Rancho 9000 Shocks

GP NOIR

GP NOIR

Hooked
I’ve seen several posts recommending Rancho 9000 shocks because of their adjustability. I don’t want to derail anyone’s thread, so I’m starting this one.

Back in the 90s, I installed a complete set of Rancho 9000s on my Cherokee. When the first set wore out, I replaced them with a second set. I realize that was close to 30 years ago and I’m sure Rancho has been continuously updating their shocks.

But my experience with the 9000s was disappointing. First, no matter what setting I tried, the shocks felt the same. Second, the adjustment knobs kept getting knocked off on the trail.

Damping was good and they were reliable enough for the money, but after the second set wore out, they were replaced with a set of the more economical Rancho 7000 series shocks which seemed to work just as well.

My question, for those with first hand experience with Rancho 9000s, can you tell the difference in firmness between the settings? Do you feel they’re worth the money paid for them? Are you satisfied with the performance of the 9000s? Do the knobs keep getting knocked about?

What’s your take on the Rancho 9000s?

No ax to grind, just curious.
 
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cozdude

cozdude

Guy with a Red 2-Door
I have the 9000 on my jlu. I haven’t ran any other rancho shock to compare so take my opinion lightly.

the rancho 2” lift and the 9000 pair perfectly. I have personally noticed a difference in the shock settings when making adjustments. When I first installed the lift the springs were stiff enough that I left the shock setting on 1 for a long time. As it “broke in” I started getting a lot more what felt like body roll. I have recently adjusted them to 5 front and 4 rear and the ride is soft but firm at the same time.

Once again I can’t compare it to other rancho shocks but I do enjoy them and think they do adjust as designed
 
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Bierpower

Bierpower

Hooked
I have a set of rancho 9000's. They were set as soft as possible and did great going down the road. We hit the trail and I was bottoming on every large bump. We pulled over and I turned them to max firm and it definitely made a difference. The front stopped bottoming and the rear started to pogo. Lowered the rear back down about half and did great for the next 100ish miles of trail and everything since.

I will say I haven't touched the adjustment since they were set but I figured I would need the adjustability for my setup.

I also haven't run any others in the rancho lineup so can't add anything there.
 
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OverlanderJK

OverlanderJK

Resident Smartass
Probably a totally different shock than it was 30 years ago. With that said, the adjustability will depend what coils you have. I never found them useful but I didn’t run Rancho or evo coils (Essentially the same coil). I’d go with the new 7000 shocks personally. Or if you have a hard/stuff coil, go with the 5000’s. I was happy with the 5000’s with rock krawler coils and they were cheap. The old 7000’s were also good with those.
 
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GP NOIR

GP NOIR

Hooked
The front coils were Rubicon Express for a ZJ and a spacer. The rear leafs (if I recall) were Rubicon Express with a couple of add a leafs. Lift was estimated to be about 5.5 inches.

No anti-sway bar, no steering damper.
 
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wayoflife

wayoflife

Administrator
Staff member
GP NOIR said:
The front coils were Rubicon Express for a ZJ and a spacer. The rear leafs (if I recall) were Rubicon Express with a couple of add a leafs. Lift was estimated to be about 5.5 inches.

No anti-sway bar, no steering damper.
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A majority of ride quality comes from your springs. Shocks will only serve to smooth things out. Your ZJ coils and RE leafs were probably firm enough on your XJ to negate whatever your 9000's could offer.

For how I've I've seen you use your Jeep, I too would recommend the new RS7MT. 9000's are nice but they will fad a lot faster when driving across the desert.
 
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Mike Pierson

Mike Pierson

Hooked
I've had them before on a Ford F250 crew with the in-cab controller and have them now on my JL just using the knobs. I personally think having nine settings is overkill; I really couldn’t tell the difference between each position. Having a better knob with three settings similar to their 3, 6, 9 in strength makes better sense to me.
 
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GP NOIR

GP NOIR

Hooked
wayoflife said:
A majority of ride quality comes from your springs. Shocks will only serve to smooth things out. Your ZJ coils and RE leafs were probably firm enough on your XJ to negate whatever your 9000's could offer.

For how I've I've seen you use your Jeep, I too would recommend the new RS7MT. 9000's are nice but they will fad a lot faster when driving across the desert.
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Good call, Eddie. I installed a set of rancho RS7MTs on my 2 door 2012 Rubicon, last year. They work well, for that type of shock.
 
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onlyone

onlyone

Active Member
They work very well. I leave mine on 3 and set them up to 7 off-road. I can tell a difference from 3-5. I never ran them until recently. Always used Fox 2.0 and 2.5s in the past. For the money they are great shocks.
 
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TrailHunter

TrailHunter

Hooked
I ran the 9000's and now the RS7MTs.... The 9000s seemed good to me. The RS7MTS have a longer shock body which lessens up travel in the rear. I noticed I was bottoming out sometimes on the New Year Run. They are also kinda of loud... not a huge deal, but definitely a thing. I may go back to the 9000's next time around.
 
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OverlanderJK

OverlanderJK

Resident Smartass
TrailHunter said:
I ran the 9000's and now the RS7MTs.... The 9000s seemed good to me. The RS7MTS have a longer shock body which lessens up travel in the rear. I noticed I was bottoming out sometimes on the New Year Run. They are also kinda of loud... not a huge deal, but definitely a thing. I may go back to the 9000's next time around.
Click to expand...
What do you mean by loud?
 
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