2003 Ram 3500 SRW 2WD. I'm looking at replacing my shocks and wondered if y'all had any recommendations from personal or friend's experience. I'm hoping for a better/smoother ride and certainly nothing less so. I actually hardly ever pull our camper anywhere and never load the bed down with weight so I'm actually looking for something that fits an unladen truck better. Give me some ideas with your experiences and of course, the more similar the truck, the better. Oh, I forgot. Also let me know how easy or difficult this might be to tackle myself.

All work until the seals give out and the leak.

Bilsteins. Better than stock, reasonably priced.

SidecarFlip wrote:All work until the seals give out and the leak.drsteve wrote:Bilsteins. Better than stock, reasonably priced.I agree Bilstein's, I have 5100's on a non lifted truck. To SidecarFlips statment, when I put on the Bil's on my 2001 Ram about 5 years ago at 255K this is what I found that was on the truck. The reason was that I would bounced two to three cycles on a bad transition, they were working just not very well!! Then I found out why!

drsteve wrote:Bilsteins. Better than stock, reasonably priced.I agree, and I got a good price on the entire set from shockwarehouse.com

I don't. I run Monroe's and they work fine. Like I said, when they leak, replace them and eventually, they all leak.Avoiding potholes is good too.

Shock recommendations | Good Sam Community

GeoBoy
Explorer
Nov 12, 2018
eubank wrote:
If you are going to do the job yourself, the hardest part is, as needed, to squeeze the new shocks down just a bit to get the mounting bolts to align. I found the perfect inexpensive Harbor Freight tool:

https://www.harborfreight.com/36-inch-bar-clamp-96208.html

:)
Lynn

The Bilsteins come banded so no need for the clamps.
albow
Explorer
Nov 13, 2018
Thanks GeoBoy. I remember seeing something about that now.
mich800
Explorer
Nov 13, 2018
albow wrote:
I watched a few videos after I posted this and they all made it look easy, but none of the trucks were above 1/2 ton. I wondered about needing to compress something.

Shocks on a pickup are generally not too difficult. Rusted fasteners will be your biggest obstacle depending on age and the geographic area the vehicle spends most of its time. I would put it just above changing your oil for skill level and tools required.
albow
Explorer
Nov 13, 2018
mich800 wrote:
albow wrote:
I watched a few videos after I posted this and they all made it look easy, but none of the trucks were above 1/2 ton. I wondered about needing to compress something.

Shocks on a pickup are generally not too difficult. Rusted fasteners will be your biggest obstacle depending on age and the geographic area the vehicle spends most of its time. I would put it just above changing your oil for skill level and tools required.
Thanks.
Cummins12V98
Explorer III
Nov 13, 2018
albow wrote:
Which Bilstein's? The 5100's that Rhagfo is using?

If your truck is stock height pick the color you like. 4600's stock ride ht blue n yellow, 5100's stock and up to 2" lift silver n black.
rhagfo
Explorer III
Nov 13, 2018
albow wrote:
rhagfo wrote:
SidecarFlip wrote:
All work until the seals give out and the leak.

drsteve wrote:
Bilsteins. Better than stock, reasonably priced.

I agree Bilstein's, I have 5100's on a non lifted truck. To SidecarFlips statment, when I put on the Bil's on my 2001 Ram about 5 years ago at 255K this is what I found that was on the truck. The reason was that I would bounced two to three cycles on a bad transition, they were working just not very well!! Then I found out why!

Not sure of your point here. THey seem intact. Is it because of the made in Brazil engraving?

No not the made in Brazil, the fact they were 12 years old and had 255,000 miles on them and were not too bad empty, but did little loaded.
Durb
Explorer
Nov 13, 2018
I put Bilstein 4600 shocks on my 2004 RAM. They offer better control than the originals, which in my case, had 62k miles on them. However, the initial compl;iance was stiffer with the bilsteins and offered a harder ride. I am pleased with the shocks as the major use of my truck is a tow rig. If you want comfort I would look at other brands.

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