Lift kit VS height adjustable shocks: better for off road?

[ram1500rsm]

I don't mind paying more if it does what I want . Problem is ride quality is so subjective it's hard to place a lot of value on someone else's opinion unless everyone is saying the same thing opinion wise. I'd like a shock similar to the Rancho but with the knob set on #5 its a 50/50 compression/rebound turn it up and the compression increases and rebound gets lower and the opposite if ya turn it the other direction and adjustable height setting like the 5100s. In reality I would think an aftermarket spindle that lifts the truck would be easier to deal with. Then you are not preloading the spring and getting the negative aspects of that to live with . You could buy a shock to just be a shock and not have so many compromises when you make a simple height change.

If you want the Rancho functionality but in a setup that can survive the offroad elements with some more speed, you have to pay the price that comes with the bigger displacement shocks. Ranchos are like the 5100 series Bilsteins, street only shocks for SUV's and Trucks, but you can dial their firmness to a point, i have both, and i can feel the advantages of the Rancho knob adjusters when you load the truck up, or even when riding solo, the ride is just so much plush with the Ranchos it's a joy to cross speed bumps hahaha, though the Billies are mounted in my other truck, Silverado crew cab 1500, 2wd, Bisltein have been my fall back choice of struts/shocks for a long time, but i've switched my likings towards Rancho now that i have them in the RAM, (1st time ever running Rancho) i have bothered with the adjusters from all the way sift to all the way firm, and 5 for me is where is at, 7 if i'm loading the bed with around 500lbs. Ranchos are not shocks designed with fun weekends of dirt trail riding in mind, just like the 5100 series, 6112's were meant to fill that gap from Bisltein, diggresive valving for offroad, bigger displacement,bigger shaft, Falcons fall in that same category, pair them with the Eibach springs, and they're solid setups without steeping in the $2k mark to gain more performance, you don't have compression adjusters for the front, but their valving is already a good overall balance for both street and dirt, this could be options for light pre-running setups, hunting expeditions, overall exploring, etc, just like Icon Stage 2.5 coilovers without the res still kick out more performance thanks to it's bigger body compared to these options, the whole point is much oil you can fill with gas in those pipes, there is no replacement for displacement and it shows on the more expensive shocks.

I 'm considering this options as well myself to upgrade my suspension, but i keep coming back to 2.5 setups because i can't find custom rear sizes with the good stuff unless i go with the expensive options, i know what i need now regardless lenght specs with my RAM, so the Rancho setup i have is literally my fall back option once i get to upgrade to something different, I can't buy Falcon fronts only, or rear only, they sell you the whole setup, 6112s can't be found yet, maybe next year hahaha, and i'm not going back to the 5100 series shocks, inlcuding 5160's into anything ever again that will see dirt and and speed, i'm not into high lift heights, and the stuffed looks works so well for me, i have no issues with low COG and 35's, the problem is spending the money on something that you can have fun with in the dirt and will last, it's a tough choice considering optons and prices, i had Icon stage 5 in my Yota FJ, and Icon stage 7 in my Taco, almost upgrade to long travel before i sold that one, can't afford to spend money like that anymore , but i still want to have fun in the dirt, and the Ranchos won't give me that, same with the billies, same with the $3k 6" lifts, they're not meant for that type of driving, and here in the West Coast, you get to enjoy this type of offroading everywhere you go, i still go out my Jeep group and the Yota folks, i just don't do the type of crazy stuff i used to do anymore with this truck.

 

[novelmike]

I had the Rancho’a on my Ram. I thought they rode great. I would keep the front at “8” After a year or so I pulled them and put the Fox 2.0 on the front and back. Much more control while going fast on the dirt and in the sand in Pismo. I went with the Fox because I wanted a lil more lift/level in the truck.
The 5100 or the 6112 are for street. You are not going to get the performance you would by going with a coil over shock.
I will most likely be upgrading my 2.0 Fox and going with the Fox reservoir with the adjustable rebound/compression.
I have the Rancho’s sitting in the garage if someone wants to make an offer. And if someone wants the 2.0’s make me an offer too! I’ll just upgrade sooner

