This is a classic case of new owners not knowing what they don't know. Upgrading the shocks in the ST is far different than replacing worn shocks in a car. In an auto, worn shocks tend to make the ride a bit bouncier and suspension bottems on bumps. Safety is not affected very much, if at all. However, with the ST and it's high center of gravity, safety is a very big issue when the shocks are too weak for the spring rates. Many here have noted loss of control with factory shocks because the spring oscillations lift the wheels off the pavement. Hit a good bump while turning and the whole truck scitters sideways...not safe. At highway speeds the ST becomes very sensitive to side winds and semi-truck wake turbulance, way to sensitive for me and many others who do not enjoy driving a squirrelly vehicle. Of course, everybody can do what they want and believe what they want. I, for one, decided to listen to the voices of experience here after taking my first highway trip in my ST. I knew from that experience that new shocks were required and I really knew that after I removed the first stock shock at 2,500 miles, practically brand new and virtually no resistence, in other words, no better than a worn out shock. Of all the mods we owners do, the first one, for safety's sake, should be new shocks...period.
