2001 shock recommendation request. Not your normal one either..

I have a friend with a 2001 4wd double cab who lives in Honduras. He needs new shocks and I have the ability to ship to him.

Truck is stock. No lift or such needed or wanted. However, he does drive very rough (rutted, potholes, washes, etc) mountain roads, so he is hoping for some ride improvement over worn out shocks.

He's wanting 'heavy duty' in terms of durability. All he has local access too are Chinesium which he states have a very short life.

Needing recommendations for brand, model that would fit that bill. Budget is important.

Also reliable places to source your recommendation..

TIA!

 

What's his budget?

 

At the lower end of the budget I would suggest KYB Monomax. I've run them in quite a few vehicles and have always like them if budget was a consideration. Rears would even come with boots. Rock Auto is probably the best bet for price, etc.

 

At the moment I don't know. But I know it won't be a lot. He lives there on SS and works with underserved children in the mountains.

 

So I guess something really decent like Bilstein is out of the question?

 

Bilstein 4600s are the obvious answer.

Even though they're "factory replacements" to what came on TRD models, the variants sold to the public actually have a larger shock body than original factory equipment.

 

Agree with the Bilstein 4600s. It's what I replaced my stock TRD shocks with, and I've been pleased with them. If he's doing a lot of "Trails" getting into the mountains on questionable roads, I would suggest he up his budget a bit. I don't know how long the 4600's will last if they're worked really hard. Maybe someone else will chime in on this subject.

 

Thanks. Ordered. Should arrive here before I ship a box of supplies to him. Takes about 4-6 weeks for the box to arrive at his place, so in a couple months he'll have new hardware.

 

We put 4600 on my Dad's 2000 TRD Tacoma a while back. I emailed Bilstein and they confirmed 4600s are the same as 5100, except for the color and they are not adjustable. So same diameter, valving, durability, etc as 5100. So they are an upgrade over the oem TRD shocks it came with.
OP: You made a good purchase