I have a '93 accord, 173K miles. I'm quite sure the shocks/struts are originals. However, they aren't giving me any problem, that I can tell anyway. The car doesn't lean excessively and when I push down on the car it only bounces once (instead of several times like some old american car). Does anyone have any experience with these older accords shocks? Would it make a difference in the ride to get them replaced?

 

It shouldn't bounce at all.

 

Uh yeah 173k is quite a bit too long for original strus. Replace them. KYB GR2's are good.

 

How about springs? Should those be replaced with shocks or is it unnecessary?

 

springs should never wear out.

 

If your car doesn't bounce and you're not experiencing any abnormal tire wear such as cupping then why change them? Maybe your car was driven mainly on decent roads which would keep your struts/shocks from wearing out sooner. Springs wouldn't need changing either however they might eventually as they tend to sag as the car gets older. That could be a good thing if you want a lowered car without spending $ on new lowering springs .

I had the original struts and shocks on my car until I had 144K miles. They were still good from what I could tell. The only reason I replaced them is because I lowered it. Also, the roads I drive on everyday are very good and smooth roads.

 

Struts go really slowly over time and it's very difficult to tell "good" from "bad" if you drive your car a lot. The first time I changed mine I was shocked at how much better the ride became. 173k miles is past the point where most struts are effective.

 

+1

KYB GR2s are relatively inexpensive; and the job is relatively easy to do yourself.

 

There are 1st gen Civic and Preludes rolling around on stock parts. It's just a matter of how much rough wear and tear they got. You could put 500,000 miles on the engine but if it was all on extrememly smooth roads and with easy driving the suspension could still be in great condition.

That said, you'd be safer with newer parts.

 

I just replaced my shocks from OEM to KYB GR2's

I replaced my stock springs with H&R's O.E a while ago.Now it was time to change the struts.
Lets just say these shocks are fucken awesome.
I have tokicos on my VW and those are so stiff compared to KYB's.
KYB's retain stock comfort but, its a tad stiffer than OEM.