Icon Coilover leaking

[84scrambler]

The great news is Icon has fantastic customer service. Down side is my 4runner has been sitting in my front driveway on a jack stand for a week and a half. Missed the shipping time for their service by 1 day...
I think they might have a QC problem on these coil overs, there seems to be too many premature failures and this is something that they should look into.
I guess you can say shame on me for not looking into the longevity between service for these coilovers. I did the bad assumption of thinking if you pay a lot on a high quality high performance part it should last comparable to an OEM part. That is my mistake... I am curious to know like other have mentioned how their service life compares with other coilover manufacturers? perhaps it is on par and something that we should be educated about?!?
I think I might be a little less frustrated if I knew what to expect. Not so much with Icon but more with myself for the lack of research. I am now contemplating on what to do when this happens again. Should I change out to something more reliable (I have heard great things about old man emu) or get set up to do the service myself. I sure like getting new tools!!! Having the 4runner down for a week is a pain and perhaps I just buy a 3rd coilover and cycle it when one goes down. Well hopefully I have a few years to think about it.. If somebody at Icon is reading this I applaud you for your customer service, that alone has me considering just buying a 3rd coil over as a backup.

 

[wfo9]

It's hard to get facts on this stuff because everyone has a different experience. Like stated in this thread... one guy got 100K+ out of his ICONs, OP got something like 10k

From my observations just being around it (no specific numbers)... 50-70k seems the norm when everything was done right on Icons. Sounds like they may have had a bad batch of seals though.

They are all basically the same (Fox, Icon, Radflow). King seems to need rebuilding much more often, but it's also more of a race shock so people who have them tend to beat on them more and want them rebuilt more often because they feel they have degraded over time.

OME and 5100s are a different kind of shock. They will last way longer without service, but are also not rebuild-able. OME BP-51 will be similar to the other high performance options in terms of rebuild intervals.

A leaking shock is a bad seal. It comes down to a 30 cent part being good or bad when it fails in a few thousands miles. Luck of the draw sometimes... A good company will cover it, but you may have some downtime and labor to perform.

If you just want to drive your truck and never think about it... OME nitrocharger or billies won't let you down, but you will also not have the same peformance. The nitrocharger shocks are stiff and jarring, but some people don't mind it. I kept mine as a spare suspension... I actually kind of enjoyed them when I had them for road use. The limited travel was my main reason to go in another direction. Billlies are similar, but more of a flat dull feeling, hard to explain. I like OME better, but its just personal preference.

 

[G.I.G.]

It's hard to get facts on this stuff because everyone has a different experience. Like stated in this thread... one guy got 100K+ out of his ICONs, OP got something like 10k

From my observations just being around it (no specific numbers)... 50-70k seems the norm when everything was done right on Icons. Sounds like they may have had a bad batch of seals though.

They are all basically the same (Fox, Icon, Radflow). King seems to need rebuilding much more often, but it's also more of a race shock so people who have them tend to beat on them more and want them rebuilt more often because they feel they have degraded over time.

OME and 5100s are a different kind of shock. They will last way longer without service, but are also not rebuild-able. OME BP-51 will be similar to the other high performance options in terms of rebuild intervals.

A leaking shock is a bad seal. It comes down to a 30 cent part being good or bad when it fails in a few thousands miles. Luck of the draw sometimes... A good company will cover it, but you may have some downtime and labor to perform.

If you just want to drive your truck and never think about it... OME nitrocharger or billies won't let you down, but you will also not have the same peformance. The nitrocharger shocks are stiff and jarring, but some people don't mind it. I kept mine as a spare suspension... I actually kind of enjoyed them when I had them for road use. The limited travel was my main reason to go in another direction. Billlies are similar, but more of a flat dull feeling, hard to explain. I like OME better, but its just personal preference.

I think you hit the nail on the head on all points. I was frustrated to have two failed shocks in such a short amount of time, but I also realize it is just the matter of changing a few failed components. I hadn't read many bad reviews on Icon's (one of the reasons I chose them) but there seems to be a few people popping up that have had premature leakage from shocks that were purchased last summer/fall. Who knows, could have just been a bad batch of seals like you mentioned.

The OME BT-51's do sound interesting but they weren't an option when I bought my Icon's. They're still relatively new, so time will tell. My cousin has a set on his FJ so I'll be curious to see how they perform in the long run. I do like the 3-year warranty on those (as opposed to the 1-year warranty that seems to be the industry standard) but I don't know anything about OME's customer service in the US either.

