ICON coilovers TOO STIFF

Exactly, waaayy too many variables.
Good points.

 

Exactly ^
Basically it comes down to the right shock with the right preload and valving (in the aftermarket world).

if you jump in your buddies bone stock Tacoma and go for a ride around town: it’s super comfortable and smooth (they picked a shock that’s 90 percent comfort and control, and 10 percent for off road).
But if you go extreme off roading in that same truck, the ride gets bouncy and kind of out of control,, and of course... bottoming out.
(and this is do to a shock that isn’t designed for the extreme and is simply relying on gas/oil pressure).

when ya dive into the world of Fox and Kings (and other AM’s). These shocks do to their valving and shims are designed to be comfortable and soft at correct ride height, but as the bumps and hits get bigger and bigger, the shaft moves through more valves and shims which makes them firmer and firmer... so that you can hammer through the rough and not bottom out.

so again, if you’ve got the wrong preload/ride height, your shock is already in the Firm phase and just gets firmer and rougher... you want your ride height/preload in the softest settings of your shock travel and valving.

I would reach out to Icon or Accutune and find out how much preload for your truck/weight they recommend

shoots

 

Not necessarily. You bring up some valid details but I think you're talking more about a bypass shock design. Most mono tube shocks don't have a "ride zone". The valving is what makes up the majority of the dampening control regardless of where you sit in the travel. Obviously there are other variables involved piston design, nitrogen pressure, etc but overall the valving is the key.

Ride quality is affected by where your ride height is primarily due to how much stroke there is before a physical limitation. If you have less than the recommended 2" of droop travel at ride height you're not giving the shock enough time to control the wheel dropping, causing a harsh feeling.

 

DJ760- absolutely, my bad.
I totally thought we were talking about Icon Bypasses and big old Coil Overs.

I realize now we’re talking about more of a direct bolt on factory replacements

oops

much love and Aloha

 

All good!

Again, you brought up valid considerations for that application. If I recall from another thread, you had gone through that issue so I understand you wanting to share information. I just wanted to clarify in hopes to reduce confusion.

 

I agree, too many variables and everyone's opinion of ride comfort and control are subjective.

My personal anecdote which means nothing for the most part is that the few folks I wheel with that have Bilstein or Icon, they typically can't maintain speed in the open or roads as Fox and King trucks simply because it's too rough of a ride.

 

Ride quality is waayyy too subjective. I agree.

And you mean like, on washboard-y, gravel-y, unkept open roads? Interesting. For me, I’ve found that to be fine, and fun. I’ve gone 70mph on a gravel-ish, hardpacked muddy road and had a blast.

I will say this, the day after I put my suspension on, I went to pismo beach in CA. I HATED my shocks and ride quality. At around 35 mph on the sand the ride sucked. I felt every little grain of sand, and it was jarring. Maybe I didn’t cycle the suspension enough and ICONs suck at slow speeds? Maybe it’s cause they’re eye brand new? Maybe it’s just because of the sand? Idk

I do notice that on California highways (which may as well be desert racing due to shit road conditions - and I mean
S H I T) my shocks are great. I love driving on the highway so much that when there’s a dip in the freeway, my foot gets a little heavy and my shocks eat it up.

 

True, and it falls on Icon imo for showing off their shocks in videos with trucks going fast through the desert but not being straight forward that their shocks are using valving meant for Nascar. It's still convenient though that you can get whole mid travel kits from them, and their shocks can be tuned to ride softer if one doesn't want to switch brands.

And the rear of these trucks absolutely sucks. When I hear rough ride I immediately assume it's because of the rear

 

Yeah the rear sucks* regardless of what shocks you have man. Although I have to say, with my 2.0 icons and a progressive leaf pack and durobumps, my ride in the rear is 200% better than what it was.

as for your whole icon thing, I agree. They market so much, but I think it’s slightly incorrect and overboard. Although, I will say that at higher speeds (from what I’ve noticed) they ride great
It’s slow speed stuff that breaks your back

 

Agreed. I'll be keeping the Icons since I like how they keep the handling tight and firm on road. With the CDCV I like the way it feels both on and off road too. Valving really plays a big role. What pack do you have in the rear? And how much weight, if any? I'd like to help out my rear before anything else.

 

I wish I got the CDCV for my front CO’s but I didn’t. However, I swapped a 600lb spring into the front CO’s since I have no weight up front and the suspension cycles more! It actually benefited me haha. Ride is plush now.

in the rear I have a wheelers progressive 3 leaf AAL and then duro bumps. The icon shocks in the rear made a difference, but the two main factors that made my ride great in the rear were the 3 leaf wheelers AAL and the duro bumps. Those combined are great. (This is all just in my experience). The durobumps keep from a harsh bottom out and control rebound and the leaf pack when I put it in after a block and then OME that was in there, is so damn smooth.

I don’t have too much weight in the rear. I have a camper shell and Tacoma bed mat so maybe in total like 80 lbs and then a bumper that’s 100 lbs so at all times 180lbs in the rear? I left the overload in so I got 2” of lift that is around 1.5 with all the weight

 

Thank you! Glad to hear you like the setup. I've got Icon AAL in the rear with stock leafs and the rear rides so harsh in my opinion. I definitely want to put some duro bumps on and maybe try some kind of Deaver pack or the RXT. Last time I had the shocks rebuilt I had the rear 2.0's softened and I agree, didn't notice much of a difference at all. Tough to straddle that line between still being able to handle light loads and have a nice ride when unloaded

 

Be careful with full leaf pack replacements tho
I mean, I hear they’re still typically harsh so idk. Dude the durobumps are FIRE. They make such a difference. Particularly in the front. I notice them when I go over speed bumps even lmao. It feels so controlled and plush. Controls the bottoming out soooo well.

But yeah it’s a fine line and hard to get right! I think that shocks can only do so much, and when people complain about ride quality it’s so hard to then blame the shocks. As you said, you changed the valving and it wasn’t even a difference in quality. bummer that it didn’t change much tho :/
It’s definitely the leaf pack and bump stops that make a huge difference

 

Deaver Packs are progressive, often using 8,9,10 leafs to complete a pack, combined with properly valved shocks the rear is smooth and compliant. Most people buy a cheap back like the Dakars then overload it an HD leaf making it extremely rigid. Nothing wrong with that but you get what you pay, most cases fiscal > performance

 

Yeah. A deaver would be nice. Do they ride smooth? I’ve never heard much about their ride and people having them

 

Doing some late night reading and saw your comment, Joe. I recently went from medium Dakars to Icon RXTs set at stage 2. While they aren't too much more than the Dakars, compared to Deavers, I think they still fit that progressive pack mold. Long story short, I think the RXTs are much smoother.