Shocks replacement?

[Jimmy9190]

I have a 2001 Dodge Dakota, and I put 4 new Monroe SensaTrac shocks on about 40,000 miles ago. Truck rides and handles OK but I really feel like it could be much smoother. I don't go off road or anything, its only a 2wd extended cab truck. I use Michelin LTX 235/75R15 tires which are still in excellent shape. All the bushings and suspension parts underneath are in good shape too. Alignment and tire air pressure are perfect also.

How long should I expect a set of shocks to last in normal driving? Is there a better shock I can get for a reasonable price? I paid about $40.00 each for the SensaTrac's at AAP.

As always, any help and suggestions here is greatly appreciated.

 

[Steve S]

Smoother ? exactly what do you mean a softer ride.

 

[Solo2driver]

BILSTEIN. Every application (car, truck, big giant van) they have been a dramatic improvement in overall ride quality, handling, and shock life, even over fairly new and recently-new shocks of other flavors.

Although, I do like the Koni FSD as well, but they make them for very few cars...work great on a Mazda3

 

[Nyquist]

Depending on the application, most of them lose their "nice feel" around 40k from my experience. They still pass road tests, but once you get to 70k miles on them, it is probably time to replace again.

 

[Jimmy9190]

Yes I am looking for a softer more comfortable ride quality. I get the idea from here and other boards the SensaTrac may not be the best in that department. These shocks have about 37K on them now.

Any ideas or suggestions are very much appreciated here.

 

[Drew99GT]

I've found Monroe shocks/struts to do this. The "new" feeling of tight cornering and good bump absorption goes away too quickly. Next time I get struts, I'm gonna suck it up and get Bilsteins. Although Bilsteins will likely feel much stiffer.

 

[mechtech2]

Was the 'ride' ever really nice?
It IS a truck.
40k of street use is fast shock/ strut wear. But if you need them, you need them.

 

[Jimmy9190]

Yes it had a better if not somewhat more stiff ride to it when I got it. I bought it used at 42K and it had the OE shocks. I replaced them at 60K with these SensaTracs.

I realize it is a pickup truck but I believe I can get a better ride quality from it. Everything else seems to be OK and it has never been wrecked, so maybe the SensaTracs don't work as well on a truck as heavy as mine. Curb weight on it is 3900 lbs and with me in the cab it's almost 4200 lbs. That's heavy for a mid-size pickup. It's got a good solid feel to it, just more bumpy than other trucks I have owned. I had 2 Chevy Colorado's before this and they had a smoother ride. But they also had half the curb weight too. I also had a 2003 full size Dodge Ram 1500 single cab that had a good ride to it. Before that I had another Dakota extended cab that didn't have a bumpy ride either but it had the OE shocks and I traded it on the Ram at 45K.

Thanks for the help here. My theory on the weight of the truck may be all wrong, so any other info is greatly appreciated.

Jimmy

 

[The Critic]

Monroe does have a lifetime warranty, so perhaps you could consider a warranty claim?

Also, Monroe IS the company that recommends replacing your shocks every 50k, so perhaps you're almost due?

 

[kelpie]

Napa Gas Grande are good shocks

 

[Jimmy9190]

Warranty claim is an idea, I had not thought of that. But even so, I never was all that crazy about these SensaTracs. I am paying even more attention to the ride now and I really think it could do better. It's not something I have to fix right away or anything, I can get a few more miles out of these while looking around for better ones. I hear good things about Monroe Reflex and I will definitely check out the Napa Gas Shocks too.

Thanks

 

[The Critic]

Originally Posted By: Jimmy9190
Warranty claim is an idea, I had not thought of that. But even so, I never was all that crazy about these SensaTracs. I am paying even more attention to the ride now and I really think it could do better. It's not something I have to fix right away or anything, I can get a few more miles out of these while looking around for better ones. I hear good things about Monroe Reflex and I will definitely check out the Napa Gas Shocks too.

Thanks

Make sure you do it before you reach 50k on the struts, or else Monroe will tell you that you are supposed to replace them at 50k anyway!

 

[yeti]

i have the same truck, but a 2000, and replaced oe shocks early, only for a more stable ride than oe shocks. i used monroe reflex and they made the ride more stable, and the difference in harshness was negligible. check out dodgedakotas.com -- this is where i got my info. remember that we're talking about a pickup, and ride quality is subjective. you stated that a colorado was half the curb weight of the dakota's 3,900 lbs. check your numbers. at any rate, good luck on your choice.

 

[Jimmy9190]

I don't know the exact curb weight on the Colorado's. I know that my Dakota is a lot heavier than the Colorado's were. I could watch the hood on both Colorado's flex while driving down the road. That's how light a gauge of steel they used on it. I'll probably use the Reflex on this next set of shocks. I may ask AAP about a warranty exchange and while I mean nothing against them, I really don't expect much help there.

 

[Kenw57]

might consider the Edelbrock IAS performer shocks...

used them for about 70K mi on my Toyota 2WD p/u which has a really rough ride since the the springs rates are high to handle a large load compared to the unladen weight...it made such an improvement my wife prefered it to Saab...

if you shop around the price can be pretty reasonable...

 

[Jimmy9190]

Thanks I'll check them out too.

 

[The Critic]

See my other thread on Monroe's warranty--it covers normal wear and tear. You should be good to go if you want to make a warranty claim, this problem will be covered. Of course, you might want to consider something else if you weren't happy with the performance of the Sensa-Tracs in the first place, but then again, free is good.