Shock Comaprison

[Nsingh85]

Hi Guys,

I currently have AHC in my crusier and want to replace it.
I am not getting the suspension system locally, and will have t import the kit which either includes Fox shocks or Bilsteins.
The one for Fox costs about $3250 plus importation costs, and the Bilstein costs $2150 plus import costs.
Does any1 have any knowledge about the two systems?
Which one would you go for?
And i guess the last question is, Is the cost justified???

Cheers!

[dtt255]

Wow...I don't have a 100 series...but dang that seems like tons of money for new coilovers!

[ringpinion.biz]

not familiar with any coilover setup for 100 ifs. However, we have long travel upper a-arms that can be used with multiple shock options and allow more down travel. I run the fox remote res on all 4 corners, and it is AWESOME on & offroad. A few run a similar setup, and we set one guy up with these arms and Bilstein shocks (5100) and he reports the ride is much better than OME. This also allows more droop in the front suspension.

http://forum.ih8mud.com/100-series-c...uspension.html

[Topmounter]

Do the Foxes still require custom-made brackets for a 100?

[Nsingh85]

I think they do require custom brackets (Fox shocks) as there is an additional cost for their instalation.
Although i never got that far after i heard the total cost.

Given the above choice what would you go for????

[spressomon]

Carl (JTS above) can supply you with the OEM style upper mount (post type) Fox shocks for the rear. The fronts however do require a post type adapter as far as I know...but Carl would be the one to ask.

See #74 & #76 here:

http://forum.ih8mud.com/100-series-c...-review-3.html

The front adapters are easily fabbed BTW and should be seriously considered along with Carl's upper control arms to gain maximum droop out of the stock IFS 100 configuration...

[Nsingh85]

Originally Posted by spressomon

Carl (JTS above) can supply you with the OEM style upper mount (post type) Fox shocks for the rear. The fronts however do require a post type adapter as far as I know...but Carl would be the one to ask.

The front adapters are easily fabbed BTW and should be seriously considered along with Carl's upper control arms to gain maximum droop out of the stock IFS 100 configuration...

Cheers Spressomon,

If you dont mind, how much roughly did the entire setup cost, that includes the fox shocks, diff drop, upper arms, rear springs and the torsion bars.

Seeing as i would have to import them, i would need a rough figure so that i can work out the landed cost

Thanks again

[spressomon]

Originally Posted by Nsingh85

Cheers Spressomon,

If you dont mind, how much roughly did the entire setup cost, that includes the fox shocks, diff drop, upper arms, rear springs and the torsion bars.

Seeing as i would have to import them, i would need a rough figure so that i can work out the landed cost

Thanks again

Contact Slee Offroad for the OME spring pricing and also Slee's own diff drop kit pricing.

Contact Carl (see Ringpinion.biz above) for Fox shock and UCA pricing.

[SWUtah]

Originally Posted by Nsingh85

Hi Guys,

I currently have AHC in my crusier and want to replace it.
I am not getting the suspension system locally, and will have t import the kit which either includes Fox shocks or Bilsteins.
The one for Fox costs about $3250 plus importation costs, and the Bilstein costs $2150 plus import costs.
Does any1 have any knowledge about the two systems?
Which one would you go for?
And i guess the last question is, Is the cost justified???

Cheers!

Just wondering why you would want to change. The AHC seems to be a far superior system.

[Nsingh85]

Originally Posted by SWUtah

Just wondering why you would want to change. The AHC seems to be a far superior system.

Hi SWUtah,

a couple of reasons really
firstly, the road conditions we have here are a real killer on the suspension and besides toyota, there is no where else that you can gt the AHC serviced from. The ost of this is through the roof and i ca probably get 2 new suspension systems for the same price. Also the AHC doesnt stay on the high setting if you cross 60 kmph.

Secondly, i recently did a trip to North Kenya with the cruiser which was heavily loaded and the AHC would not even maintain the nutral height and was constantly in Low. This caused a lot of problems especially the rear end of the cr hitting the ground.

I guess after that i just decided to go with the normal suspension.

(I also found out that if the pump goes for the AHC, it can cost upto $4000 to replace, and here in Kenya, that would come with a 2 month wait )

[Jonty]

Kidha Singh?!

Out of interest, is your 100-series supplied by Toyota Kenya or was it an import?

Do Robbsmagic not offer anything cheaper than the prices you quoted above?

[Nsingh85]

Originally Posted by Jonty

Kidha Singh?!

Out of interest, is your 100-series supplied by Toyota Kenya or was it an import?

Do Robbsmagic not offer anything cheaper than the prices you quoted above?

Sema Jonty,

My toyota was an import, Toyota Kenya will kill you on the Prices.

