Replacement of Stock Shocks & Struts

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Evil Phoenix

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Sounds like I will go back to stock. I am going to look in to the control arm bushings, swaybar bushings and end links... basically wearable suspension pieces.
 

rzr6-4

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Monroe has been around for ages. I’d probably give them a try.
Any Thoughts on the following front struts? I would end up getting the matching rear shocks....
MONROE 172292

Been around doesn't mean they are good. Monroe (last time I looked) has two product lines, standard and improved, but in reality more like mediocre-at-best and actual trash. I've heard lots of not good things about Monroe, and I'm not 100% but I'm pretty sure that's what we put on my 140k mile Sierra and it hardly changed the ride at all. At 45k miles later they are totally shot again.
 

Bigskyroadglide

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Jeepwalker

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OP, what makes you think your truck needs NEW shocks? Are they leaking (greasy), or is it 'bouncy'? Have you noticed any odd tire-wear? The shocks on my 2012 are still the originals 178k mi..and ride great. They're all hwy miles though. However i will soon replace them b/c one is starting to leak. It's time. But they lasted a long time and the rest seem ok still. The shocks on a Jeep GC we own have 248K miles on the original shocks LOL. (I think they were Bilsteins from the factory) I was going to replace them but I it rides/drives/handles fine. Course those are all hwy miles too.

However, if you plan to replace anyway and you want to keep your pickup a while, I would honestly consider biting the bullet and spend the money for OEM Mopar shocks ....off RockAuto. They are the most expensive option, however, you will be assured of a high quality product, long life, and factory ride. I've run so many Monroe's and Gabriels for many years. They just don't hold up anywhere near as long from my experience. Then you end up buying another set...and couldda just bought OEM shocks in the first place ...for the money ya spent.

One other annoying issue is Monroe's/Gabriels and some other aftermarket shocks tend to rust like crazy after one or two WI winters and look like eyesores, whereas the stock Mopars hardly do. Unless they've improved their finish in the last couple years. That's another reason I stopped buying them. If your truck looks nice, rusty yellow or red shocks are kind of ugly. Maybe someone here who lives in the hard-core rust-belt can indicate if the Monroe's/Gabriel's finish has gotten better.

The Mopars are a lot more, but they'll probably be the last shock your truck ever needs.
 
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TC

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I have a BDS 4" lift been sitting in my barn for 5 years. Plan to install on current truck when it becomes a second vehicle. In the meantime, I put Monroe Magnum on as a budget short term improvement over stock with 142k miles. Primarily highway use. Very pleased with how well they ride with a bed full of mulch at max payload or empty cruising hwy at 80 mph. Painted the yellow rear shocks black so they disappear.


 

mdc1990zr1

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I have a BDS 4" lift been sitting in my barn for 5 years. Plan to install on current truck when it becomes a second vehicle. In the meantime, I put Monroe Magnum on as a budget short term improvement over stock with 142k miles. Primarily highway use. Very pleased with how well they ride with a bed full of mulch at max payload or empty cruising hwy at 80 mph. Painted the yellow rear shocks black so they disappear.


Before I put new shocks on, I usually hit them with a few coats of Mother's carnuba wax. Holds off the rust a few more years, maybe. I never treat them again after installation.
 
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quickster2

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Monroe has been around for ages. I’d probably give them a try.
Went with Monroe on 2 Jeeps a couple of vehicles ago. Never again. Had failures on both. Have KYB on another vehicle (struts front & rear) with no issues. I replaced the Monroe's on the mentioned vehicles with Bilsteins. Went with Bilsteins on the current truck last year. I'll never buy another Monroe product.
 
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Evil Phoenix

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OP, what makes you think your truck needs NEW shocks? Are they leaking (greasy), or is it 'bouncy'? Have you noticed any odd tire-wear? The shocks on my 2012 are still the originals 178k mi..and ride great. They're all hwy miles though. However i will soon replace them b/c one is starting to leak. It's time. But they lasted a long time and the rest seem ok still. The shocks on a Jeep GC we own have 248K miles on the original shocks LOL. (I think they were Bilsteins from the factory) I was going to replace them but I it rides/drives/handles fine. Course those are all hwy miles too.

