So there was a discussion on a fb group that posted epiccolwicks fox 2.0 video where he shows the 2.0s are superior than stock.

Now there was was a few guys in this fb group that claim for trucks these size with larger tires or even a slight lift that fox 2.5 coilovers with resi are the way to go.

I get they are a larger shock but I don't see how they would improve the ride quality of these trucks enough to justify the exta $

so I bring this topic to you guys, who are more seasoned and wise. What say you guys? Why would you choose the 2.0 over the 2.5 or vice versa?

 

The coilovers will give a better ride but at a huge extra cost. With that mod your truck will ride more "half ton like". Just regular 2.0s will give you at least a 40% better ride and your truck will handle better all around!

 

The resi only helps if you are really pounding your shocks for an extended time. Maybe off road or washboard .

 

I did 2.5s up front cause there's a lot of weight up there. But only when you're offroading does it matter. If you want a great street ride then 2.0s are awesome for the money. If you want to go fast off-road then 2.5s are really needed.

I didn't get coil overs. Just the shocks.

 

I want a good street ride but also when I go down hunting trails etc. I live in the south east so that's the type of terrain that I deal with.

So the 2.0s and 2.5s ride the same in the street with bumps etc but off road like dirt roads and such I need 2.5s?

whats the difference between running them as coil over vs non coilover?

 

Tricon, I noticed your resi had to be mounted in a remote location. I just ordered the 2.0 resi with adjusters. Do you think there enough room to mount the resi to the shock tube on the front shocks with the provided clamp on the 2.0's that I just ordered?

 

If you're running bigger tires just make sure they don't rub on the hose (happens often) or the resi itself.

 

From an engineering viewpoint:

Coil overs: Offer a superior solution, better ride, better handling, because it contains the shock and the coil spring inside the same envelope and solves slide loading and thrust issues. That said application becomes a challenge and for that reason you do not see it so often. Trying to fit it in at 2 or 4 corners of a car is not easy, the the issues of dealing with shock travel and spring travel. On big truck etc much more room to play.

Reservoirs: Looks cool, but needed as much as taking your accordion on the deer hunt. Work great to keep the oil cool on the Baja 1000, but for asphalt driving not needed and certainly not worth the expense...but sure looks KOOL!

Fox shocks: Became the darling of the offroad crowd and has spilled over into the retail truck market. I am very familiar with them going back 20 years in my my off road days. Good shock, in fact GREAT and some if not all of them are rebuildable, great plus if seeing time well beyond the curb.

The real question you have to ask yourself is do you want to rebuild your own shocks and is it worth the coin to have a cool racing shock under the fender. If it is then by all means go for it, they are a good shock and better than OEM, but then IMO just about any shock is better than OEM.

Your coin, your truck

 

My current truck has a procomp lift with whatever shock comes with that.

Its okay. I deal with the harsh bumps my thing is if all I'm doing is hunting and going down dirt roads etc would I regret not getting 2.5s are they that big of a difference or will 2.0s be enough?

 

I've seen a couple guys mount them on the shock body with the 2.0s, they are a lot skinnier so I think you'll be fine. You can jack up the truck and turn the wheels lock to lock and see if its going to hit. Dont forget that the wheels have to travel up as well.

You'll be fine with 2.0s. I have 2.5s because I like to go 50-60 mph out in the desert. They make a HUGE difference there, but on the street they are just about the same. If you have to travel 20-30 mins on washboard or rough roads, the reservoirs will make a difference. You wouldn't know you were missing them unless you did a back to back comparison. But shocks without reservoirs will heat up really fast and you'll lose quite a bit of dampening ability. Put your hand on a shock after a 30 minute drive on the pavement and you'll feel the heat. Imagine it working 500x harder. Reservoirs arent just for looks...well, Im sure there's some mall crawlers out there that have em for looks. But there's very real, tangible bonus to having them.

With all of that said, I personally think you'd be happy with 2.0s or 2.0 with reservoirs. They will both ride amazing over stock (or any monotube shock like the procomps, ranchos, etc.). They aren't the silver bullet to all of a sudden make your 8000 lbs truck ride like a 3500 lbs caddy. But they still put a smile on my face every time I drive. If you offroad for longer than 30 minutes to get to your blinds or whatever, I'd invest in the reservoirs. If you are just putting out in the fields or driving down fire roads, then 2.0s are perfect for you. Facebook is great to get some info, but a lot of those guys are yahoos with too much money, so don't listen to everything you read

Coilovers, while you are certainly correct in that they inherently perform better on the same plane, the real reason they are coveted in offroad trucks is that it leaves you room for a second shock or a bypass shock. Giving you better ability to have low and high speed compression and rebound, and of course better heat dissipation. You can also use a collar to have dual or even triple rate springs that you can easily adjust/remove/replace for the terrain at hand.

Reservoirs, for mall crawling I totally agree. Although I can tell you the last time I towed my toy hauler the rears were too hot to touch the reservoirs. I know I would have lost dampening ability back there if I didn't have them. Were they needed? Nah, I would have been fine without them. But I would've been fine towing my trailer with a clapped out 1999 Ford F250 gasser...I didn't buy this expensive truck to just be fine, I went above and beyond what I needed so I know that I'll always have "more than enough" no matter what I run into. I do the same for my suspension as well.

 

This is great information and I appreciate it all! One last question. Since BDS kits for the 2.0 has the 2.0 up front and back could I down the road perhaps add the coilovers if I wanted too? Without having to change my lift kit?

 

The coilovers are the lift. So, yes, you wouldn't need to change anything other than the take the front coils out, set your coilovers to 2" lift and put them in and you'd be good to go.

If you want to run your coilovers with the BDS shock still installed in the front you would need to do some revalving. At that point, I'd probably just run the coilover in the front by itself.

 

If you're not changing the ride height too much with the added coilovers you should be fine. Meaning, if you have a 6" lift kit, and keep it at 6" with the new coilovers, then you won't have to change anything.

But, if you keep the coilover and the extra shock up front, the ride will change a little bit. Unless you get your new coilover valved to run a double shock setup.

 

HAHA......you beat me to it.

 

Ohhh BOY, now you are thinking like me, over engineering is rarely a bad thing. I loved guys like that came into the shop because you understood what I was building for you...tag line on my business card:

"built to get you there, engineered to get you back"