Robs do offer a better deal on the kit but the thing is that the ride becomes to hard and he does not focus on suspension travel. In the kit that I have mentioned above, there is also a diff drop (for CV joints), and wishbone strenthening.

[SWUtah]

Originally Posted by Nsingh85

Hi SWUtah,

a couple of reasons really
firstly, the road conditions we have here are a real killer on the suspension and besides toyota, there is no where else that you can gt the AHC serviced from. The ost of this is through the roof and i ca probably get 2 new suspension systems for the same price. Also the AHC doesnt stay on the high setting if you cross 60 kmph.

Secondly, i recently did a trip to North Kenya with the cruiser which was heavily loaded and the AHC would not even maintain the nutral height and was constantly in Low. This caused a lot of problems especially the rear end of the cr hitting the ground.

I guess after that i just decided to go with the normal suspension.

(I also found out that if the pump goes for the AHC, it can cost upto $4000 to replace, and here in Kenya, that would come with a 2 month wait )

Thanks for the reply, we live in different worlds I never have these problems driving to the gym or local mall I would contact Slee Off road and he can fix you up with whatever you need at a fair price. Obvious you will have to do the install since Slee is located in Denver Co. USA. Good luck and keep us posted.

[Nsingh85]

Originally Posted by SWUtah

Thanks for the reply, we live in different worlds I never have these problems driving to the gym or local mall I would contact Slee Off road and he can fix you up with whatever you need at a fair price. Obvious you will have to do the install since Slee is located in Denver Co. USA. Good luck and keep us posted.

Cheers,

Usually the cars get pretty heavy when doing trips in this part of the world. For example, i would have to carry atleast 150L of diesel and water to last through the whole trip as it is hard to find water in those parts of kenya. 2 spare wheels is a must along with 4 tubes.
So you can see, the weight slowly piles up

[SWUtah]

Originally Posted by Nsingh85

Cheers,

Usually the cars get pretty heavy when doing trips in this part of the world. For example, i would have to carry atleast 150L of diesel and water to last through the whole trip as it is hard to find water in those parts of kenya. 2 spare wheels is a must along with 4 tubes.
So you can see, the weight slowly piles up

It would be interesting to hear your thoughts on the LC since you use one for the reasons they were built. The good the bad and the indifferent comments on this vehicle we all seem to worship.

[Nsingh85]

I dont have much experiance with the LC as i have only owned one for about 7 months now, but i wouldn't mind sharing my comments about them.
I think that the car has many pros and cons with regar to the same issue. For instance, the size of the vehicle is excelent for comfort and touring, but it does become hard to sqeeze it through some narrow gaps. The engine is excelent for power but i would have to carry almost double the quantity of fuel that a defender would require.
On thing that i love about the cruiser is that it is vertually dust proof and does not rattle as much, where as the defender feel as if all the bolts are loose and there is as much dust outside the car as there is in it!
One belief that i have is to keep the car as mechanical as possible, with the least of electronics. This is one reason why i bought an older model of the 100 as oposed to a 2003, although i was getting them for almost the same price in Nairobi. The Defender on the other hand is still basic, hardly any electronics, doesnt have carpeting so it cant get wet (i recently got the carpet wet of the 100, and its a pain to dry it out), and is prety much a do it yourself car.
The Defender looses value here very fast, while the cruiser maintains its value. For instance, i paid $50,000 for a 2000 model with 70,000 on the clock.
I haven't owned the cruiser long enough to comment on the reliability, but from others i hear that the defender is good till about 150,000 km and the cruiser easily does 250,000 km, and double that if well maintained.

[Jonty]

That's a high price for a 2000 model! Must be the import duties? Were the local models also AHC /IFS or mostly 105 series solid axles?

Contact the guys mentioned in the posts above, I'm sure they can hook you up with a good deal at a much lower price than you've been quoted.

Have you thought about buying an off-road trailer rather than putting all your stuff on the car itself? Should make it easier on the shocks.

Some of my friends in SA have bought new discoveries just for the air-suspension, which sorts out the issues you've been having. Kenya is a different story though.

I'm currently in the UK for a few months so, if it's easier for you to import from here, let me know and i can find out the prices.

Cheers ndugu!

[ringpinion.biz]

The biggest problem with the landcruiser IFS is the limited dowtravel. This is even worse with more ride hieght. To get more downtravel you must run a longer shock. To run a longer shock you need the Uniball a-arms to allow more travel without damaging the stock upper ball joint. It is also necessary to run the diff drop to prevent CV damage. This additional travel makes a world of difference, and had I not done these mods, I would have gone back to an 80 series. I frequently travel rough roads, and could not stand the ride with OME. With the fox shocks and upper control arms, the ride is so much better on & offroad.

