jamesm113

2013 Express 2500 Extended. No lift Previous owner installed yellow Monroes (I believe their Gas-Magnum line) probably in 2019-2020. They still look to be in decent condition physically, but they are garbage on the highway and on fireroads. Every bump in the road they offer no damping, have had a few sketchy points on the highway after hitting a series of potholes and momentarily losing control. I'm usually hauling a payload around 1000-1500 lbs, very rarely an empty van.

I would like to replace them with something better, but I'm not sure what is out there that would perform better. Looking at RockAuto, I see there are KYB Gas-A-Just monotubes available. Also, ACDelco and Gabriel make a monotube, but just for the rears. Any of those worth installing?

david starr

I like the KYB Gas Adjust. Previously used Bilstein on a 2005. 3500 van and the ride was very harsh.

og52

Hmm. I have Bilsteins on my 2015 3500. Ride is a bit harsh when empty, but then, it's a one ton van. But once I put over a 1000 lb trailer tongue on the hitch with WD it all smooths out. The stability the Bilsteins provide when towing is worth the price of the shocks.

mountainmanjoe

I'm using the KYB Gas-A-Just from rockauto (gotta love the rebate promotions) right now. Working great.

Triaged

Get Bilstein! Huge difference over the factory 30k mile shocks on our '15 3500. Didn't do the rear as damping doesn't matter much when the suspension doesn't move.

mountainmanjoe

What do you mean?
Driving on the highway was downright scary with failed rear shocks.

Triaged

The rear end empty on a 3500 doesn't do much movement. Maybe I was using a bit much hyperbole but the front end would porpoise bouncing up and down on bumps at highway speed while the back would be just one jaring hit. Putting the Bilstein shocks up front fixed the underdamped bouncing which makes the handling more confidence inspiring.

Edit: my unloaded 3500 is also a very different case than a heavy load in a 2500 so the rears would likely make a big difference for the original poster.

mountainmanjoe

Shocks play a role in the stability of the entire vehicle. They aren't just for absorbing bumps and holes. They affect lateral load in turns, and keep the wheels planted at high speeds when you encounter a disturbance. OP drives an extended van which is even more prone to rollovers.

jamesm113

Circling back on this.

I ended up installing Bilstein 24221948's and 24187435's, which is the B6 / 4600 line. I don't think they make a B8 / 5100 line for our vans, otherwise I would have picked those up.

They were definitely an improvement over the Monroe's - I don't lose control of the van when going over potholes on the freeway. However, there is definitely still room for improvement on them.