S60 Suspension: Quality parts - your thoughts & experiences

[Thassos]

Im due to have the front struts off my S60 for some maintenance (car has done 140k on original parts), just wondering what peoples experience of parts like the top spring seat/cushion and strut mount/bearing quality is like, lemforder seem to have a good reputation but having had a look at the parts they actually make i dont see a top spring seat from them although plenty of people appear to be selling them which makes me wonder if infact they are lemforder, some interesting comments on FCP euros site per below..

https://www.fcpeuro.com/products/vol...upper-30714968

Ive been a huge fan of Lemforder parts through the years for my fleet of Volvos... Always thought that these were the same as blue box Volvo strut mounts and have used them for years on my P2's. Installed a set on a project XC90 V8 back in the early summer (2019). Within a few months and maybe 4-5,000 miles max they were making creaking noises, leaking grease out of the bearings, and binding inside. Long and short of it after some research and discussions on Facebook Volvo groups & Swedespeed it seems this is a very common issue/failure. The price of these have gone from $75-80.00 in the past to $18.00 now (hmm makes you wonder). Its also important to note that INA NO LONGER makes the bearing on this. Its been discussed that Lemforder has outsourced to a Chinese bearing instead of a quality INA one. This is true... the bearing does not say INA like the older variant does... confirmed this with parts on my other cars. Unfortunately there is no great replacement option offered by FCP at the current time so I am returning it for a store credit. The FEBI Bilstein strut mounts use an INA bearing still. After swapping them out the issues 100% went away. I have pictures of the failed units where you can see excessive bearing play and the grease leaked out. I can only hope that FCP looks into this quality control issue and that they consider carrying the FEBI Bilstein version of this.

What manufacturers, In order of quality would you put any of the following?

febi bilstein
ruville?
Monroe
Sachs
Corteco
SKF

[Kev0607]

Febi Bilstein are very popular, but Corteco & SKF are also great brands. I wouldn't begrudge using any of these to be honest... All are decent quality & supply parts to multiple car manufacturers. However, its worth nothing that the top mounts & torque mounts on the P3 chassis are identical to Febi parts, but are stamped with "FoMoCo" (P3 chassis shares suspension parts with multiple Ford models). I know Volvo don't actually manufacture suspension parts, so my guess is Febi was the supplier because the parts look identical - This is only a guess, not confirmed by any means of course. I'm not sure if this is the case with the P2 chassis though.

If you want more of a comfortable ride, Sachs struts are probably the better option & the one I'd choose personally. Monroe's are great too, but they probably won't be as comfortable as the Sachs ones. Bilstein is also a brand to consider for struts, but again, they probably won't be as comfortable because they're a bit firmer.

As far as I know, Ruville is part of Schaeffler group, which is associated with INA & LUK. Ruville supply parts to multiple companies like BMW, VW & Audi. I haven't used their parts personally, so Febi, Corteco or SKF would be my bet.

[b1mcp]

I'd echo what Kev0607 said.

I maintain around 20 vehicles for friends and family so get through a fair few parts. I've used all of the above (except ruville) and never had any issues with any of them.

Specifically on Volvo front struts and associated parts I've used Bilstein, Sachs, Febi and Lemforder. All good.

If you steer clear of the white box rubbish that is peddled on ebay, look for a recognised brand, without being too specific, at a good price you won't go far wrong.

[Georgeandkira]

Go here: https://www.autohausaz.com/

...for eye candy if nothing else.

[bkulcsar]

For top spring seats go for Genuine parts. Don't go AM. Been there, done that.

[oragex]

I did a video at some point on the subject, but we need to remember the market is continuously changing for various reasons. A good brand today may turn into a cheap one the next year (the opposite is rather rare). Some Lemforder parts went cheap, while other are still top quality - but for how long ? It's all about the company management, and the management persons do change now and then, like in any other company. https://youtu.be/HpmPurRlsvA