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EXPERIENCE WITH 1A AUTO SHOCK KIT

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Care, Maintenance & Troubleshooting' started by GSDApollo, Jul 16, 2018.

  1. GSDApollo

    GSDApollo Junior Member

    Joined:
    Jun 12, 2006
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    Hey Guys,

    My wife's 2012 prius has 165k on the clock and shocks are pretty shot. We have a growing family so plan to keep the car another 2-3 years max then get a van. I wanna replace the shocks before they start wearing out ball joints which are still ok at this point. Has anyone gone with the 1A Auto full shock and strut kit? I know its cheap and not expecting it to be that great, just curious if anyone can comment on how bad it made the ride quality, if at all? Just need them to last another 30-50k miles, so I don't want to throw a ton of money on OEM shock and struts, but also don't want to piss off the wife when the car rides worse than it does now. Any comments from anyone with experience with this kit would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
     
  2. padroo

    padroo Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jan 11, 2008
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    Location:
    Chesterton, Indiana Another third world country.
    Vehicle:
    2016 Prius
    Model:
    Four
    I don't remember the brand I bought for my Gen2 Prius but I bought the no name brand I think off of eBay and installed them and they worked fine just like the originals. I only did the front because I had a blow out and lost the oil in the drivers side. They were easy to change and came as an assembly and didn't have to mess with the springs because they came with new ones as a complete assembly. Ball joints in the Prius are pretty much bullet proof as far as I know and would be easy to change if needed. The whole Prius suspension is fairly simple and common to other front wheel drive cars, at least that is one thing about the car that is simple.:)
     
    Raytheeagle likes this.
  3. GSDApollo

    GSDApollo Junior Member

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    Cool thanks! Ya I do all the work on our cars and the prius is def not the easiest to work on. I got a laundry list of things that need to get done including cleaning the battery fan, new plugs and do compression and leak down test (starting to burn oil last few oil changes), clean the EGR and MAF, flush all fluids, etc.etc. Just put in new headlight housings since the originals were cracked and letting in water. Did brakes and tires last fall. Ill get the rest of my list done in a few weeks, then have it fully detailed and it should be good to go except for oil changes for another 2 years. Thanks for the feedback though, just read a few places where people complained that there cars rode like crap after they put these in, so....
     
  4. padroo

    padroo Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jan 11, 2008
    2,763
    2,250
    13
    Location:
    Chesterton, Indiana Another third world country.
    Vehicle:
    2016 Prius
    Model:
    Four
    The only way you can be certain with the ride is use OEM part again and they usually last.
     
  5. Mr. Prius

    Mr. Prius Junior Member

    Joined:
    Dec 6, 2010
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    Location:
    USA
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    II
    So any other places online? I’m getting my 2010 Prius back after being used (tortured) by my teenagers for the past 4+ years who are now heading off to college. I’m thinking of replacing shocks/struts in all 4 corners, adding some mods like sway bars and some chassis/shock tower braces and perhaps brakes/rotors. Where do Prius peeps go?
     
  6. Mr. Prius

    Mr. Prius Junior Member

    Joined:
    Dec 6, 2010
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    Location:
    USA
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    II
    1A has great how to videos btw
     
  7. Raytheeagle

    Raytheeagle Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 1, 2016
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    Location:
    Bay Area, California
    Vehicle:
    2019 Prius Prime
    Model:
    Prime Plus
    I just put KYB’s on the back and OEM’s on the front at 184 k miles:).

    Got our monies worth out of the originals ;).

    Good luck with your new shocks (y).