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Best shocks for b350 15 people van


wpatters1229
11-29-2004, 08:43 PM
What are the best shocks for a 1992 B350 commuter van designed for 15 passengers? We rarely have that many adults but use it mostly for kids and family. Just know with 113,000 miles it needs new shocks even though it doesn't bounce around.

Thanks

fredjacksonsan
11-30-2004, 01:48 PM
A heavy duty aftermarket shock is probably what you're after. I'd go to maybe a specialty truck store and ask them what they would suggest.

wpatters1229
11-30-2004, 02:07 PM
I would hope someone with some experience as to which brand works best can reply. I know how to go to a store and ask the question but then I'm at the mercy of the salesman who wants to clear out his none moving stock of crap shocks.

fredjacksonsan
11-30-2004, 02:16 PM
Yeah I thought of that about the time I hit enter. I'm not sure about which model to get, but I hear that Rancho or AOS are good brands to control the ride (this from the Ram pickup forum). Your basic Monroe or whatever may not be heavy duty enough for a van application.

fredjacksonsan
11-30-2004, 02:23 PM
Also, you might want to post around on a general forum here, ask about h.d. shocks.

glenlloyd
12-17-2004, 08:29 PM
I'm no expert on shocks, but I had a set of four Gabriel installed a few years ago and they totally stunk, had to have them removed and others installed within a couple hundred miles. Shop that installed them promised to refund...never did.

Something tells me the ones installed now are Monroe, and they're ok, but I still feel like they aren't doing as well as a good shock should.

Good luck

steve a
94 B250 188k miles

bignoisey
01-04-2005, 03:30 PM
I have a '99 3500 van that was modified into a van-motorhome. Right away I noticed that the 9000 GVW vehicle was too much for the OEM shocks. I saw that Bilstein seems to be the standard shock for the RV industry. I'm happy with the Bilsteins I purchased and if you can find a dealer they may also be right for you. My problem may be similar to yours when you're fully loaded - Heavy and high center of gravity / leans a lot on turns and bounces several times after hitting a dip. And that was with the brand new OEM shocks.
You can probably order Bilsteins on line through an RV parts store like Camping World (http://www.campingworld.com) but it will cost you shipping, and they are made in Germany which may also cause delay. Above all, don't do what I did and order them through a performance car web site. The one I used serves the sports car community, and were very slow for stuff that's not in their routine. I finally got the shocks after 3 months and several phone calls and emails. That's my 2 cents worth. Good luck.
There are probably other options too.

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