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Land Rover rear lift spring install


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So I pulled the trigger on a pair of NRC9447s and I would like to go with Bilstein 5125s.   What is the part number for the correct shock to use with those springs?   33-185552 or ?

 

Thanks in advance

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So I pulled the trigger on a pair of NRC9447s and I would like to go with Bilstein 5125s.   What is the part number for the correct shock to use with those springs?   33-185552 or ?
 
Thanks in advance
That's what I have on mine currently, they work well

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8 minutes ago, 02_Pathy said:

That's what I have on mine currently, they work well

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Thank You Sir.  I Just found another post with maths n' stuff... lol 

There is an attached spreadsheet with all the shock options and measurements.  Pretty handy reference.

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1 hour ago, cgriff said:

So I pulled the trigger on a pair of NRC9447s and I would like to go with Bilstein 5125s.   What is the part number for the correct shock to use with those springs?   33-185552 or ?

 

Thanks in advance

These Bilsteins could probably be run with 3” of lift and extended bump stops

https://www.4wheelparts.com/p/bilstein-5125-series-shock-absorber-33-230382/_/R-BBGL-33-230382?Shock+Type_PQ=Monotube

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17 hours ago, PathyDude17 said:

 

These Bilsteins could probably be run with 3” of lift and extended bump stops

https://www.4wheelparts.com/p/bilstein-5125-series-shock-absorber-33-230382/_/R-BBGL-33-230382?Shock+Type_PQ=Monotube

I have some Bilstein 33-185569 sitting around (same length and compression of shocks you linked just different valving 255/70 over 170/60) even though they'll work I did some quick measurements with the vehicle flexed (new shock not mounted using the old Bilsteins I have on now (33-185552)) the new shocks might be 1 inch too long which will cause the coil to unseat with 3" of lift. Even though you can add a bumpstop which will prevent anymore up travel, it won't stop the axle from the down travel. Also with the additional flex of that set up (longer shocks), you definitely need to extend brake lines and the breather tube. Again I'm not certain that the coil will unseat but by doing the measurements it's going to be close and again might be a tad longer. I'm going to test it with the new shocks in this weekend and flex it to max hopefully. It's just something that I observed with the longer shocks and the coil setup.    

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1 hour ago, 02_Pathy said:

I have some Bilstein 33-185569 sitting around (same length and compression of shocks you linked just different valving 255/70 over 170/60) even though they'll work I did some quick measurements with the vehicle flexed (new shock not mounted using the old Bilsteins I have on now (33-185552)) the new shocks might be 1 inch too long which will cause the coil to unseat with 3" of lift. Even though you can add a bumpstop which will prevent anymore up travel, it won't stop the axle from the down travel. Also with the additional flex of that set up (longer shocks), you definitely need to extend brake lines and the breather tube. Again I'm not certain that the coil will unseat but by doing the measurements it's going to be close and again might be a tad longer. I'm going to test it with the new shocks in this weekend and flex it to max hopefully. It's just something that I observed with the longer shocks and the coil setup.    

Thanks for the info. I forgot  about extending those lines, I’ll have to look into that. Maybe it would require 4” of lift then but hopefully not

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Thanks for the info. I forgot  about extending those lines, I’ll have to look into that. Maybe it would require 4” of lift then but hopefully not
Yeah these specific shocks are popular with the SFD guys, it would be borderline for us with 3"

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1 hour ago, 02_Pathy said:

Yeah these specific shocks are popular with the SFD guys, it would be borderline for us with 3"

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Are you gonna put them on and try it out?

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I don’t know how it varies from year to year, but on my 03 there isn’t a breather tube on top of the diff, just a stubby breather cap/fitting with no tube. Also there is more than enough slack in my brake lines that they don’t pull too tight even at full droop. This is with LR 9449 springs and extended shocks for an F250. If you have a later model R50 it seems you can go pretty high in the back without needing to mess with the brake lines. 

