Area Representative Andrew Gilbert Posted August 26 Area Representative Share Posted August 26 Hi all, I have a 1990 7 with a dedion rear but the rear damper top nuts are exposed as per the live axle cars. Are the dampers the same? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bahf Posted August 26 Share Posted August 26 That was the same setup on my '87 dedion and I believe they are the same as live axle dampers. I think I actually have a set somewhere with very low mileage albeit quite old. I converted my car to the horizontal top fixing for some reason, can't remember why ??? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
orangepeel61 Posted August 26 Share Posted August 26 I too have an 87 dedion, back in 2016 I replace the rear dampers for height adjustable ones, initially everything seemed fine but when I started playing with the adjustment to get the ride height correct I had to wind then up so far that they would top out when I bounced on the back of the car. I can't remember the exact details but I spoke to Redline and they sold me a new pair which have been on the car since and all is good. So, my experience is that they are not the same, talk to Redline, I remember they were very helpful. Neil. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Area Representative Andrew Gilbert Posted August 27 Author Area Representative Share Posted August 27 thanks both, Neil that is interesting as I have a set of AVO's here and compared to the original spax items the difference is approx 2 inches (50+ mm), therefore I'm thinking I might have an issue fitting these although they did come from a live axle 7 and sat really well.. Brian, I'll drop you a message as I'm scouting around for something. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Mirylees Posted August 27 Share Posted August 27 Live axle and early de Dion dampers were apparently the same, however the spring rate was different I believe.  As I was doing so much continental touring with all the camping gear etc. with my live axled 7 Mick at 'old Caterham' advised I use the de Dion long cockpit springs which were 'stronger'. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul_w Posted August 27 Share Posted August 27 Don't the dampers bolt to the top of the axle on an LA car Vs the side of the tube on a DD one? That would suggest they are different lengths 🤔 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Area Representative Andrew Gilbert Posted August 27 Author Area Representative Share Posted August 27 (edited) Paul, the early DD cars share the same upper fixing as the LA cars but have the lower side fixing to the DD tube. I've dropped Chris Mintoff an email to see if he can supply dampers at a reasonable cost, but as I'm replacing all 4 I'll probably go to Protech and have a set made for me. Edited August 27 by Andrew Gilbert Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul_w Posted August 28 Share Posted August 28 Logically then the dampers must be a different length than the LA ones, since the bottom mount is a good couple of inches lower. I'd be interested to know how you get on as I know my shocks must be 20 years old at least, and more regular use than the car was getting may well lead to their demise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Area Representative Andrew Gilbert Posted September 3 Author Area Representative Share Posted September 3 As an update, finally have all my dampers off now and have sent these to protech and they'll be building me a set, so if you guys have the same rear damper set up, they'll have the info to create replacements if other avenues are failing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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