Renegade_Medic
New member
Bilstein 4600s are great. also, you can order the oe tokicos from the dealer for under 40/each
Bouncy Rear. Will new springs help?
- Thread starter Collkid
- Start date
Bilstein 4600s are great. also, you can order the oe tokicos from the dealer for under 40/each
Bumbo
New member
My experience with Monroe shocks was terrible… I bought a pair for my Chevy Silverado because the OEM fronts were obviously blown and being lazy I basically tried to do it as fast and as cheap as possible.
They worked ok, stopped the bounce, but over the course of a couple years they progressively got worse, almost back to where I was in the first place. It didn’t feel blown really, but started to drive more like a boat. Dives on breaking, floating like feel at freeway speeds.
Changed out to Bilstein 5100 and it was night and day. Still on OEM springs. I know it’s a different truck, but the shocks were all I needed. Differences from factory blown, to fading Monroe, to 5100 was night and day.
5100 and 4600 are supposed to the same shock for the most part. One being for lifted truck, the other for stock. I still feel there are some valving differences because some people report the 5100 having a slightly stiffer ride. YMMV, but id suspect both would be a substantial upgrade from some bottom barrel shocks.
They worked ok, stopped the bounce, but over the course of a couple years they progressively got worse, almost back to where I was in the first place. It didn’t feel blown really, but started to drive more like a boat. Dives on breaking, floating like feel at freeway speeds.
Changed out to Bilstein 5100 and it was night and day. Still on OEM springs. I know it’s a different truck, but the shocks were all I needed. Differences from factory blown, to fading Monroe, to 5100 was night and day.
5100 and 4600 are supposed to the same shock for the most part. One being for lifted truck, the other for stock. I still feel there are some valving differences because some people report the 5100 having a slightly stiffer ride. YMMV, but id suspect both would be a substantial upgrade from some bottom barrel shocks.
phattyduck
Elite Member
Bottom bolt only for spring replacement. That part is easy. The shock top nut is a pain due to access issues. The right tools makes it easier, but not as easy as it should be.
-Charlie
Bumbo
New member
Totally, bottom bolt only for spring replacement.
I still found the top bolt pretty painless too. After raising the vehicle which provided clearance, I used a channel lock / Knipex Cobra to hold the shaft or shock body so it wouldn’t turn on me, and a ratcheting wrench. The job went pretty fast actually with relative ease with these tools.
phattyduck
Elite Member
If you can't or don't want to damage the shock, you can do it like this:
Offset wrench for the nut and a ratchet on the shock shaft hex.
The Bilstein's I had on there before and that I used for replacement (4600's out, 5100's in) both use nylock nuts, which stay pretty tight all the way out and in. I think the OEM setup might be easier (dual nuts, I think?).
-Charlie
Offset wrench for the nut and a ratchet on the shock shaft hex.
The Bilstein's I had on there before and that I used for replacement (4600's out, 5100's in) both use nylock nuts, which stay pretty tight all the way out and in. I think the OEM setup might be easier (dual nuts, I think?).
-Charlie
theriddler
New member
Both methods above are ideal and work well when the parts aren't rusted, unfortunately for us in the Midwest (rust issues) we usually have to resort to a cutoff wheel and a grinder. I cut the stem of the shock as high as i can and maybe finish it off with a grinder if i need to. I've done about 4 pairs of shocks this way and it works well. I can tell by the feel of the nut how rusty it is, if it's too bad i don't even try with the hand tools. Glad it's a job i don't do very often
Scramble
New member
Put anti-seize on the threads & then a blob of grease over the shock stud & nut after the new ones are tight.
My last set of rear shocks came off with a 1/2" ratchet butted against the frame & me turning the shock body with my hands. Super easy.
My original shocks of 15 years had to be cut off.
theriddler
New member
Speaking of shady shocks, I ran these (MV12) for a while in the back of a Tacoma:
Doetsch Nitro Slammer - MV12 Performance Racking Shock
They were super soft and were great at slow speeds but they just weren't designed to last. I guess for a purpose built crawler they would be ok for a cheap shock but a daily driver would destroy these in about a year. Kinda forgot about these until now, maybe i'll give them another shot since on our backup vehicle (4runner #3).
I've had good luck with the Bilsteins personally for a mid-priced shock...Nitrochargers are good too if but definitely firmer (good for added weight). Either way, shocks aren't made to last forever
eace:
Doetsch Nitro Slammer - MV12 Performance Racking Shock
They were super soft and were great at slow speeds but they just weren't designed to last. I guess for a purpose built crawler they would be ok for a cheap shock but a daily driver would destroy these in about a year. Kinda forgot about these until now, maybe i'll give them another shot since on our backup vehicle (4runner #3).
I've had good luck with the Bilsteins personally for a mid-priced shock...Nitrochargers are good too if but definitely firmer (good for added weight). Either way, shocks aren't made to last forever
eace:
