Shocks advice needed: Standard vs Reservoir. Adjustable?

[amerikancheg]

Hi there,
I have a 2023 JL High Tide, which includes the Xtreme Recon package with a 1.5-inch lift and 35-inch tires. Not a daily driver.
Front LOD full bumper, no winch (yet), and no extra weight.
I do occasional crawling but mostly overlanding—think Inyo Coyote Flat type of trips.
I'm pretty happy with what I have and not planning any big upgrades yet. I want to get good use out of what came from the factory.
I like my coils (whatever comes with the XR package). They are a bit soft but good for long-distance driving.
However, my problem lies with the, and I quote from the sticker, 'custom-tuned shock absorbers.' Any 7-8 inch unexpected dip or bump on the road at 40 mph hits hard—it feels like I have no shocks at all.
On my previous JK, I had both Bilstein and Fox 2.0 shocks, and I preferred Bilstein. So I've decided to upgrade to Bilstein.
Given my experience only with standard before pulling the trigger, want to check if there is a reason to consider adjustable or reservoir shocks? Let's say if i can spend a little extra

Appreciate all inputs

 

[bobfriesenhahn]

There is only so much up-travel available and 8" is a lot. Maybe look into improved bump stops?

 

[OverlanderJK]

7-8” is hardly a bump on the road. That’s called a whoop.

 

[TrailHunter]

I'm pretty happy with what I have and not planning any big upgrades yet. I want to get good use out of what came from the factory.
Any unexpected dip or bump on the road at 40 mph hits hard—it feels like I have no shocks at all.

It’s a Jeep. It is what it is… Air Down a bit.

 

[wayoflife]

7-8” is hardly a bump on the road. That’s called a whoop.

This ^^^ 7-8" is a LOT of bump or dip for ANY standard shock on a coil setup. An air bump or something like a Sumo Spring will help dampen that but otherwise, nothing with your current setup will stop a hit that hard at 40 mph.

But, to your question regarding standard vs reservoir shocks, the whole point of a reservoir is to help keep your shocks cooler and that will help keep it from fading. This is helpful if you do a lot of hard and fast driving across the desert or on really rough terrain (not exactly Inyo or Coyote Flat kind of stuff) but otherwise, are totally unnecessary for most people. They look cool for sure though and that's why people seem to think they're better.

As far as adjustability goes, for the most part, they are kind of a waste of money. Most will only allow you to set your shocks from stiff, to stiffer to stiffest and while that will help to absorb bigger hits, they will provide a shitty ride overall.

 

[wayoflife]

It’s a Jeep. It is what it is… Air Down a bit.

That and slow down or work harder at paying attention to the road ahead.

 

[jeeeep]

That and slow down or work harder at paying attention to the road ahead.

This ^^^

Even with coil overs, hitting that large a bump/dip fast you will feel it.

There's more to getting setup to hit something like that at speed, ask me how I know lol

JLU EVO longarm, King coil overs, 37's on bead locks, going fast on fire roads, washboard roads is great and the level of control is noticeable but, hitting a buried pipeline (bump about 5") at speed, is alarming

 

[TonyT]

I like the idea that I can adjust everything IF I wanted to, but I've not touched my adjustments on my Jeep's coilovers since they were installed.

My Nissan Patrol (Y61) is a different story. I have the Old Man Emu BP51's and it does double-duty as my daily driver and weekend warrior. Speed bumps/humps are prevalent, so I soften the compression and rebound. And when out in the dunes I adjust them all the way up to their stiffest setting. That has been worth the extra cost.

I figured the BP-51's (being an ARB product) would be great out here and save me a couple $$, but after 8 months, one of them squeaks like a straw in a plastic lid. The store I bought them from, and ARB Middle-East have ignored my requests to warranty it.

 

[amerikancheg]

This ^^^ 7-8" is a LOT of bump or dip for ANY standard shock on a coil setup. An air bump or something like a Sumo Spring will help dampen that but otherwise, nothing with your current setup will stop a hit that hard at 40 mph.

But, to your question regarding standard vs reservoir shocks, the whole point of a reservoir is to help keep your shocks cooler and that will help keep it from fading. This is helpful if you do a lot of hard and fast driving across the desert or on really rough terrain (not exactly Inyo or Coyote Flat kind of stuff) but otherwise, are totally unnecessary for most people. They look cool for sure though and that's why people seem to think they're better.

As far as adjustability goes, for the most part, they are kind of a waste of money. Most will only allow you to set your shocks from stiff, to stiffer to stiffest and while that will help to absorb bigger hits, they will provide a shitty ride overall.

I think I gave you the wrong description of the dip I was referring to. My bad.
Let me give you better example. The photo below shows a freeway. Check out the arrows on the left. The middle one marks a short "downhill," and where it ends, it flattens out again. Going 40 shouldn't be a problem in my opinion, (it wasn't an issue with my JK on Fox 2.0) but it's such a hard hit that it feels like I'm about to lose my engine. I'm blaming 'custom-tuned shock absorbers'. Dealer said that shocks were tuned for riding on the beach ).



