Dobinson/Bilstein Combination

[Nath Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Nath]

Hi,

Installed a set of KM2's last week. Reaonably happy with tyres.

Next week the suspension is being replaced by John at Zordos with Dobinson springs and Bilstein shocks/struts.

We have a steel bull bar with winch and we regularly tow a Kimberley Kamper that has nearly 180 odd kilograms on the ball.

The springs we have chosen are as follows:

Front - C59-314 Raised Height (45mm Lift) 80 - 150Kg Accessories (Bull Bar and
Winch)

Rear - C59-329 Raised Height (45mm Lift) 300 - 400Kg

If anyone with experience with these springs (or suspension combination), your feedback would be very much appreciated.

[Nath Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Nath]

If anyone is interested, the Prado now sits at the following heights:

Front 813mm
Rear 835mm

Only my wife has driven the vehicle and has commented how much better it handles.

Now to find a expert wheel alignment business on the north side of Brisbane.

[rwo Advanced Member Find all posts View Profile Close rwo]

Did you use the standard bilstein be5-a712/a713 shocks?

[mickmac_42 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close mickmac_42]

Thanks for posting Nath. I see the kit is advertised at just under $1400. how much did they charge for install? Do you have any pictures to show pre and post lift?

Mike

[GreenVX Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close GreenVX]

I went with the Bilstein/ Dobinson combo on my 90 series and my thoughts so far are thus:
Good points:
- Excellent shock performance all round on and off road, but havnt been in sand with them yet so unsure there.
- Great load performance from the springs, im using the Heavy duty ones btw. Particularly in the rear where I put 200-250kgs in the back regularly. Dont tow with mine so dont know what the sag would be like.
- Tough, so far not a single dent on any of them. Really pleased with the build quality.
Bad points:
- Front springs on mine are made for winch and bar setup which i havnt got...yet. :mrgreen:
- Steering starts to vibrate at plus 110km/h due to not enough weight on front, but thats my fault.
- Slightly too hard on the rebound when on heavy corrugations, i.e excessively bouncy.

Some people do whinge that theirs is too hard for everyday use. Me, well im used to it - last car had rally shocks on it, stuck like glue to the blacktop but you felt every dimple.
Also as its made for a winch and bar setup and i dont have that, my 2inch lift is more like a 3inch lift. But im really happy with mine and plan to replce it with the same once this set dies.
Will post up some pre and post shots of it if you want? Also can probably dig out the invoice for you to see if my parts no.s are the same.
Cheers, GVX.

[Nath Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Nath]

Duplicate post

[Nath Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Nath]

RWO, I checked with John yesterday on the part numbers for the Bilstein. Apparently they are not the three clips position variants? The rears are long travel also.

If you have a steel bar and tow a trailer, get the same springs as I have quoted above. They are simply outstanding. Not harsh or bouncy whatsoever. Great feedback and control.

Mike, I wouldn't personally wouldn't mind disclosing John's price;however I don't think John would be very pleased... Put it this way, I did not need to haggle price. I rung a large number of suspension installers and John's price was simply the best. More importantly than money; John is a guy that you can trust to provide the right advise and expert installation. (Shameless plug)

Thanks John. My wife and I are extremely happy with the installation. Keep up the great job.

[CQ_Prado Member Find all posts View Profile Close CQ_Prado]

Don't know about bilstein but i hear they are good.

Got Dobinsons springs and shocks fitted yesterday, must say they are very nice improvement over stock and the lift is great, 45-50mm.
Also got their dual battery system fitted. Will see how that goes.

So far very happy with the setup though and very professional.

[rwo Advanced Member Find all posts View Profile Close rwo]

Thanks Nath, I thought all the bilsteins were the "3 clip adjustable" ones, I guess not?

[wholesalesuspension Advanced Member Find all posts View Profile Close wholesalesuspension]

Thanks Nath, I thought all the bilsteins were the "3 clip adjustable" ones, I guess not?

Some of the cheaper Bilsteins being bought in are not Australian spec items & some of them don't have the circlip adjustment fitted & although they look the same on the outside, they are not rebuildable.

Regards, Jason.

[maxjj Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close maxjj]

I have a big van, atm 2500KG, and looking at dobinson springs and Bilsteins.
So good to hear that you like it, I don`t want to go too heavy as I don`t have a bull bar.

thinking C59-300 or C-59-350 front ( for 30 or 40 mm front height increase) and C-59 -327 rear (45mm and 100-300kg to GVM)
as per the catalogue http://www.dobinsonsprings.com/docs/...df/TOY-100.pdf

the c59-314 aren`t listed there.

What tyres are you running with the suspension set up?

[CQ_Prado Member Find all posts View Profile Close CQ_Prado]

Cooper A/T3's if you were talking to me..

As per meh sig..

[mickmac_42 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close mickmac_42]

the c59-314 aren't listed there.

I believe these are for the the Toyota Tacoma, which has a similar suspension setup. They're longer springs but with a softer spring rate.

Mike

[Anth120playdo Banned Find all posts View Profile Close Anth120playdo]

I believe these are for the the Toyota Tacoma, which has a similar suspension setup. They're longer springs but with a softer spring rate.

Mike

Hi, I have c59-314, they are 10 mm longer than c59-302, and the c59-300 is 10mm shorter again.
They are all the same spring rate!

[mickmac_42 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close mickmac_42]

Hi, I have c59-314, they are 10 mm longer than c59-302, and the c59-300 is 10mm shorter again.
They are all the same spring rate!

That's correct, but they're for the 120. I was comparing them to the springs for the 150, this being the 150 series suspension thread.

Mike