Shocks

Don Ashcraft

TJ Enthusiast
Joined
Nov 13, 2018
Messages
280
Location
Kalamazoo, MI
I've been spending most of the pandemic wrenching on my Jeep. It's been a silver lining to this whole mess.

This past Christmas my wife expressed her undying love for me with a set of Rancho 5000x shocks...Now, I'm not much of a romantic, but that spoke to my soul. Jeep Parts: The Gift That Keeps On Giving.
Then, I installed them and...ugh.
Man, I don't like them. I'm sure I'll get blasted for that opinion but there it is lol.

The PO had added a set of rubicon express shocks and a BB so I'm guessing I became accused to how those rode. The ranchos just felt too soft to me but I figured I would just deal for a year or so being they were a gift. Not very long after (February?) I was clipped in an intersection and it crunch my rear corner pretty bad. Ended up going with corner guard armor to cover that up. But that, of course, added weight so now the bounce/softness is way more prominent and I like them even less.

I was looking into Bilstein 5100s or maybe the twin tube Fox shocks that BDS offers with their coil springs. Basically I'm hoping there may be a few people on here who run something other than rancho and wouldn't mind sharing what brand and how/why they prefer them.
 
I run the rancho 9000. They are adjustable so you can adjust to find a ride that works for you. They are not perfect, but they work nicely for what they are.
I thought the 5000x were a bit too squishy as well.
 
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I run the rancho 9000. They are adjustable so you can adjust to find a ride that works for you. They are not perfect, but they work nicely for what they are.
I thought the 5000x were a bit too squishy as well.
Glad I'm not the only one. I've read good things about the 9000s.
 
Do you really need to SHOUT ABOUT IT? Have you ran over any quarters lately, to see if they're heads or tails?

Do you really need to SHOUT ABOUT IT? Have you ran over any quarters lately, to see if they're heads or tails?
Sorry about the caps lock! explain the heads and tails part.
 
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Sorry about the caps lock! explain the heads and tails part.
I think the general gist is that the bilsteins you feel the bumps in the road more so when you drive over a quarter you can "feel" if its heads or tails.

So far with the ranchos I'm too busy rocking around my seat to pay attention to the quarter lol.
 
I had the 5100s and I'm gambling on the ranchos. My bilsteins started leaking. I liked them, for the most part, and I drive the same roads you do. They are a bit chattery, but they control the big movements well... As long as they don't overheat and pack up.

I hope the ranchos are ok. They are a stop gap for me until I decide to spring for some nice, tuned foxes.
 
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I run the rancho 9000. They are adjustable so you can adjust to find a ride that works for you. They are not perfect, but they work nicely for what they are.
I thought the 5000x were a bit too squishy as well.
Too funny-when I put on my 5000Xs I thought they were real kidney beaters in comparison to the stock shocks.
 
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I had the 5100s and I'm gambling on the ranchos. My bilsteins started leaking. I liked them, for the most part, and I drive the same roads you do. They are a bit chattery, but they control the big movements well... As long as they don't overheat and pack up.

I hope the ranchos are ok. They are a stop gap for me until I decide to spring for some nice, tuned foxes.
That makes sense. I'm curious about what you'll think of the ranchos. The price of the Fox 2.0s is what made me pause more than anything. But I have a habit of trying to save a buck and then wishing I'd just got what I wanted in the first place. Are the tuned Foxes a specific line of shock that is different than the 2.0?
 
That makes sense. I'm curious about what you'll think of the ranchos. The price of the Fox 2.0s is what made me pause more than anything. But I have a habit of trying to save a buck and then wishing I'd just got what I wanted in the first place. Are the tuned Foxes a specific line of shock that is different than the 2.0?
Not exactly. I mean, they are way different than the fox 2.0 info shocks you're referring to. By tuned foxes, I mean the factory ones that are 350ish a corner and are tuned by a guy like Paul at fullstack motorsports.

FWIW, I've heard the IFP foxes ride stiff, like the bilsteins.
 
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So I changed my coil springs and the rancho x5000s feel pretty good.
I think the coils being worn out was the softness I was feeling. Now I’m not so in such a rush to change them out.