Z28_4ever

Just replaced my 93 Z28 original rear shocks (86k mi) with monroe sensa-trac.
Ride itself seems so-so (not too bouncy) but I immediately noticed:
a) original shocks - shock test pushing down on rear end was "very" stiff.
with sensa-trac the rear end pushes down with ease.
b) never noticed on original shocks but with the sensa-trac any hard braking gives what I feel as excessive "snap back" at the end of the stop. Is this more overall suspension related (and I never noticed) or more due too a lack of adequate stiffness in the sesna-trac for a z28.

I cant afford much $ for shocks but the repalcement was so easy I'd be happy to take these off & return for some GR2's if anyone with experience can tell me if that will make enough difference to justify & give a stiffer result & less snap-back. Other recommendation are welcome too if brand available locally. ;-) Thanks.

Injuneer

You need to add a "SIGNATURE" so we have info about your car, to help us answer your questions.

Assuming it's a 4th Gen - Why did you replace the stockers, if they were still firm? Everyone rags on the deCarbon shocks, but they were actually a high quality part for an OEM application.

Z28_4ever

93 Z28 Coupe 5.7L, Automatic, 86K mi.
signature? My apologies, I'm a newbie to this excellent forum and I owe to them by acting professional.

Good Quest. I personally loved the stock de Carbon's. The reason for the change: I reported to my repair shop an occasional "clunk" clearly coming from the rear passenger side sounds like wheel area. Bit rare, hard to reproduce, and when heard its usually bouncing around a hard left turn.
Their advice: suspect bad rear right shock + being 20yrs old + 86k mi
they recommend new rear shocks. Aside from that my testing/pushing on rear to test shock bounce - still fairly stiff after 20yrs. Whats not to like! ;-)

Simple job so I did it myself. But due to behavior of the Sensa-trac I'm returning them as they dont come close to the stock shocks (despite what the Monroe Co. tech said). I haven't driven enough yet to see if "clunk" is now gone. If it isn't, I suppose I could buy new shock bushings and put the deCarbons back on? Else, start fresh with maybe Bilstein B6 @ $86 each?
I read also avoid the KYB GR-2 which while stiffer have poor lifespan.

Injuneer

Put the deCarbons back on, with the one that was originally on the passenger side moved to the driver's side. See if the clunk follows the shock.

In my post above, everything below the horizontal line is a "Signature". You set that up in your profile, and it is automatically appended to every post you make. To set one up, left click on "UserCP" on the red task bar at the top of every page. On the drop down, left click on "Edit Signature". On the page that opens up, enter the basic info about your car - year, model, engine, trans and any major mods. Click "Save Signature" and you are done.