New Dobinson Gen 3 Montero/Pajero Lift Kit Option

Toasty

Looking for that thing i just had in my hand...
For that amount of money, it would be best to save it and go for Kings at this point.

Damn, yeah. At that price you can get way better shocks and service with King. Gotta wait 6 months for them to build (Mine came in 2.5 months) but it'll be way worth it plus you can have them tuned and rebuilt if ever needed.
 

Vector78

George Gergov
Damn, yeah. At that price you can get way better shocks and service with King. Gotta wait 6 months for them to build (Mine came in 2.5 months) but it'll be way worth it plus you can have them tuned and rebuilt if ever needed.

The Dobinsons MRR/IMS line is rebuildable. Rebuilding is prob. not worth it for the IMS line as you can get new shocks for half your shipping costs with no downtime. The Raptor fox shocks are also rebuildable but owners still opt to buy new ones due to the headache.

I like the Kings and the support they have but there are other offerings on the market that are catching up quickly. Plus, i think everyone has different goals and budgets building these rigs and the kings setup requires $1k in a-arms and the servicing headaches that go along with uni-ball joints.

For $~400 over the standard OME/Lovell/Bils/Koni combo the Dobi's IMS are a good alternative. You don't have to mess with strut assembly, get consolidated shipping, can adjust front preload/ride height on car and shocks are extremely beefy for 99% of the US buyers out there. I couldn't get any fade from mine after an hr+ on FS roads here in WA state.
 

Oconnorb

New member
Great info, as I review and review for set up for the G3. Front and rear bumpers are forecasted for next spring and a front Warns.
 

ApacheFJ

New member
Not referring to the piston size. Before I continue, I am not knocking on them but folks should know, Dobinsons are designed in Aus, but for the past few years all their shocks have been made in Asia. The IMS kit is worth it for the price point but when it comes to quality, Bilsteins and Koni - have been in the shock industry for decades and are still made in Europe.


  • Zero shock fade in all terrains with full load - Any shock is subject to shock fade after an extended period of time (even kings) just because it has a remote reservoir does not mean you will not experience shock fade - https://www.crawlpedia.com/shock_valving.htm
  • Enormous Oil Capacity - Define enormous - I am pretty sure the Koni Raid 90s hold way more shock oil as its a 70MM body. (Again not knocking Dobs, I just think folks need to make an informed decision and look outside the box with anything they buy, including Koni and Bilsteins as well)
  • Race inspired hi-flow CNC 6061 Billet alloy piston – for the ultimate in offroad handling - A bigger piston is always good but the difference between a 46 to 50mm piston is 0.157480315 inches. When choosing a higher end shock take into account build quality, shim stacks and position and valving. -https://accutuneoffroad.com/articles/digressive-vs-linear-vs-progressive-pistons-shock-valving/


    For the price its a good kit, that will show when off-road. I just wanted to point out what I meant by "Clever marketing" The Old Man Emu BP-51s have the same clever marketing as well. Btw - we can fix Fox Shocks on the rears of our trucks. just a heads up!

This analysis isn't technically correct. The first bulletin is technically right- But that said for an oe replacement application, they are not driven the same as say a $1 million dollar trophy truck. We are now going across the desert at 100 mph for hours on end in a production car. A monotube shock is much less likely to cavitate and fade, esp an IFP monotube than a twin tube or emulsion style monotube is. The konis are twin tubes. Bilsteins are monotubes for the most part the parts available for these trucks are lower end, designed to hit a price point models. Bils does make higher end, better tuned and built shocks- but they are not what people are buying for these trucks. Shocks like the 5100 are prone to breaking when put under the stresses of going offroad, they aren't made very well and shouldn't be compared even to koni in my opinion.

The oil capacity in a twin tube is a much lower volume, for one we have a secondary inner steel tube that takes up a large portion of the available volume and then we still need room for the nitrogen. Some brands like ironman in their foam cell shock do not even have a nitrogen charge. Nitro is added to assist in preventing cavitation from occurring, with higher pressure charges greatly reducing cavitation. Twins are usually charged in the 30-35 psi range, monotubes generally in the 130-200 PSI range- depending on the application and other factors such as friction levels created by the seals and wear bands.