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4 hours ago, 02_Pathy said:

I have some Bilstein 33-185569 sitting around (same length and compression of shocks you linked just different valving 255/70 over 170/60) even though they'll work I did some quick measurements with the vehicle flexed (new shock not mounted using the old Bilsteins I have on now (33-185552)) the new shocks might be 1 inch too long which will cause the coil to unseat with 3" of lift. Even though you can add a bumpstop which will prevent anymore up travel, it won't stop the axle from the down travel. Also with the additional flex of that set up (longer shocks), you definitely need to extend brake lines and the breather tube. Again I'm not certain that the coil will unseat but by doing the measurements it's going to be close and again might be a tad longer. I'm going to test it with the new shocks in this weekend and flex it to max hopefully. It's just something that I observed with the longer shocks and the coil setup.    

Yes, when fitting longer shocks you need to measure the length of your spring and then use trigonometry to calculate if your shocks are too long.

 

Personally I would recommend either the Bilstein 33-185552, which works on pre or post-facelift, or the Procomp ES326500 (cheaper, but only compatible with post-facelift, as you can't mount them inverted and the body interferes with the panhard rod on pre-facelift). Both shocks have the same mounting design.

 

The above shocks give the maximum downtravel without having to lower the bumpstops (to avoid damaging the shock under full compression), and work with 400 mm long springs or longer.

 

Here's a table of shocks I have compiled.

Shocks.xlsx

Edited by KiwiTerrano
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Yes, when fitting longer shocks you need to measure the length of your spring and then use trigonometry to calculate if your shocks are too long.
 
Personally I would recommend either the Bilstein 33-185552, which works on pre or post-facelift, or the Procomp ES326500 (cheaper, but only compatible with post-facelift, as you can't mount them inverted and the body interferes with the panhard rod on pre-facelift). Both shocks have the same mounting design.
 
The above shocks give the maximum downtravel without having to lower the bumpstops (to avoid damaging the shock under full compression), and work with 400 mm long springs or longer.
 
Here's a table of shocks I have compiled.
Shocks.xlsx
Yeah that's what I have the 33-185552, and for our lifts and springs being 14.8 to 15 inches in free height they probably have the most down and up travel for the current springs

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5 minutes ago, 02_Pathy said:

Yeah that's what I have the 33-185552, and for our lifts and springs being 14.8 to 15 inches in free height they probably have the most down and up travel for the current springs

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I would agree, I trawled through a lot of shock options to try & find a better one & couldn't.

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I would agree, I trawled through a lot of shock options to try & find a better one & couldn't.
Yeah they offer a good amount of flex, the snow one is with LR9449s and sway bar connected (my current setup) and the others were with the OME coils with a 1 inch spacer with no sway bar (my previous setup)209c51f060092ee931308baaec142258.jpg09c5c27413b8a4c473bfe8a62c123807.jpgb811bd88fef41c3b5d58202077e7e0a3.jpg

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2 hours ago, 02_Pathy said:

Yeah they offer a good amount of flex, the snow one is with LR9449s and sway bar connected (my current setup) and the others were with the OME coils with a 1 inch spacer with no sway bar (my previous setup)209c51f060092ee931308baaec142258.jpg09c5c27413b8a4c473bfe8a62c123807.jpgb811bd88fef41c3b5d58202077e7e0a3.jpg

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Pretty good flex, imagine what another 3.5” would do though. Plus, extending your bumpstops would probably help protect your fenders.

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1 minute ago, PathyDude17 said:

Pretty good flex, imagine what another 3.5” would do though. Plus, extending your bumpstops would probably help protect your fenders.

With the additional lift in the rear and rake my tires clear the fenders now, so I removed my homemade bumpstops that were on the bottom of the spring perch. 3.5" inches would be great but I just have to make sure that the coils don't get unseated which would make it pointless lol.

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1 minute ago, 02_Pathy said:

With the additional lift in the rear and rake my tires clear the fenders now, so I removed my homemade bumpstops that were on the bottom of the spring perch. 3.5" inches would be great but I just have to make sure that the coils don't get unseated which would make it pointless lol.

Oh ya, now that you say that I remember reading that. But you’d put your bumpstops back on if you go with the 29.7” shock right?