Originally Posted by Nsingh85

I dont have much experiance with the LC as i have only owned one for about 7 months now, but i wouldn't mind sharing my comments about them.
I think that the car has many pros and cons with regar to the same issue. For instance, the size of the vehicle is excelent for comfort and touring, but it does become hard to sqeeze it through some narrow gaps. The engine is excelent for power but i would have to carry almost double the quantity of fuel that a defender would require.
On thing that i love about the cruiser is that it is vertually dust proof and does not rattle as much, where as the defender feel as if all the bolts are loose and there is as much dust outside the car as there is in it!
One belief that i have is to keep the car as mechanical as possible, with the least of electronics. This is one reason why i bought an older model of the 100 as oposed to a 2003, although i was getting them for almost the same price in Nairobi. The Defender on the other hand is still basic, hardly any electronics, doesnt have carpeting so it cant get wet (i recently got the carpet wet of the 100, and its a pain to dry it out), and is prety much a do it yourself car.
The Defender looses value here very fast, while the cruiser maintains its value. For instance, i paid $50,000 for a 2000 model with 70,000 on the clock.
I haven't owned the cruiser long enough to comment on the reliability, but from others i hear that the defender is good till about 150,000 km and the cruiser easily does 250,000 km, and double that if well maintained.

[NMuzj100]

Fun to talk with those really using the Land Cruiser at it's limits.

A link for .... WELCOME TO ROMAGECO

[Nsingh85]

Originally Posted by NMuzj100

Fun to talk with those really using the Land Cruiser at it's limits.

A link for .... WELCOME TO ROMAGECO

Hi NMuzj100,

I know Romageco quite well, that is where i have got most of the accessories for the cruiser from. Regarding the suspension system, i know he does an excelent job for live axle cruisers. I am not sure about the IFS system however. His system will definately improve the ride but i dont think that it has much improvement for axle travel.

[Nsingh85]

Originally Posted by Jonty

That's a high price for a 2000 model! Must be the import duties? Were the local models also AHC /IFS or mostly 105 series solid axles?

Contact the guys mentioned in the posts above, I'm sure they can hook you up with a good deal at a much lower price than you've been quoted.

Have you thought about buying an off-road trailer rather than putting all your stuff on the car itself? Should make it easier on the shocks.

Some of my friends in SA have bought new discoveries just for the air-suspension, which sorts out the issues you've been having. Kenya is a different story though.

I'm currently in the UK for a few months so, if it's easier for you to import from here, let me know and i can find out the prices.

Cheers ndugu!

Its the duty structure here that does it. I have thought about a trailer, and i am thinking to actually build one myself, i have managed to find a good thread that explains exactly how you can do it.

[Muddy.au]

Go the Fox I have had Standard, OME, Bilsteins and then Fox it’s just a progression from worst to best, cheapest to most expensive if you want travel and ride spend the money do it the first time.

[ringpinion.biz]

Here are some pics of the rear fox shocks (bolt on stem top) the front fox shocks w/ limiting straps and pin-eye converter (bolton) at full droop for the front. Also a pic of the uniball a-arms seperately.

[Assassin_Offroad]

Originally Posted by Muddy.au

Go the Fox I have had Standard, OME, Bilsteins and then Fox it’s just a progression from worst to best, cheapest to most expensive if you want travel and ride spend the money do it the first time.

That is our set up, that we have been quoting for, or Bilstein, and anyone who thinks OME is in the same ball park as either the Bilstein, or Fox, has had the marketing work on them ;-)

The rears in the above truck are longer than the FJ looking set up ringpinion man runs, and our front are long enough to run 3.5" front lift, with pour 4" rear coils, and our bump spacers for 35"s on the right offset rim, and the sway bar mounts modified to stop the sway bars hitting the shocks, or stopping the travel.

I would be interested to try a set of top arm,s to see how much more we can get from the front, but I think the chassis bushes may be a limiting factor, to get another 50mm down travel we would have avalabale, with everything, except the top arms at the moment stopping us.

In the rear we also could potentially run another 1" of droop, if we chnaged the shock length again on the Foxs.

And just for

Heres a 80 vs 100 pic comparison



And this is how it sits with full gear for a 2 week desert trip, lr tanks, 3 people on board, roof rack, around 3.8 tonne, [8300#] on a recent deserty trip we did.

[Tom B]

Originally Posted by Assassin_Offroad

That is our set up, that we have been quoting for, or Bilstein, and anyone who thinks OME is in the same ball park as either the Bilstein, or Fox, has had the marketing work on them ;-)

The rears in the above truck are longer than the FJ looking set up ringpinion man runs, and our front are long enough to run 3.5" front lift, with pour 4" rear coils, and our bump spacers for 35"s on the right offset rim, and the sway bar mounts modified to stop the sway bars hitting the shocks, or stopping the travel.
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