Best Shocks for Road Use and towing

[Cheshire cat]

I noticed some time ago that tyre pressures in the high 30’s provided a far more comfortable ride than when inflated to early 40’s. 37 psi works well for me.

 

[OkGo]

36psi represet

 

[agcheck]

I settled on 32psi F / 34psi R after running a series of tests, referencing the tire temperatures displayed in the off road menu. For my Grenadier these pressures resulted in even tire temps at all four corners once they stabilized at highway speed - indicating evenly loaded tires. Exact temps vary based on ambient temp but generally never exceed ~ + 35* F over ambient

 

[pmatusov]

• Standard Gas Shocks: Use nitrogen at low/medium pressure just to keep the hydraulic oil from foaming. You still need a metal coil spring to support the vehicle's weight.
• Oleo-Pneumatic Shocks: Use high-pressure nitrogen as the actual spring. The gas replaces the metal coil entirely.

Come on. The only significant difference between off-the-mill Bilstein shock and a Nimbus strut is the rod diameter. Both of them have N2 between 150 and 400 psi - but a 12-mm rod on a Bilstein shock provides ~50 lbs of lifting capacity (as a byproduct of having pressurized can), while ~2" of Nimbus inner body (don't know what the real diameter is) can give up to 800 lbs or so. This is hardly a difference between low/medium and high pressure.

Main point - if you break a regular shock, you still have a coil to support the body. If you break a strut, you're hosed - badly, since the replacement is not available off the shelf in your neighborhood AutoZone (neither is a proper Grenadier factory shock, but you can improvise).
It applies to ANY modification of a vehicle - whenever you use an exotic part, you trade serviceability for performance. Again, in my extensive Land Rover life, I happily used half-ton GM truck shocks whenever Bilstein or OME broke (I never, ever, broke a factory Land Rover shock - however shitty they may have been).

For me, a far more meaningful upgrade would be a combo of lowest-load-rated springs and air shocks. I could bump the pressure for a little lift - no more than 2" - for a rocky waterfall climb and lower it back to keep the driveline together. I'd love to adapt some of Delphi struts to Grenadier, but it will definitely involve hacking of the axle and/or frame brackets.