Need New Shocks

Hmmm. I don't know what the wheeling is like in the Texas Hill Country, Tampa, Florida or Connecticut, but, as mentioned, several of my Intermountain West and Rocky Mountain brethren here in Idaho gave the Bilsteins the overwhelming thumbs up for our uses. Given that my current shocks are the suspension equivalent of rebar studs, I think I'll be good to go.

Please note that I have no personal experience with Bilstein as stated above, so my comments were based off the Jeep, Audi and BMW forums, where Bilsteins are not well liked, and in the BMW world, at least the e90 and e60 platforms, they are hated...hated....and more hated.

I hope they work for you and you like them. I am curious to hear feedback from you so follow-up with your thoughts.
 
Also, the actual face-to-face humans I spoke with, a couple of legit offroad industry professionals and several guys who wheel here where I wheel and run the Bilsteins, all love them and suggested I'd be very happy with the set up. All personal reactions to the Ranchos were decidedly negative.

Did the humans that you spoke with have the luxury of comparing the different brands of shocks on the same Jeep back to back?

I don't know what the wheeling is like in the Texas Hill Country, Tampa, Florida or Connecticut, but, as mentioned, several of my Intermountain West and Rocky Mountain brethren here in Idaho gave the Bilsteins the overwhelming thumbs up for our uses. Given that my current shocks are the suspension equivalent of rebar studs, I think I'll be good to go.

I'm pretty sure that just about any landscape around the country has washboards on at least one trail. Maybe Idaho is completely unique in that it doesn't. I can't say for sure, I've only been there once many years ago, and that was to fish.

Many people give the Bilsteins the thumbs up since they haven't compared them to anything else. I'm pretty sure @Chris sang their praises for several years here until he had the opportunity to try a different shock. I did too, until I tried something else and then couldn't believe what I had been dealing with for two years.

You've chosen your shocks. Great! I'm sure that you will see an improvement over your current rebar studs. Maybe in a year or two you will be able to see an even better improvement by swapping to some shocks that are valved correctly for the TJ.
 
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Many people give the Bilsteins the thumbs up since they haven't compared them to anything else. I'm pretty sure @Chris sang their praises for several years here until he had the opportunity to try a different shock. I did too, until I tried something else and then couldn't believe what I had been dealing with for two years.

Very true! The Bilstein 5100 isn't bad by any means, it's a great shock. But now that I've had a chance to try out the Ranchos, I wonder why I ever ran the Bilsteins to begin with.

I think there's a reason so many of us have jumped on the Rancho bandwagon, I just didn't understand until I tried them.
 
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Did the humans that you spoke with have the luxury of comparing the different brands of shocks on the same Jeep back to back?



I'm pretty sure that just about any landscape around the country has washboards on at least one trail. Maybe Idaho is completely unique in that it doesn't. I can't say for sure, I've only been there once many years ago, and that was to fish.

Many people give the Bilsteins the thumbs up since they haven't compared them to anything else. I'm pretty sure @Chris sang their praises for several years here until he had the opportunity to try a different shock. I did too, until I tried something else and then couldn't believe what I had been dealing with for two years.

You've chosen your shocks. Great! I'm sure that you will see an improvement over your current rebar studs. Maybe in a year or two you will be able to see an even better improvement by swapping to some shocks that are valved correctly for the TJ.

Plenty of washboards here too. Indeed @Chris was a fan originally. See here: https://wranglertjforum.com/threads/bilstein-5100s-notes.5525/ and now his repy above. The "correct TJ valving" issue is the one I'm struggling to confirm. I was told the part numbers I ordered are in fact valved for the TJ. I've read that they're valved for the TJ. It seems various valvings are available in any event. I've read they will break in over time. I've read they're good paired with heavy bumpers, winches, racks and bumpers, etc. (like the OME HD set up). A winch is next for me and I tend to carry a heavy load of tools, gear, cooler, water, gas, etc. In the end, I had several local wheelers' endorsements for what we do around here. Was not a decision I made lightly or without adequate research. I've been down the suspension rabbit hole more than a few times over the last year.

Yes, I finally made a decision. Yay me! I'm sure I can live with it . . . Peace.
 
I thought Bilstein had a quality name, never used their parts but just assumed. Being on the Audi and BMW forums, Bilsteins are NOT liked at all. They are basically considered garbage, which I found odd as I just assumed they were quality, but clearly not if they are not liked on Jeeps or Germans.

Weighing in on Bilsteins: I've had about 12 BMW's over the years and have upgraded to Bilsteins on many of them---night & day positive difference in firmness & performance!!! Current M3 has the performance Bilstein. My 2013 Porsche Cayenne Diesel has bilstein shocks from the factory & at 90K+ miles, still a great ride! Ranch 9000's on my F250 Powerstroke have been ok but very corroded!
I'm needing new shocks on the Rubicon as well so am following but I cannot say enough positive about my Bilstein experiences over the last ten years.
 
Weighing in on Bilsteins: I've had about 12 BMW's over the years and have upgraded to Bilsteins on many of them---night & day positive difference in firmness & performance!!! Current M3 has the performance Bilstein. My 2013 Porsche Cayenne Diesel has bilstein shocks from the factory & at 90K+ miles, still a great ride! Ranch 9000's on my F250 Powerstroke have been ok but very corroded!
I'm needing new shocks on the Rubicon as well so am following but I cannot say enough positive about my Bilstein experiences over the last ten years.
Oh, I've Ranch 5000's on my CJ2A.
 
Weighing in on Bilsteins: I've had about 12 BMW's over the years and have upgraded to Bilsteins on many of them---night & day positive difference in firmness & performance!!! Current M3 has the performance Bilstein. My 2013 Porsche Cayenne Diesel has bilstein shocks from the factory & at 90K+ miles, still a great ride! Ranch 9000's on my F250 Powerstroke have been ok but very corroded!
I'm needing new shocks on the Rubicon as well so am following but I cannot say enough positive about my Bilstein experiences over the last ten years.

Interesting, KW seem to be the top choice, as the most tried, tested and works perfectly. Most members repair bilstein, more so with the Bilstein h&r combo, as a major downgrade from stock. Then BC racing or K sport for a tier down, and also JRZ gets top reviews, but are damn expensive.
 
Well contrary to all the warnings posted in this thread I installed the Bilstein 5100s and 1.75" pucks on my TJ Saturday. Also installed MetalCloak rear trackbar and sway bar discos. First time ever tearing into anything at this level. Made a few mistakes and had to backup and make corrections. Lucky for me my helpers have a lot of experience between them and we got it done. Only bolt we couldn't get was the lower torx bolt on the driver's side sway bar link. I cut it off with my grinder. Big moment for me! Learned a lot and gained a fair bit of confidence. Amazing to have it up on jackstands with the wheels off and the axles dropped. Really helps you see and understand what's going on under there. Brain is already turning on the next modification, probably the ZJ tie rod swap, new trackbar and steering damper. A winch and front bumper work is also high on the priority list. The bug has bit and it itches . . .

Gained a solid 2" of lift and was surprised at the difference. Really happy with the new stance. Just what I wanted. Took it out Sunday. Highway up to 70 mph, late spring mountain roads - lots of potholes, ruts and washboards and a little bit of mild trail wheeling. There is absolutely no comparison between the old worn out KYB shocks and the new Bilsteins. All I can say is, plush and smooth. There is nothing stiff, bone-jarring or teeth-rattling about them. Huge, huge suspension upgrade from where I was. Very happy with the result.

As usual photos don't really do it justice, but before:
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and after:
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