505 bounces when going 'P' to 'D'

[Peugeot Steve]

I have a 1985 Peugeot 505 STi.

When I shift out of Park -or- into Park the car sort of bounces. It feels more toward the rear of the car. It isn't a dangerous sort of movement, nor any metallic clinking sounds. Makes the car feel as old as its age. I want to correct this. Has anyone else experienced this?

I think I need to replace the rear shocks. I've done the push-down-on-the-bumper shock test and both the left and the right rebound at the same rate. They feel spongy, but not necessarily bad (same rebound as my son's 1985 BMW 5 series). I've done a search on the internet for replacements. KYB and Gabriel shocks pop up on all sites. I did a search on this forum and some truck or Aliquant (spelling?) shocks appear. What is the end result of the experienced Peugeot guys out there? My goal is smooth highway driving and some spirited driving on paved winding country roads.

Is there a transmission mount that I should look at for the 'bounce'?

Is the differential an issue?

Steve

[norcal505]

I have Koni's on my STI sedan, same Xn6 as yours', just with a 5-speed.

Feel nice.

[Peugeot Steve]

So you think the 'bounce' is from bad shocks?

[Bean]

I would go under the car and check the 4 allen bolts that secure the torque tube to the transmission, and the 4 that attach to the diff. I've seen these get so loose that it flexes up and down with each shift.

Rear shocks: If the rear is bouncing excessively then I'd worry, but these tend to be very soft riding cars. If it does bounce more than it should, then OEM replacement is ideal, but others have tried different shocks with good results too. Most interesting to me were the air shocks Horjay installed in his car.

Rabin

[andrethx]

if you've found the reference to allinquant, then you've found my thread regarding rear shocks. i won't repeat the whole thing, but here's a few quick points:

unlike front strut inserts on our cars, rear shocks are not rebuild-able & must be replaced when the time comes

you may find some NOS OE rear shocks somewhere, but they are far and few between and will take some sustained searching

ditto koni or bilstein shocks; these were available for our cars at some point in the past, but NOS units are rarely available

kyb and gabriel/monroe shocks are commonly available, i've never read anything good about them

western hemispheres has aftermarket rear shocks by Lip, which is a unit of QH (quinton hazell), a big european parts house, never read any reviews of them

as i mentioned in my rear shock thread, i got my shocks from a place in france. on ebay.fr you will also occasionally see delphi or de carbon units for sale. i haven't installed my rear shocks yet but probably will in the coming weeks, will post a full review then. my suspension appears to be unchanged since day one, so i figure freshening up the parts that wear out -- shocks, bushings, etc. -- will give me a better ride & better performance. wrt to the rear shocks, on the US 505 sedan the tops of the shocks are behind the fuel tank so you can change the shocks when the fuel tank is out (as is the case in my car) or you can go through the rear seat area, which looks difficult to me.

don't know if rear shock replacement is what you actually need, just summarizing what i've learned recently. my car fails the "bounce test" miserably on all four corners...

also -- there are a number of different bushings & mounts on the rear differential, rear subframe, etc. that wear out over time. don't suppose they are causing your problem, but these parts are available & relatively inexpensive, so they may be a "while you're at it" type of thing to look into...

andré

[Peugeot Steve]

I checked two 10mm head allen bolts that I found where the torque tube connects to the diffential housing. They are tight.

I didnt check the torque tube the transmission...yet.

I'm leaning toward the shocks still.

Since I'm not up to a wild goose chase for shocks...and since I avoid shipping from overseas (see some of my previous posts), I need a recommendation of KYB or Gabriel.

Steve

[Bean]

BTW - if the whole car is bouncing then the it's likely the rear shocks, but if it's the driveline that's moving then my suggestion for the torque tube bolts holds.

If the whole car is bouncing - a simple bounce check at the back should verify if the shocks are shot.

Rabin