Shocks for a plusher ride?

Hi folks,

First post here. Apologies up front if this has been addressed elsewhere; if it has, I haven't been able to find it.

Any suggestions for shocks (and springs?) that could make the ride softer on my 2017 Tahoe LT with ZW7 suspension code (73K miles)? The ride is horrible to me; harsh and jarring in town (but fine on the highway). Speed humps send me into a different dimension. I had an '04 Tahoe LT that was smooth and plush; it just floated over bumps and speed humps. I'm trying to get closer to that ride. Mind-boggling to me how much worse my current Tahoe's ride is.

I realize tires and tire size can impact the ride. My '04 had the stock 17s, but my '17 has the with 18s. Seems like this could explain some difference, but not this much. Tires are Michelin Defender LTX M/S.

Thanks a lot for your help!

Welcome to the Forum from NH.

Lots of knowledgeable folks here who freely share their knowledge, experiences, and perspectives. Knowledge is power.

I hope that you will become a participating member in the Forum's discussions.

Pics of the truck, please.

Have you had the shocks checked out to see what condition they are in? That is the first place that I would look, before doing anything else.

I don't think that 18" vs. 17" wheels would make a significant difference, and the Michelin Defender tires are an excellent tire. What tire size are you running?

Thanks for your reply, and I do hope to participate!

Attached the only pic I have at the moment, but can get you pics of the suspension later, if that's what you want to see.

I did have the suspension checked by my long-time shop, and they said it all checked out fine. Tire size is 265/65/18.

Thanks again!

Here are some pics of the suspension. Hope these are helpful to anyone who might be willing to offer some guidance.

Your 275/65x18 tire has enough sidewall to provide some cushioning on the road, and I'm not sure how a higher profile tire, like a 70 profile tire, would fit without rubbing.

From what I can see, the shocks are not leaking oil, and that is good. One of your end links to the front sway bar has a rubber isolator that looks about shot, so I'd look at getting new end links for the front sway bar.

Hello, so I just replaced my factory shocks on my 2018 (70k-ish miles) and 3 of the 4 shocks were toast. Similar ride to what you described.
I agree that the shocks don’t look bad visually but neither did mine. When I took them off the rears were basically frozen and the front puked oil all over me when I removed them.

I went with Rancho 9000 adjustable shocks. Probably will never change them but I have the ability to do so. Find the RockAuto discount codes that are posted here and order a set ($350 or something). I almost guarantee it’s the shocks.

It's the shocks unless you're riding on 32" wheels

get some bilstein's 4600 or 5100, I wouldn't even look sideways at the rancho's even if they were free, same garbage gm put on the Z71 pickups

Doubeleive said:

get some bilstein's 4600 or 5100, I wouldn't even look sideways at the rancho's even if they were free, same garbage gm put on the Z71 pickups

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Ouch… rough crowd on the Ranchos lol.

I thought the Ranchos were different than the factory OEM? The ones I just bought seemed very nice and they really made a difference in ride. Life time warranty also is a big plus. Only time will tell…

Bigburb3500 said:

Ouch… rough crowd on the Ranchos lol.

I thought the Ranchos were different than the factory OEM? The ones I just bought seemed very nice and they really made a difference in ride. Life time warranty also is a big plus. Only time will tell…

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The 9000'S may be a better build quality than what gm used for oem, but I personally have never been impressed with them, many find them to be too stiff and gm already has a reputation for the oem shocks going bad and causing a rough ride, putting rancho's on them is like icing on the cake.