Rancho RS9000X - Got Tips?

[Heraclid]

Ok, just got mine and will try to install them this weekend. The shock bodies have arrows on them so I can tell which end goes up (the red boots go up, both for the fronts and rears). It would be easier to have the dial at the top for the fronts to facilitate making adjustments, but that's not a huge deal and I'm sure there's a good reason why it's as it is. A plastic tie is provided which must be for helping to secure the lower portion of the boot to the shock body. Since there is no arrow or other indicator on the shock body to line it up with, I assume that whatever number is facing up is the current dial setting, since that makes the most sense to me. And the boots are supposed to keep debris out and yet there are holes, but they must be for allow air to escape when the boots compress. Just never noticed or thought about that before.

Okay, should be a pretty straightforward deal, but I know top-side accessibility has literally been a pain in the rear shocks for some. So... I think I'm ready to get to it tomorrow, but does anyone have any last minute tips on how to make this job go faster and easier?

[Ldub]

Liquid wrench, or some other penetrating lubricant applied to the nuts you are going to remove may make it go better.

Also, turn the dial all the way, one way or the other, wichever way the corresponding number is pointing should be where it's read...I think.

Good luck, Ldub

[Heraclid]

Ok, the top number is the setting you're at. There is a very small arrow on the dial itself that I missed before. This shows the direction to rotate it - basically, clockwise = firmer and counter-clockwise = softer. It should turn pretty easily. If you're at a 1/9 and it turns clockwise easily, you were at a 1. If you're at a 1/9 and it doesn't want to go clockwise any more, you're at a 9, so don't force it because it isn't supposed to go around any more and you may break it.

[mbeach]

Creap or PBblaster for a penetrant.

Ratcheting wrenches (esp. 19mm for the top rear) will make life much easier.

Remember the orientation of the bolts/nuts as removed (most of the time the bolt heads enter from the front of the vehicle, and the nuts go on from the rear).

There will be a minor interference issue with the RS-Xs adjusting knob on the rear shocks if you install them with the knob facing to the rear -the know will need to face forward in order to clear the lower shock mounts.

If you are in doubt about the knobs' zero position, remove the two hex head bolts that hold the adjuster onto the shock body (there is a small gasket, but no danger of leaks as this is a mechanical adjuster). As you turn the knob, there is a 2 start steeply pitched threaded shaft attached to it. You can see how it pushes in on the shock's valve when turned CW. Zero it out (the shaft will be flush with the adjuster's inside face and add some (a lot) of white grease -this'll keep out contaminates and ease the plastic on metal contact). Reassemble, using some LocTite on the little bolts.

Other notes.
The Control unit isn't worth the hassle. Slow leaks abound. I just spent 3 hours machining 3 new manifolds in preparation for a hardline conversion, only to abandon the project due to apathy. I've decided to keep the compressor for onboard air possibilities though.

I drive 80% city, and keep the shocks at 6/8 front to rear.

[Heraclid]

mbeach, thanks - that's what I'm talkin' about!

Looks like I'll be attempting this tomorrow even though I wanted to get on it today. I'll be using my Dad's workshop, where PBblaster has been a staple in the cabinets ever since I can remember. Got a nice new set of ratcheting wrenches not too long ago and they should really help because they're a lot slimmer than sockets. However, I had not checked on the sizes yet, and the largest I have (in ratcheting style anyway) is 18mm. I'm glad you mentioned it, so thanks for the heads-up! I will have to see if I can get my hands on a 19mm ratcheting wrench.

Good tip on the bolt/nut orientations and clearance concerns. I have read magazine reviews of these shocks where the testers knocked off the adjustment knobs because they did not check for adequate clearances. The article admits they should have known. I've also read everything I can on this board regarding these shocks. Someone on this board managed to shear off the end of a bolt, probably because it was re-installed backwards as you alluded to.

The dial position isn't an issue now, but your tip is an interesting one and is appreciated. I'm just not too sure I want to tinker with disassemby (for me anyway).

As for the control unit setup, it sounds like a neat toy but I've read a lot about it leaking and so I wasn't considering it at all. The Pro Series version of these shocks (the ones with remote reservoirs) would have been nice though, but they're a bit too pricey for me right now. Plus I missed the big sale on these last month because other things came up. Drives me nuts, but that's how it goes sometimes. Anyway, these shocks have about 20% (17% I think they say) more capacity than their predecessors due to their triple tube internals and should still meet my needs for the occasional rallycross.

Thanks!

