Rancho 9000's with Remote Control

[SilverFox]

On September 25th I ordered 4 Rancho 9000’s with a dual action remote control kit from Sam’s Off Road. Three working days later I received the shocks except one was missing the red boot. I called and they said they would ship a boot that same day which they did. They also told me the remote control kit had been shipped and would be there any day. I called again in 5 days and they said the remote was being shipped from the warehouse and would be there any day. Four days latter I called again and that time they told me UPS lost it and it would be there any day now. On the 20th of Oct. I called Sam’s and canceled the order and informed them I was sending the 4 shocks that I had received back. I ask for a RMA number and was told that wasn’t necessary. I tracked the UPS package to Sam’s and it arrived Oct. 23rd. I expected to receive credit on my credit card in a couple of days since they charged my credit card on the day I ordered the shocks and remote kit. When credit didn't show up I called Sam's again and told them to credit my credit card. It never happened. I had to dispute the charge, fill out the appropriate forms, etc. to get the charge off my card which finally happened today. The whole thing has been a real pain and I won’t be buying anything else from Sam’s Off Road.



I still want the shocks and will be buying them someplace else.



Has anyone installed the Rancho 9000’s with remote control on a 4WD ’03 dually?? Do you like them and was the installation straightforward? Any problems?



I think the part numbers are: Front RS 99221, Rear RS 99269, Remote Kit RS 99700.

 

[SMorneau]

Thanks for the tip on Sams. These companies had better figure out how much business they can lose when they make life difficult for a TDR member.



I have RS9000s on my 96 and I debated adding the remote control but the whole things seems like it would be more trouble than its worth to add them and keep the dainty airlines operational.



I bought my RS9000s mail order and was lucky enough to get a local shop to replace them when they wore out. I felt bad asking them to deal with it but they were very nice about it. I will buy any new shocks from them in the future even if it costs me a little more.

 

[RADdodge]

I installed them on my 2001 4x4 3500. I was concerned at first because there was some talk of the system not holding pressure, i. e. in a day or two the pressure would drop. I have had no problems. It holds pressure for weeks (months even). Even if I had to adjust them every few days, I don't think that is such a hassle. Once we were on a trip in norther California on highway 5 if I remember correctly. Anyway, that road was the roughest road I can remember. I almost pulled over to let my guts settle down, and I was carrying a 2 ton camper. Anyway, the copilot adjusted the shocks in the rear from 5 to 3 and the fronts from 3 to 1 as we were rolling down the road. Yeah, it starting floating down the road, but we weren't getting beat up anymore. Plus you can find out just where these shocks work the best. It was a bit of effort (maybe an understatement) to install, but I'd do it again.

 

[mediccummin]

I have all you mentioned

The RS 9000x's (front) RS 9000's (back) with in cab controller. Straight forward install, I put the compressor behind the back seat and set up my hoses against the outside back cab where they are out of the way. Ran all my tubing through wire flex tubing for protection. Ran blue bulb covers same as my autometers so the light match exactly with my gauges. Made a custom spot for my gauges out of the way. I have not had a single problem since install almost 2. 5 yrs ago, very little bleeding of air ( and I do adjust them for different freeways around here) no leaks so far. There are pics in the readers rigs of the gauge location, take a look.

At the time I bought all my stuff from hotrod-offroad.com with no problems delivered as promised on time. I would check them out although I have not shopped there lately. I have used Jackit.com many times with excellent results, I would give them a call. They usually have everything in stock, and delivery has been within a couple days. If you need any more pics or suggestions just pm me.

Now about the Sam's deal you should report them to the BBB in there area, also go on The Bad Business Bureau web site and file a complaint for all to read and see if they respond to it. I found that web site interesting and useful. You can find it by using Ripoff.com I believe. Good luck... ... ... .....

 

[Rams-n-Hogs]

Just my . 02, but me being the cheapskate I am, decided not to order the in-cab controller for mine. I figure it's just one more thing to break, and it takes me less than 30 seconds to walk around my truck and adjust them to where I want them.



Jim

 

[jeepit]

I have them on my CJ7 and do not have the controller. I decided not to put it on with the air tubes and all because of the off road driving I do. Fiqured they would get torn off the first time off raod. They really do work well.

 

[SilverFox]

Thanks guys for the input. Very helpful.



I think I'll go ahead with my plan of installing an in cab controller. I probably wouldn't do it if I lived in a harsh winter climate. The cold would probably cause all sorts of problems. I have the Kelderman 4 link rear suspension with in cab controller and find I change the pressure in the air bags frequently depending on load and road surface. The buttons for the shocks will give me even more to play with.



mediccummin, Nice pictures I'm going to try to put the gauges in the same location that I have the controls for the Kelderman system. I have electronic 4WD so have those controls and gauges where the manual shifter would be. I also have On Board Air and am going to try to use that source for air. Don't know if that will be possible. When I get the unit maybe I can tell. What do you think?



I'll look into posting something to the Bad Business Bureau web site. The people at Sam's were always nice enough but they just didn't do anything but make excuses.



Again, thanks to everyone for responding.



One of these days I'll learn to make all my posts to the right forum.

 

[Extreme1]

When I installed my 9000's several years ago ('97 or '98?) they worked for just under 2 years and then the adjusters didn't adjust anymore. I called Rancho and they said that the lifetime warrantee doesn't cover the adjusters working UNLESS you install the remote kit.



I seems that the seal around the shaft on the manual adjuster will allow a saline solution (salt water from road salt) to seep into the bottom of the shock and corrode the pin that is being moved during adjustment. Nice, huh?



So if you are in the desert, you'll never have a problem without the remote kit. But since I pull a trailer in the winter only, I need to be able to change the ride based on the load so I installed one. No problems yet.

 

[SilverFox]

Extreme1, Good to know That's just the opposite of what I would have expected. Plan to get mine ordered today. Thanks for the info.

 

[dresslered]

I too have installed the RS9000's with incab controller on my '01 which were ordered through Sam's. I was dissappointed with the quality from Rancho. Two of the shocks had small dents, all the decals were so wrinkled that they couldn't be used (no big deal), one of the pressure gauges was in pieces and had to be reassembled, and the compressor was not put together properly (had to reinstall it on the rubber bushings as it was suppose to be done). Aside from that, installation was very straightforward. The shocks took just a couple of hours to install, but running the pressure lines took me a whole weekend. No leaks to date.

 

[SilverFox]

I didn't mention this in my first post but the shocks I received from Sam's weren't pristine either. Slightly dirty and decals were also wrinkled. The boxes that the shocks came in (not the shipping boxes) had been opened and re taped shut many times.



I re-ordered the shocks and control kit today from a Four Wheel Parts Performance Center in Ft. Worth. They gave the same price that Sam's was giving me and that includes shipping and tax. They should be here Tuesday or Wednesday.