a bump at an uncontrolled rate. The spring will continue to bounce at its natural frequency until all of the energy originally putinto it is used up. A suspension built on springs alone would make for an extremely bouncy ride and, depending on the terrain, an uncontrollable car. Enter the shock absorber, or snubber, a device that controls unwanted spring motion through a process known as dampening. Shock absorbers slow down and reduce the magnitude of vibratory motions by turning the kinetic energy of suspension movement into heat energy that can be dissipated through hydraulic fuid. To understand how this works, it's best to look inside a shock absorber to see its structure HOW CAR SUSPENSIONS WORK Twin-tube Shock Absorber Upper Mount Piston Reserve Cylinder Pressure Lower Mount EXTENSION COMPRESSION CYCLE CYCLE a2005 Hown tuftwork a shock absorber is basically an oil pump placed between the frame of the car and the wheels. the upper mount of the shock connects to the frame (i.e, the sprung weight), while the lower mount connects to the axle, near the wheel (i.e, the unsprung weight. In a twin-tube design, one of the most common types of shock absorbers, the upper mount is connected to a piston rod, which in turn is connected to a piston, which in turn sits in a tube filled with hydraulic fluid. The inner tube is known as the pressure tube, and the outer tube is known as the reserve tube. The reserve tube stores excess hydraulic fluid When the car wheel encounters a bump in the road and causes the spring to coil and uncoil, the energ of the spring is transferred to the shock absorber through the upper mount, down through the piston rod and into the piston Orifices perforate the piston and allow fluid to leak through as the piston moves upa bump at an uncontrolled rate. The spring will continue to bounce at its natural frequency until all of the energy originally put into it is used up. A suspension built on springs alone would make for an extremely bouncy ride and, depending on the terrain, an uncontrollable car. Enter the shock absorber, or snubber, a device that controls unwanted spring motion through a process known as dampening. Shock absorbers slow down and reduce the magnitude of vibratory motions by turning the kinetic energy of suspension movement into heat energy that can be dissipated through hydraulic fluid. To understand how this works, it's best to look inside a shock absorber to see its structure and function. A shock absorber is basically an oil pump placed between the frame of the car and the wheels. The upper mount of the shock connects to the frame (i.e., the sprung weight), while the lower mount connects to the axle, near the wheel (i.e., the unsprung weight). In a twin-tube design, one of the most common types of shock absorbers, the upper mount is connected to a piston rod, which in turn is connected to a piston, which in turn sits in a tube filled with hydraulic fluid. The inner tube is known as the pressure tube, and the outer tube is known as the reserve tube. The reserve tube stores excess hydraulic fluid. When the car wheel encounters a bump in the road and causes the spring to coil and uncoil, the energy of the spring is transferred to the shock absorber through the upper mount, down through the piston rod and into the piston. Orifices perforate the piston and allow fluid to leak through as the piston moves up