However, if you plan to replace anyway and you want to keep your pickup a while, I would honestly consider biting the bullet and spend the money for OEM Mopar shocks ....off RockAuto. They are the most expensive option, however, you will be assured of a high quality product, long life, and factory ride. I've run so many Monroe's and Gabriels for many years. They just don't hold up anywhere near as long from my experience. Then you end up buying another set...and couldda just bought OEM shocks in the first place ...for the money ya spent.

One other annoying issue is Monroe's/Gabriels and some other aftermarket shocks tend to rust like crazy after one or two WI winters and look like eyesores, whereas the stock Mopars hardly do. Unless they've improved their finish in the last couple years. That's another reason I stopped buying them. If your truck looks nice, rusty yellow or red shocks are kind of ugly. Maybe someone here who lives in the hard-core rust-belt can indicate if the Monroe's/Gabriel's finish has gotten better.

The Mopars are a lot more, but they'll probably be the last shock your truck ever needs.

I was wondering if I need or could benefit from installing new shocks on my almost 100K mile truck. I just got brand new tires and noticed how much better the ride was from when I left the tire shop.

Suspension pieces are wearable items. They have done almost 100K miles and though they may have life left in them but it is recommended to change these every 50-100K miles. Im about 10K miles away from that 100 mark. If they are at the end of their lives and are not working as well as they used to it will put undue stress on other suspension pieces making them wear faster.

I would like to improve the ride back to brand new if possible... I am trying to take care of the truck not just drive it in to the ground
 

hypnotiz3r

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I replaced rear shocks with the Bilstein 4600, made a bit of a difference vs stock. But for me, it was replacing both the upper and lower rear control arms and the track bar (2016 Laramie, 150k kms) that made the biggest difference. No more rear end 'floating' after hitting railroad tracks/bumps, etc. at 80+ km/h after that. Guess I could have just replaced bushings but oh well...
 

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Perhaps look at MacPherson struts and shocks, too.

Monroe and MacPherson were always the go-to's back in the day for OEM suspension replacement parts.
 

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I was wondering if I need or could benefit from installing new shocks on my almost 100K mile truck. I just got brand new tires and noticed how much better the ride was from when I left the tire shop.

Suspension pieces are wearable items. They have done almost 100K miles and though they may have life left in them but it is recommended to change these every 50-100K miles. Im about 10K miles away from that 100 mark. If they are at the end of their lives and are not working as well as they used to it will put undue stress on other suspension pieces making them wear faster.

I would like to improve the ride back to brand new if possible... I am trying to take care of the truck not just drive it in to the ground

Yeah...I hear what you're saying. The question I'm hearing you ask is, "When is a good time to replace my tk's shocks?"

The answer is...there's really no set time limit or miles that determine when a shock needs to be replaced. Some can last a LONG time. Or, depending on road conditions and other factors, some can fail in a shorter amt of time. And every once in a while you get a shock that just gave up the ghost for some reason like the seal failed. There's really no set limit on how long shocks can last. And sometimes a shock can start to fail and be 'weak' in that very narrow stroke where 90% of the 'work' is done and feel good on bigger bumps.

You might want to go on youtube and look up how to test shocks. Avoid those videos made by young guys who just got a go-pro and a honda civic 2 months ago. Or the haggard hillbilly. Find something legit. Then test your truck. Inspect tire wear and decide. A lot of these shock companies play a little dirty trick and their shocks are valved to be a bit 'firmer' than stock so the customer installs a new shock and thinks to himself, "Yeah....gee wiz, these ARE better! Wow...I'm so glad I installed them!" ..when in reality they're just made to ride firmer. After all if you installed a shock and it rode the same as your existing shocks, you'd be pretty unhappy if you just dropped a couple Hondo's and a sweaty day's labor.

For guys who like firmer, that's perfect. If not, firmer shocks can eventually go from "hey-cool!" to "These are rougher than I remember." To ...."Ok these are pi$$ing me off now!!"

:happy160:
 

Jeepwalker

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BTW, Sachs shocks are OEM'd on a lot of vehicles, German company. I've used them and had good results. I don't know how the finish holds up to salty winters yet (jury still out).
 

