Are Bilstein shocks really stiff on a DII? Old Man Emu better ride?

[BlackAndBlack]

I have an '04 and will be having shocks replaced front and back.

Saw this verbage below re Bilsteins and now am having second thoughts about that brand. Are Old Man Emu really a better ride?

"Bilsteins are high pressure shocks, and ride stiffly as a result. Some people like that, but in our experience most folks aren't looking for a harsher ride, just better controlled."
http://www.britishpacific.com/content.php?f=omeacc

My DII is (probably) stock and is not offroading (not for MANY more years anyway), just occasionally off-curbing. I previously fell in love with Bilsteins when I had them on a Jeep CJ7. (Do they feel stiff on a Jeep to you? They were great for simply disregarding potholes, in my recollection.)

 

[KyleT]

stock replacement bilstiesn are harsh.

7100's are cushy.

i would use OME before stock replacement Bilstiens.

 

[Tugela]

I replaced the stock D1 shocks with Bilsteins on my truck. The ride quality is much improved, but anything would have been an upgrade over those 12-year old, useless originals. I wouldn't describe the ride quality as harsh, but that could be on account of the original stock springs that are still on there, i.e. the Waterbed Handling. As soon as I get this set of OME springs out of my garage and onto my truck then I'll have a better idea of how they work.

 

[p m]

Strange.
I had stock-replacement Bilsteins on 3 trucks out of 4; 2 came with them, 1 I "upgraded." 1 remains stock on factory shocks (@ 147kmi).
I honestly can't say if there's a difference, with the only exception - I was never able to bottom out (compress to stop) Bilsteins, and it happened a few times with the factory ones.

I haven't had factory shocks on lifted trucks. About 10 years ago I dumped a set of OME shocks as being too soft for a lifted truck; I dumped a pair of 5100 Bilsteins I wanted to use in the rear of a Disco for the same reason.

 

[SGaynor]

As a data point - I recently put a 2" OME lift with the OME NitroCharger shocks. Really haven't noticed a difference from the stock front shocks and air bags in the rear.

 

[p-dawger]

I put Bilstein's on my DII at around 65k....I know have 210k. Are they firmer than stock? Yes. Are they harsh, no. What you get is excellent control. I drive through the streets of DC and NOVA daily - no complaints.

The fact that they are lifetime shocks is a big bonus. They ride great in my opinion and would by another set.

 

[benlittle]

7100's are cushy.

What an over generalization... don't you think?

What valving are we talking about?

Also which OME's? The nitro's? Those are stiffer than the older style.

 

[KyleT]

What an over generalization... don't you think?

What valving are we talking about?

Also which OME's? The nitro's? Those are stiffer than the older style.

Well... 400/100 rear, 360/80 front... Thats the standard for valving on a rover...

Either old or nitro's... IMO they are pretty similar...

 

[jhmover]

I have about 200k on my HD OME's. Still working fine. Originally they were stiff, now they're cushy but I get no wild bouncing on rough roads.

 

[GDA]

I put Bilstein's on my DII at around 65k....I know have 210k. Are they firmer than stock? Yes. Are they harsh, no. What you get is excellent control. I drive through the streets of DC and NOVA daily - no complaints.

The fact that they are lifetime shocks is a big bonus. They ride great in my opinion and would by another set.

+1

I installed Bilsteins on my mostly stock 03 DII at around 50k and now have 111k. Ride is controlled and not harsh.

 

[gmookher]

stock replacement bilsteins indeed do suck off road, but would be my 1st choice for a mall crawler, fine on road, yes firm, you dont want firm? get used to looking for the potholes.

the new stock LR stuff isnt cheap but rides like an absolute dream, if you dont like firm, and will get you another 4 years if abused, and 8 years on road. call will till and pick a set of those up preowned for a fraction of the cost if thats what u like - nothong wrong with oem LR shocks for a stocker-why spend money if youre running stock coils on the street?

ome's nitros suck giraffe balls and i wouldnt use them if you gave them to me. just JUNK. gone downhill over the years. last trip we took to hole in the rock UT by powell, with bill burke he had to reweld the new ones they sent him to evaluate three friggin times!!! and he was cussing at them the whole trip, and swore he wanted the 10 yr old oil shocks he had by ome pre nitro.

its 2012, njoy nitrogen charged technology--

if youre lifted, get the 7100, or terrafirmas, or fox, or youre wasting time. Its because of these shocks I carry 175lbs zip ties so when you eye pops off the shaft breaks or it just starts to leak and stops working, and thats what they do, you can retain your coils as you limp home on the other end of (my) winchline
omes and bilsteins are not for lifted trucks that off road anything past a FS road.

I run resevoir 7100s at all four corners
not kyle's valving- i'm 400/100 at all four but carry my high lift on my front bumper, and am usually heavily loaded(chuckles), in addition to my cargo

 

[Dave03S]

Hi, I just recently put Billstein replacement shocks on my 03 S model.

I went with the Billies because i replaced my factory rear shocks (no bags) with them at around 50k and I liked the ride. Now at 125k I put new ones on the front, noticed that they were way firmer than the rears which by now had 75k on them, so I went ahead a replaced the rears again. So now I have new Bills on all 4 corners and the ride is quite firm. The damping is much better but I can feel every little bump in the road surface.

My question is, on an S model, without air bags, would replacing the springs help me out or make my ride even firmer? Which springs would you recommend on a stock O3S to compliment the Billsteins?

Thanks

Dave

 

[gmookher]

with stock replacement bilsteins I wouldnt replace springs
the old springs you have are the softest, they oe

 

[sir]

If you want a good ride, go with the stocks. I replaced the originals with Boges and am now in the process
of going back to the omes.

 

[bobkitten]

Go Terrafirma. They are made for Land Rover and arguably better quality than ome. I have their all terrains on my d1 and they are excellent.... not to mention ver affordable.

My mate has the big bore versions on his Td5 and the ride is nothing short of spectacular for a defender which does not have all the niceities in terms of suspension like a D2.

 

[p m]

TFs are very good indeed, but make no mistake - they are stiff, stiffer than stock-replacement Bilsteins.

 

[bobkitten]

Our opinions on that differ. The ride feels very smooth to me. And the roads where i live suck. I have had Bilsteins on my old bmw 3 series. Good quality but they were too stiff for my liking. But this is a different application. So not sure if it is fair to compare.

 

[Dave03S]

Thanks for the replies, I think I'll leave my old springs in for now.

On a related note, i did not change out the steering damper, would this make a noticeable difference in ride sensitivity or is it purely steering related?

 

[DarylJ]

On a related note, i did not change out the steering damper, would this make a noticeable difference in ride sensitivity or is it purely steering related?

Purely steering related, and only useful off tarmac typically. If anyone tells you that you are having steering/handling issues on pavement because of a steering damper be very concerned about their advice. You should be just fine without one on road. In fact, if your rig doesn't go down the road properly without one you have problems that need to be sorted. The damper is only masking them.

 

[Dave03S]

I'm happy to report that after 2000 miles the Bilsteins seem to be settling in a bit and smothing out somewhat and are a bit less harsh on the road.

They seem to perform even better off road than on the streets of Seattle!!

Possibly that is a commentary on said streets, but over the 4th had a chance to hit the forest service roads, and a few off roads, in the Mt Hood National Forest in Oregon. The Bilsteins, and the Disco were a pleasure!! My SO even said for the first time she felt like she was riding in a luxury car out in the woods!!

Two thumbs up for the Billies! (and the Disco!)