There may be more than one way to skin a cat, but
there was only one way for Ivan "Ironman" Stewart to win the '98
Baja 1000 to La Paz: Assault the relentless Baja Peninsula equipped
with a sure-footed and bulletproof set of Bilsteins.
 |
|
We chose to mount the shocks at
a slight angle. This keep us from having to cut into the bed,
keeping the stock look but improving the ride
considerably. |
But Ivan's not the only one. Take a look at driver
Scott Steinberger for example. His Ford-powered truck shod with its
set of Bilstein sustained perhaps one of worse beatings in its life
when championed to a class victory in the 2001 Baja 1000. By many
standards, it was the worse Baja ever. By Scott's standards, "It
was rough, but the shocks sure made for a smooth ride."
The list of champions grows triumphantly with each
glance into off-road racing's history. From chase trucks, to
spectators, to the journalists who cover the Baja 1000, the bulk of
them hold one simple tool between them and the rough road ahead,
Bilstein shock absorbers.
When ORC launched its search for a set of rear
shocks for our '99 Ford F-150, there was no reason to land with
anything other shock than a set of Bilstein 7100 Series. We chose
the 7100 Series over the 6100 Series simply because the 6100 Series
does not offer the remote reservoir option.
The 6100 is a solid workhorse for most stock or near stock
applications. In past experience, we've beat the snot out of lesser
off-the-shelf shocks only to learn that the 6100 Series is a solid
performer for our lightly modified and not so harshly abused SUV.
Ever since the upgrade, we've reliably traversed the Baja Peninsula
many times. A good place to test these claims is the infamous
Puertocitos Highway on the Northeastern coast of Baja south of San
Felipe.
 |
|
The frame mounts could stand to
be beefed up slightly, but we do not suspect any
problems. |
For our Ford and its everyday whoop-pounding
abusive environment, the 7100 Series Bilstein was the only way to
go.
In stock form, the stock A-arm
suspension up front was the first culprit to cataclysmic shock
failure. After a quick jaunt across a Las Vegas racecourse, the
stockers heated up, blew its seals, spit its fluid out and sent the
front of the truck lunging toward the sky. Needless to say, the end
result made for a real scene - the kind you want to sit around and
laugh about after the fact. At the time though, it was a no less
than a spinal tap each time we'd pilot a set of whoops faster than
the stock shock's periled ability.
 |
|
Our biggest problem was keeping
the shocks from bottoming out. To do this, we had to go a little
lower on the axle than we wanted, exposing the mount to rocks. We
plan to make some modifications in this department, but that will
come at a later time. |
To combat this, we equipped the A-arms with a set
of coilovers and accompanying reservoir to adequately cool the hot
shock fluid. This enabled us to transcend new and triumphant rates
of speed. The Ford walked over the whoops and rough with prowess.
And to think we hadn't made any other changes to the front end. The
A-arms, spindles and steering all remained stock, the coilover
shocks were the bolt-on answer.
It was time
for another prerun. Seemingly, the truck was up for the challenge.
We fired it up, dropped her into gear and got on it. For a while,
we had the Ford floating on cloud nine. Although we favor the old
twin I-beam suspension of old, we have to admit to how well the
A-arm was working. Like magic.
About 10
miles into the 60-odd mile SNORE course, an epiphany struck us like
the kick of a mule. The rear suspension wasn't just bouncing. It
was - well - kicking.
The whole thing was
quite hilarious actually. Picture an extra cab F-150 swapping tire
through a rutted wash, looking pretty damn good for the
near-stocker that it is. Then, the driver pilots the pig out of the
wash and into the whoops - at speed.
 |
|
The frame mounts could stand to
be beefed up slightly, but we do not suspect any
problems. |
Oh, it was looking good for the first hundred
yards or so, but after that, the 150 was flying down course at
mid-way stance to an endo. What was funny about this was the fact
that there were a group of dirt bikers up top of this hill that had
damn near laughed so hard that they wet their pants. We caught up
with them later for a breather and a word or two.
"You guys were putting on one hell of a show, like
a stink bug going ass over a tea kettle," said the crusty old dirt
biker.
Sure, it made for some good laughs
at the truck's expense, but it would have made for a certain misery
if we had pushed it further.
Since we are
permanently struck with the desert affliction, a state of mind that
thrives on the thrust of horsepower, mixed in with a scent of
sagebrush and topped off with a WFO roost through the desert, we
turned to old reliable once again for the answers.
We outfitted the F-150 with another set of
Bilstein 7100 Series shock absorbers - this time we went with four
reservoirs for the rear rather than the usual two.
We could have easily and reliably gone with a two
shock setup for the rear of the Ford, but since we plan to
frequently abuse the suspension both as a prerunner and a chase
truck, loaded with everything from spare tires to 60-plus gallons
of race fuel and countless spare parts and tools, we opted for bit
more.
Rather than having two shocks absorb
the abuse in the rear, it'll be four, which lengthens the lifespan
of the shock and its fluid, gives the truck greater control over
obstacles at speed and provides for that extra insurance in case of
failure in the fabricated mount system we enlisted. Think of it as
a spare set of tires for the shocks.
 |
|
After all the modifications, it
was time for the old torture test. We hopped out and snapped some
shots of this scenic silt corner. It wasn't the roughest of terrain
we traversed, but it sure did make for some good shots. |
To get away with this four-shock setup in the
Ford, we went ahead and mounted them at an angle. This gave us more
opportunity for suspension travel without having to cut into the
truck bed, something we wanted to avoid at all costs. It also
allowed us to give the shock more latitude in both rebound and
compression while having the shocks work only have as hard
throughout their entire cycle.
Photo Gallery
On our last adventure in the rough, we headed toward Primm, a
course that hallmarks a few sections with Jeep-sized whoops. After
30 miles of spine-tapping speeds, the shocks handled the situation
smoother than Don Juan on his best day. It was pure plush.
The self-adjusting deflective-disc independent
rebound and compression worked better than we'd figured. We
initially thought they'd be too stiff for the job, being that there
were four shocks rather than two. But, the manner by which they
were mounted had a lot to do with that as well.
|
|
Body: 2" Seamless
Extruded Tube Conventional or Threaded Body
Rod: 14mm Centerless Ground, Case Hardened, Chromed and
Super Polished
Seal: Aluminum 1 Peice/Rod Guide
Piston: 46mm Bilstein Racing Piston
Valving: "Self Adjusting" Deflective Disc Independent
Rebound & Compression 150/50
Oil: Bilstein Fade Resistant High Temperature Racing Oil
Reservoir: 2" Seamless Tube
Hose: Aeroquip -6 High Pressure Hose
Rod Ends: 1/2" Teflon Uniball w/ Eye Ring
Finish: Electroless Nickel
Coilover Hardware: 2 1/2" (2 1/4" upon request) |
|
Your Privacy Choices