I couldn't agree more about the OME Nitrochargers. Super reliable but very stiff. That was my main reason for upgrading the the Icon's. My 4Runner handled like a sports car on-road. Almost zero body roll for a lifted truck. But man, you felt every crack in the road. And off-road could be pretty rough depending on the terrain, even when I aired down.

I am kicking myself for not keeping my old OME setup. I sold it to a friend, so it went to a good home. It would have been a great backup solution for the situation I'm in now.

All in all, I went into the Icon purchase with my eyes wide open. I knew what I was potentially getting into with rebuildable shocks. I just wasn't expecting to have problems this early in the game. Keeping the OME Nitrochargers would have made sense but that ship has sailed. I just hope I can get 30k-50k miles or more between the next rebuild interval like most Icon owners are getting.

 

[G.I.G.]

I wanted to get everyone up to date on my situation and where things stood with my warranty claim with my Icon's.

My timing seemed to be kind of lucky, as Icon just started working with a guy locally here in the Denver area who can rebuild and repair shocks. Icon put me in touch with him, and he does shock repair as a side business out of his garage, but he is very knowledgeable and professional. His name is Tim and he is now listed on Icon's website as an "approved Icon service center". He can service any brand of rebuildable shocks (Fox, King, etc.).

So how we handled it was that Icon sent him the rebuild kit and paid him for the repair, I just had to pay labor for removal and re-installation of the shocks, which was only $100 ($50 per shock). He had me on my way in about 3 hours. It was much more convenient than the alternative options, which were A) Remove shocks and buy "temporary" shocks and springs to use so I wasn't without my 4Runner for 2 weeks or B) sit without a car or rent a car for 2 weeks.

Anyway, I thought I would give you all an update on the outcome of my warranty claim, and pass Tim's info along to you if you're in Colorado and looking for local guy who can rebuild and repair shocks. His number is listed in the link below as "303 Shocks".

https://www.iconvehicledynamics.com/tech-support/shock-service/

 

[baander]

Same fall 2016 batch of 2.5 remote resi's. This is what a leak looks like right?

 

[chmura]

Seems like ICON is no longer rebuilding their shocks in house.

2.0 / 2.5 / 3.0 Shock Rebuild Service & Upgrade Information | Icon Vehicle Dynamics -


Also, I have ICON front 2.5 coilovers. They have been very good, no leaks at all.

I think with ICON the rear regular VS 2.0 shocks are garbage. I had 3 rear icon VS 2.0 shocks leak on me already. I will be changing brands for the rear as I do not want remote reservoir shocks.

For the front 2.5 Icon shocks I would definitely buy again.

 

[Jono.ful]

Same fall 2016 batch of 2.5 remote resi's. This is what a leak looks like right?

yes. is your truck on the ground in this photo? your cv's don't look happy, fair amount of rub on the outer fins and the inners are quite obviously touching as well

 

[baander]

yes. is your truck on the ground in this photo? your cv's don't look happy, fair amount of rub on the outer fins and the inners are quite obviously touching as well

Thanks for the heads up. Didn't notice that. Is that an easy fix?

FYI per icon support instructions the hose rub and coil/UCA contact problem solution is to adjust the upper and lower cambers to create more clearance between UCA and spring. It's going back on the rack soon to adjust lower arm camber as close to full positive as possible and adjust uppers to 0 or slightly negative overall camber. Hopefully that works and within spec and maybe it'll help with the cv boots too.

 

[Jono.ful]

The only thing that will fix your cv angles is a dif drop, or reducing the lift

 

[harkco]

Checked my Icons yesterday after seeing this thread. Looks like my driver's side has a small leak after about 30K miles. What is the worse case scenario for such a leak and how long could I wait before having to address it?

 

[Jono.ful]

Checked my Icons yesterday after seeing this thread. Looks like my driver's side has a small leak after about 30K miles. What is the worse case scenario for such a leak and how long could I wait before having to address it?

address it immediately. the work should take about 2 hours, and is very easy. lots of info here, on youtube, or on the manufacturer webpages. you'll need a spring compressor, circlip pliers, basic hand tools, and a floor jack with jack stands.
worst case scenario is that you could potentially ruin the shock, but the most likely scenario given a small leak is that you probably won't notice anything, ie. can you say with certainty how long it has been leaking already?
Even with a fairly significant leak, the only real indicator of a problem -aside from an oil stain - is that the ride will be overly bouncy on that particular corner

 

[Porqupine82]

15 months these have been installed.

