If your shocks look like these........ (1 Viewer)

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777Gage

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They say a picture is worth a thousand words.......

IMG_20140903_172329.jpg
 
Then I replaced them today......with these! I had no idea I was riding on the 4 inch Con-Ferr Springs..........

IMG_20140903_133418.jpg
 
How did you find the Ranchos mate. I am looking at upgrading the suspension in Ruby when I start doing her up and was going to fit the 9000's into her. I see that you have replaced the Ranchos with Bilsten any reason for this.
 
A previous owner had installed the Ranchos, I honestly have never been a fan of theirs. I was curious about the ride I was currently experiencing so we decided to take one off and inspect it, that's when we discovered they were all worthless.

I had Bilstein's on my previous Tundra and loved them so I ordered some for the FJ40
 
What do you mean by worthless? Are you thinking they should always be extended like a gas shock or a coil-over?

A previous owner had installed the Ranchos, I honestly have never been a fan of theirs. I was curious about the ride I was currently experiencing so we decided to take one off and inspect it, that's when we discovered they were all worthless.
 
Probably not clear on my end, 2 of them were blown. Also, not sure how old they are, since a past owner had them installed probably with the Con-Ferr lift.
Most people don't know they come that way due to being a hydraulic shock, much more stiff ride than some like.
 
Yeah, I'm not saying that Rancho 5000s are good shocks, but I saw nothing in the first two photos that indicated those were failed shocks.

Probably not clear on my end, 2 of them were blown. Also, not sure how old they are, since a past owner had them installed probably with the Con-Ferr lift.
Most people don't know they come that way due to being a hydraulic shock, much more stiff ride than some like.
 
They say a picture is worth a thousand words.......

Is your photo showing no re-bound?

I've known my shocks are bad - I'm going to take them off over the weekend and record the time it takes to complete the rebound.

Bilstiens (5125) are on my shopping list.

Dan
 
In my first photo, the 2 on the left are fully compressed........nothing up or down at all......(not a great description on my original post at all, sorry all!)

Spotcruiser is absolutely correct, Rancho's perform different. You can push them in slowly and they will compress, but if you try and push them in fast they hold tight. That's what they are supposed to do on the vehicle when under normal driving
 
Your biggest problem is not that Rancho shocks are the arm pit of all shocks, it's more because the shocks had boots on them. The tops of the boots have small round holes in them so that they can breath, if they didn't they would blow up like a balloon every time your shocks compressed. Now when you cross streams (or just drive in the rain for that matter) the boots fill full of water- - - then how does the water drain out??? It doesn't, it just sits there and rust the shaft. Once the shaft is rusted, it wipes out the oil seal. SHOCK BOOTS ARE NOT A PIECE OF OFF ROAD EQUIPMENT.
 
Those stickers on the shock make em OLD ... Haven't seen those in 10 or 15 years... Great upgrade...


Rancho 5000 are good shocks Bilstien are Awesome shocks. To compare ones a Z06 Corvette the other a Z24 Cavalier ... Both a GM sports cars ...sorta LoL
 
Downey,
You are so right....even more so than you know. Whoever the past owner was, installed the front shocks upside down so any moisture that got into the boots couldn't drain out those holes.....it sat in there year after year until it dried itself out
 
The boots are supposed to go with the holes on the down side for both drainage and air release. I use them because you dont want excess dirt and grime to works its way down into the shock body
 
All of the shock boots I've seen clamp onto the shock body with a hose clamp or wire tie, and the holes are at the top mounting eye or stud. Water goes into those holes even when you are driving in the rain, then sits on top the oil can, at bottom of the boot, and rusts away the shock shaft.
 
dont know if it still holds water but the way to test a shock is fully extend it then hold ing the top slam it on the ground it shouldnt move .if it does its bad ,a lot of shocks push in and out but dont move when you slam them
 
Which model of the 5125's are you guys using who have a 4" lift?
Summit shows 10 different models.
 
33-185606 is the Bilstein part number on the front shocks that I ordered from Summit
 

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