BenchTest

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OP, what makes you think your truck needs NEW shocks? Are they leaking (greasy), or is it 'bouncy'? Have you noticed any odd tire-wear? The shocks on my 2012 are still the originals 178k mi..and ride great. They're all hwy miles though. However i will soon replace them b/c one is starting to leak. It's time. But they lasted a long time and the rest seem ok still. The shocks on a Jeep GC we own have 248K miles on the original shocks LOL. (I think they were Bilsteins from the factory) I was going to replace them but I it rides/drives/handles fine. Course those are all hwy miles too.

However, if you plan to replace anyway and you want to keep your pickup a while, I would honestly consider biting the bullet and spend the money for OEM Mopar shocks ....off RockAuto. They are the most expensive option, however, you will be assured of a high quality product, long life, and factory ride. I've run so many Monroe's and Gabriels for many years. They just don't hold up anywhere near as long from my experience. Then you end up buying another set...and couldda just bought OEM shocks in the first place ...for the money ya spent.

One other annoying issue is Monroe's/Gabriels and some other aftermarket shocks tend to rust like crazy after one or two WI winters and look like eyesores, whereas the stock Mopars hardly do. Unless they've improved their finish in the last couple years. That's another reason I stopped buying them. If your truck looks nice, rusty yellow or red shocks are kind of ugly. Maybe someone here who lives in the hard-core rust-belt can indicate if the Monroe's/Gabriel's finish has gotten better.

The Mopars are a lot more, but they'll probably be the last shock your truck ever needs.
Monroe shocks will rust quicker than OEM. That's a fact. I spray mine with LPS-3 prior to install and that keeps the rust at bay for quite a while. I have hundreds of thousands of miles on Monroe suspension components. They are suitable for OEM ride quality. I don't do crazy offroading, don't run lifted/lowered trucks, don't haul heavy loads or do any regular towing. For a daily grocery-getter, occasional trip to the home improvement center, and general commuter, they work fine. I'll keep the difference in my pocket and put it towards the next thing that breaks on my truck (won't have to wait long).
 

Sean J Blackburn

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For the rear top you will need to pull the wheel well liners and use a crow foot (21mm I think) to hold the bolt. So if you don’t have a crow foot set you may want to confirm that bolt size and order a crow foot when you order the shocks.

Or you could do like I do and order car parts, then leave them right inside the front door for three weeks while you wait on one more part and your wife start huffing every time she walks past them.
21mm crow foot is correct, did this a few months ago. However you don't have to pull the liner, you can access the top shock bolt lying flat on your back under the truck. Just did this not long ago.
 

dek1581

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I have 2017 Ram 1500 Big Horn 4WD w/6.5 ft bed. If I replace stock shocks w/4600s will it cut down on sway during turns?
 

Jeepwalker

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....I have hundreds of thousands of miles on Monroe suspension components. They are suitable for OEM ride quality. I don't do crazy offroading, don't run lifted/lowered trucks, don't haul heavy loads or do any regular towing.

Does that include shocks? If so, that's good feedback. They must be making them better now. I just stopped using them a long time ago due to issues. Now if they'd just spend 75 cents more on a durable, long-lasting finish!!

Thanks for the feedback.
 

BenchTest

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Does that include shocks? If so, that's good feedback. They must be making them better now. I just stopped using them a long time ago due to issues. Now if they'd just spend 75 cents more on a durable, long-lasting finish!!

Thanks for the feedback.
That does include shocks (and struts). OEM are certainly better built (in most cases), but for a 1/3 or quarter of the price, I'll use Monroe products. I'm ok with changing them every 50-75K miles for the price difference.
 

mdc1990zr1

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I have 2017 Ram 1500 Big Horn 4WD w/6.5 ft bed. If I replace stock shocks w/4600s will it cut down on sway during turns?
I had them as standard equipment on my 1992 Chevrolet Z71 sportside, Bislstein yellow and blue shocks. I changed them around 150K or so with the same yellow and blue Bilstein and the shocks that came off, other than showing some rust, still had gas in them that I had to evacuate before disposal. I towed boats up and down the coast of New Jersey and Delaware Bay, had trailered dirt bikes in the pine barrens, put it on various beaches and picked up employees during all kinds of foul weather. After a few months or so after "breaking in", they didn't seem much different than the ones I took off. The 4600s are firm and stiffen the ride to a very controlled ride.
Had them on my Vettes too.
 

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