Welcome Visitor! Please take a few seconds and Register
for our forum. Even if you don't want to post, you can still 'Like' and react to posts.
If you won't be doing a suspension lift and you want quality vs cost go with Bilstein. They have a rep of outstanding quality. If you don't want to order off the net Monroe Sensa-Trac, Monroe Reflex and KYB are great shocks with the advantage of in town availability and parts store support.
I agree. Shocks matter, on any vehicle, in any environment. Ask any autocrosser about shocks, and I guarantee he has a lot to say. I know first hand that Monroe is pure junk. Sensa tracs have no damping whatsoever through the middle part of their travel. KYB Gr2s are okay, but tend to lose their low speed damping within 10k miles of install, and that is with strictly street driving. I have Kyb gas a justs (or something like that) on our '91 F150 hauler, and they have been okay for about 30k on the street now. They see some off road occasionally and do okay. Rancho rs5000s are what I currently have on my Ranger, and they have almost as much low speed damping as a Koni yellow (good street/ autocross shock), or at least it feels that way, which makes them stiff as hell for off roading. However, somehow it seems that they have not lost any of their damping, even as I continue to beat on them pretty hard on occasion. There is almost no arguing though, that about everything Biltstein makes works right and lasts. I had a set of custom valved Bilsteins on an autocross Mustang back when I was into that kind of thing, and was far happier with them for several reasons than any Konis or Tokicos I have ever owned, and I have had multiple sets of both. All in all, for price and performance, in my book, Bilstein wins, and Bilsteins are what will go on my Ranger next.
For a small yearly donation, you can support this forum and receive a 'Supporting Member' banner, or become a 'Supporting Vendor' and promote your products here. Click the banner to find out how.