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Just now, PathyDude17 said:

Oh ya, now that you say that I remember reading that. But you’d put your bumpstops back on if you go with the 29.7” shock right?

Depends, if I see an issue where the uptravel of the tire contacts anything (shock body, inner fender, frame) then yes but I believe with the thicker and additional coils on the LR coils they might compress all the way before the tire contacts anything. With the down travel I don't think the bump stops are going to help me because if the bump stop contacts the upper body bump stop its still going to drop down to 29.7" regardless. Then with that I'll need limiting straps (which I don't want to do), keep the shocks I have now, or wait till I get a SFD and have more than 4" of lift in the rear.

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1 minute ago, 02_Pathy said:

Depends, if I see an issue where the uptravel of the tire contacts anything (shock body, inner fender, frame) then yes but I believe with the thicker and additional coils on the LR coils they might compress all the way before the tire contacts anything. With the down travel I don't think the bump stops are going to help me because if the bump stop contacts the upper body bump stop its still going to drop down to 29.7" regardless. Then with that I'll need limiting straps (which I don't want to do), keep the shocks I have now, or wait till I get a SFD and have more than 4" of lift in the rear.

Sounds good, excited to see what you figure out

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Alright so to get this thread back on topic, as a recap I have the LR 9449's on and just put some Bilstein 33-185569 5125 shocks on the rear because they offered more travel as my old shocks (Bilstein 33-185552 5125's) were too short now. After a quick test up in the hills they weren't too long! Coils stayed put and didnt come out of the perch or were loose. I gained more articulation with the new shocks. Also note I still have the sway bar connected and extended brake lines. The breather tube still needs to be extended. So these shocks work with these coils, I also might add a 1 inch bumpstop on the bottom spring perch just to be safe. The snow picture is the same spot with the old shocks and new coils, the tire did come up from the ground.74eed3a6f68d1aeb0e6f153061e749bb.jpg3bb24115e619387e2e313f6699c4873f.jpgdc0c6b579520aa3f5235da2bfb948f74.jpgae83bd61db72569a7f9943524ad5c335.jpg1d2b91f4b6d9d71138c34153b9d3f286.jpg

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6 minutes ago, 02_Pathy said:

Alright so to get this thread back on topic, as a recap I have the LR 9449's on and just put some Bilstein 33-185569 5125 shocks on the rear because they offered more travel as my old shocks (Bilstein 33-185552 5125's) were too short now. After a quick test up in the hills they weren't too long! Coils stayed put and didnt come out of the perch or were loose. I gained more articulation with the new shocks. Also note I still have the sway bar connected and extended brake lines. The breather tube still needs to be extended. So these shocks work with these coils, I also might add a 1 inch bumpstop on the bottom spring perch just to be safe. The snow picture is the same spot with the old shocks and new coils, the tire did come up from the ground.74eed3a6f68d1aeb0e6f153061e749bb.jpg3bb24115e619387e2e313f6699c4873f.jpgdc0c6b579520aa3f5235da2bfb948f74.jpgae83bd61db72569a7f9943524ad5c335.jpg1d2b91f4b6d9d71138c34153b9d3f286.jpg

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Thank you so much! That is awesome. That’s a ton of rear flex. And you recommend that part number over the one I found? I don’t understand what the difference in valving means in practical terms

Edited by PathyDude17
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Thank you so much! That is awesome. That’s a ton of rear flex. And you recommend that part number over the one I found? I don’t understand what the difference in valving means in practical terms
I recommend the part that I got just because that's what the other people run and I heard that the 255/70 valving works better for our rigs, and that's from my opinion and from what I've heard. To be completley honest too, I still haven't learned the differences in valving yet and the benefits .

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1 minute ago, 02_Pathy said:

I recommend the part that I got just because that's what the other people run and I heard that the 255/70 valving works better for our rigs, and that's from my opinion and from what I've heard. To be completley honest too, I still haven't learned the differences in valving yet and the benefits emoji23.png.

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No worries, it’s .03” longer too so obviously gotta go for that one.

Edited by PathyDude17
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