But in any case i think i have my answer. Just go with standard monotube like Bilstein or may be Falcon.
Thank you guys for your input.

 

[wayoflife]

I think I gave you the wrong description of the dip I was referring to. My bad.
Let me give you better example. The photo below shows a freeway. Check out the arrows on the left. The middle one marks a short "downhill," and where it ends, it flattens out again. Going 40 shouldn't be a problem in my opinion, (it wasn't an issue with my JK on Fox 2.0) but it's such a hard hit that it feels like I'm about to lose my engine. I'm blaming 'custom-tuned shock absorbers'. Dealer said that shocks were tuned for riding on the beach ).

View attachment 417745

But in any case i think i have my answer. Just go with standard monotube like Bilstein or may be Falcon.
Thank you guys for your input.

Got it.

Of the two, I personally would go with Bilstein.

 

[amerikancheg]

Got it.

Of the two, I personally would go with Bilstein.

Thank you, i'm also in favor of Bilstein. Unless i'm missing other new products that were developed in the last 7 years.
Do you think it's worth to upgrade coil springs as well? In case that special High Tide package also got "custom tuned" set for, you know, beach cruising
It's a year old Jeep with 8K on it. Feels stupid to upgrade without the reason, but shocks situation made me paranoid a bit.
Leaving for 3-4 weeks road trip to New York and back and want to be sure ).

 

[wayoflife]

Thank you, i'm also in favor of Bilstein. Unless i'm missing other new products that were developed in the last 7 years.
Do you think it's worth to upgrade coil springs as well? In case that special High Tide package also got "custom tuned" set for, you know, beach cruising
It's a year old Jeep with 8K on it. Feels stupid to upgrade without the reason, but shocks situation made me paranoid a bit.
Leaving for 3-4 weeks road trip to New York and back and want to be sure ).

In my experience, ride quality is 100% subjective and in my opinion, factory coils and shocks kind of suck. They are way too soft and mushy and perform poorly overall, especially off road. The Mojave is maybe the one exception to the rule.

That said, if it were me, I would definitely run aftermarket coils with your new shocks.

 

[kevman65]

In my experience, ride quality is 100% subjective and in my opinion, factory coils and shocks kind of suck. They are way too soft and mushy and perform poorly overall, especially off road. The Mojave is maybe the one exception to the rule.

That said, if it were me, I would definitely run aftermarket coils with your new shocks.

"Kind of" ?

 

[amerikancheg]

In my experience, ride quality is 100% subjective and in my opinion, factory coils and shocks kind of suck. They are way too soft and mushy and perform poorly overall, especially off road. The Mojave is maybe the one exception to the rule.

That said, if it were me, I would definitely run aftermarket coils with your new shocks.

i have some money to spend given i'm not upgrading anything else. Any recommendation on spring's brands for 1.5 lift?

 

[amerikancheg]

"Kind of" ?

i went with High Tide hoping they will put somewhat good package together )
May be they did and it's good for beach cruising, and may be my fault not reaching out to HT owners to get feed back, but there were only 5K Hightides made

 

[wayoflife]

i have some money to spend given i'm not upgrading anything else. Any recommendation on spring's brands for 1.5 lift?

1.5" is not a whole lot of lift and to the best of my knowledge, there aren't any aftermarket springs in that size. The closest ones would be the ones that Dynatrac makes (about 1.8" of actual lift) but you'd have to get their Endurosport lift which includes Fox shocks. Most lift springs will yield 2.5" or more.

i went with High Tide hoping they will put somewhat good package together )
May be they did and it's good for beach cruising, and may be my fault not reaching out to HT owners to get feed back, but there were only 5K Hightides made

Not sure what the High Tide is or why it would be anything more than a sticker package but assuming it does come with a bit more lift, it most likely comes with much taller bump stop towers up front, just like the XR package or even 392 has.

This is what a standard bump stop tower looks like. As you can see, it measures about 5" to the base of the jounce cup.

On an XR package or 392 which comes with a bit more lift, the towers measure 7".

Assuming you have the same 7" towers, that would be the cause of your bottoming out on bumps, especially if your Jeep is on the heavy side.

 

[amerikancheg]

1.5" is not a whole lot of lift and to the best of my knowledge, there aren't any aftermarket springs in that size. The closest ones would be the ones that Dynatrac makes (about 1.8" of actual lift) but you'd have to get their Endurosport lift which includes Fox shocks. Most lift springs will yield 2.5" or more.

Not sure what the High Tide is or why it would be anything more than a sticker package but assuming it does come with a bit more lift, it most likely comes with much taller bump stop towers up front, just like the XR package or even 392 has.

This is what a standard bump stop tower looks like. As you can see, it measures about 5" to the base of the jounce cup.

On an XR package or 392 which comes with a bit more lift, the towers measure 7".

Assuming you have the same 7" towers, that would be the cause of your bottoming out on bumps, especially if your Jeep is on the heavy side.

Hightide is a Sport with XR package and 35s. And i only have front and rear (no tire carrier) bumpers 90lb each, so should not be that heavy.
But you absolutely right about the taller bump stop tower and bottoming out on bumps.



Should have checked on that first )))
Thank You!