I'm 2000 miles from home on a month long expedition.

 

[Inv4drZm]

15 months these have been installed.

I'm 2000 miles from home on a month long expedition.

FYI your lower spring perch is facing the wrong way. The gap is "supposed" to be towards the back not that it matters too much but it might have kept the shock shafts cleaner?

 

[graciedad04]

15 months these have been installed.

I'm 2000 miles from home on a month long expedition.

Overland tennesee . If i had a spare shock i could send you id ship it out tomorrow. Hope you can get something taken care of quickly. Stinks that you are so far from home. Its the worst tikme for problems to happen.

Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk

 

[Porqupine82]

Overland tennesee . If i had a spare shock i could send you id ship it out tomorrow. Hope you can get something taken care of quickly. Stinks that you are so far from home. Its the worst tikme for problems to happen.

Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk

Made it home buddy. Appreciate it

 

[Porqupine82]

FYI your lower spring perch is facing the wrong way. The gap is "supposed" to be towards the back not that it matters too much but it might have kept the shock shafts cleaner?

Hmm very good to know

 

[cbreze]

Bumping an older thread, I commented a year or so back in it and now have 6 years and 37k miles on my icons and no leaks(knock wood). I found an awesome mechanic here in town and while he doesn;t do shock rebuilds he referred me to someone who actually specializes in it, also local. I am not able to do the work myself and so to be prepared I was thinking of getting a full replacement set of parts ahead of time. Maybe even 2 new front shocks complete. That way there is not much down time at all and I can do a swap out as needed. I will be chatting with the rebuild shop soon before doing anything. I'm curious how much longer they will last before starting to drip oil and I'd prefer to be fully ready. More money involved but keeping the 4runner for many more years so maybe not a bad idea.
Was wondering if anyone has done this. Looking at 2 week turn arounds for parts seems like one solution but maybe not the best idea. Parts in hand, maybe complete 2nd set sounds reassuring.

 

[nb rob]

Bumping an older thread, I commented a year or so back in it and now have 6 years and 37k miles on my icons and no leaks(knock wood). I found an awesome mechanic here in town and while he doesn;t do shock rebuilds he referred me to someone who actually specializes in it, also local. I am not able to do the work myself and so to be prepared I was thinking of getting a full replacement set of parts ahead of time. Maybe even 2 new front shocks complete. That way there is not much down time at all and I can do a swap out as needed. I will be chatting with the rebuild shop soon before doing anything. I'm curious how much longer they will last before starting to drip oil and I'd prefer to be fully ready. More money involved but keeping the 4runner for many more years so maybe not a bad idea.
Was wondering if anyone has done this. Looking at 2 week turn arounds for parts seems like one solution but maybe not the best idea. Parts in hand, maybe complete 2nd set sounds reassuring.

hi cbreze,
I've got two sets of shocks, and if it's in your budget, I recommend it.
I work on my own and like to have them on the bench for a while and get around to them when I have the parts and time, but that's not unlike your scenario.

Shocks move a lot, and 6 years is a long time to expect adequate service from your seals. Contaminants get in, and if you leave it long enough you will need to replace wear bands also (icon might recommend replacement of wear bands for all rebuilds...?) A seal kit is cheap, and a good time for clean up, inspection, and new oil.
I guess what I'm saying is, don't wait for oil leakage to be an indication for service. You can allow contaminants to create wear beyond items in the regular seal service kit.

 

[cbreze]

hi cbreze,
I've got two sets of shocks, and if it's in your budget, I recommend it.
I work on my own and like to have them on the bench for a while and get around to them when I have the parts and time, but that's not unlike your scenario.

Shocks move a lot, and 6 years is a long time to expect adequate service from your seals. Contaminants get in, and if you leave it long enough you will need to replace wear bands also (icon might recommend replacement of wear bands for all rebuilds...?) A seal kit is cheap, and a good time for clean up, inspection, and new oil.
I guess what I'm saying is, don't wait for oil leakage to be an indication for service. You can allow contaminants to create wear beyond items in the regular seal service kit.

Thanks for your input. I figured I was pushing it a bit at 6 years. I guess I know what I will be doing soon.