I want to get a new pair of shocks, but the wife isn't crazy about me spending the money on a set of Bilsteins since I just bought 4 new tires. I have heard some good things about the Monroe Reflex shock and it seems to be in my budget, especially since they are buy 3, get the 4th free until the 31st. I'm just concerned that I'll end up with a Monroe POS shock. Anyone have any actual feedback. If other shocks are suggested, my pocket book can handle only around $150 for all 4 shocks.

Here are the specs on the Monroe Reflex I know it is a twin tube, low pressure shock and I wanted a monotube, nitrogen filled shock; but what can you do....

 

The Rancho RSX shocks are the same thing, and look better.

 

I put Reflex on my 02 1500 reg cab 8’ bed 4x4 a couple of weeks ago. Haven’t really put many miles on the truck since then. They helped with the washboard type stuff for sure. I got them on sale at the time for $154. So far so good.

 

I have heard good things about the Reflex from a performance standpoint (cornering, braking) but also that there's not much noticeable improvement on straightline driving. You probably won't see much diff straightline anyway no matter what you get due to the coils and leafsprings on the Ram. I'm thinking about trying them myself though, who's got them on sale now?

 

Thanks for the actual feedback guys. I ordered them today for about $45 each from Advance Auto in town. They should be here around noon since they are the local warehouse.

Right now they are buy 3 get 4th free with mail in rebate. So that is about $150 after taxes and stuff after everything is said and done.

I'll report later tonight after I get the shocks on. I'll report on the new tire/shock combo.

Also, I looked at the most current application guide for Rancho and they don't list the RSX for my application. They might be out there, but no one had them locally and I don't want to wait for shipping. I also will not see them that much, now the Fords, Chevys, and Nissans in my rear view mirror; that is another story

 

****************UPDATE****************

Ok guys. I installed the Monroe Reflex shocks front and back. Installation was straight forward. It took about 1 1/2 hours. I took a short 1 hour drive and drove in rain, wind, sun, curves, you name it. Here's what I found:

The shocks:
1. The little bumps (e.g. expansion joints) are not as noticable. You can hear them, but not feel them as well.
2. The medium bumps (e.g. broken, pushed up concrete) are still there, but the supension seems to react faster without the oscillations I had before.
3. The big bumps (e.g. pot holes) can still be felt and are still hard, but the suspension deals with it and keeps going. Before the switch it felt as if the suspension had a hard time with these type of bumps and it felt as if the supension was shuddering and having a hard time keeping control of the tire. My test patch is a pot hole on a 45mph, sharp curve in a contsruction zone. When I hit it before it felt as if the rear end was trying to come around on me and you could actually hear the tires barking as they bounced up and down and tried coming around. It was kind of scary every time I hit that area and I slowed down every time. Now it hits and keeps going. It doesn't feel like the back end is trying to come around and the controllablity is much better.
4. It doesn't lean as much in corners.
5. Cross winds don't affect the truck as much.

The tires (LT275/70R17 Goodyear Wrangler with SilentArmor)
1. They are really expensive.
2. Tread depth is a crazy 17/32"
3. They are quiet.
4. A little stiffer than OEM. Could be the tire pressure as the store set them at 40psi. Will reduce to 35psi and see if that helps.
5. Great traction, cornering, etc. Much better than stock.
6. Likes to fling rocks everywhere. Go down a gravel road and I'm throwing rocks for miles.
7. Looks great.

Hope this helps anyone looking for new shocks/tires. I'll give another review when the shocks have a chance to break in a bit.

 

Osteodoc08, i noticed that you have a 2004 Ram, and you're changing the shocks.
How many miles do you have on your truck, and how often is a person to change their shocks? I have a 2002 with close to 60K miles on it, so i'm wondering if i need to change mine.

 

this is how i test and see if my shocks are bad: (comes from a ASE Certified Master Tech Mechanic for 30yrs)


bounce the front or rear end and if it doesnt bounce really at all then they need to be changed because they probably stuck or or close to being stuck, and if they bounce for a long time and doesnt seem like the spring has any strength to stop the bouncing then they are too week , i personally my 2002 just hit 70k and the fronts are a bit weak but not bad enough yet for me to change them out yet but i figure within the next 5-6k i will be changing atleast the front, my rears are still in pretty good condition. hope this helps

 

I've only got 18K miles on them. I just wanted a better shock for a better ride. It's not like DC uses expensive shock technology for thier standard OE.

Shocks do wear out over time and as a rule, I generally change out an OE shock at 50K miles if the ride is acceptable. You will not find the ride changes much until you change out your shocks, because you drive your truck every day and don't notice a decline in performance.
Here is an interesting article

A more technical article

 

eatsleepdrivesc

"this is how i test and see if my shocks are bad: (comes from a ASE Certified Master Tech Mechanic for 30yrs)
bounce the front or rear end and if it doesnt bounce really at all then they need to be changed because they probably stuck or or close to being stuck, and if they bounce for a long time and doesnt seem like the spring has any strength to stop the bouncing then they are too week , i personally my 2002 just hit 70k and the fronts are a bit weak but not bad enough yet for me to change them out yet but i figure within the next 5-6k i will be changing atleast the front, my rears are still in pretty good condition. hope this helps"

?????

I was a certified ASE in my past life. I don’t understand. If they don’t bounce they need to be replaced. If they do bounce they need to be replaced?

Other comments – I replaced my factory shocks that were at 60,000 miles. I had no problems with interstate driving, just every thing else. The Reflexs have solved those problems, but I have not had any extended highways trips since the change. I have LT 265-70-17 tires set at 40psi.