Shock absorber questions

[LRutigliano]

I think I want to replace my shocks. I am starting to feel some "porpoising" or "jiggling" at the rear when towing the 5er.



I am leaning towards the KYB Monomax's.



I use my truck for towing our 5er 100% of the time. No daily driving.



I am considering changing the rear shocks only because they appear to be super easy to do.



The fronts look like a PITA.



1) What the pros/cons of just changing the rears with something as different from stock with the KYB's? (then I would have "mushy" fronts with very stiff rears)



2) Can someone reassure me the fronts are easier to do than they look?? Maybe some good feedback from someone who has done them.



Thanks,

Louis

 

[steved]

I bought KYB from Summit Racing a while ago... they didn't "last" very long... less than 20k before needing replaced. Might want to research them the best you can, and see if you can find some reviews on them.

I currently have Monroe reflex on the truck now... they have held up the best of the aftermarkets I've ran.


The fronts aren't that bad... the toughest thing is wiggling the driver's shock and support out around the brake lines. Basically the top mounting stud, three bolts for the tower support, and the bottom bolt...

 

[SierraRam]

If they are ready in the rear they are ready in the front, I would change them all together.

 

[DaveHess]

I did the Bilstein 5100s on all four corners and I am very happy with them other than I bought these right after Geno's started carry them. My Ram is a standard ride (not leveled or lifted) and the 5100's were the recommended shocks from Geno's. I keep reading the 5100's are for stock to 2" lift so I get a little nervous with them and bottoming out the shock. It's probably all in my head. Anyhow...



The rears and passenger front took me about 1-1/2 hours to do all three and the drivers side took about 1-1/2 by itself. I opted to remove the drivers side battery and battery box and I took out the inner fender. With these items removed the job went very smooth on the drivers side.



My Ram was doing the "railroad track dribble" every time I met a crossing and the 5100's smoothed that out in short order. It is just my experience but my ride became smoother all around with the 5100's.

 

[Regcabguy]

My wife's no Amazon and could easily compress the stockers on my '07. I replaced them from day one. I'd go with the Bilstein 5000-5100's.

 

[CAPTPHIL]

650000 on Bilstein`s pulling 10000 to 18000 lbs. most of the time. Replaced bushings at 500000 mi. Bilstein furnished them no charge. I have been using their shocks since 1982 have had only one failure which was replaced promptly under warranty. I can see why they are able to offer lifetime warranty.
Good Luck Capt Phil

 

[BIGNASTY]

Rancho

I used the Rancho 5000 I like them .

 

[jelag]

One of the 3500's that I own tows a 5er that weighs close to 15K lbs... when the trailer is connected to the truck the tail drops 4-6" and gives us some sway and the head lights are into the tree tops... we solved this by installing a set of PacBrake air bags and adjust the air as we change the load... I simply know the dimension from the bed to the ground, and add air until the truck is level... and its rides correctly...

Its the way I solved it... . BTW that truck now has 130K miles and still has the factory shocks...

 

[Scooby]

650000 on Bilstein`s pulling 10000 to 18000 lbs. most of the time. Replaced bushings at 500000 mi. Bilstein furnished them no charge. I have been using their shocks since 1982 have had only one failure which was replaced promptly under warranty. I can see why they are able to offer lifetime warranty.

Good Luck Capt Phil

I thought you added an extra zero in there at first... ... wow 650K miles!!

 

[R.Taylor]

Bilstein all the way! I've put them on every car I've owned since 1987. Very affordable and they seem to last forever with ZERO issues. Go with the silver 5100's... $340 for all 4 from Bryan at DPP with free shipping. At $85 a shock you can't go wrong. German engineering at it's finest. They get pretty pricey as you get into the 7100's and 9100's... As set of Carli valved 9100's aka Bilstein 2. 65 will put you back $2800 but then if you have the $$$$ to burn you might as well go with the best. Knowing you can drive on the dirt shoulder of an interstate at 80mph is priceless :-laf.

 

[TimothyLong]

I replaced mine factory shocks with the Edelbrock IAS performers and was very happy with them. Then I put a leveling kit in the front and unfortunately, Edelbrock does not make the IAS Performers for lifted trucks. So I went with the Bilstein 5100's in the front and left the Edelbrocks in the rear. That combination is working well for me, although the Edelbrocks do have more mileage than the Bilstein's.

Now, as far as only replacing the rear shocks and leaving the OEM's in the front, big mistake. Especially if you are going with a stiffer shock in the rear. You will not like the way your truck will handle at all. You really should do all 4. Are the fronts ones a PITA? Yes, they are a little but not real bad. Once you've done the first one, the other one goes much easier. Everyone has their method of changing them, but here is how I do mine:

1) Use an air gun to remove the nut from the top of the shock.
2) Remove the 3 nuts that hold the shock tower in place, let the shock expand, and remove the shock tower.
3) Jack the truck up (do it at the frame rail behind the front wheel and not the axle) , remove the front wheel, and the remove the bolt holding the shock in the shackle on top of the front axle and pull the shock out.
4) Put the new shock in, replace the bottom bolt but do not tighten all the way.
5) Set the spacers and shock tower in place on the top of the shock.
6) Jack the truck up higher till the shock tower engages the bolts on the frame that hold it in place, then replace the nuts and tighten them down. This will compress the shock and draw the shock tower down till it's seated. Make sure the spacers are seated properly before tightening the shock tower.
7) Replace the front wheel and lower the jack to load some weight on the shock. Then finish tightening the lower, finish lowering your truck, and install the nut on the top of the shock (real easy with an air gun on the low torque setting).
8) After you do the other side, it's Miller Time (or whatever your favorite is)!

