Tiffin Allegro Bus Shocks

Just a note for those who have a Bus and may be considering replacing shock absorbers. My 43' Bus currently has just short of 80,000 miles on it and I do all my own maintenance. I'm in the midst of the 80,000 mile maintenance cycle and when I pulled the rear drive axle wheels I found that the drive axle shock absorbers were beginning to leak. These shocks are Bilstein's, part number F4-BE5-G668-MO as shown on the shock. When I went to the Bilstein WEB page and did a search for that number, nothing would return. I called them and was informed that they only sold to one company, PBS-Power Brake and Spring in Indiana and that the shocks I wanted were only available through them. A call to PBS found that they were the ONLY place I could get the shocks, or I could purchase them from one of their resellers. My rear suspension on that axle is a Reyco Granning and I could also get the shocks from them, as they were the sole customer for the shocks from PBS. Undoubtedly I could also get the shocks from Tiffin as they are using Reyco Granning suspensions on their Powerglide chassis.

That makes Bilstein to PBS to Reyco Granning to Tiffin and then to me. No doubt each adding a suitable profit and shipping fee. Luckily, PBS agreed to sell me a pair of shocks and send them out today. Somewhere around $110 each plus shipping. I'll know when I get them and will post the price

Just another minor point however. Getting the bolts loose that hold each end of the shock is a major effort. I had to use a 1/2" breaker bar with a 3' pipe on it. The 2 drive axle tires on each side need to be removed to get at the bolts with a reasonably long wrench to apply the necessary torque. Doable for those mechanically inclined, but it does take some effort and sturdy tools.