Monroe Sensatrac or KYB shocks

[Anthony]

Originally Posted By: artificialist
Originally Posted By: Anthony

I was also considering the basic Monroe Gas Matic.

I don't recommend them. I often see them last less than 30,000 miles.

One great thing about having an older truck is that shock replacement is usually easy. That would make frequent replacement less stressful.

Ever been to a Nissan dealer? Sometimes OEM parts are less expensive than expected.


Yes they are very easy to replace on this truck. I have not priced a OEM set at the dealer but I will consider it. On a truck in this price range when new I imagine that OEM wouldn't be anything special.

Then again this truck was built back when quality really mattered to Nissan :-/

 

[tommygunn]

I actually looked up the OEM shocks, and they cost more than Bilstein!

 

[Jimmy9190]

I have tried several different shocks on my Dakota, including Sensa Tracs and the cheap yellow Gas Matics. I also tried a set of Rancho RS5000. None of the shocks I used were what I wanted, either too stiff or too soft and the Gas Matics just hard as rocks.

I finally took another BITOGer's advice and got a set of Gabriel Ultra (the white truck shocks) and those are the very best of the bunch. I have a nice firm truck-style ride without being too hard or too soft. Cornering and overall handling/road manners are perfect for how I drive and the roads we have around here. I drive 40 miles round trip to work 5 days a week, do not go off road but will sometimes haul a load home from Home Depot.

Gabriel Ultra's are great shocks. I got a good price on mine at Auto Zone.

 

[SteveSRT8]

No KYB here after 2 failures with zero warranty action!

We are now all Ultra. Mazda/Ranger just got a set and they are so amazing my daughter wanted to know what the heck I did to the truck.

Amazingly they were under 20 bucks each!

 

[CharBaby]

Originally Posted By: Jimmy9190
I have tried several different shocks on my Dakota, including Sensa Tracs and the cheap yellow Gas Matics. I also tried a set of Rancho RS5000. None of the shocks I used were what I wanted, either too stiff or too soft and the Gas Matics just hard as rocks.

I finally took another BITOGer's advice and got a set of Gabriel Ultra (the white truck shocks) and those are the very best of the bunch. I have a nice firm truck-style ride without being too hard or too soft. Cornering and overall handling/road manners are perfect for how I drive and the roads we have around here. I drive 40 miles round trip to work 5 days a week, do not go off road but will sometimes haul a load home from Home Depot.

Gabriel Ultra's are great shocks. I got a good price on mine at Auto Zone.


It's like that sometime!

 

[Sierra048]

Just put Monroe OE Spectrums on all four corners of the Xterra. Quick Struts made it really easy on the front. These are my first Monroes so I can't speak of their reliability over a certain length of time. We only plan to keep the car a few more years anyway so it was a perfect match for us. Car does ride extremely nice after installing them, but I'm sure the new tires are helping there as well.

 

[Greggy_D]

Originally Posted By: tommygunn


How many miles did you get out of the OE struts? I've heard of even the OEM units not lasting very long.



They were shot around 60-70,000 if I recall.

 

[tommygunn]

Originally Posted By: Greggy_D


They were shot around 60-70,000 if I recall.



WOW that's terrible for an OEM damper! Good quality OEM shocks/struts should easily make it past 100k, even in NJ/NY potholes. I guess even KYB isn't what it used to be.

The good news is that Bilstein makes struts for your Mazda 3, so if you need them again, the Bilstein HD's are waiting for you.

 

[vipergg]

If you are looking at long term for the car the sensatracs are warrantied for life even against normal wear and tear.

 

[Lyman]

I run the Gabriel Ultra's too. Good shocks that last.

 

[tommygunn]

Rock Auto finally carries Gabriel shocks and struts in their regular inventory!!!!!

Previously, they only had Gabriel occasionally, on various wholesaler closeouts.