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They require no special rebuilding and maint, and will last much longer than any twin tube shock. Most twin tube shocks performance drops off dramatically, in just 30k miles.
If Rancho monotube RS7MTs leak, fail to extend when removed or just wear out they are covered by a lifetime free replacement warranty.
I’m pretty sure Bilstein 4600 & 5100s are covered by a similar warranty.
Rancho RS7MT have similar ride quality to Fox 2.0 are less expensive and if they wear out Rancho will replace for free.
Fox 2.0 are more expensive up front and if/when they wear out you have to rebuild it which will probably cost more than buying a brand new Rancho or Bilstein monotube.
Your money, enjoy your Fox 2.0s.
Last edited by GAZZILLA; Dec 26, 2025 at 09:17 AM.
Within 5,000 miles I replaced the OEM shocks (non-FX/4) with Rancho 9000XL. There is a section of highway nearby that is rather challenging for shocks. I call it the boob jiggler section. One trip on that section and my wife was ready to install new shocks herself. The Rancho shocks improved the ride over that section and overall the truck just felt more secure going down the road. I do hit county, BLM and Forest Service roads on most of my camping trips. I feel that the Rancho shocks are much better in those situations than the OEM shocks. The Rancho shocks are set to 5 front/6 read when unloaded and 5/9 when towing. Going too low on the front setting can result in death wobble. I tried for too soft a ride and paid the price.
On pavement the Rancho shocks have a bit of jitter after hitting a bump. Like an aftershock. I installed the Bilstein 4600's on the front this year and that has helped a bit. The rears may get upgraded in 2026 to a set of 4600 or a set of Fox 2.0's if I can find the money.
Lowering the tire pressure is an easy way to affect the ride. I run 50 front/70 rear when not towing, 50/80 when towing.
Within 5,000 miles I replaced the OEM shocks (non-FX/4) with Rancho 9000XL. There is a section of highway nearby that is rather challenging for shocks. I call it the boob jiggler section. One trip on that section and my wife was ready to install new shocks herself. The Rancho shocks improved the ride over that section and overall the truck just felt more secure going down the road. I do hit county, BLM and Forest Service roads on most of my camping trips. I feel that the Rancho shocks are much better in those situations than the OEM shocks. The Rancho shocks are set to 5 front/6 read when unloaded and 5/9 when towing. Going too low on the front setting can result in death wobble. I tried for too soft a ride and paid the price.
On pavement the Rancho shocks have a bit of jitter after hitting a bump. Like an aftershock. I installed the Bilstein 4600's on the front this year and that has helped a bit. The rears may get upgraded in 2026 to a set of 4600 or a set of Fox 2.0's if I can find the money.
Lowering the tire pressure is an easy way to affect the ride. I run 50 front/70 rear when not towing, 50/80 when towing.
No, I hadn't seen that video but it was informative.
There's no one shock that handles all driving situations well. There will always be a compromise, so get a shock that satisfies most of your driving. 95% of my driving is pavement. Of that, probably 80% is towing. So that's what I buy shocks for.
Given that the front end could tell the different between the 5 and 3 settings on the Rancho 9000XL, I would have to say that they were still functional. When I took them off I compressed them manually and they were still doing what I expected. Compression and rebound seemed good.
I'm not a shock expert but I've spent a good amount of money on shocks over the past 20 years. The most expensive shocks were Sway-A-Way (aka SAW) piggyback nitrogen charged shocks I put on my 2007 Titan. They really did a nice job. I'm pretty sure they saved my bacon a couple of times during emergency maneuvers. I had the rear shocks rebuilt once (expensive!) because they were leaking fluid and I put on a set of Bilstein shocks while the SAW shocks were off getting rebuilt. The Bilstein were probably 95% as good as the SAW shocks and a lot less expensive. The front SAW shocks had a slow nitrogen leak that I didn't know about. When I had the rear shocks rebuilt the rebuilder recharged the front shocks for me and it was a huge change. Had I kept that truck I would have purchased my own Nitrogen bottle to do the recharge myself.
In my post above I said I would consider the Fox 2.0 shocks. That was incorrect. It's the FOX 2.5 Performance Elite Series (adjustable) that I would consider for the rear. But that's a lot of money for a set of shocks where I suspect the Bilstein would be almost as good 95% of the time. The adjustability is handy for the rear, but since most of my miles are towing it's overkill.
