tpz76

I was looking through the Acura parts websites and noticed that they have discontinued the front and rear strut/shock assemblies for the 08 TL-S. I am not in need of them at the moment, only have about 50k on the ones now, but now have to go aftermarket in the future which I really do not like! Has anyone had any luck with any aftermarket assemblies for the 3G TL Type-S? I am really not interested in going with anything other than a stock setup, however, I am open to suggestions. Thanks in advance!

Locustjones

I've been sourcing new parts from the lower bushing up through hats for set of KW v1 coilovers. I thought about doing all oem and assembling my own oem kits. It looks like it can be done. You are literally sourcing every little part for the OEM assembly and they can all be sourced individually but may take multiple suppliers. Future availability, who knows.

But tons of other aftermarket coilover options out there.

csmeance

Many aftermarket shocks are meant for the accord and TL so it will not be the same as OEM, it'll feel a bit different. I have the FCS ones on my 04TL and they are OK, not the best, not the worst.

Locustjones

I finally have the KW v1 installed. Very pleased!! Certainly not inexpensive so some risk here with the cost versus value. If they hold up for some time it will be worth it to me. I also changed out too all new top hats and related bushings - so nothing was carried over from the 138k mileage oem coilovers. All new oem.

This is only compared to my previous OEM setup on '08 TL-s 6mt and then swapped OEM type-s wheels (same Michelin's) to Enkei TFR+35mm on 235/45r17 now on for about a year. So I've had plenty of time to feel the changes in wheel/tire and then now the coilover changes.

With the KW v1 at lower speeds it feels very OEM - very comfortable. There's maybe slightly more road feedback but in a good way. Rumble strips (or anything that's has a very regular pattern in the road) may be the only thing that telegraphs more negatively but nothing that bad. Random bumps get soak up well and very oem-like. The trade-off for more road feedback is worth it.

At higher speeds, taking corner harder, highway ramps, banked corners - anything with more aggressive driving, etc - much flatter feel, more secure, more stable - all very pleased.

I currently have it lowered at about 0.9" (can be as little as 0.8") and will lower a little more as I get some miles down and testing it out. Natural camber with it lowered is leading me to look at wider wheel/tire combo. Since there's so little change in comfort on 17's I'll prob go with 18's and a little wider wheel/tire.

E39

I wonder how the kw v1 compare to tein street advance Z in terms of comfort for bad roads.

TigerJS

I installed the Tein street advance z installed on my 08 TL-S in 2021. Along with the OEM top hats installed from heeltoeauto. I would say they're close to OEM for ride comfort and handling. No issues at high speeds or going into corners. Everything feels very stable as for bad roads in the current state of New England. I do my best to avoid or go a little slower. Again to me, it feels like an OEM suspension. I didn't want anything stiff or crazy low. Getting older and wanting comfort but still, wanting a car to handle the curves. Overall I'm happy with them.

E39

How low did you go from stock?

montero65

I know this is a bit of an older thread, but I'm looking at replacing shocks myself right now, also on my 08 TL-S. The fully assembled spring/strut are discontinued, but if just wanting to swap the shocks, you can buy just the shocks still. You can also purchase every item that makes up those assemblies, if you really want to, but there's no real reason to replace everything. Things that will wear are the dampers (shocks), and possibly the rubber components. Things like the springs, jounce bumpers and dust boots shouldn't need replacing.

For shocks only, the fronts are 51605-SEP-A16, rears are 52611-SEP-A17