What is the difference between shocks and struts?

The smooth feel of the vehicle is due in large part to two integral components: shock absorbers and struts.  However, while both shocks and struts are integral to the safety and comfort of the vehicle, they are in fact two distinct parts.

Shocks do just what their name says: they dampen and absorb the shocks from the road. Shocks are not an essential part of a car's suspension. If you took out a shock, you could still drive, but it wouldn't be comfortable or stable. We don't advise you to do it. A shock is used on vehicles that move the knuckle or rear axle with an upper and lower control arm (independent suspension) or a solid axle (solid axle). Shocks improve how the car feels on the road and how it handles, as well as how it rides.  Without shocks, the wheels on the car or truck will bounce off of the road surface and vibrate erratically down rough roads.

A piston, a coil, and hydraulic fluid are the main parts of a shock absorber. When the car wheel dips down, like when it hits a pothole or crack, the shock starts a compression cycle, and a piston pushes on hydraulic fluid in the device's upper chamber. The fluid slows down the coil as it moves back into place, which helps keep the ride from being too bumpy.

Struts are the structural part of the suspension system, and almost every front-wheel-drive car has them on the front end. A strut combines many different parts of the suspension into one small unit. The part of the strut that is serviced most often is the part that holds the shock absorber.

The coil spring can hold up the weight of the car and adjust to bumps, hills, and valleys in the road. In particular, the struts connect the upper bearing to the lower ball joint so that when the vehicle is turned in any direction, the whole assembly can move. Struts serve more than one purpose. The internal shock absorber slows the movement of the spring as it compresses and expands while the vehicle is moving. The spring supports the weight of the vehicle while it is moving so that it can adjust to bumps in the road. In short, the shocks' only job is to absorb shocks, but the struts also support and steer the vehicle as it moves.