 

[Gary2]

Not concerned with making any kind of off-road vehicle out of this. I have Wrangler TJ's for my Off-road needs. One has the 5100s on and like most on Jeep forum say you can not only feel a dime when you run over it you can tell if its heads or tails. This truck and every thing in the previous post pertains to driving on the local roads . Its only lifted for looks as this was mainly to get me to work and back. I cured most of the ride issues by replacing the 35" BFG 10ply tires and by doing away with 20lbs of unsprung weight per tire. I just feel it could be a lot better for just driving down the road considering suspension wise its only 1.4" taller than stock. The new tires have about taken tires out of the equation so I feel shocks and spring preload are my issue and just seeing what other shock options other than the usually mentioned brands . I still say a spindle could be designed to give us 1-2" lift with nothing else changed. Maybe some day

 

[ram1500rsm]

Victor, Icon seems to be running a 20% off for Black Friday, Fox 15%, Kings 15%, Radflo 10%, just FYI
Socalsupertrucks have the best prices i've seeing so far on the Icon line, sdhq has the best on Kings. dear lord, lol

 

[ram1500rsm]

Well what that heck, i just placed my order of King 2.5 Coilovers with res front and rear.
Can't help myself when i see this damn deals, and King is King
Specs:
Rear
King 2.5 25001-208, 27.25" extended, 17.50 compressed, pretty much the same as my Rancho rear shocks, so i won't loose any flex, and still have reservoirs and a bigger displacement shock.

Front:
King 25001-207, 22.50 extended, 16.84 compressed, 1" longer than my Rancho struts.

I almost pulled the trigger on the Total Chaos UCA's tonight as well, but i want to take it easy, and like i said, the Zone UCA's i have are 4-5 months old, the Rancho have the same age, but it was always my idea to just move them out of the way to be my backup setup.

Good luck with whatever you decide Victor.

 

[bruiserRAM]

Victor, Icon seems to be running a 20% off for Black Friday, Fox 15%, Kings 15%, Radflo 10%, just FYI
Socalsupertrucks have the best prices i've seeing so far on the Icon line, sdhq has the best on Kings. dear lord, lol

Oh goodness gracious, lord help us. haha.

Just looked at So Cal Supertrucks...awesome prices, but then tax and shipping bumps them back up a bit. Been looking through Got Exhaust too. Any other vendors to check out with decent black friday sales??

Also Icon UCA's are uniball, was hoping for a balljoint setup. Any reason NOT to pair a cheaper UCA (Zone or Readylift etc) with pimpin heaight adjustable coilovers?

 

[ram1500rsm]

Oh goodness gracious, lord help us. haha.

Just looked at So Cal Supertrucks...awesome prices, but then tax and shipping bumps them back up a bit. Been looking through Got Exhaust too. Any other vendors to check out with decent black friday sales??

Also Icon UCA's are uniball, was hoping for a balljoint setup. Any reason NOT to pair a cheaper UCA (Zone or Readylift etc) with pimpin heaight adjustable coilovers?

I PM’d gotexhaust yesterday night for an offer on the Icons, but I couldn’t wait, never had Kings before, so I said screw it, and ordered from SDHQ Offroad Racing. Wait for Nick, he’s a forum vendor so i’m sure can you he can hook you up better than anybody outside.

The Zones or any other BJ UCA will work for us, from anything I saw in my research yesterday night, Fox and King 2.5 Coilovers are 22.5” extended, which is essentially 1” longer than stock. I’ll be using the Zones with the Kings, I’m positive Icon and Radflo will be the same. I couldn’t confirm Icon rear shock specs, but everywhere I checked says the Icon need at least 1.5” lift in the back, so I’d assume their rear shocks are also longer than stock, King and Fox have nothing to hide, so they list their specs, lol. I asked gotexhaust for those Icon rear specs as well, so I still don’t know them, but it would be nice to know them to add them to the database.

Hope you get a nice deal, usually today is the best day to find the best prices on coilovers, it won’t get any cheaper than this from previous experiences, until Black Friday next year

Good luck.