I wouldn't recommend a twintube shock for any application that will see any sort of speed on a non paved surface. Speed generates heat that twintubes cannot dissipate fast enough. But also due to the smaller piston (located inside the inner tube,) lack of higher pressures, etc- the shock cant react as consistently or quickly as a performance monotube can and handling is affected greatly.

Valving wise- Koni, Dobs, fox, king, radflo, use Linear valving- Bilstein is digressive.

The BP51 was designed in part by an ex fox engineer, this shock is made in Thailand. Early on it did experience leakage issues, i believe thats been resolved. These are internal by pass shocks, which means they are technically still a twin tube, but with bleed holes to help in tuning the shock. Similar in part to those used for example by Toyota in the trd pro 4runners (fox)- with no adjusters of course.)

As for Manufacturing.
Dobinsons shocks are described as engineered and designed in Australia, but made in PRC/China. Its listed this way for customs, as its hard to put a value (for customs reasons) on each component inside the shock. Their shocks have all of the important parts made in USA, Germany, Japan, and Australia. Some of the things like the body threading, paint etc is done in china. Given the factories they use have been well vetted, are highly overseen, and are used mainly because of labor availability issues in their home country- Australia. Dobinsons pistons are machined by tsugami in JAPAN for example. The internals in their shocks are made very well, and this is why we see next to no warranty issues out of them.

Pretty much all of the Australian Suspension Manufacturers have to rely on Asia in some form or fashion because they do not have the population numbers needed in AU for the labor needed in that industry.

Bilstein's for the most part are now listed as ASSEMBLED in Mexico, or USA, with the majority of shocks coming in labeled as Mexico. Quite a few brands have plants in Mexico- like the Tenneco brands for example. There have been some ($5000+ ) Bilstein shocks we have ordered that are shipping from Germany- havent gotten them yet- so i cant vouch for where they are making the higher end- i presume in that region.

Fox and King are both using some components that come from china. OME has shocks made in various places as well some in monroe factories, some in Thailand.
 

ChrisCosta416

Well-known member
This analysis isn't technically correct. The first bulletin is technically right- But that said for an oe replacement application, they are not driven the same as say a $1 million dollar trophy truck. We are now going across the desert at 100 mph for hours on end in a production car. A monotube shock is much less likely to cavitate and fade, esp an IFP monotube than a twin tube or emulsion style monotube is. The konis are twin tubes. Bilsteins are monotubes for the most part the parts available for these trucks are lower end, designed to hit a price point models. Bils does make higher end, better tuned and built shocks- but they are not what people are buying for these trucks. Shocks like the 5100 are prone to breaking when put under the stresses of going offroad, they aren't made very well and shouldn't be compared even to koni in my opinion.

The oil capacity in a twin tube is a much lower volume, for one we have a secondary inner steel tube that takes up a large portion of the available volume and then we still need room for the nitrogen. Some brands like ironman in their foam cell shock do not even have a nitrogen charge. Nitro is added to assist in preventing cavitation from occurring, with higher pressure charges greatly reducing cavitation. Twins are usually charged in the 30-35 psi range, monotubes generally in the 130-200 PSI range- depending on the application and other factors such as friction levels created by the seals and wear bands.

I wouldn't recommend a twintube shock for any application that will see any sort of speed on a non paved surface. Speed generates heat that twintubes cannot dissipate fast enough. But also due to the smaller piston (located inside the inner tube,) lack of higher pressures, etc- the shock cant react as consistently or quickly as a performance monotube can and handling is affected greatly.

Valving wise- Koni, Dobs, fox, king, radflo, use Linear valving- Bilstein is digressive.

The BP51 was designed in part by an ex fox engineer, this shock is made in Thailand. Early on it did experience leakage issues, i believe thats been resolved. These are internal by pass shocks, which means they are technically still a twin tube, but with bleed holes to help in tuning the shock. Similar in part to those used for example by Toyota in the trd pro 4runners (fox)- with no adjusters of course.)

