Back in September, I was deployed to Iraq, getting ready to come home. I placed an order for front and rear 5100s with shockwarehouse.com so I could come home and install them, along with some 35" tires.

Well, now it's SIX MONTHS LATER. I have given shockwarehouse.com periodic calls to check on my order, but the delivery date keeps getting pushed back. First off, I would like to state that I was aware of Bilstein's worldwide backorder, but six months is just getting ridiculous, and now I'm wondering if anybody else is currently having problems getting these parts?

I'm picking up my truck from the shop with a freshly rebuilt transmission tomorrow, so now I need new tires, and I need an inspection sticker. I should just barely be able to pass inspection with what little tread I have remaining on one of my tires, but if I don't I'm screwed.

 

Sir, I apologize for the wait, we do have Bilstein Heavy Duty shocks available for your truck, but they aren't capable of leveling the front end like the 5100s are. Give us a call at 1-800-245-7469 or PM me here if you'd like to switch over.

 

Already coming home!!!! WTF kind of deployment is that??? lol j/k man nice to see a fellow service member returning home safely

 

I feel your pain buddy, i ordered mine last week and my shop called me and said they wouldn't be in until the end of may!!! i already got my 275/65/20 bfg all terrains so i decided to just go with the 2.5 coil spacer, but i'm going to be very upset if i experience any negative complications from the coil spacer

 

I have the spacer now and was going to go with the 5100s and remove the spacer. i dont want to wait three-six months for shocks though. Would I be better off going with something else (Bilstein HD, Monroe, etc) and keeping the spacer, or waiting till the 5100's come in and remove the coil spacer (using the 5100's to make up the 2")...

Any thoughts?

 

I switched to the bilsteins from a 2.5" AS. I got mine from Top guncustomz.com. Best price through ebay. Got em for 393 shipped. Arrived within a week appr. a month ago.

 

Hello all;
I just recently purchased a 2006 F-150 FX4, and i was looking into leveling kits, and all i hear about is the Bilstein 5100 leveling kit. Everyone is saying that it is the best way to go, but everyone is also saying that it is almost impossible to order, and be able to receive your order within a decent amount of time. Is the leveling system that nice? I'm kind of hesitant, because i dont want to give up the nice ride that the stock FX4 system puts out, but i also want to level my truck, and i would rather do it with shocks rather than just add spacers to the front. Any recommendations?
Thanks

 

Thanks for replying! I actually found out about your business through this website. I don't have a grudge or anything with your company. I just really want these shocks, haha. I tried to do a few searches here and elsewhere online, but couldn't find a definitive answer on whether or not Bilstein was still backed up or not.

My shocks right now are still fine, but I need the 5100s to get the tires I want. I'll wait, since my current tires just barely passed safety inspection

 

I guess this makes the pair I have had laying around for about 3 years now collecting dust a hot commodity

 

Haha, I was deployed for a year, but I ordered them about two weeks before I left. I was hoping they'd be waiting for me when I got back stateside, but oh well, haha. As long as they get here before the next deployment I guess I'll be happy!

Cool, thanks for sharing. That's what I was looking for. Sounds like Bilstein needs to step up production! I would guess a lot of their products probably involve a decent amount of hand assembly. I overhaul shock struts for Blackhawks, so I can understand that.



For the guys debating spacers vs the 5100s, I'm personally a lot more comfortable with the 5100s -- especially if you actually want to go off road. According to Bilstein, a spacer limits your suspension's up travel a bit, and can allow your suspension to overextend on down travel. This is enough information to influence my decision.

With a spacer, the factory strut assembly is moved downward. The 5100 strut replaces the factory strut in the same position and preloads the spring instead. The shock is valved properly for the increased preload. Either way, you don't get more or less total suspension travel, but with the 5100, the geometry is the same as factory.

Keep in mind, the 5100 is valved to be stiffer than the factory strut, and probably feels different when the spring is preloaded 0, 1, or 2 inches. Whether this is a good thing or not is subjective to each individual driver. I prefer stiffer suspension, personally. Bilstein claims the ride to be smoother due to the increased rebound control, so I take that to mean the ride will hardly be bone-jarring. I do expect an improvement on bumpy surfaces, though.

Hope that helps!

 

Why don't you just cancel your order and buy them off of ebay from topguncustomz?

 

I only see two listings for F150 5100s, and they're going for way more than I paid.

But I don't see any listings for topguncustomz.

 

Yep, I ordered mine also last month from Top Guncustomz and the arrived about a week later.

 

i ordered back in september and they kept pushing back the delivery date so i cancelled the order and i am just getting the rancho shocks oh well

 

Hey Guys,
I see most of you ordering Bilsteins 5100 are running 4WD trucks. I just uninstalled a set of 5100's for a 4x2 yesterday and installed a set of Rancho RS9000XL's. I purchased these Bilsteins 5100 @ the end of 09 and they probably got about 1000 to 1200 miles on them. Someone earlier in the thread said they were stiffer than the factory shock, that's true. So true that a man my age had to look for something a bit softer on the old back. However, they made my truck (07 Lariat ) handle unbelievably stable . I'll probably list them in them classified in a couple day if anyone is interested.

fordmojo