UPDATE: Went with the monre quick strut, the ride Height is good and all seems to ride Nice .. Fingers crossed for the long term ..Got these With a Lifetime Warranty, so that takes the pressure off the investment.
Thanks all for the suggestions



As the Title suggests I am looking for some suggestions. I have searched the forum, online,
and even at the parts store trying to compare some parts.

I have a 2006 dakota 4x4 6speed 4.7 quadcab with a custom front bumper (HEAVY is an understatement) I have replaced almost all of the front suspension parts except springs or rack and pinion.

I got the Rancho's rs5757 and they were great but in less than 2 yrs I am bouncing again and I know I need new ones. I know Everything is really limited for our trucks but anyone have any ideas how I could prolong the life of these shocks, without replacing my bumper. I do drive it pretty hard, but it stays on the road 95% of the time.

I know anything can be fixed with enough money but I am kinda on a tight budget (saving up to buy a house)

Thank you for any suggestions ........

 

You said you replaced everything up front except rack and springs. I am assuming, so please correct me if I am wrong, that you bought just struts and re-used the coil springs you had.

I have a 2007 TRX4 with 140,000 on the clock. I am the only owner, and am just now replacing my front end parts after 10 years. I can't complain, it's been better than most as far as longevity of the front end. I have heard that lots of folks had to re-do theirs well before I did...around 50k to 70k miles. Maybe I just had a higher tolerance for bounciness, lol but it really didn't seem too bad until this last year.

I bought the Monroe quick struts that came with brand new springs already installed. I replaced almost everything in my front end so far- ball joints, tie rod ends, end links, stabilizer bar bushings, hub/bearings, etc. I got stuck on the lower strut mount bolt on drivers side. But I did drive around a little bit with one good strut and two new rear shocks. (I know I need an alignment-going to go do that as soon as I get the driver side strut done tomorrow).

I can can say I am happy so far with the Monroe quick struts (well at least the one made a huge difference and I can't wait to finish my other one tomorrow and see how it drives).

Maybe next go round try the quick struts so you'll have new coil springs as well as the strut itself? That is, unless I misunderstood what you did. Good luck, I can't imagine trying to do struts every two years after the battle I had doing mine!

 

I got my driver side Monroe quick strut on yesterday. With both sides done, the truck sits higher in the front than stock. The front is actually level with the rear. I am thinking the springs in the struts are a tad longer than stock...might help with your heavy front bumper.

 

My Dakota lives an easy life, but my rancho's are holding up good after 85k miles. It's most likely that bumper causing early failure. The quick strut is a good idea, or check into new or heavier springs.

 

I have been looking to find out what there spring rates are and all I can find is "constant" which makes it hard to find something stronger ..

I will definitely consider the quick strut - I already have their load carriers on the rear .. love them btw

 

I guess it can't hurt to try the Quick Struts.

 

I did the quick struts on my car. Noticed higher ride height, alignment shop couldn't get it perfect due to this. I just figured they need to be broke in. Seems to be the norm with the quick struts anyway.