P.S.- While prepping for the install, I found out that getting the boots on the set of rear Ranchos was a serious challenge!


http://www.vehicross.info/gallery/data/500/ranchos1.jpg

http://www.vehicross.info/gallery/data/500/ranchos2.jpg

[Ldub]

Nice dampers David, hope you'll post your impression of them vs. stock.
Also, If you have them, would you post the part #'s of the Pro Series ones you mentioned?
Thanks, Ldub

[Heraclid]

I will definitely post my impressions after I've broken them in. As for your question on the Pro Series shocks, I'm in the dark on that one. I heard that they were $190 per shock and didn't get any further than that. I did some looking since you asked though, and I can't find part numbers for them anywhere. Even on the Rancho website, there's just has a link to a .PDF that lists numbers for extended lengths, and the extended Pro Series shocks (a) exceed our max stock travel even when fully compressed, and (b) they appear to only come in eye/eye configuration. If there are any appropriate for the stock VX, I can't find them.

[mbeach]

There are adapters for converting eye-stud shocks to eye-eye shocks. These are what I'll be using when I go to the Fox 2.0s next year.

[VehiGAZ]

Heraclid (or anyone else replacing their shocks for the first time) - if you haven't done the job yet, PM me with a phone number and I'll give you a call to tell you what I learned replacing my shocks a couple of weeks ago. I don't have time to type and post the procedure, although I want to share what I learned. It took me about 5 hrs, but if I knew what I was doing ahead of time, I could have done them in 3, I think.

[PeteVX]

From what i can remember when i did mine, the top rear left side bolt was the trickiest because its partially obstructed by the exhaust, mine was completely seized and i ended up cutting it off.

I like the ranchos but really want some softer springs to go with, its still way too hard a ride for me.

Anyone know if the Amigo springs would fit and do they have a softer spring rate?

I assume ours are the same as the trooper springs.

Pete

[Navigator]

From what i can remember when i did mine, the top rear left side bolt was the trickiest because its partially obstructed by the exhaust, mine was completely seized and i ended up cutting it off.
Pete

True, that is one tough nut to crack, but it you have access to a lift all you need is a foot of iron pipe to extend the leverage of the 19mm wrench and with the VX overhead, just lean into it to free that nut. No need to cut. Oh and spary the nut with WD40 and wait a minute first, It'll twist off easy.

I've been using the Rancho 9000's for over a year, and I must say I like them even better than stock for street use.

[VehiGAZ]

I don't get all the fuss over that top rear bolt. Sure, the bolt head is hard to get to, but the nut on the other end was easy as pie to get at on my VX. But I had non-OEM shocks installed on mine, so maybe the expansion chambers on the shock block access to the nut? In any event, I had the hardest time removing the front shocks. It took a while before I figured out a good two-screwdriver technique for compressing the shock.

[mbeach]

Most of us didn't have to compress our shocks (front or rear) to remove them. That's why they were being replaced.

The top rear bolts are difficult simply because they are the only ones that are tough to get a ratchet on. The external resevoirs do not get in the way.

[Heraclid]

I'm with VehiGAZ. The rear bolts just aren't that hard to get to. Granted, you won't be able to get a socket on the nuts, but the newer ratcheting wrenches or standard ones will get in there just fine. I did it with a non-ratcheting 19mm wrench because that's all I could get my hands on. While one of the top nuts was particularly difficult to break loose (even though I sprayed them down liberally with penetrating lubricant first), accessibility was not the issue. Navigator has the right idea - it is all about getting enough leverage on it. My wrench was a crescent on one end, closed circular on the other end. I finally got it by interlocking an adjustable wrench on the open crescent end of the wrench I had been using, effectively doubling the handle length I had, and I made pretty short work of it then.

I do not understand why people say the exhaust side (left rear) is difficult. The nut is accessible enough unless maybe you're trying to get a socket in there. If you have one, use a 19mm ratcheting wrench to make things way easier on yourself. The left rear top bolt backs out with no obstruction. Here's a pic:

http://www.vehicross.info/gallery/data//500/reartopleft.jpg

The reason I mention the clearance for backing out bolts is this - what was a little tricky was the right side top bolt. Rather than any exhaust sytem obstruction on the other side, I think this is actually the problem PeteVX is remembering. When you have it just about completely backed out, it hits something. I had to work with it for a little while and wiggle it a bit and finally got it free. Here's a pic, with the obstruction area indicated in red:

http://www.vehicross.info/gallery/data//500/reartopright.jpg

Finally, here is why the advice mbeach gave about clearance is worth noting. You can see that it would be a problem to mount the rear shocks with the adjustment knob facing rearward, where it may contact the shock mount. Hopefully no one would manage to do that though because you should realize as you're doing it that it would be hard to get to for adjustments and see it's a tight spot. Here's the pic:

http://www.vehicross.info/gallery/data//500/rearclearance.jpg


I had a very difficult nut to break loose on each side. For me, the bottom right rear nut was tough, and the top rear left was as well. The other two went pretty easily. Again, access wasn't the problem - they were just damn tight and hard to break loose even when sprayed down with lots of WD-40. Leverage is the key. On tough bottom one I encountered, I actually used a 3/4 standard hex 1/2" drive deep socket on the end of my torque wrench. It is a 19mm bolt head but that socket went on it nicely with no slipping. Essentially it gave me about a 2 ft. breaker bar. It still wasn't a piece of cake, but that made it much easier than it otherwise would have been.

