I need y'all to help me figure out what to do - okay, so I'm a girl, and I drive this truck. No biggie. But it's rough. I mean, like, I don't want to be a passenger in it at times rough. Bounces my ***** waaaay too much rough. On anything other than the freeway.

I know that with it being 4WD, and with 20" rims, and the shorter bed, some of that is inherent. But how much of this could be attributed to my shocks? I haven't pulled one yet to check it, but that's on the agenda for the holiday break. And if I change them out, how can I be assured I will get a smoother ride instead of stiffer one? God knows I don't need that, and I don't want to make a spendy mistake.

What confuses me is that it seems most on here prefer for it to "feel like a truck" - well I do too to a certain extent, but do I have to sacrifice all thoughts of comfort because it is? If I buy the shocks recommended by most of you, will it ride even more rough? I don't want a squishy Cadillac ride (those make me carsick - blech), but it would be nice to keep a few teeth.

Your help, as always, is appreciated....

 

Pam...

My wife noticed a big difference in between the stock Rancho Fx4 shocks and the Bilstein 5100 series that installed. She loved the bilsteins...but I think she would have loved anything that worked to be honest. My stockers were done. From my experience, the Bilstein are a firmer shock in general and can take the abuse of a daily driver or a heavy off-road hauler and do it for a long time (I had over 80k on my last set and they were still in great shape).

The Rancho 9000's have some adjust ability that you may find desirable to fit the ride you are looking for specifically for YOU. The Bilsteins offer no adjustment. For that reason, you may want to look at the Rancho 9000's. I really don't think you could go wrong with either one. They appear to be pleasing a lot of us.

 

Thanks Savage, that helps a lot. Glad I'm not the only woman that needs a smoother ride!

 

Either Rancho's or Bilsteins will help. Have you tried running with a lower air pressure in the rear tires?
My girls can tell a big difference between 80 and 55psi.

Good looking ponies btw. What breed?

 

Have not tried the air pressure trick, that will be another thing to test. Thanks!

And both horses are AQHA. Mares.

 

Pam the rancho rs9000xl are awsome. You can even get a remote to adjust shocks to 9 different settings sitting in your truck. Dont. Even get outta truck. Get online and read about them. Like night and day. I believe it will make your hooters feel much happier.least my wife says they do.lol

 

You have to have the TPMS threshold reset to go below 63 or so. I went thru 3 dealers before i could find someone that would lower it. Most said it couldn't be done.

Here is my daughter's grey 4 year old MFT mare.

 

[quote=2horses;12608058]Have not tried the air pressure trick, that will be another thing to test. Thanks!

I run my tires at 45PSI for that very reason. It's the best way to achieve a smoother ride. It does require me to reset the dummy light every time I start the truck, but it's well worth it.

 

I went with rancho 9000's when I did my lift and it rides far, far better than stock did. I didn't have the FX4 shocks and the 9000's for me run far better than stock.

 

Go to the dealer. They can reprogram the TPMS for a lower PSI.

Personally, not sure I would run at 45, but thats just me. I run 65 on all 4 unless I'm towing heavy, then air the rears up to 80. Had the dealer reprogram the TPMS to 60psi all around.

 

Just remember. Shocks are there to slow down the suspension moving either up or down as you go over bumps. The other function is to slow down the rebound after you have gone over a bump. Finally, the are to stop any more reaction of the suspension once you have gone over the bump. Without shocks it would feel like you are riding on a trampoline, constant up and down bounce.

A firm shock will transfer the thud from a bump up into the cab, a soft one will work to erase the thud and absorb it all.

In Bilsteins case, they are designed to allow softer feel over general driving but when things get more severe the shock stiffens up. Something to do with valves and gas charge I think.

What's my point? When you (someone heavy so prob not you) jump on the rear bumper of the truck a couple times to get it moving, jump off and watch how many bounces there are. Truck should stop after two bounces. No bounce means a seized shock, too many bounces means a weak shock.

Also, general ride is really the hard tires. Shocks will help to dampen the bumps but the tires do most of the transfer into the cab. Working on both will help.

Also, throw 200 pounds of something in the rear of the bed. When I tow a fifth wheel trailer it's like a Lincoln town car for ride! That's more like 1200 pounds though....

 

These trucks were designed by guys. Boob bouncability is one of the things they fine tuned during engineering. They actually have a special sensor equipped bra for use by female test drivers. I believe the 6.7 scored an 8.4 on the Jiggleometer scale. It was actually an important factor when choosing my truck. Just remember this is how they are designed and changing you shocks may void your warranty. It cant be more intense than running around on your horses.

 

Priceless!

Seriously, lowering the air pressure helps.

 

Same here, when im going on long rides with the wife in the truck I turn all the shocks down to one and drop about 10psi air pressure on the tires and she enjoys the ride much better!

 

Send us a video of too rough and then we'll provide shocks recomendations!