Shock Absorbers

QA1 Shocks are not for everybody.  In fact, except for real hard core racing enthusiasts, few people have ever heard of them.  But they are well known in the performance racing world.  Based in Lakeville, Minnesota, they began as a high performance racing company, supplying spherical bearings and rod ends.  They were good at what they did and one success led to another as they expanded their product offerings to include shocks and struts for all kinds of racing applications — circle track, drag racing,  and off road.  In 2004 they acquired the Carrera Shock company and today they are the top manufacturer of performance racing shocks in the country.  Let’s look at some of their offerings:

QA1 Circle Track Shocks
They make steel and aluminum shocks for both large and small body applications and steel stocks for stock mount applications.  The stock mount shocks are designed for oval track racing and have a huge advantage in that they can be revalved and rebuilt by the end user.  So not only are they economical to purchase in the first place, they don’t have to be tossed and replaced when they wear down.

They have a huge inventory, with 11 different shocks in the large body steel mount series; 3 in the steel small body series; and 7 in the aluminum large body series.  Most of these models can berevalved and rebuilt by the racers themselves, often right on the track.

QA1 Drag Racing and Street Performance Shocks
There are 13 different category series of shocks here.  Some, like the Corvette “C” Series, feature 11 different models, varying by front or rear application, length, and single or double adjustability.  The Mustang II R Series have even more models from which to choose — 15 in all.   And the Sports Compact Series offers a whopping 28 different models.

QA1 Street Rod Shocks
There are another 11 category series of Shocks for Street Rods.  Again, choices abound.  QA1 seems to have a shock for every high performance application you can think of.  The Economy Mustang II series has 15 different models from which to choose.  At the higher end, the Ultra Ride Adjustable Coil-Over Shocks have 15 different models, varying by mounting type, length, and ride height.

One of QA1’s “claim to fame” is their massive inventory.  We have barely scratched the surface here.  Check out their web site at QA1.net for more.  Take a look at their Application Guide for Circle Track Racing — which is their specialty — and you’ll see they have shocks designed for specific track conditions.  There are models for average tracks, and models for dry and slick  tracks.  They even have shocks engineered for the banking of the track itself, as well as shocks for asphalt tracks, and dirt tracks.   And don’t forget — they have a huge selections of rods, bearings, and accessories of all types.