AEV Bilstein 8100 VS Falcon 3.3 adjustables

[vst]

Hey everyone I’m looking at upgrading my shocks I currently have Fox 2.0‘s and they are good but some times feel a bit to soft. I was looking at maybe the Bilstein 8100 remote reservoir not the bypass versions or maybe the Falcon adjustables. I do mostly over landing and slower passed trails not bombing down any trails im not sure how much I’ll actually use the adjustments on the falcons but maybe good to have. I’ve always had good experiences with bilsteins just wondering what your guys thoughts are on between the two. Price is close to the same $2100-$2300 for a full set.

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[piroman683]

similar thread here: https://www.jeepgladiatorforum.com/forum/threads/falcon-3-3-vs-bilstein-8100.48218/

I always recommend adjustability

 

[kevman65]

If you have a big weight difference between daily driver and off road, you may want the adjustable so you can compensate for the weight.

Softer for unloaded and stiffer for fully loaded.

 

[Pescatoral Pursuit]

I can only speak to the Falcons. For great control on the trail and a firm ride even loaded down, they Excel.
You will never get them soft enough to smooth out washboards and the like even on the lightest setting.

The wide range of adjustability also means you can vary the settings from front to back as changing conditions demand.

 

[@californiajeeping]

I would only recommend the falcon shocks if you have soft springs like me (metal cloak lift). The falcons will not work well with a very stiff spring you will end up with a harsh feeling on sharp bumps/expansion joints etc. They would favor softer springs like metal cloak, or teraflex. If you have rustys, clayton, or AEV dont go with the falcons. Your adding firm dampening on top of a firm spring and it will chop on small bumps like crazy.

The bilsteins seem comparable to the fox 2.5 and kings. Very similar with the main difference being how they are valved. Out of the box all 3 are simply middle of the road valving. They make them work on a wide range of weight and suspension setups.

Falcon Pros:

*They are valved corner specific and for the extra weight of a diesel gladiator (or gas depending).

*they have exceeded my expectations by 10x. Extremely well built shock absorbers.

*On the softest adjustment it is slightly firmer than OEM and slightly firmer than my metal cloak rocksport shocks on small bumps with DRASTICALLY reduced body swap and roll. No more pitching left and right uncontrollably with the front sway bar disconnected. My metal cloak rocksport shocks have totally died at around 15k miles on them. The fronts are toast.

*On the softest setting they are still firmer than OEM and it gets firmer from there. The added control actually equates to a much better ride.

Cons:

*The rear length is off a bit for a 3.5" lift they are closer to a 4.5" in the rear (too long compressed) I will need to add another .75" to my rear bump stops.

*They require cutting the front fender liners to fit the resevoirs.

 

[vst]

I would only recommend the falcon shocks if you have soft springs like me (metal cloak lift). The falcons will not work well with a very stiff spring you will end up with a harsh feeling on sharp bumps/expansion joints etc. They would favor softer springs like metal cloak, or teraflex. If you have rustys, clayton, or AEV dont go with the falcons. Your adding firm dampening on top of a firm spring and it will chop on small bumps like crazy.

The bilsteins seem comparable to the fox 2.5 and kings. Very similar with the main difference being how they are valved. Out of the box all 3 are simply middle of the road valving. They make them work on a wide range of weight and suspension setups.

Falcon Pros:

*They are valved corner specific and for the extra weight of a diesel gladiator (or gas depending).

*they have exceeded my expectations by 10x. Extremely well built shock absorbers.

*On the softest adjustment it is slightly firmer than OEM and slightly firmer than my metal cloak rocksport shocks on small bumps with DRASTICALLY reduced body swap and roll. No more pitching left and right uncontrollably with the front sway bar disconnected. My metal cloak rocksport shocks have totally died at around 15k miles on them. The fronts are toast.

*On the softest setting they are still firmer than OEM and it gets firmer from there. The added control actually equates to a much better ride.

Cons:

*The rear length is off a bit for a 3.5" lift they are closer to a 4.5" in the rear (too long compressed) I will need to add another .75" to my rear bump stops.

*They require cutting the front fender liners to fit the resevoirs.

Thanks I have 2.5” rubicon express springs not sure if they are consider a firm spring or not came on the Jeep when I bought it

 

[Pescatoral Pursuit]

On the softest adjustment it is slightly firmer than OEM and slightly firmer than my metal cloak rocksport shocks on small bumps with DRASTICALLY reduced body swap and roll. No more pitching left and right uncontrollably with the front sway bar disconnected

I have the exact opposite experience. On the lightest settings the body roll is considerable. The higher settings go a long ways to dampening the rebound.

 

[Stan H]

Hey everyone I’m looking at upgrading my shocks I currently have Fox 2.0‘s and they are good but some times feel a bit to soft. I was looking at maybe the Bilstein 8100 remote reservoir not the bypass versions or maybe the Falcon adjustables. I do mostly over landing and slower passed trails not bombing down any trails im not sure how much I’ll actually use the adjustments on the falcons but maybe good to have. I’ve always had good experiences with bilsteins just wondering what your guys thoughts are on between the two. Price is close to the same $2100-$2300 for a full set.

What is the longevity at that price before a rebuild ?

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