 

[bruiserRAM]

i had Icon stage 5 in my Yota FJ, and Icon stage 7 in my Taco.

Any issues with any leaking you saw, or found in your research with any icon products? I've run across some leak stories on 4 runner forums.

Also, what's the deal with icons needing service and rebuilding? Do you know how often it's recommended/needed... And how that would compare to the Bilstein 6112, if they were used the same? Thx!

 

[ram1500rsm]

You can always start with just front cou

Any issues with any leaking you saw, or found in your research with any icon products? I've run across some leak stories on 4 runner forums.

Also, what's the deal with icons needing service and rebuilding? Do you know how often it's recommended/needed... And how that would compare to the Bilstein 6112, if they were used the same? Thx!

No issues whatsoever in my case with leaks, There was a time back in 2011-12 where the 2.0's had issues with leaks, lot of people switched to Fox 2.0 around the time,

6112's shocks could take some abuse for those 1 mile trails as wel call them, they're not in the same league, they're not built like 2.5 shocks, 2.5 shocks will sustain abuse for hours without drama, rebuild time will depend on how much abuse do you give your suspension, for some that might be 10k miles, for others 50k miles, for other 100k miles, it really depends how hard of a workout you give to your shocks, We used to run 2-3 hours runs around Barstow, Ocotillo Wells, Coachela, etc once a month or so and the Icons use to take the punishement without any problems, i was getting mine rebuilt every 50k miles (we had a friend in the group that used to do that stuff for us)

You need to watch this video, prob the first 30 min or so, maintenance is the last 15 or or so.

Have fun.

 

[Hawaii_Built]

Any issues with any leaking you saw, or found in your research with any icon products? I've run across some leak stories on 4 runner forums.

Also, what's the deal with icons needing service and rebuilding? Do you know how often it's recommended/needed... And how that would compare to the Bilstein 6112, if they were used the same? Thx!

I had my Icon coilovers rebuilt once right before I sold my tundra - one coilover looked like it blew a seal and had leaked some oil. It was fairly inexpensive and was done in house at a reputable offroad shop here - they are a factory authorized Icon dealer and could rebuild it with a genuine rebuild kit and genuine oil. I don't remember it being too expensive.

 

[bruiserRAM]

I will most likely be upgrading my 2.0 Fox and going with the Fox reservoir with the adjustable rebound/compression. And if someone wants the 2.0’s make me an offer too! I’ll just upgrade sooner

How old? How many miles? How abused/loved?

What kind of height increase did you see with the Foxes and how much higher could you have gone per the max recommended preload? Thx!!! Comparing foxes to icons now and like the price of fox better...but am sceptical about the lower lift height and the progressive valving...

 

[Nick@GotExhaust]

I PM’d gotexhaust yesterday night for an offer on the Icons, but I couldn’t wait, never had Kings before, so I said screw it, and ordered from SDHQ Offroad Racing. Wait for Nick, he’s a forum vendor so i’m sure can you he can hook you up better than anybody outside.

The Zones or any other BJ UCA will work for us, from anything I saw in my research yesterday night, Fox and King 2.5 Coilovers are 22.5” extended, which is essentially 1” longer than stock. I’ll be using the Zones with the Kings, I’m positive Icon and Radflo will be the same. I couldn’t confirm Icon rear shock specs, but everywhere I checked says the Icon need at least 1.5” lift in the back, so I’d assume their rear shocks are also longer than stock, King and Fox have nothing to hide, so they list their specs, lol. I asked gotexhaust for those Icon rear specs as well, so I still don’t know them, but it would be nice to know them to add them to the database.

Hope you get a nice deal, usually today is the best day to find the best prices on coilovers, it won’t get any cheaper than this from previous experiences, until Black Friday next year

Good luck.

Sorry for the delay. Between having Thanksgiving off to spend with the family and the flood of orders, PM's and emails it was hard to keep up.

Glad you got taken care of. You will love the Kings! I know our customers love them.

Sent from my SM-G965U using Tapatalk

 

[novelmike]

How old? How many miles? How abused/loved?

