Ride feels less stable after replacing the original Xreas suspension

I let the shop replace my front and back strut assembly on my 4th gen 4runner.
At first they just did the front, but after a couple of days I brought it back because it was super bouncy. They said it’s because the rear ones were still the different type (xreas) and they are made to work together so they would need to replace the rear ones as well. They admitted that was their fault, and only charged me for the parts to replace the rear ones. They put in a different brand in the rear than the ones they put in the front. They put FCS brand in front and KYB in back. The ride was much better than after just the front was done so I was satisfied. But after a couple of months I can’t shake the feeling that it’s a lot more bouncy than when I had my old original struts. Especially noticeable on highway going across worn grooves I’ve felt it’s less stable. I assume it’s just not going to be like what I had before but I wanted to see if anybody else had any thoughts or experience with this. Would using different brands make a difference? Would a more expensive, better brand feel better? I used to never want to drive my wife’s 2010 Acura suv because my 2003 4Runner was so much more comfortable, but now I find myself taking her car more often.
Any thoughts?

 

XREAS is supposed to help a lot with stability, so you might not get the same feel no matter what. But, I would also expect a much better ride with higher quality shocks. Hopefully some of the folks who have ditched XREAS can provide some more useful input.

 

Yup, sounds like the shop cheaped out on the shocks used. The Xreas system is a decent system that rides very well according to a lot of Limited owners. If replacing it, one should look at shocks that are better than entry-level quality.

 

If you only recently had to replace the XReas system on a 2003 4Runner, consider yourself very lucky. A lot of people have to do it at 60-80K miles based on what I've read. Repairing or replacing the XReas system costs thousands of dollars, which virtually nobody does on even a late model Limited, and you almost certainly wouldn't do on a 2003. My 2018 Limited has it and I like the way the vehicle rides, but if it ever starts leaking I'll have the system taken out and replaced with 4 conventional shocks. There is no point in comparing how the vehicle rides now to how it rode with the XReas unless you're thinking about spending $3-$4K to replace it. The question now is can you get a ride that's acceptable to you for a reasonable amount of money or should you think about selling the vehicle?

I'd be more than a little wary of a shop that replaced the front 2 shocks and left the 2 20 year old shocks that were part of the XReas system on the back to begin with. When the XReas system failed it should have been removed along with all 4 shocks. Leaving the 2 original shocks on the back would have meant they weren't getting any hydraulic oil as they were when the XReas system was operable. This video from Toyota describes how the XReas system works and you can see how ridiculous it would be to leave 2 rear shocks from it in place while replacing the 2 front shocks. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=owv6pyg48nI

You said the ride feels less stable, particularly on rough road if I understand your comment correctly. Is it something you can live with, or are you prepared to change out the shocks again to improve it? If it's the latter, I'd try to get very specific about all the complaints you have about the ride - stability, stiffness, cornering, braking, etc. and take the vehicle to a different shop if you can find one you trust. You could describe what your issues are and let somebody from the shop drive it or ride with you, look at the replacement shocks you have and the work that was done (the problem might not just be the shocks they used), and make a recommendation on what to do, if anything. If you don't want to put more money into the vehicle or are afraid changing the shocks again wouldn't give you the ride you want, you could sell the vehicle. The chances are a buyer would want to make some modifications, including the suspension, and wouldn't really care about the suspension you have if the vehicle is otherwise in good shape and has been well maintained.

 

KYB = Keeps You Bouncing

I put KYBs on the rear of my old Firebird once, they bounced more than the 12 year old, 130k stock shocks. I replaced them shortly after with Konis, which were like 3x the price.

Bilstein 4600 and 5100 are relatively cheap, that probably would have been the way to go.

 

It's not surprising that a shop that would leave two 20 year old shocks that were part of the XReas system in place would pick a crappy set of shocks to replace the other two. I'd look at reviews of other shops and/or get a recommendation from a friend, and have another shop look at all the work that was done to the suspension and replace the shocks again if necessary. I'd think putting on the Bilsteins you recommend should be less than $1000 including labor.

 

Thank you.

 

Good food for thought. Thank you. I think it’s something can get used to and live with. Unless the shop would be willing to do the labor for free since I’m not satisfied, I don’t want to spend a bunch of money on something that still may only be a little improvement compared to my previous Xreas system. I’ll just suck it up as a life lesson and enjoy my new “truck feel”.

 

Anybody think going to a Toyota dealership and do an inspection on the work?

• Validate if the correct parts are used

• Validate correct gas/oil pressure is in the system since its shared cross. (Not sure if there's a service port to validate. Wish I kept my system to check after they were removed.)