2001 Ext. Cab 4X4 with 33's and 40K mi. and cranked torsion bars. I want something firm and sporty (truck like) with minimal body roll. I don't want to pay out the ear so the best of the best is probably out. Truck mostly stays on the street and I sometimes haul around a dirtbike or two.

Considering Pro Comp ES 3000 / 9000's, Rancho RS 5000's, both buy 3 get one free from 4wheelparts.com. I'm also interested in the Bilstein's, but I'm not sure which one everyone is talking about when they go off bragging on them. I assume the 5100's? Any idea where to score a similar deal to the Pro Comp / Ranchos?

Has anyone written a 4 wheel shock replacement how-to? Thanks!!!

-AR

 

Well lets see. I did a ton of searching on this too and got tons and tons of opinions.

You seem to have alreay decided that OEM replacements like Menroes are out and you want something a little better. I decided that same thing because when the truck was new I did not think the ride was all that great. Okay but nothing to really talk about. So with that in mind.

The 3 major replacement brands in the higher dollar catagory are:

1. Edelbrock ISA's
2. Rancho 5000's or 9000's - 9000's being much higher
3. Bilsteins

Everyone else chime in, there are many, many, many, makers and products out there. Do your own research and make informed decisions, these 3 are what I read about the most so I am guessing that they hold the market share.

I went with the Edelbrock's because of the great things I have heard on this site about them and the cost was not too bad. Not to mention the good standing relationship Edelbrock has brought to the table in the past years in aftermartket parts. Also don't forget that the ISA's are a new valve design (compared to the OEM replacements) and I wanted to try them.

Price was pretty much all within 5-10 bucks difference on all searches I made. So I got mine from a larger mail order place where I had a coupon for 20 bucks off and I had dealt with before and had great service.

Install is easy. I did not even take off the tires (I have a 2000 4x4, 40k miles).

Common sense stuff like flat surfaces, jack stands, eye protection, hand protection and the use of WD-40 or simular I am not going to get into. If you are going to put on shocks then you already know all about that stuff.

To the best of my memory this is pretty much the bottom line on the install.

Fronts:
1. jack up front of truck until the tires are just off the ground, makes the install if the new shocks easier.
2. remove the bottom bolt and nut. 13mm and 11/16" I think. Used air tools and would suggest it for this. The 13mm nut can be gotten from the hole in the lower A arm. use hammer and punch to drive out rusted bolt. Save it you will reuse it.
3. remove the top bolt, 18mm I believe, you will need to hold the shock with an 18mm open end wrench so it does not turn.
4. with the upper and lower bolts off then the shock can come out, of course you will have to compress the old shock so it fits through the Lower A arm. The shocks are old and will compress rather easily, just get a good grip and push hard, most likely it will stay compressed and you will not have to hurry to get it out. If yours are still rather stiff you can use a pry bar and wedge the bottom out with a little persuading. shock and upper nut/bushing can go in the garbage, nothing to be used there again.
5. Open boxes and preassemble the new shocks. Rubber bushing at top of shock is 2 parts, lower and upper. The lower one looks like a rubber cone and rubber washer together and the top one looks like a rubber donut. Instructions suck on that and had to look at old shocks for a hint.
6. On the Edelbrocks there was not a strap compressing the fronts to help in installing them, so after trying without the strap we decided to make our own. simple wire wrapped around the top (under the bushing and washer) with a lead hanging to mid shock and then the other end going down around the bottom of the lower eyelet and back up to the first lead. then while someone compresses the shock and holds it the other needs to twist the wires together so it can hold the shock compressed.
7. Install the new shock in the hole and seat the bottom and push the bolt through. The new shocks have better bushings in them and a little pushing and pulling back and forth may need to happen to get this done. I also used a punch in the bolt hole to line it all up, helped a bunch. Start the bolt but do not tighten yet.
8. Point the top of the shock to the mounting hole and release the wires and the shock will expand (slowly, but faster than the used up old ones) and if directed correctly will fit directly in the hole. Pull the wire out from the bottom eyelet and the top bolt and save for front shock #2.
9. Attach top bushing and nut.
10. Tighten top and bottom nuts and bolts and install the top locking nut. It helps if you have a helper holding the top part of the shock when tightening the upper nut to compress the bushings a little bit otherwise it will spin.
11. repeat for other front side shock.


Rears:
1. Jack up back end until the tries are just off the ground.
2. Remove lower shock bolt, 18mm and 11/16". Air tools recommended. Keep the lower bolt/nut, it will be used again.
3. the top nut is a little tricky because no air tools will fit in there between the bottom of the bed and the bolt. An 18mm deep socket and a long ratchet makes the removal to half way pretty easy. After the halfway point the rod/nut just spins and you need your helper again to push the bottom of the shock to the back of the truck so there is a little side pressure on the rod/nut so it will not turn. Then I used an open end wernch to remove the nut so I could see that the rod was not spinning and the nut was in fact comming off.
4. The rear shocks do come with the retainer straps on them, so no tricky non-sense with wire to make them this time. The only thing I would suggest is installing the top washer/bushing on the shock before installing. Compress the shock enough to install the washer/bushing and then let it expand to so the strap retains it again. This will take 2 people again, but worth the time savings in the long run. The bushings are the same in the rear as the fronts, the coneand washer bushing on the bottom and the donut type one on the top.
5. Install the bottom bolt and start the nut.
6. line up the top of the rod and the hole. Cut the strap near the top so it does not get caught in the hole while the shock expands. have the second person pull on the strap after/during the cutting to make sure it will get out of the way.
7. Install top bushing and nut. Hold the upper part of the shock again while tightening so the bushing get compressed.
8. repeat for other rear side shock.


For 2 guys that are familar with tools and basic maintenance this should only take about an hour to an hour and a half (of course the second side always goes better and faster)


Ride review:
Night and day difference. If I had known that it would be such a big improvement I would not have waited until 40k to do them. Almost the same feeling that I got when I got rid of those crappy goodyear tires and got some better ones. Anyone that went through that will understand where I am coming from. The ride is firm but not too firm. Just enough to feel the road and the movement of the truck but never harsh. The approach to my driveway is much better too, only one back and forth opposed to 2-3 with the worn out ones.

So that is about it.

 

Jackal - I looked at all your mods and I think if you want to cut down the body roll the new shocks will help, but the best thing would be a rear sway bar.

I put the helwig one on about 2.5 years ago and never looked back. It was a big help with the body roll.

 

Thanks guys...excellent how-to BTW...I will print that off and try to get to it this weekend. Think I will go with the RS-5000's though I really wanted the Bilsteins at over $100 more. Hell, 3 years ago I would have just paid the dealer to replace with stock...glad I have this board and you guys to help me spend my money on better equipment.



-AR