KING-OEM Performance Series Shocks vs Icon Vehicle Dynamics- Stage 2

Well, i finally got everything installed!!!!!!!!!

Installation: was more time-consuming than difficult. In fact it was pretty straight forward. The only hickup we had was removing the bushing from my stock leafs to reuse it with the Dakars. We ended up using a press and it slipped right out We started and finished the rear then the front end. UCAs were a joke to install, but look and feel SEXY! The rest went alright and me and my uncle finished the entire install, strip down included, in 5 hours.

The ride: Amazing. Definitely a little stiffer. I also have slightly more body role since i removed my sway bar. The 650 spring rate is holding it well tho. That being said, I don't think id trust the 600s with no sway bar on road.
I eat bumps. i made a fast corner into a parking lot that has an awkward dip intended to reallllly slow things down at the entrance and prepared for impact....NO IMPACT! It was amazing. If i had done that stock at the speed i easily wouldve hit my bumpstops. But nope, handled like butter and my truck barely moved. Im sold!

Here are some pics! I need wheels and bigger tires now

 

Lookin good Amigo. Now get those bad boys in the dirt for a real test.

 

So ive been driving around everywhere for a few days now and i put it through a full tank of use.
The best way i can describe everything in one word is "dampening". It really does just soak up bumps. The faster you go the smoother it seems to be. i love it.
The c/os springs have settled. a little more than i had hoped, but nothing thats got me thinking differently about my kings. EYE estimate= i lost about half an inch of lift, and some taco lean is starting to show. (not harsh at all, but I see it, and it bother ME ) Sooo....ill be readjusting my c/os this weekend or the next and i should be good to go

very stoked.

 

x2 and don't forget you are going to need an alignment after messing with the coil overs.

 

I messed with my Icons and lifted about 1/2" and took to the alignment shop. The toe was off by a little bit. Messed up toe = messed up tires

 

I adjusted my coilovers Saturday morning. The truck sites level now, and te taco lean is gone! Looks and even handles a lot better...i lost almost all of that extra body roll i was feeling.. Really lovin the kings so far!

 

So i finally had time and i got to test my new suspension off road this memorial day! Before i explain what we sort of went through, let me just say that i am extremely impressed with the suspension, as well as our trucks. These things really are a beast. I tripped out.

The Story: The cars that went up were my own, along with my buddies range rover classic. We each had two passengers. We went up to Rowher Flats OHV area in Santa Clarita, CA. (Im sure some of you are familiar with it). The trail we decided to take is called the Lookout Trail and is a "black diamond" trail.

We went up a little over half the trail with absolutely no problem. I had to reverse once as i was slipping on a large smooth rock. It was expected..i need new tires. Now, If any of you know the trail, you know its one way in, one way out, no option to bust a bitch, and your going to face some pretty intense inclines with some decent sized obstacles protruding through the floor.

Well, half way up my buddies range ended up slamming a rock and hopping is rear end. Among impact of the tires catching the floor again, he broke either a ring or pinion. We inspected the axles and driveshaft and everything was fine. Yet to open the pumpkin.. When this happened we knew we had no power coming from the rear, and there was no way to it would make it in front wheel drive, even locked. We hooked up his front mounted winch to my tow hitch and began sucking. This was working pretty well for quiet some time, until the winch decided to overheat and stop sucking. This is where things got interesting. We strapped him to me and i began to pull. I pulled my weight along with his armored range (6klbs) all the way up the remainder of lookout trail. It was NUTS! The truck pounded through all the intensely steep incline, through every obstacle, with all the extra weight and saved the mother fucking day. I was so impressed you have no idea. So fucking gnarly.

Side story** This doesnt have to do with our trucks as much as the day. As i was pulling him up the trail my buddies steering shaft broke and he had no steering at all. There was absolutly no physical way i wouldve been able to pull him up dragging his car with no help from him steering. So...We began the sdtrip down and started frankensteining the shit out of the shaft. a spacer was broken, we made a temp out of steel and used longer bolts taken off his tire carrier. We worked on the rig for a good 2 hours in the middle of nowhere under retarded heat. All in all, we got back full steering with no issues and i continued to pull him up to the top.

Coming down the trail was fine. He had breaks and it was pretty smooth terrain. and he had full steering. I however had a blast! I was flying through any rut, ditch, bump, rock, hill, hump, etc with no issues what so ever at a pretty freakin high rate of speed. The truck kept its balance and pulled through the turns and remained planted at all times. It felt almost predictable. Supppper smooth.
I wasn't able to get many pictures as we were all busy with the dilemma and were concentrating on not rolling our shit.
im VERY satisfied.

 

Okay, did some searching and my quest landed me on this thread.

I FINALLY installed my icon's up front yesterday (coil-over remote resi & uniball UCAs). Waiting on rear Dakar bushings then will do the rear. After the front settles in a few weeks, will probably raise the front an inch or so (preliminary numbers are I gained 1 3/4 inches) to get me closer to 3".

So my question is should I get the rig aligned NOW, or wait a few weeks for it to settle, raise it up to the desired height and THEN get it aligned? Doesn't make much sense to align it now if I have to do it again after adjusting the coil-overs.

Note: It doesn't get driven much, so tire wear is a moot point. The truck is 10 months old and barely has 6K miles on it. Thanks for the input in advance.....

 

If tire wear is not an issue..then yes. Adjust, wait, drive abit, readjust, wait, then when its settled go align.

I fkd up and idnt get an allignment. Lets just say im getting new tires.

As for the Dakars, you can reuse the factory bushings. I used a press to get them out of the leafs as theyre in there pretty snug.

 

Thanks, Man - How long typically for the icon's to settle in? I was thinking a couple of weeks or so.

I probably should have used the factory bushings since they have a whopping 6K miles on them. But I fought to get the factory bushings out for a bit, then threw in the towel and just ordered a new set.

 

Get the unlimited alignment at Firestone and do it both times

 

Nice!

 

honestly, im not sure as i have no personal experience with the icons.
Im sure ur spring rate is what would determine the time tho.

my 650 kings settle after about a week of flying through bumps/dips and a gnarly off road trip.

 

This, I am currently sitting at a Firestone getting my second alignment in a week, and third in a month (post-lift, post-lift settling and post-Moab).

Side note, after doing Gold Bar rim my wheel was clocked at 45*, then after Cliff Hanger it was back to normal. Self adjusting alignment? We will see what pre/post numbers I have.

 

I've been haulin ass over the RR crossings. I figured a couple of weeks, will take another measurement at the one week mark, then again at two weeks. Need to look into that Firestone option - how much does the lifetime alignment run anyway?

 

I have Firestone lifetime alignment. They will not align to custom settings. They only align to the factory settings. They just care about getting the numbers in the factory range even if they are not optimal like too little caster and too much positive camber. I wanted 3° caster and slightly negative camber and they would not do it. I had to go to mom pop shop to do it.

Everytime I went Firestone, they would keep the camber really positive which made the front end look all retarded and wore the outside edges.

 

Alright, I'll shop around then. I probably will only do it once in a few weeks once it settles anyway, and would rather have it done right the first time. Thanks for all the replies and insight!

 

I think mine was $180, vs 1 time of $80

Sure you can, every time I go in I just ask to speak with the tech doing the work, and even go back and watch, just be nice to them and they will help you out.

 

I've got some great pricing on the ICON Rear Bump Stop Kits for just a limited time. If you are interested, PM me for the details!