Why “Quick Struts” are a safety gamble for Trucks and SUVs (Fact vs. Opinion)

Tech Questions – trying to pass along what I have learned since we started in 2003

This is an answer to a question we get every week…all of these tech posts are based on the last 20+ years of experience I have working with trucks at Truxxx, as the owner I get the privilege to talk to technicians daily and must have dealt with over 20,000 shops and dealerships in that same time frame…I am just sick of all the “hearsay information” that gets posted from people who really have no idea…If I help one person and save one perfectly good vehicle from the crusher, that will make me happy.

Why “Quick Struts” are a safety gamble for Trucks and SUVs (Fact vs. Opinion)

The “Hearsay” (The Opinion you will find on forums all over the internet):

“My truck is 10 years old, so a complete pre-assembled strut is better because I get a brand-new spring and mount for one low price. It’s a ‘refresh’ for my whole front end.”

The Facts (The Mechanical Reality):

• Spring Rate “Genericism”: Fact: OEM (factory) springs are engineered for your specific vehicle weight, engine size (V8 vs V6), and trim. Reality: Most budget pre-assembled struts use “one-size-fits-all” springs. If you put a generic spring on a loaded F150 with the Towing Option, use them on a Tacoma that goes offroad or worse yet, a loaded SUV, the front end will often “sag” within 6 months or sit at an incorrect, dangerous height.

• The Valving Secret: High-end shocks like Bilstein (5100 series) or KYB (Excel-G) use velocity-sensitive valving. Budget pre-assembled units use basic “orifice” valving that can’t keep up with the weight of a truck. **a Honda Civic, a Toyota Corolla etc, they work great – truck or SUV, no way**     The Result: On a highway bridge expansion joint, a cheap strut will “oscillate” (bounce) 3-4 times, whereas a Bilstein settles the truck in one motion, on highways with those small stutter bumps – same problem, potholes? Forget about it – the suspension just smashes through the stroke. This is not good… it is not good because when your suspension doesn’t work with the weight of your truck, with the weight of your tires ( unsprung weight) things like braking, turning can become affected…mechanically? The lack of good “suspension” action simply just wears out the other more expensive parts in your steering and suspension system.

• Mount Quality: The upper mount is the most common failure point in “quick struts.” Manufacturers often use lower-grade rubber and thinner steel in the bearing plate to hit a $100 price point. At Truxxx, we see these mounts “mushroom” or tear through the rubber within 10,000 miles. Stock trucks even have weak upper mounts ( Ram 1500) that we make reinforcement plates for – the upper mount holds your strut to the chassis – it is important.

• The “Safety” Factor: A snapped coil spring on a 6,000lb SUV is a catastrophic failure. Factory springs are made of high-tensile, shot-peened steel designed to last the life of the vehicle. You are trading a lifetime-quality spring for a “mystery-metal” spring just to save 30 minutes of labor.

The Truxxx Verdict: Don’t throw away your factory springs. If they aren’t rusted through or sagging, they are better than 90% of what’s in a pre-assembled box. Rebuilding your factory assembly with a Bilstein, KYB, or Sachs shock and a new OEM mount( KYB, Sachs also make quality parts) is the only way to ensure your truck handles like it was designed to—or better.

Look, it is an easy sell – the mechanics love the ‘easy’ bolt-on kits, but we see too many safety failures on the road and in the shop. We’d rather have you pay the technician the extra 20-30 minutes on the spring compressor to give you a truck that won’t bounce off the road in a year and won’t wear out other more expensive parts prematurely.

We don’t sell shocks – but we have been dealing with truck suspension for more than 20 years.