Here I am

Off Roading KORE and 35's (long)

Attention: TDR Forum Junkies
To the point: Click this link and check out the Front Page News story(ies) where we are tracking the introduction of the 2025 Ram HD trucks.

Thanks, TDR Staff

Competition Jeff Garmon's NEW 2005 1500 600+HP 12V with twins

Competition Diesel Power Mag Competition!

Santa was nice this year. :)

Tires first- Cooper Discoverer S/T 35-12. 50/17. These are pretty aggressive tread. Sort of in between an AT and MT tread. On stock rims, and they do rub the front control arms slightly at full lock. They whine just enough to hear in the 40-60 range. Higher speeds it gets lost in the wind.

Balanced out good, but it took a Hunter Roadforce balancer to do it. Regular spin balancer did not cut it. Steering is a little less precise, and takes just a tad more effort- as I expected. Not objectionable.

These are D tires -which is what I looked for because I was looking for a softer ride off-road. They're still rated 3,000 lbs/tire so there's more than enough capacity for any load I'll ever carry. These ride much softer than the original tires and took out most of the harshness on pavement, and when hitting off-road obstacles.



The KORE Recon is what I chose. I'm a trail rider, not an off-road racer, so I went for the Bilsteins. Front install done today, rears tomorrow. Then testing this weekend. :D

All quality parts, and no surprises so far with the install. All I have is one short highway cruise so far, so no real assessment yet. It does feel like the KORE gave me back the little bit of steering precision I lost going from the 265's to the 35's. My steering was dead on center before and after the install. No wandering, DW, or negatives to report. Front gained 3" in elevation.



Greg at DRC was a pleasure to deal with. I called a few times with questions and got fast, precise and courteous responses. As everyone knows KORE isn't cheap, but so far I'm getting that 'money well spent' feeling. My order shipped out the day I called it in and arrived on time.



After this weekend I will update with a report on the highway trip to the trails and off-road testing. Oo.



Gary

PS- and maybe a picture or two if I can figure out how.
 
Last edited:
What kind of finish is on your Bilteins?

I installed 10" Bilstein 7100s on the front of my Dodge and they have a chrome looking finish. However they are not intended for year around use, the housings are not coated with any kind of anti-corrosion material apparently. Put on three coats of clear before install and they are rusting pretty bad for just 1/2 a winter season with limited driving in the snow.



Dan
 
Mine resembles chrome... gonna be ticked if they rust up fast.

But I'm not big on shine & polish, so the dirt should keep it covered. :D



Gary
 
Not big on show/shine either. But looks like I'll be pulling the shocks this summer to paint them, they're not looking well. $170/ea for shocks and they don't even coat them :rolleyes: .
 
Woohoo!

YES!



Just one brief test ride so far and all I can say is :D :D :D



Potholes and ruts that formerly would have put your head in the headliner- non events.

The 35's are soaking up the small irregularities and the suspension is eating up the big stuff.

Ran one potholed dirt road; usually about 20 mph tops- 45 today, no sweat. Could have just as easily been 70 I think.



There's a paved road in the area where they don't have culverts at cross roads. The road just dips down 12" or so either side of the intersection, so it's a series of big paved "whoops". Usually anything over 35 mph gets exciting with most vehicles. Ran through them at 55 today :eek: and did not even bottom the suspension.



I like!



On edit after another brief expedition:

Front bumper height is up 2-3/4".

Rear bumper height is up 1/2". Measured after some off-roading and a shakedown cruise. I left the two short blocks in the rear.



Highway cruising is very nice. There's nothing in this package to cause regrets on an all day interstate trip.



Bad roads, or off road, the faster you go, the smoother it gets. Within reason of course. It's going to take me some time to get used to not cringing when I see a bump in the road. This like when I switched ATV's from the old straight axle designs to the 4 wheel independent.



Wheel hop in the sand is not eliminated, but greatly reduced. Mostly due to the softer tires, and assisted by the Bilsteins I think. I can get on it now and power out of wheel hop. Before, it was so bad I just had to get off the throttle.



The only thing I would change- I wish I had done this last year!

Gary
 
Last edited:
BigDan said:
They are nickle plated and ive never heard of a seasonal shock... .



Just called Bilstein about the rust on the shock bodies. They mentioned some cleaners, mothers was one, and to then apply some clear coat. Already did that when they were first installed. Specifically asked them if they were coated for salt exposure, no they are not. The 5150s on the rear of the truck are but not the 7100s.



Looks like I'll have to pull them off and paint them. Need to make some new upper mounts anyway. Want to raise them about 1-1. 5" to get full compression.



Dan
 
i put on my bilstiens in june 04. Rode great for 10 months. Now they leak down in about 3 days. If I plan on going anywhere on the free way i better make sure i fill them up first or they ride like CRAP. worse than the stock shocks. For $2500 bucks, I am not impressed. When they are full, they're great. But they don't hold nitrogen for a week.
 
I recently got a set of Sway-a-way shocks that come with my Lorenz Industries suspension. If the construction of the bilsteins (not sure what model you have) is anything like these (mine are remote reservoir) then repairing this leak should be pretty easy. The first weak link is probably the schreader valve, maybe it just needs a new valve core, a very simple fix. If it is only loosing nitrogen and not any oil then it is the external o-ring on the reservoir causing the problem which is also easily fixed (remove snap ring or circlip pull out end piece replace o-ring and reassemble).



Jonathan
 
Hey there Gary,

How difficult was the install? I'm seriously looking at that system as well and any more info you could provide on it I would appreciate.
 
Bob, as I recall I got about 8 hours in the install (single handed). Could have been done quicker, but I'm kind of particular about working on my own stuff so I took my time.

It's not really difficult; compressing the front Bilsteins was the hardest part of the whole job.



Gary
 
Thanks Gary! 8 hours isn't bad at all. Where the shocks compressable by hand? Also, were there any tools needed you didn't expect to need during the install? I've run into that problem with two other kits I've installed. Thanks for the info!



Bob
 
No special items needed, just an assortment of sockets & wrenches. Some spaces are tight and you'll need just the right depth socket to make the job easy. Air guns are nice and you really should have a torque wrench to get the fasteners right.

The front Bilsteins would not be bad if you had a set of helping hands when you go to install them.



Gary
 
Thanks again Gary! I'm looking forward to the "alone time" with my truck. Now if I could just convince my wife to help... ...



:D
 
Back
Top