Thinking about these bilstien shocks...

[killinformula]

Killinformula, if you like the original ride, you might want to try pumping up the OEMs before installing a set of aftermarkets. You might be able to revive them and restore your original ride quality pretty cheap. The bike shop up the road from me charges $10 to do all four. I've been surprised at how long the original shock fluid has held up - 85K miles and still damping well. If a N2 recharge doesn't do it and your OEMs are just plain worn out or they're leaking, you still don't need to pay $2000 for a set of new ones - all wear items can be replaced. They are totally rebuildable unless you have a bent or dinged-up shaft. And it doesn't cost much more than a set of aftermarket, non-reservoir shocks. Actually, if you wanted to buy the parts (sealhead, piston seals, various o-rings) and do it yourself, it would be cheaper than the Bilsteins but it would cost you in time. From what I hear, the fronts with their upside down reservoir are a PITA to bleed. I know when it comes time to rebuild mine I'm calling The Shock Doc, aka Bruce Triplett.

Life's too short to to rebuild shocks...

I am going to read up on the rebuild for the shocks, it seems like a fun project... I have been so busy at work lately that i havent had any time to work on a car, so hopefully i will have time this break to look into doing something like that... the ride of the car is stiff, it almost feels like my trans am (lowered and on 315' tires and i feel everything)... it doesnt seem to bounce on me at all, just seem like the body is one solid piece and the tires just ride over the bumps... from what i have been reading it seems like it should be that way...

how comfortable should it be for people to ride in the back? when i hit a bump, it seems like it is a rough ride back there

[SlowPro48]

It sounds like your shocks are fine then. The VehiCross with OEM suspension is a stiff riding vehicle - no getting around that. And yeah - passengers in the back take a beating. I sometimes wonder if Isuzu left out cupholders on purpose to discourage beverages in the back. Some of the bigger hits would toss a drink right out of a cupholder and into the floor.

Ganzman that's an interesting find there. Looks a lot like Edelbrock's IAS shock.

http://www.edelbrock.com/automotive_...cks_main.shtml

We've got shim stacks which are inherently speed sensitive so not sure how much of an advantage these inertia controlled gizmos would be. Looks like a nice, simple idea to vary damping though. And even though we've got speed sensitive damping, the flow is ultimately limited by port size so who knows - maybe the Konis or Edelbrocks would be a better real world compromise between comfort and handling.

Then again... we can always re-valve our shocks. Anybody got the cajones to drill bigger holes in their pistons and re-shim?

[TheGanzman]

Addendum: I heard back from Mark @ shox.com - no application for the VX yet, and he doubts they'll make 'em for us; I DO have the name of the guy at Koni though, so I'm gonna "pitch" him on making 'em. Seems like a worthwhile application, since the OEM's are a bit steep pricewise; plus they'll be more & more VX's that will be needing shock replacement(s) as time goes by. Add to the mix this very Forum of enthusiasts, and maybe they'll judge it to be a good idea...

[etlsport]

Addendum: I heard back from Mark @ shox.com - no application for the VX yet, and he doubts they'll make 'em for us; I DO have the name of the guy at Koni though, so I'm gonna "pitch" him on making 'em. Seems like a worthwhile application, since the OEM's are a bit steep pricewise; plus they'll be more & more VX's that will be needing shock replacement(s) as time goes by. Add to the mix this very Forum of enthusiasts, and maybe they'll judge it to be a good idea...

dont forget to mention they will fit troopers too!

[VehiGAZ]

how comfortable should it be for people to ride in the back? when i hit a bump, it seems like it is a rough ride back there

That is 100% normal. Make sure any back seat passengers put their seat belts on nice and tight. :-)