2nd Gen Non-Engine/Transmission Which shock is better? Rancho or Bilstein

[jrobinson2]

Offroad warehouse has a TDR discount on Bilstiens, under $60. 00

TDR discounts page

As for the ranchos I ran the OEMs to 45000 miles then the ranchos to 92000 and when I needed a set to use while my T-Rex shocks were being re-valved I used the stockers because they were in noticeably better shape than the ranchos with about the same miles on both sets.

Jared

 

[absocountry2]

My Rancho's are bad

I have 4 Rancho RS5000 on my 96 2500 V-10. THey are 9 months old with 5500 highway miles and the front right one is flat. I am going to try the Bilsteins.

 

[Bloomy]

Used Rancho's on my previous truck with no luck. Quality was horrible and they didn't last that long. Started leaking. I put the bilsteins on this truck roughly 18 months ago. They are hands down the best shocks I have ever used. The ride is more firm than the stockers but control is infinitely improved. I tow quite a bit and would not consider for a second the Rancho adjustables over these Bilsteins.



Thomas

 

[RussW1911]

I have had both and the bilsteins are superior. Ranchos didn't last much over a year on the front end. Bilsteins are a great improvement.

 

[scotty1]

Started with Rancho 5000's on my 01, they went bad after a year. Upgraded to 9000's with in cab adjustment... 5 levels, leaked down in the winter and then the two fronts went bad... got replaced with new 9000's and they even sent me the ones to fit my 04 as I was changing out trucks at the same time.

They leaked down all the time so I unhooked the in cab feature and no problem after that. However, there is no comparison to my T Rex system with the Bilsteins... of course we are now dealing apples to oranges since the suspension was altered too. Bilsteins are doing great at 50K.



Scotty

 

[CTait]

off road warehouse link

Does anyone have a link or address to offroad warehouse, the place that gives a discount to TDR members? The one given in this thread does not work. I am ready to try a set of Bilsteins.

 

[jrobinson2]

Fixed the link

Looks like they have a new TDR page with a few more items

Off road warehouse TDR Page



Jared

 

[Hvy-DCZ]

I went with the Bilsteins, and absolutely love them. Haven't tried Ranchos, and don't feel the need to. Something about putting $ into engineering vs. marketing. When in doubt, go w/ German engineering.



Cheers,

Hvy

 

[Dartman]

Are you Bilstein owners just only using the OEM replacement (no lift) that Off Road Wearhouse supplies?



Are there other models of Bilsteins to chose from for stock height?



Which one have you used with a 2" front leveling kit?



Thank you in advance, Tony.

 

[JSykes]

I am using the OEM Bilstein shocks and love them. They are simple to install and the performance is second to none. I am planning on switching to the 5100 series when I upgrade to the Skyjacker 2. 5" springs on the front.