If Rancho monotube RS7MTs leak, fail to extend when removed or just wear out they are covered by a lifetime free replacement warranty.
I’m pretty sure Bilstein 4600 & 5100s are covered by a similar warranty.
Rancho RS7MT have similar ride quality to Fox 2.0 are less expensive and if they wear out Rancho will replace for free.
Fox 2.0 are more expensive up front and if/when they wear out you have to rebuild it which will probably cost more than buying a brand new Rancho or Bilstein monotube.
Your money, enjoy your Fox 2.0s.
Ill ask around, but I know of nobody that has successfully used those warranties.
It would be a bit shameful to try. Our shocks are obviously used off road. And we generally upgrade after a failure. Fox 2.5's with extra front compression damping shim, and extra rear rebound damping shims, are in my future. (And diesel valving, even though my truck is gas)
Last edited by Midwest87; Dec 28, 2025 at 07:08 AM.
No, I hadn't seen that video but it was informative.
There's no one shock that handles all driving situations well. There will always be a compromise, so get a shock that satisfies most of your driving. 95% of my driving is pavement. Of that, probably 80% is towing. So that's what I buy shocks for.
Given that the front end could tell the different between the 5 and 3 settings on the Rancho 9000XL, I would have to say that they were still functional. When I took them off I compressed them manually and they were still doing what I expected. Compression and rebound seemed good.
I'm not a shock expert but I've spent a good amount of money on shocks over the past 20 years. The most expensive shocks were Sway-A-Way (aka SAW) piggyback nitrogen charged shocks I put on my 2007 Titan. They really did a nice job. I'm pretty sure they saved my bacon a couple of times during emergency maneuvers. I had the rear shocks rebuilt once (expensive!) because they were leaking fluid and I put on a set of Bilstein shocks while the SAW shocks were off getting rebuilt. The Bilstein were probably 95% as good as the SAW shocks and a lot less expensive. The front SAW shocks had a slow nitrogen leak that I didn't know about. When I had the rear shocks rebuilt the rebuilder recharged the front shocks for me and it was a huge change. Had I kept that truck I would have purchased my own Nitrogen bottle to do the recharge myself.
In my post above I said I would consider the Fox 2.0 shocks. That was incorrect. It's the FOX 2.5 Performance Elite Series (adjustable) that I would consider for the rear. But that's a lot of money for a set of shocks where I suspect the Bilstein would be almost as good 95% of the time. The adjustability is handy for the rear, but since most of my miles are towing it's overkill.
The thing is, we have limited suspension travel, and heavy trucks.
Compression damping is nearly always a good thing. Always go stiff on the fronts. We're limited by lack of load with the rear. Too much would make it skitter, when unloaded.
Adjustable compression might be handy. But for the most part, adjustable stuff, is useless on a Superduty. A simple valve on the resevoir works fine.
For light duty, the Bilstein 5100 or Fox 2.0, do 90% as well as King or Fox 2.5's. So there's massive cost for little gain. But sometimes, for some of us, we're in that rare spot, where big real shocks matter. A lot. Camper guys, who do lots of dirt roads, for example.
You dont have to use nitrogen, if you have proper driers on your air compressor. I use Scuba air. (But never use helium, lol)
Last edited by Midwest87; Dec 28, 2025 at 07:22 AM.
Ill ask around, but I know of nobody that has successfully used those warranties.
It would be a bit shameful to try. Our shocks are obviously used off road. And we generally upgrade after a failure. Fox 2.5's with extra front compression damping shim, and extra rear rebound damping shims, are in my future. (And diesel valving, even though my truck is gas)
Even if you don’t use the Rancho or Bilstein lifetime free replacement warranty you can still buy two sets of Rancho or Bilsteins for the cost of one set of Foxs.
I should have updated this page before I posted... Scraprat beat me to it... lol! Saying that, it would be nice if the Fox 2.0's were the same price. I think they would sell more... not that they don't already sell a lot of them... but when folks compare the Fox 2.0's to the Bilstein 5100's, this much of a price difference does indeed help the decision.
Last edited by chadstickpoindexter; Dec 28, 2025 at 06:43 PM.
Like I was saying….
At about $300 for a set of Rancho RS7MTs that have a lifetime free replacement warranty. I could buy three sets for what those Fox 2.0s cost and get a similar ride.
