Whats the differance?

[Jdm_Silvia]

What is the differance between a strut and a shock? Just wondering. &nbsp;<img src="http://www.zilvia.net/f/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/dozingoff.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':zzz:'>

[Yoshi]

Here's the scoop, straight from Harper's Automotive Dictionary <img src="http://www.zilvia.net/f/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':)'>

STRUT: The main support member in a MacPherson suspension system. The strut also serves as the shock absorber.

SHOCK ABSORBER: The part of a suspension that uses air pressure or hydraulic pressure to dampen the up-and-down motion of a vehicle. Typically found near each wheel.

<img src="http://www.zilvia.net/f/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/hehe.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':hehe:'>

[240 2NR]

They are the same, yet different. Should I continue?

Ok, basically their function is the same as they can both be classified as a damper, in fact that's what they both are. Where they differ is in the design of the suspension, and how they act upon it.

The short of it is that a strut is an itegral part of the suspenion. Remove the strut and the entire system cannot function (it wall literally fall apart). It is actually one of the "arms" in the system. In the 240's case, the front suspenion is a lower arm connected under the car and to the strut and and the strut mounts to the to the car at the strut tower. Those are the only components that affect travel, the rest help locate the front end. It is a very simple system. It is still fully independent, but easy to package and work on, and much cheaper to engineer and design.

A shock is used in in a system that does not require a shock to maintain it's movement (even if it doesn't support a car in its absence). Examples are multilink (like the 240's rear end, also known as double wishbone or double a-arm sometimes), trailing arm, live axle and leaf spring type, and torsion bars suspensions (porbably others too). This system even without a shock in place can still function in it's full range of travel. These can be realtively simple to very complex. In general it is a more sophicticated system, that can be far superior to a strut type (multilink).

This however does not mean that shocks are better than struts, as shocks can be found on lowly live axles with leaf springs (think very old school cars, horse drawn carriages, and modern suv's and trucks ). The quality of the shock or strut is completely dependent on how well they are built (internals are the same) and how well they are matched to their application.