Car Shock absorbers along with the struts helps in keeping the tyres firmly on the road and hence give the driver smooth and pleasant drive. Shock absorbers along with suspension, are used to provide smoother pivots. They are used for dampening the up and down oscillation of the car's leaf springs. The principle behind the working is simple that it ease out the shock impact to disperse kinetic energy by changing motion into heat.

In different cars different types of shock absorber. Shock absorber used in cars are determined largely by the car's construction, set up, race track qualities, driving dynamics and weight allocation. Improvement in the bonding of the chassis movement and weight transfer improves the performance and driving dynamics of the car. The shock value differ from car to car. The shock value is design to provide maximum speed to the car and the distinct driving style to the driver.

Working of Car Shock Absorber

The principle on which the shock absorber works is that it moves the spring and convert the kinetic energy into heat. There is a piston rod that works with the hydraulic fluid on the car's pressure tube. The movement of the suspension forces the hydraulic fluid to the tiny holes inside the piston however as the hole is small, the piston slows down and reduce the movement of the suspension and spring.
The resistance depends on the quantity and size of the holes or orifices in the piston and the suspension's movement. Many car uses very advanced shock absorbers having velocity hydraulic damping devices. This lead to the speedy movement of the suspension in order to attain greater resistance.

There are different designs in car shock absorbers. The most popular shock absorber are twin tube designs and mono tube designs. There are two tubes in twin tube shock absorber. It consists of an inner and outer tube which work together for achieving the intended purpose. Mono tube on the other hand consists of single tube which is mounted in an upside down position to decrease weight. Some of the shock absorber also comes with nitrogen gas at the end of the piston which reduce foaming and increase the performance.
For racing purpose Shock absorbers are essential in order to reach optimum speed and performance. For racing purpose, shock absorbers come in various disk designs and valve combinations.

The factors which should be considered for achieving proper shock absorber positioning are:
* Rebound resistance from within the shock.
* Compression pressure inside the shocks.
* Distance rearward from the axle.
* Arc of travel from the locating arms.
* The compression or rebound travel.