Two easy shock questions

Folks,

I've settled on a set of Bilstein 4600s. She's a tow vehicle, although the load is light, and I'm not concerned with leveling her out.

It looks like my shocks are the originals. I ASSUME the rubber isolator is something that is replaced when replacing the shocks. Do folks just replace the rubber, or do they replace the whole shock mount? I can get the rubber from NAPA, but if I need the whole mount, I'd probably get them from Rock Auto. Rock doesn't sell just the rubber.

I ASSUME the Bilstein shafts don't rotate when you're tightening down the upper nut, but I've had shocks that did. Do the Bilstein shafts need to be secured when tightening down the upper nuts?

Thanks,

 

Yes. Once you get the flange nut started, you'll put a box wrench on the squared off tip of the shaft to keep it from turning.

 

4600s will come with the bushings you need. There is a flat on the top of the shaft that you'll need to hold while tightening...it's a colossal pain in the ass! I bought one of these to make it slightly less painful...

$20 JINDITAI Special Wrench Shock Absorber Oval Pins

https://www.amazon.com/JINDITAI-Special-Wrench-Shock-Absorber/dp/B07C1V61SH

 

Just the rears?

If you're talking about the front shocks too, there's

$34 KYB SM5442 - Mount and Insulator

this upper mount, though it only comes as one piece, rubber and metal permanently joined. I can't think of anything, front or rear, that comes in two pieces...what mount are you talking about?

Otherwise the Bilsteins come with everything you need.

I used small vice grips and a box-end wrench on the back. Worked without too much frustration. A ratcheting wrench would have been better, but I didn't have one and didn't really feel like spending the money for just this job.

I also tow and decided on 4600s. I probably would have bought 5100s but they were out of stock everywhere and most reviews I found said they're essentially the same as the 4600. 4600s were readily available so that's what I bought.

 

In the rears, the top of the shock mayyyy have an Allen key in order to help hold the shock in place. Could be on the 5100's? But worst case, use some vice grips

 

Yes, I'm referencing the front, upper shock mount. Rock Auto has six. The descriptions of three of them show pics with the rubber ring separate, and three show the rubber attached. The prices very greatly. And as I said, I can get just the rubber from NAPA.

I don't have hardly any rust--the truck was a great find--so I suspect the metal parts of the mounts are okay. How hard is it to remove the old rubber?

Thanks,

 

I just installed the same 4600's front and rear on my 2016 Tundra.
Did the rear myself and had a local off-road shop do the fronts.

Neither fronts or rears came with "everything you need".

The rears only had a sticker and the top nut, so i ordered the bushing kit for them.

$19 Gabriel 143340 Suspension Mount Regular

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00DBS4OSC?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details
This kit may not fit your year !

The fronts were also only the shock/tube and top nut.
Springs were transfered and this top mount kit was ordered/installed

$22 KYB SM5737 - Mount Kit

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0142SLVXK?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details

All said and done the truck rides so much better now. Money well spent!

 

For our year trucks, the Bilsteins come with everything you need. My rears came with rubber bushings, washers, nuts. Everything needed.

Fronts also came with everything I needed, assuming I didn't want to replace the upper mount. Which, while many people will tell you is a good idea to replace (and they're right), it's not critical. Not like the hardware on the rear shocks. That front upper mount is just one of those "might as well replace it while you're there" sort of things. Not 100% necessary. Unless you find that it's trashed.

I didn't even realize you could get the rubber and metal as separate pieces, so I have no advice on that. I guess if your metal is good and it's a lot cheaper to get just the rubber, that's as good a reason as any...

I took a chance buying from scAmazon, and we all know you can't trust the photo to tell you exactly what will come in the package, but in this case the photo was accurate. My shocks came with all the pictured hardware. I remember reading threads from later gen installs and it seems correct that for later gens, the shocks don't come with everything you need.

 

It's not quite so easy... the six shock mount kits on Rock run from $14 to $31 each. The rubber from NAPA are $19 each. I can't find any useful reviews on the shock mounts anywhere. What I did find are are mostly negative and from Taco owners who stated these part numbers don't fit their trucks, irregardfull of what company made them. One neg comment about the Gabriel mounts was that the rubber was too soft.

The truck only has 114,000 miles on it, but I can see, for example, the lower shock rubber is egg shaped. It's just time for shocks. I'm not trying to cheap out about the mounts--we're keeping this truck forever--but I don't like spending money unnecessarily.

 

I got KYB. I assume, and kind of remember, that's because people on forums recommended them as being just fine. Mine have only been on for a couple thousand miles, so I can't say anything except that they fit perfect.

 

My OEMs were KYB. Just need to avoid Monroe, Rancho, and Rough Country. All three are pretty much problematic/poor design/trash.

 

An update. I did find KYB shock mount reviews on Amazon, and Rock Auto does just sell the rubber isolators, for about six bucks. Seems like the KYB units are the way to go.

 

FWIW, replaced shocks for 2nd time at about 248,000 miles and while cleaned up and put a little paint on the metal, the rubber seemed fine an remounted with new bushings that came with the shocks (not 4600s). Not all rubber seems equal. Have bought some non OE replacement rubber products for other purposes before that didn't seem to last long (couple years). Wonder who makes the RA rubbers.

On the fronts that tool looks cool would be great if had one, but it didn't seem hard to hold the top while tightening the nut with standard tools like a small box end wrench or suppose vice grips if there's a real issue, but once the nut started to snug up was able to get a torque wrench on it to spec .., with a clawsfoot on the rearmost IIRC maybe due to size of the head of the wrench and closeness to the inner fender. Got a set at HF for that swap for like $9 IIRC.

 

I appreciate the responses to all my low-level questions. I do most of the work on all our vehicles--I've just never done shocks on the Tundra.

Sooooooooooooo, here's one more question... some of the pics of the shock mounts show center rubber on the bottom side. Is that actually one of the two bushing pieces included with the shock? It makes sense that it would be, since some of the mounts don't appear to come with the lower center rubber piece.

I just crosschecked part numbers and the $19 isolators at NAPA are actually the Monroe Strut-Mate units Rock sells for five bucks.

 

Pictures? Center rubber? Bottom side? I know you know exactly what you're talking about, but I can't picture which part. Front or rear? And I assume we're talking the top of the shock, not the bottom.

My Bilstein 4600s came with everything, everything I needed except the front shock top "hats"/mounts, whatever. I reused zero washers, bushings, or nuts on the top end of either front or rear shock. Only thing I reused was the bottom shock bolt and nut.

Don't trust product photos. Maybe trust descriptions, but even then be suspect. The rear shocks go something like: metal washer, rubber spacer, metal washer, nylock nut. The scAmazon photo shows a lock washer between the large top washer and nut, but I can't remember if that's actually necessary/included or not.

Always nice to do some investigating and find deals! Only caution is that if all you're ordering from Rock Auto is the rubber, the shipping will likely bump you right back up to $19.

 

I'm talking about the spring side (the bottom) of the front upper shock mount.

I have some other parts to buy, and am planning to get everything from Rock, including the shocks.

 

All this hardware came with my shocks. To be honest, don't remember exactly how many pieces or what they were. Just know everything was provided.

 

I think i know what you are asking. I prchased the sachs version of kyb mount which comes w new too bushing and is in two oeices, had new hardware as well. Your bilsteins should have cone with bottom , watch 1stgenoffroad.com shop assembly vid. I know he ditches bottom on spring lift set-ups. There are a ton of vids. If you bought new from Bilstein i would call and verify if they are needed/not included or if they messed uo your order.

From my understanding they should come w everything u need.