Slinky / Icon Shock Failure

[Road Apple]

Noticed abnormal dirt and oil on the front left shock while doing other work on the truck. Caught me off guard since they are brand new. Oil is escaping the top of the shock on all sides. Not a small leak.

Have had these stage 4 Slinky / Icon 2.5 shocks on the truck for a few months, less than 3,000 miles, 2 road trips, 1 short rock crawling trail, and bunch of slow, Rocky Mountain fire roads. The shocks are barely broken in.

Mill Creek is no longer the US Slinky dealer and I haven’t heard of a new one yet. Anyone know who might handle warranty work for Slinky?

You’d think Icon would stand behind these shocks. Their sales rep initial thought was that Slinky products are considered a custom setup, so Icon will not warranty them or cover the work needed to rebuild. They will rebuild the shock for $142 plus shipping. Not too bad.

 

[Shoppy]

Noticed abnormal dirt and oil on the front left shock while doing other work on the truck. Caught me off guard since they are brand new. Oil is escaping the top of the shock on all sides. Not a small leak.

Have had these stage 4 Slinky / Icon 2.5 shocks on the truck for a few months, less than 3,000 miles, 2 road trips, 1 short rock crawling trail, and bunch of slow, Rocky Mountain fire roads. The shocks are barely broken in. Broke is what they are.

Mill Creek is no longer the US Slinky dealer and I haven’t heard of a new one yet. Anyone know who might handle warranty work for Slinky?

You’d think Icon would stand behind these shocks. Their sales rep initial thought was that Slinky products are considered a custom setup, so Icon will not warranty them or cover the work needed to rebuild. They will rebuild the shock for $142 plus shipping. Not too bad.

Darren at 4xOverland would be the man to talk to, though difficult to reach. Awaiting email reply.

Anyone have luck with getting Slinky / Icon shock warranty issues handled in the US? Where? Contact info?



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Might be worth it to toss warranty out the window, get the parts and or have it resealed locally, Darren holds up his end of the bargain but as you know is across the pond...

 

[Road Apple]

Might be worth it to toss warranty out the window, get the parts and or have it resealed locally, Darren holds up his end of the bargain but as you know is across the pond...

Good advise. It’s not that expensive to handle it myself.

 

[4DOORFJ]

I had all four stage 1 shocks blow out on a single trip to Moab. I contacted icon and they warrantied them at no charge. Just had to shop them.

 

[Box Rocket]

Good advise. Its not that expensive to handle it myself

Wiping it off and running it for a bit might not be a bad thing, just to see if that is the case. Honestly I don't think that's what is going on, but it is a possibility.

 

[jcardona1]

From my personal experience it would be out of character for Darren

I'd argue it's actually in character for Darren, based on everything I've seen said by him or or about him all over the internet. He's not exactly what one would consider a reputable vendor.

 

[Box Rocket]

I'd argue it's actually in character for Darren, based on everything I've seen said by him or or about him all over the internet. He's not exactly what one would consider a reputable vendor.

Are you saying that from personal experience with him or from what you've seen/read? He undoubtedly doesn't have the best tact online, but my personal experience and from what I've seen about how he actually handles his products has been very good and I've seen him bail past dealers that would not honor a warranty claim.

 

[jcardona1]

Are you saying that from personal experience with him or from what you've seen/read? He undoubtedly doesn't have the best tact online, but my personal experience and from what I've seen about how he actually handles his products has been very good and I've seen him bail past dealers that would not honor a warranty claim.

No personal experience of course. Please don't take this the wrong way Adam, but you're not exactly an impartial party in all this. You have, or had at one point, a vested interest and gained financially from your relationship with the Slinky brand.

 

[Box Rocket]

No personal experience of course. Please don't take this the wrong way Adam, but you're not exactly an impartial party in all this. You have, or had at one point, a vested interest and gained financially from your relationship with the Slinky brand.

Not at all trying to say I'm impartial. In fact, I'd say that my past role in working with Darren has allowed me to see how he handles things in a way that others don't see. (personal experience and not just his coarse attitude that can come out online).

For the record, I have not been involved with the business for more than a year now. So I have nothing to gain from smooth talking at this point.

 

[jcardona1]

Not at all trying to say I'm impartial. In fact, I'd say that my past role in working with Darren has allowed me to see how he handles things in a way that others don't see. (personal experience and not just his coarse attitude that can come out online).

