Current FZJ80 shock replacement options, what's good? (1 Viewer)

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ghettoraid

Joined
Jun 21, 2011
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Deep in the Mojvae Desert
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Just got my 1993 FZJ running again after sitting for 4 years because I thought the motor was blown, turned out to be just the radiator or else the truck fixed itself.

Anyhow, really soft when turning one direction and so I think I have a popped shock in the front end, at least. Current suspension is 2.5" OME lift with base nitro sport shocks installed by Slee in 2012 when I lived in Denver. I have about 50k miles on the OMEs, so they are probably due for a change anyway. I was reasonably happy with the on and off road performance and ride comfort.

Currently looking at replacements from:

OME Nitro sport $110 each
OME Performance $460 each
Fox PERFORMANCE SERIES 2.0 IFP $170 each
King OEM performance w/reservoir $600 each
Bilstein 5100 $110 each

I now live in the SoCal desert so off road will be in a faster desert trail environment or washboarded roads. I don't really crawl and I'm not planning on having anything to to with King of the Hammers type stuff. Driving is 80% highway and 20% off road.

Would love recommendation on where I ought to be price/performance wise. I do like the idea of buying local with Fox or King and those options are both rebuildable locally in my town, as well.
 
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Update:

Fox, King, Bilstein and Slee (for OME) have all sworn to me that their shocks are the best I can possibly get for my truck.

Down South Motorsports says the Fox and Bilstein 5100 ride about the same.

I bought Bilstein 5100 because they're $70 cheaper per shock and have a lifetime warranty.
 
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I have the Fox and love them. Got them from Down South Motorsports
 
I have Bilstein shocks on one 80, Stock original shocks on the other. The Bilsteins control nose dive and body sway/roll (when changing lanes) a bit better than the stock shocks. Both the Bilsteins and the OEM shocks have over 200,000 miles on each set so not comparing new to old, both have high miles. No experience with the Fox shocks.

Changing the worn original front sway bar bushings to Energy Suspension bushings on one 80 also decreased body sway/roll. Never got around to the rear sway bar bushings. FWIW.
 
Kernal said:
Changing the worn original front sway bar bushings to Energy Suspension bushings on one 80 also decreased body sway/roll. Never got around to the rear sway bar bushings. FWIW.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the heads up. I called Energy but they didn't have an application so I just ordered stock replacements form Cruiser Outfitters. My fronts are shot.
 
ghettoraid said:
I bought Bilstein 5100 because they're $70 cheaper per shock and have a lifetime warranty.
Click to expand...
I wouldn't get to worked up about the Bilsteins having a lifetime warranty. I've owned them in that past, and when they started to leak oil i contacted them about their "life time" warranty. They told me i had to send the shocks back to them at my expense for a warranty inspection. Then i ended up waiting about 6 weeks for them to inspect them.

You see they needed to make up their mind if the leak would be covered under their "life time" warranty, or if the cause of the leak was, as they put it, damage caused by unapproved owner modification, abuse or neglect. In the mean time while I'm waiting for them to decide my truck is sitting because it has no shocks.

Long story short, they didn't repair them under warranty, they told me they had been damaged by being over extended through owner abuse. They said i must of been driving my truck over some type of jumps to cause the damage they found. By the way that never happen, they just didn't want to honor their "life time" warranty. But they did tell me that they would be more than happy to fix the ones i sent them, at a cost that was almost as much as it would be to buy a new set, i told them to go pound sand.
 
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I have had bilestien and fox shocks on my 80 with ome springs. The fox have a softer initial dampening ( i dont know the correct terminology) , which i like better. The bilstiens felt a little harsh to me.
 
I just bought and installed the icon stage 1 kit for $1500 or so. I was running stock height OME shocks. Words can’t describe the difference in daily driving. These shocks are also rebuildable and this kit comes with just about every you need.
 
So. . .while were at it, I just measured from hu bo flare and have 21.5" in the front and 24" in the rear with the 2" OME lift from Slee. I looked in the wheel measurement thread and this seems way way off what most others have. Truck is dead stock with no bolt on additions.

Any suggestions here?
 
For "go-fast" driving, I've yet to experience an off the shelf shock for the 80 series as good as the Slinky Stage 4 shocks . Been running them on my 80 for the past few years now. 2.5 shock body, remote reservoir, 10 point adjustable, internal hydro bump zone. The get smoother as the speed increases. Different price bracket than an OME nitrocharger but the best IMO if you like "spirited" driving in the desert.

IMG_8007 by Adam Tolman, on Flickr

IMG_8374 by Adam Tolman, on Flickr

And if you want to get one more step better, the dual bypass version is also available. I know @Dirty Koala has them on his 80.
Untitled by Adam Tolman, on Flickr

Should have my own set of the bypass versions soon. Can't wait. A lot of people think a nice suspension is only useful offroad, but that's just not true. When you spend the majority of your time on the road, that's where a really good suspension helps a lot. Of course, it's awesome offroad as well but it's definitely not a waste on a truck that is mainly a highway rig but still likes to play hard.

Mill Creek Overland sells the Slinky shocks. They are different specs from the similar style Icon versions. I'm personally a big fan of how these slinky ones are tuned for the 80.
 
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If you want to stay closer to the price range of the OME/Bilstein type stuff, the Slinky stage 1 shocks are great. I ran those for a year before upgrading. Really nice shock if you're just shopping for a 2.0 smooth body shock.
IMG_0629 by Adam Tolman, on Flickr
 
I can't seem to find the price for the Slinky stage 1 suspension. Can you give us a ball park figure?
 
Tachycardic said:
I can't seem to find the price for the Slinky stage 1 suspension. Can you give us a ball park figure?
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I got mine as part of a kit so I'm not sure of the individual shock price. But a call to Mill Creek would get you the answer.

Mill Creek Overland

millcreekoverland.com millcreekoverland.com
 
I have had Slinky Stage 4 on one of my 80's for a few years...awesome setup. I had Stage 1 slinky shocks on my LX450 for a year, and they are awesome also. I pulled those and put them on the shelf when I upgraded to the dual bypass stage 5 slinky Icons. Now that is a magnificent shock...definitely in a different price bracket than most are willing to pony up for shocks, but if you like to get rowdy in the desert, nothing out there rides better. On the street, it makes evasive maneuvering very controlled. I have crossed median dividers at 50mph like it was nothing with the Stage 5's.
 
Dirty Koala said:
I have had Slinky Stage 4 on one of my 80's for a few years...awesome setup. I had Stage 1 slinky shocks on my LX450 for a year, and they are awesome also. I pulled those and put them on the shelf when I upgraded to the dual bypass stage 5 slinky Icons. Now that is a magnificent shock...definitely in a different price bracket than most are willing to pony up for shocks, but if you like to get rowdy in the desert, nothing out there rides better. On the street, it makes evasive maneuvering very controlled. I have crossed median dividers at 50mph like it was nothing with the Stage 5's.
Click to expand...
Gosh! I can't wait for mine to show up.
 
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