What kind of height increase did you see with the Foxes and how much higher could you have gone per the max recommended preload? Thx!!! Comparing foxes to icons now and like the price of fox better...but am sceptical about the lower lift height and the progressive valving...

How old? How many miles? How abused/loved?

What kind of height increase did you see with the Foxes and how much higher could you have gone per the max recommended preload? Thx!!! Comparing foxes to icons now and like the price of fox better...but am sceptical about the lower lift height and the progressive valving...

i do not remember the lift height achieved after installing the FOX. It was more than the Rancho QuickLift though.
I bought and installed them. I did not try and get more lift than what they recommended or what they were set at from the factory. There’s a reason why everyone says 2.25-2.5” is what their coil overs will lift your truck. Anything more and you’ll start damaging components. If you want 3”, you can get it, but you’re risking your CV’s, ball joints, etc. Might take 20k or 60k, or you could be the guy what adjusts them to 3” and never has a single issue.
What’s great about coil over shocks is that if you add a bumper, something heavy on the front, or they sag/settle of the the years you can always adjust the preload a small amount.
I’ve not had a single issue with my FOX 2.0 I Have about 20k miles on them and they’re about 2 years old. They still look good and have no leaks. My thoughts are is that they’re soft at high speeds, 50mph+ on the pavement. More firm at lower speeds 10-35mph you’re in the dirt and sand. I’ve tightened up my grip on the steering wheel the first couple of months of owning these when I was in the dirt and would see an upcoming hole, bump. But that quickly stopped, I now will drive through them with more speed and control.

There is no comparison to a aftermarket coil over shock FOX, ICON, KING, etc compared to eibach, bilstein, Rancho or pro comp where you use the stock spring to achieve the lift. And not only that, most if not all coil over shocks are aluminum bodied-better for heat and light weight. And the fact that aftermarket coil over shocks are rebuildable and relatively inexpensive to do so means these could be the last shocks you buy.

 

[bruiserRAM]

i. There’s a reason why everyone says 2.25-2.5” is what their coil overs will lift your truck.

I recently read the Fox 2.0 coilovers commonly only achieved about 1.75" lift, even though they say 2"?

Do many report a 2+" lift on them?

Thanks for the detailed reply!

 

[novelmike]

Turn them up!
You’ll get your 2-2.5”

 

[novelmike]

You’re reading and thinking about it too much. Just spend the amount you’re willing to spend. Whatever you get, I’m sure you’ll be happy.

 

[novelmike]

New shocks were ordered today. Went with the Fox reservoirs with the DSC.

 

[JB1]

New shocks were ordered today. Went with the Fox reservoirs with the DSC.

Nice, who did you order those from?

 

[GIJoe2010]

Based on my limited knowledge and the thoughts/facts in this thread: to get the best off-road performance, go with a lift kit of your choice but spend the extra $$$ on coilovers with larger diameter (and length) shocks (possibly with reservoirs) all around ... and don’t forget some good UCAs as well.

I’m in the same boat as most (that understand the above concept):

1. Level the truck first with “Brand X” setup and find that it looks good but is **** off-pavement.

2. Look at lift kits and find they look way better than the level and only perform marginally better off-road.

3. Find the cost of adding the vastly superior coil overs and shocks to the lift of choice is too much to stomach.

4. Now I need larger tires (and different wheels) so it looks like my truck “never skips leg day,” there’s more $$$ to spend.

5. Now, do a bunch of research and find that if you want more than a pavement pounding parking lot Queen, you gotta pony up the extra cash.

6. And finally, be prepared to upgrade additional components beyond the lift kit/coil overs/shocks/tires to ensure your truck can confidently handle off road shenanigans.

I’ll throw an additional point in there even though it doesn’t necessarily apply:

7. Add a body lift for the additional bump in height and to fit larger tires without adding to the cost of larger/longer/better suspension components. This step usually happens after level or lift, mainly for looks (I too am guilty of this).

In conclusion, I think most people are too cheap and too uninformed or unwilling to do any research to find out what really makes these trucks better all around & more usable off road. I for one, appreciate the info and look forward to more while I save my money for the kit my truck needs and deserves.

 

[S0CAL]

LOL #4