Struts

[Peter Nelson]

Oh jeez... meant to tag you, too. Good call.

I’m just looking to get a smoother ride.

 

[Peter Nelson]

A lot of guys can speak first hand better than I, for sure. Let's see if we can get some.
@iamdub @rgosart @Rocket Man

General knowledge says the 4600s are a softer, smoother ride on stock and lowered trucks, and the 5100s are a little stiffer on road, better on lifted trucks and rough terrain. The 5100s are adjustable for a few inches of lift. Specific valving info / actual differences is contested online.

Springs, in my research, cone down to three options (this assumes no auto leveling air ride or mrc shocks/ struts).
1. Stock LS,LT,LXT springs
2. Z71 springs. These offer a little extra height and stiffer rear ride.
3. Custom or "other" vehicle springs.

When it comes to towing, the extra Z71 springs can be nice, but some guys dont like the rake, so "helper" airbags can be an option, as well.

All said, theres quite a bit of play room here.

I’m not too concerned about towing the big trailer because I don’t tow it often at all. Just as long as it will do it once in a while. The boat is a zodiac inflatable and weighs about 150 lbs and the trailer weighs about 200-250.... it’s not heavy at all. So I’m not too concerned about towing. I am looking for a smooth ride.

 

[Rocket Man]

The 4600’s are awesome. You do not have torsion bar suspension, that’s only on the 00-06’s, they do not have springs of any kind in the front. You have struts. Look at the RPO sticker in your glovebox. Better yet, take a picture of that sticker and post it here so we can decipher what suspension packages you have.

 

[wjburken]

I’m not too concerned about towing the big trailer because I don’t tow it often at all. Just as long as it will do it once in a while. The boat is a zodiac inflatable and weighs about 150 lbs and the trailer weighs about 200-250.... it’s not heavy at all. So I’m not too concerned about towing. I am looking for a smooth ride.

Like Mark said, post a picture of your RPO sticker so we can see what you have.

My guess is you have, at the minimum, Auto Leveling, and most likely Auto Ride since you have the LTZ trim. What that means is if you have these two options, you can’t just put any shock or strut on your vehicle. You either need to go with parts that are made to work with these options or disable the options. Otherwise you will get error codes. Folks here can guide you in either direction. That is why seeing the RPO sticker is important.

That being said, I have 4600’s on my pickup and am happy with the ride. They are stiffer, but not spine jarring stiff.

I would be leery of your spring compressor if it’s made for doing cars. The springs in these SUV’s are a lot stiffer than what you find on cars and I would hate to have it fail on you as that can be dangerous. The ones that auto part stores loan out are questionable as well, IMO.

 

[iamdub]

I have a 2010 Tahoe LTZ. I want to replace the shocks and struts with bilstein, I want them to be the stock ride height. I’m confused on which set will fit. The 5100’s dont look like they come with the coil spring already mounted on them. How does all this work?

I’m not too concerned about towing the big trailer because I don’t tow it often at all. Just as long as it will do it once in a while. The boat is a zodiac inflatable and weighs about 150 lbs and the trailer weighs about 200-250.... it’s not heavy at all. So I’m not too concerned about towing. I am looking for a smooth ride.

Sounds like the 4600 series is for you:

https://www.amazon.com/BILSTEIN-SHOCKS-INCLUDING-PRESSURE-ABSORBERS/dp/B01ATOIM1U


The springs for the vehicles equipped with the Auto Level Control (ALC) are a little softer than the standard ones since they operate in conjunction with air sleeves built onto the shocks. Removing those shocks with the air sleeves from the equation alone will result in a slightly (although likely undetectable) softer ride. If your AutoRide shocks and struts are worn, then they're probably the reason for a firmer ride than what you'd expect from such a vehicle. They're usually spent by 80,000 or so. The degrade of ride quality is so slow that it's often unnoticed and people ride on them for years. They still operate (change state), but their "at-rest" benchmark is still pretty firm as compared to new.

Just know that you will be eliminating the AutoRide and Auto Level Control systems. Honestly, if these systems haven't failed yet, they will and they're very expensive to repair. It seems that most delete them with standard shocks and struts, anyway. I did when I lowered mine and I don't really miss it. I do like the factory ALC since it automatically lifts the rear to compensate for a load, even though I rarely carry any weight. The Zodiac boat isn't a concern at all in this and if that 16' trailer you pull doesn't have a whole lot of weight on it and you don't tow it far or fast, then you should be fine for the few times you pull it. If you find that it squats too much for your liking, a set of helper air springs are a cheap, easy and reliable solution.

