Thread: Shock Absorbers

I can only go on my experience with Koni. I wanted a shock that would handle rough roads and corrugations and fitted Raids last year. In combination with reasonably soft springs they are very good on and off road and handle corrugations well although with the softer springs I did have to adjust the rebound to its max setting.

Once sorted they are very impressive.

I expect they'll last a long time. There is a long term online review by an outback tour operator who runs them on a Defender and they seemed to take plenty of punishment.

Having said that, if you got good service out of the standard shocks and are happy with the rest of your suspension setup then I couldn't say that a set of Raids would be worth the premium over a new set of oem shocks unless you hit the outback tracks regularly.

Factory shocks for all puma models are gas charged, a good improvement over the earlier models. They seem also to last well, I have seen a few sets still working well after hard use and 150k +. They are however about $220 a shock, about half a raid. In a 90, I would think raids would be a bit of overkill, they really suit heavier vehicles, like fully loaded 110 and 130's. They are a brilliant shock though.
Ultimate suspension in nsw make a good unit, and at about $140 per shock are very good value. They will need your axle weights (loaded preferrably) to choose correct valving as they make them to suit individual applications.

Jc

I have set my heart on a set of Bilstein B6 off-road, mainly because of the superior handling when touring, getting to the start point.

Of course your old shocks become spares.

Hey Lou,

Just over 12 months ago I bought a pair of Raids (not to be confused with the smaller "Heavy Track") for the better rear damping control.

The pair cost nearly $1000. To say I was disappointed is an understatement. Honestly they were bearly an improvement over the TF Expedition's.

I ended up going to Ultimate Suspension. They weighed and measured my defender, then custom made springs and matched length shocks for all four corners. All for around the $1600 fitted.

I am so happy with my suspension and I can't speak highly enough about the service and product supplied by Ultimate.

I know they ship across Australia and I know they have done lots of defenders. I'm sure they can sort you out over the phone.

The moral to the storey.....you don't always get what you pay for !

The Ultimate Suspension : Custom Built Suspension for all Vehicles

The eastern end of the Gunbarrel (Gero bore to warburton turnoff) is extremely corrugated . In some places there are multiple chicken tracks running along side the original road giving a choice of roughness.
for what its worth I would stick to a set of OME shocks and just change them out when they are rooted !.

Originally Posted by Drover

Hey Lou,

Just over 12 months ago I bought a pair of Raids (not to be confused with the smaller "Heavy Track") for the better rear damping control.

The pair cost nearly $1000. To say I was disappointed is an understatement. Honestly they were bearly an improvement over the TF Expedition's.

I ended up going to Ultimate Suspension. They weighed and measured my defender, then custom made springs and matched length shocks for all four corners. All for around the $1600 fitted.

I am so happy with my suspension and I can't speak highly enough about the service and product supplied by Ultimate.

I know they ship across Australia and I know they have done lots of defenders. I'm sure they can sort you out over the phone.

The moral to the storey.....you don't always get what you pay for !

The Ultimate Suspension : Custom Built Suspension for all Vehicles

Ive never read a bad thing about Raids and had a chuckle when you swapped yours for ultimates as I did the opposite having run ultimates on the 110 and my previous 4wd. I wouldnt swap back however I had to adjust their rebound to get them working right in my application.

Not knocking ultimates either, especially their pre and post sale service, it is second to none. I've done more kms with ultimates than Raids and they work well although I would be very surprised if they ever outlasted a set of Raids. In that regard and given my own experience you get what you pay for. Dunno if its worth all the extra money though, I guess that is up to the individual to decide. I know I spent a fortune getting the 110 to ride and handle how I wanted it to and tried three sets of springs and three brands of shocks before I got what I wanted.

I'm enormously impressed with the Raids so it would be good to hear why you had the opposite experience. Not having a go, just interested

Originally Posted by Sly

The eastern end of the Gunbarrel (Gero bore to warburton turnoff) is extremely corrugated . In some places there are multiple chicken tracks running along side the original road giving a choice of roughness.
for what its worth I would stick to a set of OME shocks and just change them out when they are rooted !.

It was corrugated to hell when I did it,my TDCi runs original shocks,I think they are good but tyre pressure,weight and speed are just as important,I would be ruthless on weight,that track will test any shock.OEM,Koni,Billies are all good choices. Pat

Originally Posted by steane

Ive never read a bad thing about Raids and had a chuckle when you swapped yours for ultimates as I did the opposite having run ultimates on the 110 and my previous 4wd. I wouldnt swap back however I had to adjust their rebound to get them working right in my application.

Not knocking ultimates either, especially their pre and post sale service, it is second to none. I've done more kms with ultimates than Raids and they work well although I would be very surprised if they ever outlasted a set of Raids. In that regard and given my own experience you get what you pay for. Dunno if its worth all the extra money though, I guess that is up to the individual to decide. I know I spent a fortune getting the 110 to ride and handle how I wanted it to and tried three sets of springs and three brands of shocks before I got what I wanted.

I'm enormously impressed with the Raids so it would be good to hear why you had the opposite experience. Not having a go, just interested

I had extreme oscillation in the rear with the TF HD springs and TF Expedition shocks. The bounce in the rear over "whop-d-doo's" was terrible, to the point of lifting a rear wheel.

I fitted the Raids to control this bounce. They didn't. I adjusted them through their full range of damping adjustment with minimal improvement.

The Ultimate set up is spot on. Flex, handling and comfort has never been better. On their first attempted they hit the ball out of the park.

Will they last as long as the KONI's probably not. But will the KONI's last 4 times as long as the Ultimate shocks, because I can buy 4 set of Ultimate for price one set of Raids, I think not.......