stock ride questions

[woody]

If you were to upgrade a stock suspension for minimal investment (read: cheapass), in what order would you be replacing components?

For example, my car is all stock. At some point it will be in need of shock replacements. So, is there any worth to upgrading shocks to Bilstein Sport if I don't change the springs? Or would that actually be detrimental to the spring (life)?

Also, what are the best "stock" shocks? I have read about Boge, KYB, and Bilstein "Touring Class" or "HD"...are they all equivalent at the base level, or will I feel some improvement (meaning, slightly more control/handling and less roll) by just changing these?

[CorvallisBMW]

Boge are the direct replacements, Bilstein tourings will give better control and are slightly stiffer. Bilstein HD and Sport are the same stiffness, the sports just have a shorter rod for lowering springs. A stiffer shock will not have any effect on the life of your springs, they dont wear out unless they are seriously abused. I suppose if you are looking for the closest-to-stock ride quality, you should replace all of your bushings with OEM parts too, but that is very time consuming.