Rough ride

[Farmhandz]

Fitted Eibach adjustables at the front 2yrs/20k miles back and had the height set at 1” above std as I prefer a slight rake.
Had 33 12.5 22’s on at the time. Noisy but showed good, even wear at recommended psi.
Recently fitted 275/55/20 Bridgestone Ascent AT’s in an attempt to lower road noise and smooth things out. Dissatisfied, I fitted 275/60/20 HT Alenza’s hoping the 60 profile and HT tread would do the trick, but to no avail.
It feels as if there’s zero damping up front. Every little crevice or bump feels harsh, although directional stability is perfect. Steering is tight. I’d like to think suspension is good as I can’t detect any clunking and am thinking the shocks are no good.
I hate to say it but my buddy’s King Ranch rides better - how I’d expect my pickup to ride.
Current mileage 76k miles.
Original steering and suspension components.
Any ideas?
Different approach to adjustable shocks only?
I prefer a smooth, quiet ride - No off-roading.
Wish I had 275/60 Ascents rather as they look good.

 

[Morenar]

did you mess with the PSI a bit and see if they could be too inflated?

 

[Farmhandz]

It shows 34 - 38 psi when cold.
Almost commited to 4 new Bilstein 5100’s yesterday.
Still deciding

 

[Scram1500]

I had Eibach coil overs for a couple months then got rid of them. The ride was crap, worse than the worn out OEM Hitachis.

 

[Ready Go]

I have Eibach Pro-Truck struts/shocks...using 1" ORP springs (matched to OEM) on Front set on Clip #2 (0.6") for 1.6" Leveled Lift, and using OEM Rear springs (RR cut 1 full coil off to level RR/LR) with Airlift bags at 5psi.

I have Front swaybar Energy Suspension Poly-E 36mm bushings and have a Progress Technologies 25mm Rear swaybar set on Tight.

I'm running OEM 20s with OEM Deuler H/Ls at 39psi...and the ride is near perfect as possible for a cheap setup!

If I'm being 100% honest, swapping to Fox 2.5 PEs would give that last bit of perfection..but that's a $4000 hole I can't justify just yet.

I did just order Fuel Variant 20x9-1mm wheels..29.8lbs, HC rings, TPMSs, but deciding yet on 275/60R20s (Firestone Destination AT2s..42lbs) vs 285/60R20s (Bridgestone Dueler Ascent ATs..54lbs)..the weight is my hang-up...OEM~72lbs, FD~72lbs, BD~84lbs

I find the Eibachs (and others that have the Bilsteins) a really good overall upgrade to OEM at a very minimal cost.

 

[H2OMAN]

That's too bad. I have two buds that have them and they think thy are pretty good. I myself have had two sets of Bilstein 5100's which are pretty much the same thing. The Eibach kit comes with coils which should make them better than just the shocks. However, both are digressive valved and therefore, very stiff at the beginning of the stoke. This is great for towing and is a bit annoying at low speed. Mid speed is where they work best and they remove a lot of body roll. Getting into higher speed they fade and don't rebound well. But as a budget setup there isn't much better for the money. If you are looking to be able to control high speed dampening you need to move to the 2.5 inch bodies with remote reservoirs to reduce overheating and handle the complete stroke of the shock. But that entails a large layout of money. So, whatever setup you go with you need to understand the limitations of the system you have chosen and stay within those parameters. Just saying.

 

[Ready Go]

That's too bad. I have two buds that have them and they think thy are pretty good. I myself have had two sets of Bilstein 5100's which are pretty much the same thing. The Eibach kit comes with coils which should make them better than just the shocks. However, both are digressive valved and therefore, very stiff at the beginning of the stoke. This is great for towing and is a bit annoying at low speed. Mid speed is where they work best and they remove a lot of body roll. Getting into higher speed they fade and don't rebound well. But as a budget setup there isn't much better for the money. If you are looking to be able to control high speed dampening you need to move to the 2.5 inch bodies with remote reservoirs to reduce overheating and handle the complete stroke of the shock. But that entails a large layout of money. So, whatever setup you go with you need to understand the limitations of the system you have chosen and stay within those parameters. Just saying.

"Just saying"...very well said!

I do believe the Eibach coilovers & reservoir rears are digressive valved, like the Bilsteins, but seem to remember that the Pro-Truck struts and reverse-body rears are progressive valved..putting them in between Bilsteins and Fox 2.0s performance and comfort wise.

I got my Eibach Pro-Truck pkg on a holiday sale for ~$450 and have been very happy with them..as I currently have them set. The only real complaint is a slight bit of secondary rebound on some bumps/holes at some speeds, but that could well be a tire limitation of the cheap OEM Bridgestones.

I imagine some day I will move to the Fox 2.5 PEs, like you have..and be incredibly happy for doing it (once I get over the sticker shock)..if I go with the heavier Bridgestones, I'll most likely be moved towards the Fox 2.5s sooner..if I go with the lighter Firestones, I'll probably stick with my Eibach setup for a bit longer.

