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Rancho rear struts vs Bilstein HD's
Posted: Wed Nov 06, 2013 11:36 pm
by SimulatedZero
Hey guys, I'm looking at doing some suspension upgrades to my 05 Pathfinder. I'm leaning heavily towards the Rancho Quicklift Loaded struts for the front suspension, but I'm torn on the rear struts. I want to keep things rake free so the rear will have to lift as much as the front. I've heard so so things about the Rancho rear struts and the rest of the planet seems to think Bilstein HD's are top notch. Looking for some thoughts between the two.
A couple of side notes: I am running an airlift all ready in the rear coils. I am also debating on whether or not to upgrade the rear coils or do a spacer. And are there any higher series Bilstein struts that will fit my rear suspension?
Posted: Thu Nov 07, 2013 8:15 am
by NmexMAX
RadFlo rear shocks were my choice. Pricey, but worth it.
I've got the 4x4 HD rear springs (slight lift, and a lot stiffer) on mine with the RadFlo shocks.
Since the lift of those springs is minimal, you could also add a spacer since it isn't very expensive (4x4 parts unit).
RadFlo offers 2 rear shocks for us, one without an external reservoir, and one with.
http://www.prgproducts.com/shop/product ... on_shocks/
http://www.prgproducts.com/shop/product ... ar_shocks/
Here are the links for the same products from 4x4parts.com:
https://www.4x4parts.com/nissan/radflo- ... -5988.html
https://www.4x4parts.com/nissan/radflo- ... -6606.html
I personally like to Greg at PRG.
Here's my thread on it, and some helpful info from the one and only.
http://www.thenissanpath.com/viewtopic.php?t=7646
rragpaoa wrote:I can add a little more info to this as well since my pathfinder was used to design and test the rear shocks, and I have used both for a while.
You guys are right about the emulsion where the nitrogen gas is mixed with the oil. The high pressure of the nitrogen prevents the oil from cavitating thus providing a consistent rate of dampening. However, during hard use (like off-road racing) there still is a tendency for the oil to cavitate causing bubbles, build up heat, and start to fade. However, the aluminum body of the Radflos help dissipate the heat better.
The remote reservoir does NOT use a nitrogen charged oil bath. The nitrogen and oil are completely separated by an internal floating piston (IPF), hence the remote reservoir contains the nitrogen and houses the IPF. This leaves the whole shock body to just contain pure oil. Radflo uses a real good racing oil in all their shocks. This completely eliminates any bubbling effect from any cavitation, and more oil volume helps in cooling. Also, the whole shock body can be used for the full stroke, hence you can get more wheel travel. This is where the cost difference is. BUT, I seriously doubt the emulsion shocks are $100/shock. I believe it's around $175/shock, so 4x4 parts may have it mislabled.
Both Radflo shocks however have excellent velocity sensing valves that is very comfortable on the highway, and handles great off-road.
All front shocks for the Pathy are IPF shocks (not emulsion). The nitrogen and oil are separated by an internal floating piston.
In terms of wheel travel, and I know this for a fact since it was my specs with Radflo, both shocks will indeed give you a bit more wheel travel. The emulsion will give you about 9" travel (from 7.5" stock) and the remote reservoir will give you just a tad bit more than 10". I don't know why Radflo has both shocks the same length. Look here for the difference:
Looks are deceiving. It may not appear to be much difference, but because of the motion ratio (the way the our shocks are angled), we get about 1.5" wheel travel to every 1" of shock travel.
One last thing though. In order to get the full wheel travel when off roading, you MUST have the aftermarket coils, preferably the OME or the Eibachs since the original one are a bit too short, AND you must disconnect the sway bars, which is an easy 3 minute job.
Posted: Thu Nov 07, 2013 8:36 am
by SimulatedZero
I would love to go radlfo all the way around to be honest. But, I am on a budget :/ . I might be able to swing the Radflo rears if I save up for a bit. Do you know the excursion difference between the Bilsteins and the Radflos?
Another quick question, how is the ride and handling on your Pathfinder with the stiffer suspension? I do a lot of street driving and usually pretty fast. Will this improve the cornering and general handling with out being too harsh?
rancho
Posted: Thu Nov 07, 2013 4:12 pm
by not on the rug
I used the rancho quicklifts in the front with the rancho rs9000xls and the rancho spacers in the back. I got the airlift bags too, but still haven't had the spare time to install them yet. I ordered everything from 4x4parts.com
Posted: Thu Nov 07, 2013 10:28 pm
by doctahjones
i have the bilsteins in the rear.....and if i had (or when) to do it again i'll be going with something else. i also replaced the rear springs at the same time with the 4x4 parts coil (i think it was a medium duty? can't remember) that gave me 1.5in of lift (advertised at 2in).
just not firm enough for me.
Posted: Tue Nov 12, 2013 6:53 am
by bbermann
Recently I put Bilsteins in the back of the Pathfinder and Rancho 9000s all around on my new Jeep JK.
Definitely like the Ranchos better with the adjustability feature.
Bilsteins are a little soft for me and the ability to dial in your ride with the Ranchos really works.
Posted: Tue Nov 12, 2013 6:58 pm
by SimulatedZero
The only thing that I'm worried about is that I have been reading a fair amount of reviews that have been saying that those rear shocks are failing after about 6 months of use. And most of these reviews are for just regular street driving.
Posted: Tue Nov 12, 2013 7:13 pm
by doctahjones
well i'm starting to think that my front bilsteins are starting to fail or at least one of them. i'm starting to hear that...um...empty can thump (i have no idea how to describe it, you just know when your shock/strut is toast) in the front sometimes when going over speed bumps. never used to hear that...
Posted: Sat Nov 23, 2013 8:09 pm
by forgottenzone
I Like the Rancho 9000's and the adjustment it has. With H&R springs it is like night and day.
Add the remote adjustment for the shocks and its even better.
Here is 1 pic before I installed the remote system.
Posted: Sun Feb 26, 2017 8:01 am
by SimulatedZero
Just to give an update for reference, I went with Rancho RS9000xl's on the rear and the quicklift up front. Cant stand it. The compression and rebound rates have decreased over time and have led to shock failure on one corner. On two other corners the damping factor is non-existent. I have uncontrolled wheel oscillations on washboard roads or successive bumps and no rebound control on the springs anymore. The result is one corner that tends to pop back up in the air too fast and looses traction and two corners that loose traction on washboard roads.
The replacement RS9000xl is excellent, but the whole setup started like that and saw less than a year of use.
Posted: Fri Mar 03, 2017 3:42 am
by porksoda
SimulatedZero wrote:Just to give an update for reference, I went with Rancho RS9000xl's on the rear and the quicklift up front. Cant stand it. The compression and rebound rates have decreased over time and have led to shock failure on one corner. On two other corners the damping factor is non-existent. I have uncontrolled wheel oscillations on washboard roads or successive bumps and no rebound control on the springs anymore. The result is one corner that tends to pop back up in the air too fast and looses traction and two corners that loose traction on washboard roads.
The replacement RS9000xl is excellent, but the whole setup started like that and saw less than a year of use.
What kind of rear shocks would you use if you had to redo it?
Also do you have any photos if your rig with your current lift? I am trying to decide between the Medium duty coils, heavy duty coils, and rancho spacers. Thanks.