A KONI is not your average shock absorber.
They feature a number of standards that make them unique:

Adjustable:
To set them to your personal preference and to compensate for wear.

Tailormade:
Not a copy of the original, but designed for a specific car or even conditions.

Improvement:
Individually tested until the optimum in handling and comfort is reached.

Safety:
The handling of your car is a major issue for your own safety

Involvement:
KONI test drivers are dedicated car enthusiasts themselves.

Built For A Lifetime:
Aset of KONI shock absorbers will usually outlive your car.

Which KONI

KONI Special (Red)
The red KONI Special is designed for drivers who want to improve their car’s handling. Improved comfort and road holding combined with a higher level of safety, available for almost every car. Each shock absorber is customised for the car model. Hence, a KONI Special is always the best choice for replacement as well as improvement.

KONI Sport (Yellow)
KONI serve sporting drivers with a carefully designed range of sport shock absorbers. This line focuses on exceptional road holding combined with an acceptable level of comfort. Its characteristics include responsive steering, reduced body-roll and limited body movements. Externally adjustable shock absorbers make fine tuning even more easy.

KONI Classic (Black)
The KONI Classic line makes modern shock absorber technology available for classic cars and cars from the ‘40s, ‘50s and ‘60s. They have the same superior qualities which the KONI Specials offer to modern cars. Classic shock absorbers are finished with the traditional black or red gloss (Identified as (black) or (red) and "wing” logo.

Sport Kit
The sporting motorist who wants nothing but the very best in roadholding is offered a unique range of suspension kits by KONI. They consist of matching shock absorbers and lowering springs. Either a fixed lowering or an adjustable lowering upto 65 mm., in combination with the externally adjustable damping give the car maximum tuneability for absolutely superb roadholding and great looks.

Suspension Kits
The sporting motorist who wants nothing but the very best in road-holding is offered a unique range of KONI suspension kits: complete kits consisting of matching KONI Sport shock absorbers and lowering springs. These kits will give the car absolutely superb road-holding qualities and the looks of a real sports car.
With KONI lowering springs the centre of gravity of the car is lowered. Combined with a firmer suspension this will result in even better steering qualities and reduced body movement. The use of lowering springs requires special damping characteristics: the mere application of stiffer springs together with ordinary shock absorbers often has a negative impact on road-holding and comfort, and may even lead to dangerous situations.

Therefore, KONl's product range offers you complete suspension kits consisting of matching springs and dampers. Of course, the lowering is limited to such an extent that the car will still remain suitable for normal street use.

Top of the line are the KONI Ride Height Adjustable Kits
These offer Sport shock absorbers and lowering springs, but here the KONI dampers have external threads giving variable lowering.
Specially designed KONI Sport shocks and lowering springs guarantee perfect handling, whilst the Ride Height can be adjusted to anyone’s individual liking.
High Technology from the racing tracks around the world straight on your own car !

Technology

All hydraulic shock absorbers work by the principle of converting kinetic energy (movement) into thermic energy (heat). For that purpose, fluid in the shock absorber is forced to flow through restricted outlets and valve systems, thus generating hydraulic resistance.
A telescopic shocka bsorber (damper) can be compressed and extended; the so called bump stroke and rebound stroke.

Telescopic shock absorbers can be subdivided in:
1. Bi-tube, or twin-tube dampers, available in hydraulic and gas-hydraulic configuration.
2. Mono-tube dampers, also called high pressure gas shocks.

BI-TUBE SHOCK ABSORBERS (fig. A and B)

The main components are:
- outer tube, also called reservoir tube (6)
- inner tube, also called cylinder (5)
- piston (2) connected to a piston rod (1)
- bottom valve, also called footvalve (7)
- piston rod guide (3)
- upper and lower attachment

How does a Bi-Tube shock absorber work?

Bump stroke.
When the piston rod is pushed in, oil flows without resistance from below the piston through the orifices A, B, C and D and the non-return valve (19) to the enlarged volume above the piston. Simultaneously, a quantity of oil is displaced by the volume of the rod entering the cylinder. This volume of oil is forced to flow through the bottom valve into the reservoir tube (filled with air (1 bar) or nitrogen gas (4-8 bar). The resistance, encountered by the oil on passing through the footvalve, generates the bump damping.

Rebound stroke.
When the piston rod is pulled out, the oil above the piston is pressurized and forced to flow through the piston. The resistance, encountered by the oil on passing through the piston, generates the rebound damping. Simultaneously, some oil flows back, without resistance, from the reservoir tube (6) through the footvalve to the lower part of the cylinder to compensate for the volume of the piston rod emerging from the cylinder.

MONO-TUBE SHOCK ABSORBER (fig. C)

The main components are:
- (pressure) cylinder, also called housing
- piston (2) connected to a piston rod (1)
- floating piston, also called separating piston (15)
- piston rod guide (3)
- upper and lower attachment

How does a Mono-Tube shock absorber work?

Bump stroke
Unlike the bi-tube damper, the mono-tube shock has no reservoir tube. Still, a possibility is needed to store the oil that is displaced by the rod when entering the cylinder. This is achieved by making the oil capacity of the cylinder adaptable. Therefore the cylinder is not completely filled with oil; the lower part contains (nitrogen) gas under 20 – 30 bar. Gas and oil are separated by the floating piston (15)

When the piston rod is pushed in, the floating piston is also forced down by the displacement of the piston rod, thus slightly increasing pressure in both gas and oil section. Also, the oil below the piston is forced to flow through the piston. The resistance encountered in this manner generates the bump damping.

Rebound stroke.
When the piston rod is pulled out, the oil between piston and guide is forced to flow through the piston. The resistance encountered in this manner generates the rebound damping. At the same time, part of the piston rod will emerge from the cylinder and the free (floating) piston will move upwards.

Damping Characteristic and Adjustability

The characteristics of shock absorbers hardly ever get the attention they deserve, despite the damper being responsible for comfort, roadholding, stability and safety.
Below is a force velocity graph of a KONI SPECIAL and a KONI SPORT shock, both designed for the same vehicle. The graph displays the adjustment ranges for both shocks. The pink area shows the adjustment range where both shocks are equal in value. The red area indicates that portion unique to the KONI Special, while the yellow area is specific to the Sport shock only.
When a car accelerates, brakes or rolls, typical damper speeds are in the (A) area. Damper speeds caused by road surface irregularities usually are in the (B) area. Whereas KONI Special dampers are more biased towards comfort, KONI Sport dampers are so towards handling.
The shape of the characteristics is of great importance: the KONI experts use this information in development.

Externally adjustable damper
These dampers are at the high-end of our range. They can be adjusted while remaining mounted on the car so that damping levels can be adapted to personal requirements in a matter of seconds.

Adjustment At The Turn Of A Hand

Many of the KONI Sport dampers are externally adjustable by means of a knob, so they need not be disassembled from the car. The fine-tuning of the damping forces to personal driving style and to different driving conditions is therefore not more than a matter of seconds. The best of fine-tuning technology straight from the world of Formula 1 racing.

Technology From The World Of Racing

In the development of shock absorbers. The KONl research engineers find themselves supported by KONl's many years of know-how and experience in motor racing. Ever since 1955 KONI has held a prominent position in the racing world: 13 World Championships in Formula 1 need no further proof. In addition there have been numerous victories in all categories of motor racing, e.g. Le Mans and Indy races.