ADS Off-Road Racing Shocks - Information, Pictures, & BS Thread

how did you tighten it? I think maybe I just knocked the hose when I installed my bumper Saturday? I looked at pics from the day I installed the shocks and the hose was 90 degrees

 

Just the end of a small adjustable wrench

 

I got it tightened. It was really loose. Once I jacked up the truck to extend the UCA and get it out of the way it was pretty easy. How concerned should I be about the oil I lost? Hard to say how much since I don't know how long it was leaking.

 

You can see the oil. It will drip down and get dirty when dirt sticks to it. Or if the wind hits it, it will blow back on the fender and coil and upper arm and get dirty. If there is enough that it drips on the ground I would be worried. Otherwise be glad you got the remote reservoir.

 

it was on the coil and shock. I don’t think it made it to the ground. Truck still feels fine.

 

I guess I will be thankful I have the remote reservoir, though if I didn’t my shock would never have leaked in the first place so there’s a bit of irony there...

 

Haha true. From learning how they work it’s full of oil with a little gas pushing on it from the piston. Losing that little wouldn’t make a difference in my opinion. But I don’t know ish.

 

This is Matt here, not Marie
In regards to your comment about the travel of the ADS coilovers, you are perhaps thinking that shock travel alone equals overall suspension travel. This is a common misconception on here and what people are not understanding is that just because one shock has more travel than another doesn't mean it will yield more suspension travel. The up travel in your suspension is limited to the lower arms contacting the bump stops and the down travel or overall droop is limited to the UCAs range of motion. When these coilovers (FOX, KING, ICON, Elka, Radflo, ADS...….) are speced out manufacturers will ensure on up travel the bump stops are contacted before the shock completely collapses and on down travel they will ensure the UCA's are not exceeding their limit and thus the shock will reach full extension (top out) prior to this. To gain more travel beyond this you would have to change your suspension out with long travel.

So going back to your comment on the 5100's, both the travel of the ADS coilovers and the 5100's (3rd Gen) measure 4 5/8", however the ADS coilovers provide more suspension travel as they allow for slightly more droop having a slightly longer extended length.

Now that said.... is the issue the coilovers or is the issue that most want to take from a significant amount of their available down travel to gain lift? If reaching 3" is the most important factor, you will find that topping out your front will be a common occurrence since there is very little droop left until the shock reaches full extension.

 

Keep in mind the lower spring seat on the Kings sits taller over the ADS's. So basically the coils are likely compressed nearly the same (assuming same rate) only it would appear the Kings coils require less preload since they sit higher up on the shock body. There are many dimension differences with each of these coilovers so unless you are aware of what these differences are one can make many assumptions.

 

That makes sense as far as the pre load goes. But I’m still trying to figure out why I’m topping out so easily, I don’t think I’m running an ungodly amount of preload. I’ve seen others run 2 inches of threads and be fine. Maybe I’ll just have to run less and deal with the rake

 

**Sorry do not have much to add to the current train of thought... but!!

Just wanted to post on this thread and thank you for the help picking out ADS shocks for my truck. Went with the non-resi fronts at 650 springs, from @Headstrong off road.

Installed in June 2018 so they have survived 2 Colorado winters with no issues. ADS did recommend rear shock boots due to me being in a heavy salt area, I left the bottoms open and cut a drain hole, I rinse them out frequently and check for deposits.

Ride height in front is 22" both sides hub to fender. I gained 1.5 inches over where I was and did not change the settings on the coilovers. Ride is impressive for me! Smoother off-road than on sometimes. This is a great place for advice if you know where to look!! Thanks again!!


Here is a pic for reference, rear is high for my taste, wheelers add a leaf is brutally unforgiving, going to change out for Archive add a leaf soon.

 

Clean setup. Sharp and solid

 

Can confirm, used to top out my 5100's with 888's before I had any additional weight. Thanks Matt for helping clarify. I keep seeing the travel vs OEM argument and as you pointed out, the extended length is really the bigger indicator for topping out for those of us going for 2-2.5" of lift. For my setup, the sweet spot seems to be around 2.25" of lift. I top out very rarely, have a good amount of lift, and it rides great in all normal driving scenarios. Honestly, I can't think of any benefit in running more lift than that other than looks.

 

Matt here again,
Getting to 3" does help when in the rocks, which for some they understandably need this for as much clearance as possible, but it some cases it is in fact for looks. Regardless in both cases, whether trying to maximize clearance or going for the looks of 3", one is doing so and compromising the performance of the suspension regardless of brand (I really want to emphasize this point). In some cases and for those who are well aware of the limitations of and IFS suspension, they make this compromise and are fine with it. Unfortunately there are others who don't quite understand these limitations (which is not their fault by any means as why should they) and become disappointed after spending quite a bit of money for high end shocks, which are designed primarily for performance with some lift being an added benefit.

In a nut shell the best possible ride and performance will often lead to minimal lift. Those wanted 3" or even more (please don't do more just do a drop bracket and be done), expect the shocks to reach full extension quite fast resulting the common TW theme of Topping Out.

 

Hey everyone just so you know we are going to be offering a special on ADS so if you are interested feel free to PM me and I can get a price for you

 

Any first gens with full ADS set ups on here?

 

Yup.

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/winkle99-build-thread.511998/#post-16666179

 

How do you like it? I’m thinking of going that route when I get the money...

 

I love my setup. The ride feels firm. It is as much fun driving the curvy roads on the way to the trail as it is on the trail. Cornering feels like it grips better with no noticeable sway. Washboard surfaces are much easier on my body now. I do not air down on most trails because the shocks do their job and the tires have plenty of traction in the Rocky Mountains and in Moab. The shocks likely protected the truck from structural damage during test flights at Pismo, (see signature). I haven’t found any cracks yet. I am very happy with the ride results.
@turbodb runs ADS also. Check out his build thread. @Digiratus recently relocated his rear shocks as shown in this post
https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...st-gen-edition.138573/page-9743#post-22989720

 

Awesome dude thank you for the reply, I will probably go ADS when it’s time to upgrade!!