Contray to what many have said, when it was all said and done, the rears were much easier than the fronts for me. I removed the front wheels for improved access to the front shocks. That is not necessary for the rear shocks. Also, the front shocks had some fight left in them so I needed to use a pry bar to compress them enough to get the studs down and out of their mount holes. Eye loops on the rears made them pretty simple to deal with by comparison. VehiGAZ said it and it's true for me too - once you've done it once and gotten a method down, you could go back and do it again much faster. The main thing I'd say is please be safe about it - use a good jack, choose good sensible lift points, and put a jackstand under the axle as backup just in case.

As for my impressions, they seem like very well built, quality shocks. I used the red urethane Rancho bushings rather than replacing the stock rubber ones and would recommend doing so to everybody. I just got the rears in last night so today was the first day on all four new shocks. So far I have only driven with the shocks set to the softest setting. One of Hotsauce's posts somewhere recommended this for breaking them in. Not sure it makes much difference, but I figured I'd do it. I can say I don't like that setting much, but don't take that as a knock against them yet as it is the very softest setting. I have cranked them up some and will go out and see how I like that.

[mbeach]

VehiGAZ said it and it's true for me too - once you've done it once and gotten a method down, you could go back and do it again much faster. The main thing I'd say is please be safe about it - use a good jack, choose good sensible lift points, and put a jackstand under the axle as backup just in case.

As for my impressions, they seem like very well built, quality shocks.

It takes me @45 minutes to lift the truck, pull all 4 wheels and pull all 4 shocks. I've had much practice of late with my wife's VX and our ongoing battle with Isuzu over warranty replacements.
It's just a matter of practice -in fact, I spend @15 minutes just getting the truck onto the jackstands (tricky with a short jack).

My only complaint with the Ranchos is their lack of effective corrosion protection. Mine look like they have been on the truck for a year, when it's only been 4 months.

[Heraclid]

Cranked 'em up to an 8 and took it for a spin this evening.... me likey now. :-) Feels like when I got it.

[VehiGAZ]

45 minutes?!? Wow, that's fast. I once changed all four sets of brake pads on my '79 Volvo 244 in an hour, but this is something else entirely... nice work!

PS... Peewog and I drove each other's VXs last night - hers with OEM shocks and mine with the the Bilsteins - and I can report that the Bilsteins provide about 98% of the damping that the OEM shocks do. I thought mine transmitted road surface imperfections a bit more than hers, but I'm chalking that up to different tires rather than the shocks. Bump, rebound, and body motions were nearly identical with either shock. I'll post more details in the other thread.

[mbeach]

Nice direct comparison on the shocks. I was thinking Bilsteins for the wife's truck if I fail in my battle with Isuzu. She doesn't need the adjustability of the RS-xs, and I might be taking mine off in a few months anyhow.

Incidentally, a Volvo 240 was one of the first cars that I ever laid a wrench on. I can't remember if I enjoyed working on it -I assume that's a good thing.
I don't encourage people to go fast when working on their cars, I've made a few mistakes as a result of doing so. I only use time as a benchmark for managing multiple jobs. The wife likes to know "when are you going to be done...etc.", so it helps to tell her something.

Tips that help me out though:
1. Keep tools organized and close at hand.
2. Print out instructions on how to do the job (for something new). Read thoroughly before starting and highlight problem areas. Use a different highlighter color for torque specs and bolt/nut sizes.
3. Keep the wrench(es), socket(s) and ratchets that you will be using, ON your body. I wear coveralls with many (zipped up) pockets. It's incredible how much time you save when you don't have to crawl out from under the truck to grab a wrench that is on the other side of the garage. Don't carry screwdrivers in your pockets, for the most part you won't be using them on 'hard' parts anyhow.
4. Spray all associated nuts and bolts with a good penetrant (PB, Creep, etc.) liberally and 10-15 minutes before starting the job. Spray the bolts, then find the tools, lift the truck, etc. I've never needed more than a 2' breaker bar for any bolt (I've spent a fair amount of time turning wrenches on HMMWVs and this still holds true).
5. Count your tools in and out of the job -make sure that you didn't leave anything behind (I'm notorious for leaving wrenches lodged on the backside of bolts).

I can't remember where I pieced all of this together from, here and there I suppose. It works for me though.