I've put bilsteins on everything I've owned for 20 years. Every single vehicle, diesel, half ton, sports car, suv, all of them rode a 100% better afterwards. I won't even consider another brand. I'm running them on the blazer as a matter of fact and it made a big difference on it also.
CK5
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91 K5 -Procrastination Build - bikini top!
- Thread starter nvrenuf
- Start date
How much are stock replacement Bilstein, the blue/yellow ones? Even those are so much better than the cheap stuff, last time I bought them they were less than $80 a piece, but its been a while since I needed new shocks.
And I don't mean a stiff vs soft ride, I mean actually having control of your vehicle correctly because the tires maintain constant contact with the ground under control. Bumps are less likely to shift you toward the outer ditch around a bumpy curve for example, its not just about the ride, it's even more about the handling and control the proper shock gives you.
And I don't mean a stiff vs soft ride, I mean actually having control of your vehicle correctly because the tires maintain constant contact with the ground under control. Bumps are less likely to shift you toward the outer ditch around a bumpy curve for example, its not just about the ride, it's even more about the handling and control the proper shock gives you.
What about Bilsteins vs Rancho RS9000 (adjustable)?
I had the Rancho 9000 adjustable on my truck and they were not impressive and then they quit all together not long after. They did warranty them for free and then I sold them while still new.
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Wow, good to know.
I went cheap and setup my front hoops with a set of 14” pro comp shocks. Later I upgraded to fox’s and problem I ran into was the shock body was considerably shorter with the cheap shocks so I had to build new shock hoops. Big waste of time trying to run the cheap shocks and I haven’t even dealt with the rear yet.
What made you change shocks?
Is it a picture illusion or are the Bilstein shock body's skinnier than a typical lift kit shock? It looks like I'll have a tight fit in the rear, if they are skinnier this would be a plus for me.
kinda like years ago when a new person would join and say they bought a blazer and want to put a 4" lift on it and some 33s and all the armchair wheelers would say "oh no, you have to have a Dana 60 front and a 14 bolt rear geared at 5.38 with Detroits front and rear; a doubler and a minimum of 40s before you can wheel."
The cheap shocks just don’t perform very well in the rocks. I also wanted to see if I could reduce some of the body sway I experience on the street.
I’m pretty sure the 5100 Bilstein shocks are slightly smaller diameter than the pro comps I was running. I can measure tonight if needed.
Bilsteins are smaller because they are a monotube. You can also mount a monotube any direction.
Now you've touched on my main "complaint", body movement. Granted, I don't have any shocks right now so I expect exaggerated pitch and roll but this is what I want to control. Did the new shocks make a noticeable improvement? Which series of Bilstein did you get? I'm not super concerned with amazing ride quality, after all it's a truck with unbalanced 40's lol but I would like to get some control of the body roll.
Don't worry about measuring, I'm sure it's on the 'net somewhere.
I would say no to quad shocks, but if you have to, do not use the factory setup. That short shock will limit you.
Martin
Martin
I love the look of the factory set up but I have wondered about the differences in the range of motion between the 2 shocks. I swear of the old Rancho triple shock hoops weren't $500+ nowadays I'd have them! 
F it, I say go with 16 chrome rancho's...
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. joking of course
I run pro comp mx6 adjustable mono tubes, but I think the part # for a 4" lift is no longer made.
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. joking of course
I run pro comp mx6 adjustable mono tubes, but I think the part # for a 4" lift is no longer made.
I had a set of those adjustable pieces of junk years ago. They never had much rebound control. Sucked to pay for them and dislike them so much.
Driving a truck shouldn't mean bouncing all over and be worried about control after dips in the road.
Wow, 2 for 2 on the RS9000's. Damn shame because you definitely pay for better quality than that.
I love the look of the factory set up but I have wondered about the differences in the range of motion between the 2 shocks. I swear of the old Rancho triple shock hoops weren't $500+ nowadays I'd have them!
I like using the upper auxiliary mount of the quad shock setup, with a single shock.
Martin
Now you've touched on my main "complaint", body movement. Granted, I don't have any shocks right now so I expect exaggerated pitch and roll but this is what I want to control. Did the new shocks make a noticeable improvement? Which series of Bilstein did you get? I'm not super concerned with amazing ride quality, after all it's a truck with unbalanced 40's lol but I would like to get some control of the body roll.
Don't worry about measuring, I'm sure it's on the 'net somewhere.
Helped the roll but didn’t get rid of it. The big difference was noticed bombing down the trail.
The Bilsteins (5125’s) are on the 74, the 84 has fox 2.0’s in the front.
I've seen that this set up works good for you and obijaunk5 so that's what I plan to do, simple and functional.
This is the root of my struggle, post after post indicate the Bilsteins really shine in a faster environment which is mostly wasted on me.
