Hey guys I'm new here but just wanted to share some insight. I used this forum to help make some decisions for my 2003 Toyota but I think I can add some parody to the discussions.
I have a virtually stock but well maintained Sequoia and used some Bilstein 5100s to get rid of the factory rake. The front shocks have been fantastic and flawless and the rear 5100s feel amazing but there is a design flaw with these on our vehicles as seen in the picture:
This has happened to me three times on the rear shocks but one of them has not unthreaded itself in the three years I've used these. I noticed that the one shock that hasn't unthreaded itself has some type of loctite oozing out so it seems Bilstein caught wind of the news and made some adjustments on some shocks.
The real problem comes from all the shortages of rear 5100s for the 1st gen Sequoia so I looked elsewhere. Commonly praised were Dobinson shocks so I decided to give them a try. I got the GS59-682 shocks which are twin tubes while the Bilstein are monotubes. I get that these are built differently. I can find these Bilsteins for roughly $100 but do to the shortages they don't exist while the Dobinsons run roughly $150. I can tell you emphatically that the Dobinsons don't come anywhere near the ride quality and control these Bilsteins have. Immediately after I put the Dobinsons on it felt like someone had placed 1000lbs of sand bags in the back of my truck. The rear end was bouncy, sloppy, and seemingly always one step behind where it was supposed to be during compression/rebound. If anyone is trying to decide between these two shocks don't think for a second that the Dobinsons will suffice. If you want soft, bouncy shocks get the Dobinsons. If you want a firmer, not harsh, but very confident ride quality get the Bilsteins.
I tried returning these shocks to Dobinson after feeling like they were Ebay ride quality and hoping to swap for their IMS setup since it is monotube but they gave me a polite middle finger. I don't mean they are ebay quality as in they will leak their oil on day two but ebay quality in the sense that there was no real intention to design these to suit the Sequoia. It feels like they designed these shocks with the intent that the Toyota springs handle the majority of the responsibility while the shocks are just back up help.
This is just my 2 cents and I know "ride quality" can vary and is completely subjective but I can confidently die on this hill with this topic. I'm hoping Bilstein ramps up their production and fix this design flaw.
I have a virtually stock but well maintained Sequoia and used some Bilstein 5100s to get rid of the factory rake. The front shocks have been fantastic and flawless and the rear 5100s feel amazing but there is a design flaw with these on our vehicles as seen in the picture:
This has happened to me three times on the rear shocks but one of them has not unthreaded itself in the three years I've used these. I noticed that the one shock that hasn't unthreaded itself has some type of loctite oozing out so it seems Bilstein caught wind of the news and made some adjustments on some shocks.
The real problem comes from all the shortages of rear 5100s for the 1st gen Sequoia so I looked elsewhere. Commonly praised were Dobinson shocks so I decided to give them a try. I got the GS59-682 shocks which are twin tubes while the Bilstein are monotubes. I get that these are built differently. I can find these Bilsteins for roughly $100 but do to the shortages they don't exist while the Dobinsons run roughly $150. I can tell you emphatically that the Dobinsons don't come anywhere near the ride quality and control these Bilsteins have. Immediately after I put the Dobinsons on it felt like someone had placed 1000lbs of sand bags in the back of my truck. The rear end was bouncy, sloppy, and seemingly always one step behind where it was supposed to be during compression/rebound. If anyone is trying to decide between these two shocks don't think for a second that the Dobinsons will suffice. If you want soft, bouncy shocks get the Dobinsons. If you want a firmer, not harsh, but very confident ride quality get the Bilsteins.
I tried returning these shocks to Dobinson after feeling like they were Ebay ride quality and hoping to swap for their IMS setup since it is monotube but they gave me a polite middle finger. I don't mean they are ebay quality as in they will leak their oil on day two but ebay quality in the sense that there was no real intention to design these to suit the Sequoia. It feels like they designed these shocks with the intent that the Toyota springs handle the majority of the responsibility while the shocks are just back up help.
This is just my 2 cents and I know "ride quality" can vary and is completely subjective but I can confidently die on this hill with this topic. I'm hoping Bilstein ramps up their production and fix this design flaw.
