BP-51 is better than stock shocks IMHO

I remember when I got myself the ko2s, I headed to the mountains and at 36 PSI it was absolutely awful, I couldn't take it anymore, and I had to air down. On the same trail, now it feels much better. Money well spent. It is expensive, but it is worth every penny.
I don't air down unless it is absolutely necessary

 

Uh I think its already understood pretty much anything is better than stock.

 

Lol, I guess I am just new to Toyota land. I was expecting better shocks from Toyota but they were disqppointing

 

They went for the soccer mom ride.

 

I got even more disappointed after watching Car Care Nut's video telling how expensive and high quality Lexus GX shocks are. Well, in our case these stock shocks are not so great.

 

What's causing your phobia against airing down? The less pressure a tire has, the greater its puncture resistance.

On my trail rig Tacoma I keep the spare completely deflated under the bed so it can withstand being dragged over rocks.

 

I don't wheel hard. If the trail gets rough then I do air down. But I don't air down just to get to camping sites. Too lazy for that

 

BP-51 vs Stock?
My friend you are comparing Fuji Apples to raw Broccoli. BP-51 capable of adjusting both compression and rebound vs most our suspension only have compression adjustment. As far as I know BP-51 can be adjusted dangerously soft to running fast on corrugated trails. Because of that it may allow you to run 3ply side wall tires like KO2 and still have a good ride.

The only downside I can see is regular suspension service places may not take BP-51 service. Please correct me if this is wrong.

 

I think I am 8 ply

 

You’re not wrong. Most places can’t even adjust the ride height either. These are among a few of the reasons why my friend switched from the BP-51 to Dobinsons MRA

 

I thought my Load E KO2 had 5ply main tread (10ply rated) and 3ply side wall.

 

I have E too, so we have the same exact tire. You are right

 

What service BP-51 needs and how often? The folks who installed them for me should be able to service them???

 

Service intervals vary due to your use case. A general number thrown around is 40,000 miles, but YMMV. BP-51s have an oddball piston size, unlike King, Fox, ADS, Icon, etc. that use a common size piston. You have to get your rebuild components from OME.

 

I'm thinking if I keep the shocks clean especially that shaft thing I could get more life out of the shocks before they start leaking?
Or even unnecessarily going fast over speed bumps, or even driving fast on trails?


I also think would it be not much money just to buy new shocks if a shop is used to remove and install? (Remove shocks to be serviced -> install a spare set of shocks -> Remove temporary shocks -> installed serviced shocks)
Shops around here charge about 700-750bucks for lift install few years back. So over 1400 just for Install process (I think) + parts and labor for the shock service job?

 

My stock shocks are awesome!

You guys must have got a bad set.

 

This is where you’ll really come to love those expensive shocks… they are “rebuildable”, however as people are learning, ARB/EMU doesn’t sell parts to have the rebuild done, nor will do it for you. They just tell you that you need to buy a new set when yours are in need of a rebuild.

 

Are bp-51s marketed as rebuildable? Because no parts and no service sounds like another way of saying “not rebuildable.”

 

Spoke too soon. Death Valley doesn't care, had to air down.

 

My Eibach Pro Truck 2R (also added Dobinson's upper control arms) are far better than stock and don't need maintenance or service intervals.

 

The washboard in Death Valley is legendary. If those roads can’t convince you of the benefits of airing down, nothing will!

The point is, treat your tires as a part of your suspension and air down off road

 

I wonder if you have that adjuster tool to play with your BP-51s. I bet this is the perfect ground to test your BP-51s.

 

Too lazy haha

 

Absolutely awful, even 20 psi had some roughness

 

If it makes you feel any better, they have done shock absorber reviews in death valley washboard. If I recall, they were able to destroy a variety of shock absorbers pretty quickly, just by driving “normally”.

Seriously, airing down should not be viewed as something to be avoided. When you gotta do it, you gotta do it! In some conditions like that, not airing down would be the same as taking 4 jackhammers to your 4runner and complaining when shit starts breaking off by metal fatigue (not to mention blown shocks…which are rebuildable, but apparently not ).

Also, maybe more importantly, it’s so much easier to enjoy the epic places you’re in when you’re comfy (and when you don’t have to worry about shaking windows off their tracks).

 

Having fun

 

Going to the darkest spot, but I don't have much hope

 

I bet that picture doesn’t capture even 10 percent of the beauty you’re seeing with your own eyes. Epic! Enjoy it and stay safe!

 

Those dark areas are like a perfect window out of spaceship earth.!

 

For you

https://youtu.be/eDFmv4Lff-g?feature=shared