A few things, since the shocks that I use are really hard to compress by hand, I jack the truck up to it to install the shock tower on the new shock. This is why I jack it from the frame rail and not the axle. Putting the jack on the frame rail allows only the truck body to lift and not the axle. Also, if you don't pre-load the shock with some weight before you tighten the lower bolt, the shock won't seat properly and you might get a nasty thump in your front end. I have had this happen to me by trying to short cut and not pre-load weight on the front shock.

Hope this helps!

 

[LRutigliano]

I replaced mine factory shocks with the Edelbrock IAS performers and was very happy with them. Then I put a leveling kit in the front and unfortunately, Edelbrock does not make the IAS Performers for lifted trucks. So I went with the Bilstein 5100's in the front and left the Edelbrocks in the rear. That combination is working well for me, although the Edelbrocks do have more mileage than the Bilstein's.



Now, as far as only replacing the rear shocks and leaving the OEM's in the front, big mistake. Especially if you are going with a stiffer shock in the rear. You will not like the way your truck will handle at all. You really should do all 4. Are the fronts ones a PITA? Yes, they are a little but not real bad. Once you've done the first one, the other one goes much easier. Everyone has their method of changing them, but here is how I do mine:



1) Use an air gun to remove the nut from the top of the shock.

2) Remove the 3 nuts that hold the shock tower in place, let the shock expand, and remove the shock tower.

3) Jack the truck up (do it at the frame rail behind the front wheel and not the axle) , remove the front wheel, and the remove the bolt holding the shock in the shackle on top of the front axle and pull the shock out.

4) Put the new shock in, replace the bottom bolt but do not tighten all the way.

5) Set the spacers and shock tower in place on the top of the shock.

6) Jack the truck up higher till the shock tower engages the bolts on the frame that hold it in place, then replace the nuts and tighten them down. This will compress the shock and draw the shock tower down till it's seated. Make sure the spacers are seated properly before tightening the shock tower.

7) Replace the front wheel and lower the jack to load some weight on the shock. Then finish tightening the lower, finish lowering your truck, and install the nut on the top of the shock (real easy with an air gun on the low torque setting).

8) After you do the other side, it's Miller Time (or whatever your favorite is)!



A few things, since the shocks that I use are really hard to compress by hand, I jack the truck up to it to install the shock tower on the new shock. This is why I jack it from the frame rail and not the axle. Putting the jack on the frame rail allows only the truck body to lift and not the axle. Also, if you don't pre-load the shock with some weight before you tighten the lower bolt, the shock won't seat properly and you might get a nasty thump in your front end. I have had this happen to me by trying to short cut and not pre-load weight on the front shock.



Hope this helps!

Thanks Tim! You answered all of my questions very thoroughly and your write up on the installation for the front will really help... Its very much appreciated.



Regards,

Louis

 

[TimothyLong]

One thing I almost forgot, since this will be your first time with the front shocks, I would recommend starting with the passenger's side first. The shock tower on that side (at least on my 2500) is much easier to get to than the driver's side. On the driver's side, there is a bunch of hoses and wiring harnesses to watch out for and they make getting to the shock tower a little more difficult. Also, I forgot to mention to jack the truck at the axle to remove the tire, then set it down on a jack stand (lower than the tire will allow), then reset the jack at the frame rail. This helps if you don't have a jack with a very long reach.

 

[rluft]

I use Rancho 9000 adjustable shocks and like them real well. I ran first set over 110,000 miles. Second set I also ordered the remote air adjustment setup.

 

[mtnram]

Louis,

I went with the Bilstein's on our unlifted 03. I had no problem r&r any of the shocks and feel very comfortsable in towing our 27' tt.

I didn't know about Genos and bought on-line here : Bilstein Shocks: 03-10 Ram 2500/3500 - 4WD  - eShocks.com: as the local part store Bilstein was n/a.

 

[ddivinia]

I went with procomp MX-6s. What an upgrade - I had no idea how shot my original shocks were.

D.

 

[LRutigliano]

I found 4 KYB Monomax shocks at www.justsuspension for $234. 81 with free shipping.



I have these on our 2002 Durango and really like them. It used to wallow around corners and NOSE DIVE even under light braking. Now it rides really nice Clark...



I know it seems trivial, but the Bilsteins are those super ugly yellow/blue on a silver truck. The KYBs are red and match my truck much better (I have red accents on the mudflaps, red tail lights, etc... )



Please no hate reply's regarding the KYB's... For the price, I don't think they can be beat...



Thanks Tim for your great write-up. That was my main purpose for the question and you nailed it...

 

[NavyDood]

You should always try to avoid running different brands of shocks. Change all 4. Different shocks have different damping. They are designed to work as a complete set complimenting each other on each corner and front to rear.

I got my four Bilstein Blue and Yellow's for $245 shipped. They are great shocks. I have noticed a HUGE increase in performance now that it is cold out. The originals made the truck feel like it was frozen and stiff when it was cold out. the Bilsteins still make the truck still feel fluid and work like it should.
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