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Suspension Choices: High Dollar or Cheap?

Suspension lifts are hands down, the first and most popular modification that people make to their vehicle. It is also one of most crucial things that make the vehicle capable off-road and comfortable on road. There are hundreds of suspension setups and what works for one person might not work for the other.

Starting at the bottom are spacer lifts, which in most opinions are used for on road use only, its cheap and that is all. Next step are some of the Australian offerings like the popular Old Man Emu and Dobinsons suspensions systems. They are a good budget lift system that work for many people, but they are lacking in performance when pushed off road. Its also important to make sure you choose the correct spring and shock for your setup or your truck will not ride or handle well.

Next are the higher end suspension lifts like King, Radflo, Toytec, Fox, and Icon. Here is where the choices get harder, at this point prices are high and the details of how the shocks differ increase. First off most high end shocks are rebuild-able units as well as being height adjustable. King, Fox, Radflo, and Toytec use Progessive Valved shocks, what this means is that, as the suspension compresses the shock will get stiffer. It does this to prevent bottoming out over larger bumps. Icon on the other hand uses Digressive Valving, so when the suspension compresses the shocks get softer.

The size of the shock body also determines the performance of the shock. To choose the correct size of the shock its good to know how much your vehicle weighs and you will be doing with the vehicle. 2.0" body shocks are good high quality shocks that are good for rock crawling and light duty uses. 2.5" body shocks are better for running down gravel roads, desert, and handling large bumps. They also do a better job of not over heating when used on vehicles north of 5000 pounds.

The most expensive versions of both of these shocks come with the reservoir and Compression/Rebound Adjuster. The reservoir helps with heat dissipation so it helps the shock not fade as quickly when using it hard. The adjuster allows the customer to fine tune the shock to their specific preferences. For customers that need recommendations for suspension setups, consult with our shop.