Does your ALC operate now? Do you hear the compressor run for about five seconds after startup? Any suspension and/or traction control warning lights currently illuminated on your dash? When you replace the active shocks with the passive ones, you'll need to wire in some resistors to emulate the original shocks that the computer will be looking for. I used these: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B075DLSC5H/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

This will "bypass/delete" the AutoRide system and keep those warning lights from coming on. To delete the ALC, you just remove a couple of fuses. I forget which ones at the moment, but we'll cover that when we get to that point.

 

[iamdub]

I would be leery of your spring compressor if it’s made for doing cars. The springs in these SUV’s are a lot stiffer than what you find on cars and I would hate to have it fail on you as that can be dangerous. The ones that auto part stores loan out are questionable as well, IMO.

Cosigned.

When I lowered mine, I had to put my original springs on the lowering struts. I used the common strut spring compressor kit borrowed from an auto parts store. The threaded shafts were bending before I had the coil compressed enough to disassemble the strut. I borrowed a second kit to spread out the load among four compressors instead of just two and it worked out great.

 

[Peter Nelson]

The 4600’s are awesome. You do not have torsion bar suspension, that’s only on the 00-06’s, they do not have springs of any kind in the front. You have struts. Look at the RPO sticker in your glovebox. Better yet, take a picture of that sticker and post it here so we can decipher what suspension packages you have.

Will do

 

[Peter Nelson]

 

[Peter Nelson]

Sounds like the 4600 series is for you:
I don’t seem to hear any sound that goes for around 5 seconds after starting the vehicle.
https://www.amazon.com/BILSTEIN-SHOCKS-INCLUDING-PRESSURE-ABSORBERS/dp/B01ATOIM1U


The springs for the vehicles equipped with the Auto Level Control (ALC) are a little softer than the standard ones since they operate in conjunction with air sleeves built onto the shocks. Removing those shocks with the air sleeves from the equation alone will result in a slightly (although likely undetectable) softer ride. If your AutoRide shocks and struts are worn, then they're probably the reason for a firmer ride than what you'd expect from such a vehicle. They're usually spent by 80,000 or so. The degrade of ride quality is so slow that it's often unnoticed and people ride on them for years. They still operate (change state), but their "at-rest" benchmark is still pretty firm as compared to new.

Just know that you will be eliminating the AutoRide and Auto Level Control systems. Honestly, if these systems haven't failed yet, they will and they're very expensive to repair. It seems that most delete them with standard shocks and struts, anyway. I did when I lowered mine and I don't really miss it. I do like the factory ALC since it automatically lifts the rear to compensate for a load, even though I rarely carry any weight. The Zodiac boat isn't a concern at all in this and if that 16' trailer you pull doesn't have a whole lot of weight on it and you don't tow it far or fast, then you should be fine for the few times you pull it. If you find that it squats too much for your liking, a set of helper air springs are a cheap, easy and reliable solution.

Does your ALC operate now? Do you hear the compressor run for about five seconds after startup? Any suspension and/or traction control warning lights currently illuminated on your dash? When you replace the active shocks with the passive ones, you'll need to wire in some resistors to emulate the original shocks that the computer will be looking for. I used these: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B075DLSC5H/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

This will "bypass/delete" the AutoRide system and keep those warning lights from coming on. To delete the ALC, you just remove a couple of fuses. I forget which ones at the moment, but we'll cover that when we get to that point.

 

[Rocket Man]

Will do

View attachment 243901

You have Z55 Autoride and G69 auto leveling which means air bladder shocks on the rear, self leveling. Those rear Bilstein won’t work. I don’t believe Bilstein makes a direct replacement for the rear if you want to keep the self leveling. Read what @iamdub said above but keep in mind its easiest to keep the system and imo it’s worth it. Expensive to maintain? I have replaced my compressor and shocks with Arnold products and it wasn’t that expensive honestly, plus they have a lifetime warranty. I love being lowered and still be able to tow a heavy trailer and it automatically keeps the rear leveled. Removing the system can be a hassle also but it’s not that hard if you know what to do, there’s plenty of info here as well as experienced people to help you. First, you need to figure out if your compressor and rear shocks are still working.