 

[Ready Go]

It shows 34 - 38 psi when cold.
Almost commited to 4 new Bilstein 5100’s yesterday.
Still deciding

I will say that I did play up & down with cold psi quite a bit, and in the end found that the factory suggested 39psi cold (which runs up to ~41-42psi warm) is definitely the sweet spot for my setup..so maybe set your psi to a similar 20" wheel psi like mine and then fine tune it a bit if desired.

 

[Farmhandz]

I used the OE coils with the adjustable Eibachs instead of coil overs so I’m thinking that’s why the ride is rough.
Regardless, I’m having FOX 2.0’s fitted all round, coil overs at the front, June 9th. Apparently better ride at lower speeds than Bilstein.

 

[CalvinC]

I used the OE coils with the adjustable Eibachs instead of coil overs so I’m thinking that’s why the ride is rough.
Regardless, I’m having FOX 2.0’s fitted all round, coil overs at the front, June 9th. Apparently better ride at lower speeds than Bilstein.

Please come back and give us your impressions of the Fox 2.0’s!! Should certainly be better than Bilstien at low speed. Thank you in advance.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Farmhandz]

Will do sir!

 

[Grape_Ape]

I used the OE coils with the adjustable Eibachs instead of coil overs so I’m thinking that’s why the ride is rough.
Regardless, I’m having FOX 2.0’s fitted all round, coil overs at the front, June 9th. Apparently better ride at lower speeds than Bilstein.

Also interested in your experience. I've had the ORG springs on Eibachs for around 40,000 miles now. At 72,xxx miles I'm starting to tire of the driving manners. I feel every single imperfection of the road surface. There are stretches when it's perfect and then stretches where it drives me nuts.

Just replaced my passenger wheel bearing hub as it was not spinning as freely as my driver's side w/ an accompanying slight grinding sound. There's been a slight reduction in some of the vibration. Which is nice but now I'm left wondering if it's my leveling system, the tires or a combination of both. Both rotors have some minor warping. So I'm about to replace both sets of rotors and pads to see if that benefits me at all.

My plan was to give my truck a nice 100,000 mile birthday present. New suspension, new tires and some freshening up. Knowing that's about 2 yrs away makes me think I'm gonna be expediting that up lol

 

[Ready Go]

I also have ORG/ORP springs on Eibachs..set to 1.6" total front leveled lift (Clip#2).

The ride is fantastic on mostly smooth surfaces. When I hit cracks in the road, I can hear them but don't feel them..probably, that's due to the OEM Bridgestone Dueler tires.

In the rear, I have OEM non-ORG/ORP springs, but have Airlift bags set at only 5psi.

My one complaint is probably mostly due to the factory rear control arms..they have rubber bushings to reduce NVH, but I feel that certain types of bumps make the rear axle "mule kick" because those rubber bushings cause a "rubber band" affect. Thuren makes some really nice rear CAs with delrin bushings, but they're pricey! My Ram always rides better with extra weight (mulch/salt) in the bed, as a way of "pre-loading" the rear springs.

My new Fuel Variant 20x9 wheel are being paint-matched to my GCM and should be done today. I'm still deciding what size (275/60 or 275/65 or ??) tire and what brand (Firestone Destination AT2 or Bridgestone Dueler Ascent AT or ??) to go with..but I'm betting the smooth road ride will get even better, and hopefully the rough roads too..if I don’t get too heavy!

I really want a 285/60 but don’t want the tire sticking out past the fender. My stock tires are flush to the fender (with 6mm Bora spacers in back). I'm having Mopar OEM Fender Flares color-matched also (since Ram dropped the FFs from '23-24 Laramies). Those FFs are basically 0.625" wide and my Fuels are +1mm offset, so the wheel moves out 0.71" (almost a push). The 285/60 would poke by 0.285", which isn't much, so maybe ??

I'm gonna mount the flares, then I can eyeball it better and decide which tire to go with. I'll update you all on the ride changes (good and/or bad) when done.

 

[Grape_Ape]

@Ready Go - I drove our 2024 CR-V and felt much of the same thing in my truck. My beater is a beater. So I expect it to drive like crap lol. The CR-V is making me question if maybe I'm just being way too anal about it. Interested to see how things go for you too.

 

[Ready Go]

@Ready Go - I drove our 2024 CR-V and felt much of the same thing in my truck. My beater is a beater. So I expect it to drive like crap lol. The CR-V is making me question if maybe I'm just being way too anal about it. Interested to see how things go for you too.

I'm for sure being too anal..I want perfection (because I love dialing in suspensions), but have to remember the Ram's a heavy, solid axle truck..there is no perfection (unless I throw ~7-8 grand into suspension upgrades at it)