What do you guys think about Bilstein shocks

[2007HummerH2]

Looking at possibly going with Bilstein shocks for my 3. Haven't been happy with the other brand I bought a year ago. It rides too soft and when you hit a bump in the road, my steering wheel jiggles. Now that I have new rear springs I'm hoping that Bilsteins will give my 3 a nice heavy duty ride again.
What is your opinion on them and should they do the trick? Will they give me more of a stock ride but better?

 

[backcountryislife]

I'm real happy with them on mine. I have my T bars cranked pretty high without new bumpstops, shackles in the rear & had the rear disconnected when I had my old shocks... it was really sketchy. The bilsteins smoothed it out quite a bit & generally slowed the sway very well. I feel the compression damping on them is very ideal for the 3.

 

[alrock]

I've had two sets. First ones the shocks blew out in under 20,000 miles, each blowing within 5,000 miles of each other. I did get them again recently. I think the ride is firmer than OEM base shocks but might not be as firm as the Adventure, though that's just my personal observation. I know others have varying opinions. I believe they control the ride very well and are a good choice on the H3.

 

[Hunner]

My H3 was hard to control on washboard roads. Lots of wheel hop. At 10,000 miles the adventure shocks were wimpy. I added the Bilstein because it had been established they fit and had the extra length I needed for my setup.

I felt they control things a lot better but of course that is comparing to used OEM. Unless you compare them to new OEM, yea they are firmer than your worn out OEM!

I carry heavy so that could make a difference but I don't notice a rougher ride just more control and less wheel hop and sway and even cut down on front end lift with hard acceleration.
I got 40,000 miles on these and they still feel good. Probably will buy them again, unless a new kind can be found offering different performance.
The mounting combination seems to be hard to find in some brands.

 

[tomp]

I have found the dampening to be good but the rebound is too light for both H2 and H3. They also seem to leak for no apparent reason and have to be sent back to be rebuilt (5100 series). I run them on both H2 and H3 and would not purchase them again as I have never had other brands leak. However, the other brands also had their own issues...

 

[2007HummerH2]

Well I've been doing some searching, while trying to work at the same time.
I found that Bilstein does make an OEM replacement shock for a stock set up. They say that they have a 40% stiffer ride than the OEM stock shocks. I can get all 4 on sale and with free shipping for $245.00. I think they call them the B6 off road series heavy duty truck shocks.
Not sure if I should go with those or the 5100's.

 

[Hunner]

This thread is a mixed bag of results.

 

[TXH3T]

I didnt like the original bilsteins I had for my level. They seemed to get far too stiff on wash boards. I upgraded the rear to bilsteins and the front to bilsteins with reservoirs and it seems to have mostly solved it. Ive been pretty happy with them

 

[Hunner]

It could all depend on weight distribution as to how they affect the ride.

 

[4speedfunk]

Fox. Period. Very expensive but the difference is day & night.

 

[2007HummerH2]

I guess I should of specified that I really don't do a lot of offroading anymore....just don't have the time. So I'm looking for a shock that would give me a ride that is a little stiffer than the original stock shocks. I haul/tow apparel. Even though you wouldn't think t-shirts are not that heavy they are! 72 pieces weighs around 60-70 pounds. When I stack boxes of them in the back of the rig...it's a lot of weight! So I need something that will hold up in the long run.
I'm leaning more towards the Bilstein B6 Heavy Duty Off Road shocks.

 

[cbetts]

The Bilstiens I am running on the front are listed for a Chevy Silverado (P/N 24-186643). These have been perfect for me after I did the t-bar crank. I do a lot of city driving and off roading with these and find they are the perfect fit for the type of driving I do. I am still running stock shocks in the back.

Here is a link on the Bilstiens: :link:

 

[Hunner]

Hmm double post, don't know what happened. Can't delete?

 

[Hunner]

The Bilstein I am running are listed for the Silverado, slightly lifted so they are a bit longer.
I have not had any leak.
I got mine from Phil at Trail Duty.
The original part number is not listed but I have it somewhere.
http://www.trailduty.com/product_info.php?products_id=765

 

[JonBishop]

I just recently got all 4 bilsteins and love them, wanted to go with fox but didn't wanna fork over all that dough... Grr lol when it's time to replace I'll definatly go with fox later.... None the less the bilsteins are still very nice

 

[Hunner]

The Bilstein I am running are listed for the Silverado, slightly lifted so they are a bit longer than OEM.
I have not had any leaks, yet
I got mine from Phil at Trail Duty.
The original part number is not listed but I have it somewhere. This is on one box I could find. I will look for the other.

F4-BE5-C153-HO
GM K1500 LFTD FRT Zinc
http://www.trailduty.com/product_info.php?products_id=765

If anybody has an alternative that has the right fittings and the correct length I would try something different next time just to see what there is available.
I want at least 1/2 inch longer than stock in the front so chose these until something else comes along promising better valving.

Did Fox get that issue fixed about the upper brackets breaking?
Those are nice but pricey, maybe someday.

 

[kflips]

Fox. Period. Very expensive but the difference is day & night.

X2. On this

 

[2007HummerH2]

Waiting for my new bilsteins to arrive tomorrow....can't wait!

 

[alrock]

I guess I should of specified that I really don't do a lot of offroading anymore....just don't have the time. So I'm looking for a shock that would give me a ride that is a little stiffer than the original stock shocks. I haul/tow apparel. Even though you wouldn't think t-shirts are not that heavy they are! 72 pieces weighs around 60-70 pounds. When I stack boxes of them in the back of the rig...it's a lot of weight! So I need something that will hold up in the long run.
I'm leaning more towards the Bilstein B6 Heavy Duty Off Road shocks.

If you're thinking about carrying more weight more often then you should be thinking about heavier duty springs. The springs support the truck; the shocks just control the motion.

 

[2007HummerH2]

Installed the new Bilstein's last night! Test drove......
It rides like an Alpha should. Finally got the suspension working great again!!! Very happy with the handling of the 3 now...
Now I just have to track down a few other little noises here and there and it will be a brand new truck!