www.sae.org/students/presenta...pension101.ppt
If you're really lazy and just want some quick answers, jump to slide 65 of the presentation above.
EDIT: Just one caveat for those of you looking at the minimania article. Take the generalizations the author makes about the aftermarket with a grain of salt. Some of the statements (like "only twin tubes are adjustable") aren't quite correct.