For the record, I have not been involved with the business for more than a year now. So I have nothing to gain from smooth talking at this point.

Honestly, I think you should be paid. Darren is the maniac running around trying to burn down his own house and you're the guy chasing after him with a fire extinguisher. Companies pay big bucks for that kind of PR and damage control

 

[Road Apple]

I wouldn't say that Slinky, 4xOverland and Darren are not standing by their product......yet. He's not wrong that Millcreek should help since that is where they are purchased. That was a reasonable first step seeing that Darren is in Australia and handling it from there would be a bit more difficult. Until you hear from Millcreek about whether or not they can help with warranty repair it also seems reasonable to wipe them off and see if they continue to leak at the same pace, leak less or leak more. That could be useful information.
If Millcreek comes back and says they can't do anything, let Darren know and cross whatever bridge presents itself. I really doubt Darren is going to leave you high and dry, but, in truth, it should be handled by Millcreek. Point of purchase is the typical route to go for warranty claims.

I can totally understand the frustration of having nearly new parts not work properly and don't fault you for being upset about it. But let's see who does and doesn't step up before throwing someone under the bus. From my personal experience it would be out of character for Darren to not stand behind a product. I have less experience with Millcreek but they have a generally good reputation so hopefully they step up and it doesn't need to go to the next step.

edit: wouldn't be surprised if Darren (assuming it needs to go to that step) has you send them back into Icon for a rebuild. Also, its possible (albeit unlikely) that there was residual oil under the remote res collar from a careless assembly tech and the few trips you've made have allowed it to make its way out from under the collar. Wiping it off and running it for a bit might not be a bad thing, just to see if that is the case. Honestly I don't think that's what is going on, but it is a possibility.

With multiple trails runs scheduled the next few months, looks like I’ll be canceling them. I don’t have confidence that the shock will last.

Since a Slick Rock run didn’t force oil out, driving around town is unlikely to work the suspension enough to force more oil out, so an offroad test will be necessary.

 

[Box Rocket]

With multiple trails runs scheduled the next few months, looks like I’ll be canceling them. I don’t have confidence that the shock will last even one run.

Since Slick Rock didn’t force oil out, driving around town is unlikely to work the suspension enough to force more oil out, so an offroad test will be necessary.

In response to the other things you mentioned, if Slick rock isn’t forcing oil out then it’s difficult to know how serious the issue is. You’re right an off-road test is in order to see what happens. As I said before maybe it is some residual oil from assembly (again, for the record, not what I would put my money on) but it’s worth the minor effort to rule it out IMO.

 

[OGBeno]

Can we get back on track and get some tech back into this discussion? And not Days of Our Lives drama?



Thxs.

 

[Jorgito]

Good advise. Seems I’m on my own. Darren’s plan is to run the shock as is and see how it goes. Not the way I prefer to prep for trips.

He’s suggesting I contact Mill Creek Overland, the lastest US distributorcanceled and kicked to the curb. “Mill Creek took your money and should be helping.”

It’s not that expensive to handle it myself, but I expect Slinky, 4XOverland, and Darren to stand by their product, which they are not currently.

You are not the first to have issues with Slinky, look at this video, where the slinky coils broke just in one year and it was very difficult to get a warranty claim from slinky:

Land cruiser 105 build

 

[Broski]

Number one rule go with a company that stands behind there products.

Sorry your having to go through this Ron !!!

 

[Delta VS]

If you can’t get it figured out through proper channels, send to me with a return label. I’ll take care of it.

 

[Road Apple]

If you can’t get it figured out through proper channels, send to me with a return label. I’ll take care of it.

Very kind offer!! Thank you so much.

Reluctantly called Mill Creek Overland this morning. My hesitation was unfounded. They are currently contacting Icon to arrange warranty repair. No questions asked. Straight up good customer service.

 

[Delta VS]

No questions asked. Straight up good customer service.

As expected!

 

[Surfdc]

As expected!

I had an icon 2.0 shock leaking right from the start. (It was not part of a Slinky kit.) I purchased through Delta VS. Dave went through the proper channels and I sent the shock to icon for a free warranty repair/replace and got it back in less than a week. No hassle at all.

 

[dsmud4u]

I had an Icon 2.5 leak with in 3 months of use. It was just outside of the year warranty because I purchased while overseas. They took care of the warranty under the circumstances. Thankfully, I lived in Fontana and they were just done the street from me.