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The suspension on my ZJ is setup for mostly down travel (rear shock length is 22" at ride height, with about 3" of up travel and 9" down). I prefer it this way for rockcrawling, but find that whenever I'm hauling down dirt roads loaded with gear I bottom out all the time. My shocks are old RS9000's that are pretty much done, so I am in the market for something that can help keep me from bottoming out so badly (and maybe some bumpstops too )
I've been looking at Fox and F.O.A. 2.0 emulsion shocks and I'm kind of leaning towards the FOA's
http://f-o-a.com/shop/index.php?main...3d450df286bfa8
The 12" shock has a compressed length of 18.3 and 30.3 extended, so at ride height I would have about 3.5-4" of up travel (slightly more than I have now). these also have a 3/4" shaft as opposed to the 5/8" shaft of the Fox, and they are less expensive. Does anyone have experience with FOA shocks?
I guess a better question is, will these shocks give me any better results than what I have now? Am I wasting my money vs. something along the lines of a Bilstein 5100?
I guess I need to measure if I can even fit them. They have to mount can up and seems like that might be an issue in the back.
F.O.A's or FOX will be better than the Bilstein 5100's or 5150's.I had 5150 on mine killed them in a week.U wont feel a big diff when rock crawling but when u start to go fast u see a big diff.It will be smoother and wont fade fast and best part u get a free revalve.I have have about 4.5 up travel and work very well on my ZJ.I plan to a bigger shock in the rear and go to bypass's or piggybacks.I have FOX 2.0's by the way.Spring rates will also make a big diff.
whats ur spring rate?
Last edited by faststang1; 03-11-2010 at 03:32 AM.
Same thing as 5100s? Ha, no... Definitely not a waste of money. Although for your part of the country and intended use I'd suggest a 2.0 reservoir shock at minimum. The more oil in the shock, the better. Emulsions will give much better performance than the stock coil and little shock, but you could still experience some fade if you are hauling ass over rough terrain for extended periods of time.
The bottoming is probably more of a factor of spring rate, but a coilover will help that too because you can run a moderately plush initial rate and a stiffer bottom spring. If you had 4" of uptravel you could set it to step up into a much stiffer combined rate at 2" into its travel.
If you're determined to only buy an emulsion shock, I'd say go Fox. Don't worry about the shaft size because it's only going to matter if you have your shock tabs mounted wrong and the misalignment spacers are maxed out. The Fox shock's smaller shaft leaves more room for oil in the shock which you'll want if there's no reservoir. I personally run both Fox and FOA reservoir shocks and like them both BTW.
I think (my interpretation of his post?) he intends to still run separate coils and shocks, but move from the rancho to an emulsion shock....no? Still does not change the fact that a reservoir shock is probably better, but it means he won't be fixing a spring rate problem. Perhaps air bumps could help simulate a high step-up spring rate towards the end of your travel?
Last edited by paulkeith; 03-11-2010 at 11:43 AM.
Ya, I'm not going to go to a coilover in this beast. Was just thinking that a heavier duty shock combined with a simple bump stop, would give me better performance on some of the long 30-40-50 mile stretches of dirt roads I routinely traverse. I hate slowing down to 15-20 mph to go through small washes and such when everyone else in the group easily hits them at 45
ur plan will help but u still may not make it to 45mph..what springs are u running?
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