On my last camping trip I realized that my OEM steering damper was leaking, so I guess it's time to replace it. I just wanted to get a consensus on what brand I should go with for the replacement (Moog, Monroe, Rancho, Motorcraft, etc…) and whether or not the boot is important. I want something affordable, but still reliable. Some factors that may affect the decision are that I live in a very dry desert climate and that I don't do a lot of serious off road driving. When I do go off road I rarely see any mud except when my driveway turns into a mud hole for a few weeks each year in the winter.

I’ll probably replace it here in a week or two when I also replace my front diff fluid since my front diff cover is leaking as well . Thanks to all the write-ups that have been done on it by the members here, it should be a straightforward job . Maybe if I'm feeling really productive I'll do the rear diff and xfer case as well.

 

I replaced my stocker with a Rancho RS5000 and did not install the boot simply because the stocker did not have a boot and it lasted 150,000 miles with no damage due to not having a boot.

Unfortunately, our first trip out I discovered my new Rancho was busted at the end of the shaft. I found some dents on the underside that looks like I hit something in the road. They weren't big dents and I am questioning whether or not it should have broken with only about 200 miles on it, but it did.

I replaced it with the same and am hoping Rancho will warranty the first one, but I'm not holding my breath.

 

I also replaced mine with the Rancho RS5000, and in 8 months of use with just normal on road driving it is already leaking. I ordered mine off the internet, and rancho says I can take it to any local Rancho dealer to switch it out under warrenty. I contacted a place and they don't want to warrenty it since I didn't buy from them. So I might have to ship it right to Rancho. My truck rarely see's off road conditions.

 

Well it's not looking good for Rancho brand dampers. Anyone have good luck with them?

 

I installed the rancho as well and less then a year later it was shot! Just replaced it with a Monroe I got at napa fir 42$. I've heard decent things about them so I went for it. I took the boot of my busted rancho and putvit on the Monroe. I prefer boots just to keep grit and grime from getting by. It's like insurance , plus I think it looks better w/ 1.

 

Yeah, my replacement hasn't failed since I put it on a few weeks ago. Of course, I haven't driven it yet either.

 

Here's a write up I did on my search for a replacement damper. Check it out there's a lot of good info

https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1...l#post10026096

 

I replaced my 1 year old OEM damper with a Monroe unit about 5 years ago---still going fine. I think it was under $20 back then.


RON

 

The boot is a personal choice. I currently have a Pro Comp steering damper on mine (which is probably a Monroe built to Pro Comp specs) and I'm happy with it. I would invest in a nicer unit, but I do a lot of off-roading and the damper takes it's share of shots being in front of the axle housing regardless of how hard I try to not damage it.

My tires are not that big (about 33 x 11.50") so the OEM single stabilizer design still suits me fine and does the job without any problem. The only recommendation I would make is to make sure it is a steering stabilizer (basically a shock that is designed to be operated horizontally) and not a shock absorber (designed to be operated vertically). You can save some $$$ (a shock will be about 1/2 the price of a stabilizer), but from what I understand the oil will foam up if you use a shock and you lose the damping effect.

 

I was kind of curious what the difference was between a steering stabilizer and a shock absorber. I figured there would be some difference between the two to handle being mounted horizontally instead of vertically.

Thank you everyone for your input so far. I'll probably just end up getting a Monroe that I can buy locally, that way if there is any problem I can handle it locally and not worry about shipping back to someone.

 

I had only had my truck for about a week and the damper started to leak. Faulty from day one. Warranty covered replacement.

Jim