New shocks?

[rtbrjason]

99 Expedition, 130k miles 5.4 awd without air suspension.

Honestly, when I bought this truck I was really looking for a range rover (99-02).

It turns out all range rovers from that era are over priced and in rough shape and repairs costs are ridiculous for almost everything.

One of the big things about the range rover was the ride quality, both with stock air suspension and aftermarket coil replacements it was amazing. If you hit train tracks for instance you can barely tell, where as with my Expy it feels like it's going to fall apart or rattle apart over major bumps/tracks.

I know I won't get Rover like ride quality out of this thing, but what shocks am I looking for to get me as close as possible? I don't really care about handling or anything other than superior ride quality. Thanks!

 

[FordandPolaris]

Bilsteins are favorites around here. I use Rancho's personally and think they do just fine. I had a set of cheap Monroe's but they weren't any better than the stockers they replaced. Call an auto parts store and they should be able to get you parts numbers, etc. My Rancho's are the RS5000 series i believe. Honestly these trucks are not going to absorb bumps like the higher end SUV's will. Just the nature of the beast.

 

[rtbrjason]

Thanks for the input. I know it will never ride like a high end SUV but I want to move closer to the direction rather than further.

With Bilsteins am I going to get a harsher ride as they're more tuned for handling?

Bilsteins came stock on my car and I like them for that application but not sure about putting a set on the truck. I've also looked into the Ranchos (5000 and 9000 series) as well as the KYB Gas-a-Just and Mono Max.

Of those listed does anyone have any thoughts on which will "absorb bumps" best?

thanks!

 

[Stoned06]

Bilsteins will be a little firmer of a ride, so I would guess that's not what you want. Honestly, Motorcrafts are designed to give a softer ride,and are specifically designed for the specific vehicle.
Ranchos would give you a softer ride also. If you are going aftermarket, I would suggest those. But like what was previously said, the Gen 1 Expys are not known for their cushy ride. The Gen 2 are better, but still nowhere near a Range Rover.

 

[rtbrjason]

Okay so I gather no one shock is going to significantly increase ride quality over another and that any shock I get should be a large improvement over what I think are original shocks (130k) miles.

So I'm just going to purchase a high quality shock. I've narrowed it down to the Bilsteins or KYB Monomax.

Bilsteins are $285 shipped.
Monomax are $255 shipped.

 

[rtbrjason]

I didn't spend a lot of time thinking about this and was hoping to have them here for the weekend so I just chose the Bilstein. I know it's a quality product and for $30 more it seemed like the right choice.

 

[Stoned06]

Good choice. I put the Bilsteins on my '06 and like them. I also had them on my '02 Harley F150 and past BMW's and loved them on those too. Can't really go wrong with them.

 

[BakerEdition]

I didn't spend a lot of time thinking about this and was hoping to have them here for the weekend so I just chose the Bilstein. I know it's a quality product and for $30 more it seemed like the right choice.

I got a 2000 same as yours and am looking for better handling than ride...let me know how you like the bilstiens please!

 

[71Rcode]

I just installed bilsteins. Look for my writep in the suspension section.

 

[BakerEdition]

you posted it already..or your gonna?

 

[rtbrjason]

My buddy with a shop/lift installed these for me. It took him maybe 15 mins to do both the rears and maybe 20-30 for the fronts so I'm glad I let him do it rather than wrestling with it my driveway for a whole day.

Initial impression is that I don't squat so much on take off or nose dive as much while braking. Handling feels a bit better, definitely more control over bumps though not as much ride comfort as I was hoping to get. In general still a nice upgrade over what was on there. It was hard to tell but they were motor craft gas shocks of some kind. I believe they were the originals.

 

[mazdaparts]

I replaced mine a few weeks ago with KYB gas-a-just. I too noticed less nose dive when braking and a more controlled ride. Not cushy, but controlled. Definite improvement over the original stockers with 112xxx miles. Took me and my buddy about 30-45 minutes on the lift.

If you go with the monomax, I want to know what you think about them. I almost went with them on the expedition as I had them on my F250 and really liked them alot.

 

[bosozoku]

For the price conscious members - I just put on the Monroe Reflex (rear version) shocks all around and boy, what an improvement over what I had on before (may have been Motorcraft or Sensa-trac, I don't recall) - I don't go off road or tow, but for $140 all around and less than an hour of work, I'm happy with the results.