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I went w/bilsteins all around w/aero springs. That said, I wouldn't put oem back on, as they were woefully inadequate on my car and many other early 9-5's that I've driven. In addition, they have proven to have a short life span. The oem Gary Fisher wagon has load leveling shocks that work very well, but are very expensive.
The cost of good aftermarket parts was essentially the same as going w/OEM from a discount sponsor, so I'd go with what you want; price differences are minor. The ride did NOT deteriorate much with aftermarket, even with the stiffer aero springs and bars(drive an early aero if you get the chance). If my rear springs hadn't been so subpar, I might have just gone w/the struts, shocks, and sway bars.
When I spoke w/Bilstein, they said that their shocks should work fine w/oem springs. I did put on the aero suspension and upgraded sway bars, but if I hadn't planned to do it all at once, I would have felt fine starting w/the rear shocks.
When I looked at Koni, the front strut installation required additional labor if I went w/all 4, and the rears were only adjustable if you unbolted them, which isn't easily adjustable IMO. This meant extra cost to install for features I didn't think I'd benefit from.
Installation should be fairly straightforward by any competent shop independent or even joe's garage. My Saab dealer had no issue putting in Bilsteins, but didn't get the work due to their labor quote being more than twice ALL of my other quotes. I have no issue giving the dealer the bread and butter work, but I don't need to be charged that much premium for that priviledge.
The only regrets I have involve the delay before I got around to having the new parts installed. Good luck with yours.
posted by 68.163.151...
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