Shock Absorber test as reported by Motorhome Mg May issue

[Ed S]

I see Motorhome Mag has tested and gave their opinion on four brands of shocks. Shocks being Bilstein, RoadKing, Koni, Sacks. They tested the shocks on a 2008 Tiffin Phaeton 36QSH over a 1000 mile route repeatedly during a three month period.
They rated the shocks from 1 (poor) to 5 (exceptional) here are the results as they reported.

cornering - slow speed- rough road- smooth road- total value
at speed handling comfort comfort
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Bilstein 4 4 3.5 4 15.5 5
RoadKing 4.5 4 2 4 14.5 1
Koni 4 4 1.5 4 13.5 4
Sachs 2 1.5 3 3 9.5 3

Value rating is based on the cost of each product they reported. Bilstein shocks showed the best performance and the lowest cost, rec'd the highest score.

I found this interesting since I have been thinking about new shocks and had been planning on Koni. Thought I would pass this on since many have discontinued the mag.

[Ed S]

Well, that didn't work very well, did it? Maybe I should try this again.

[Ed S]

sorry I cannot get the colums and rows correct.

[Zbugsii]

Thank you for the info, very informative...

Though I am not sure I understand the total value indicator at all.

[Max Hubrich]

ED S,

I share you frustration in trying to make columns. I tried it a long time ago with the old format and had the same problems.

I went online to see if I could copy and paste or put the referenced article on a link. "No Joy"----. They only show the March issue right now.

I have the article in front of me in my personal copy of MH mag.

In summary , they added up the point values in each catagory and gave Bilstein a total of 15.5. Here is a summary of their results:

"After driving thousands of miles comparing all these shocks, it was clear which ones performed best in each category. We rated them all on a scale of 1 to 5 (with 5 being the best), then added a value score based on the cost of each product. Because the Bilsteins showed the best performance and the lowest cost they received the highest score."

Note: They pointed out that the Road King shocks are made from solid billet aluminum (much more expensive to machine/make) and cost $400 each.
They are "rebuild able" and are used primarilary in truck applications.

Sachs are the OEM shocks on many brands of motorhomes

Zbugsii--- I hope maybe this will clear up a few questions----

[Ed S]

Max,

Thank you for finishing my post. I was going to put new shocks on this spring but will hold off now that I am not working unless the bunmps are to rough. I found the artical timely and informative and makes me wonder if Bilstein would be as good a Koni. I am liking the price of Bilstein much better.

Ed

[Clay L]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ed S sorry I cannot get the colums and rows correct.

The best way I have found is to use periods or dashes instead of spaces. The software used by forums won't remove them.

[Olive]

I do not subscirbe the magazine but did see that issue this morning. About a year ago I replaced my OEM with Bilsteins and have been wondering if I made the right choice after reading what everyone has been saying about the Konis.

The article did say the Koni shock was excellant on smooth roads but the Bilstein was much better on rough roads. I know that article is based on opinions also but it made me feel much better about my Bilsteins and I think I would do the same again. After all, I think I find more rough roads than otherwise these days.

[Happycarz]

My 93 Dynasty came with Monroes and porpoised terribly. I installed Bilstiens and I had a completely different coach. My 99 Dynasty came with Bilstiens and drove it 90,000 miles in comfort and in control. Now my Camelot came with Monroes and it swayed and rolled on turns. So, I got caught up in this Koni thing and installed 8 of them. They are great for roll on turns but ride like there is 150 lbs in the tires. Every seam in the road is felt. I dropped my air bag height 1" last week and I'll see if I like the ride better. If not, off come the Konis and on go the Bilstiens.
The MotorHome article was dead on. I only wish I had that information earlier. Save your money and go with the Bilstiens.

[Sixpack98]

Harry,
I share your thoughts and conclusions and $1,200 out lay. The Koni's were and improvement over the Monroes but I agree with your analogy of the 150 psi in the tires. Let us know if the 1" drop in ride height calms them down. Trading them out for Bilstiens is out of the queston for me though, will never pass the wife's sniff test. Might be able to sneak them on the front though. Good luck
mark

[Happycarz]

Mark,
My bags call for 8 13/16" plate to plate. I dropped the fronts to 7 3/4" and while doing a 15 mile road test, found it a little rolly-polly. I then set front and rear at 8 1/4". Road seam noise is there, but it doesn't telegraph through like before. On severe dips, there is a little porpoise, but the konis take care of that on the rebound, only half a cycle. I just got in tonight from a 900 mile trip and can live with it.

[beaverjim]

harry, have you thought about the drive shaft angle when lowering from the factory specs ? just a thought! jim

[Happycarz]

My driveshaft is 18" long and if I lowered the coach 1", the change would be marginal. The doom and gloom over drive shaft angle is blown way out of proportion. Just what happens when we drive into a dip or over a frost heave. The suspension does what is is supposed to do, move in relation to the wheels/axles. I know mine travels way more than 1".

That being said, the critcal factor in driveshaft alignment is making sure the angle between the differential pinion output shaft and driveshaft is the same as the angle between the transmission output shaft and the driveshaft. In other words, the transmission output shaft and the pinion shaft should be parallel in a perfect world. Once the transmission and differential are installed, the two angles will remain the same.

Serious vibration and wear problems occur when the two angles are different. A good example of an out of angle driveshaft is a jacked up 4 wheel drive where the owner rotates the differential to lessen the driveshaft angle. Now he has the angles at different degrees. This causes, in essence, the the driveshaft to speed up and slow down on each revolution. When the driveshaft is in phase and the u-joints are parallel this doesn't occur. Driveshaft out of phase can happen when the driveshaft is dissasembled at the spline and then reassembled without both u-joints pointing in the same direction. If you were to lay the driveshaft on a table or the floor, the crosses of the u-joints must match. If one is pointing straight up, the one at the other end must be pointing straight up and not at some other angle.

While under my coach and looking at my two driveshaft angles, it appeared they were not the same. I removed the driveshaft and measured the face of each yoke with and inclinometer, only to find it was an optical illusion. Monaco installed my transmission and differential parallel. I'm a happy camper.

1" doesn't matter.

[tmitchell]

My MH rides great except for real rough roads.

I did a lot of research on shocks, for the front axle on my 2004 DSDP. I probably would have opted for the FSD, Koni's, but they don't make them for my model with IFS (independent front suspension).

Most owner's probably don't have my load problem.
The problem with my front end is that I don't have enough weight on it for the rated axle and shocks. The axle is tagged for 13,700 lbs. and the shocks are rated for that range.
Fully loaded for extended trips my front axle has less then 12,000 lbs. on it.
Bilstein gave me the number of a shock that is rated for 12,000 lbs.
When I switch the front shocks that will be what I will use.
I now have gone from 275X70R22.5 to taller 275X80R22.5 series tires. This allows me to run less air in the tires. This improved my ride quiet a bit on rough roads, so I haven't been in a hurry to switch out the shocks.
Tom