As for Manufacturing.
Dobinsons shocks are described as engineered and designed in Australia, but made in PRC/China. Its listed this way for customs, as its hard to put a value (for customs reasons) on each component inside the shock. Their shocks have all of the important parts made in USA, Germany, Japan, and Australia. Some of the things like the body threading, paint etc is done in china. Given the factories they use have been well vetted, are highly overseen, and are used mainly because of labor availability issues in their home country- Australia. Dobinsons pistons are machined by tsugami in JAPAN for example. The internals in their shocks are made very well, and this is why we see next to no warranty issues out of them.

Pretty much all of the Australian Suspension Manufacturers have to rely on Asia in some form or fashion because they do not have the population numbers needed in AU for the labor needed in that industry.

Bilstein's for the most part are now listed as ASSEMBLED in Mexico, or USA, with the majority of shocks coming in labeled as Mexico. Quite a few brands have plants in Mexico- like the Tenneco brands for example. There have been some ($5000+ ) Bilstein shocks we have ordered that are shipping from Germany- havent gotten them yet- so i cant vouch for where they are making the higher end- i presume in that region.

Fox and King are both using some components that come from china. OME has shocks made in various places as well some in monroe factories, some in Thailand.

My comparison is the Dobinsons IMS kit to the Koni RAID 90 series shocks which are still twin tube. Here is my problem with Dobinsons IMS shocks. The are NOT valved for the Gen3 Montero, for the amount they are charging they use a generic valving based off the 5th gen 4Runner and then change out the tophat and eyelet bushings. Folks have had them and they ride incredibly rough compared to a properly valved shock for the application.
All over the Aussie forums for the Pajero IMS kits, you can find many records of failures, cavitation and leaks from Dobinson IMS kits. You can also find many great reviews and of course SOME issues with Konis, Billies, OME. But you will find the most issues on the Dobinson IMS kits.

I assume Dobinsons has put zero effort into valving shocks for the Gen3 (US Spec) (And INTL Spec) for the IMS kit. There is not enough market for them. That is what bothers me, changing a tophat and eylet on a incorrectly valved shock and saying it is intended for the vehicle is just lazing. Ironman 4x4 has done the same thing with the US spec Armadas.

Shock mfgs need to spend the time to valve kits to the correct applications. The amount of Overland marketing I see on "how great the truck drives with photos of shocks" and then "actually riding in the vehicle" is very telling of the market.
 

Leeson

New member
Just a little update now that I've had this IMS kit for almost two years. No issues. Now that things have settled in I like the combo better. I've noticed it rides better with some weight in the truck eg some people and camping gear is better than empty especially on harsh terrain like rocky trails where it performs very well I think.
I took the spring pads out from the back because it still sat too high and my toe was out of spec and beyond adjustment; I'm going to get it aligned again soon and hopefully it'll be in spec. If not I'm wondering if I could get someone to cut and extend either the toe arm or UCA for me because having the toe out of spec makes it handle poorly on ice and snow. I don't know what other solution there might be. Just keep some weight in the back? Total Chaos UCAs (not sure they're still making these)?
 

ChrisCosta416

Well-known member
Just a little update now that I've had this IMS kit for almost two years. No issues. Now that things have settled in I like the combo better. I've noticed it rides better with some weight in the truck eg some people and camping gear is better than empty especially on harsh terrain like rocky trails where it performs very well I think.
I took the spring pads out from the back because it still sat too high and my toe was out of spec and beyond adjustment; I'm going to get it aligned again soon and hopefully it'll be in spec. If not I'm wondering if I could get someone to cut and extend either the toe arm or UCA for me because having the toe out of spec makes it handle poorly on ice and snow. I don't know what other solution there might be. Just keep some weight in the back? Total Chaos UCAs (not sure they're still making these)?
The best thing to do would get correct spec coils for the rear per the weight. Get the axle weights of your truck. There are not aftermarket UCAs for the rear but folks are making adjustable trailing arms. Total Chaos is still making the front arms.

Another thing you should consider if you have a truck with traction control is resetting G-sensor and wheel angle sensor. This well help the VSC/Trac computer compensate for the new height. Any higher end scanner or MUTIII toolwill work. You can find it in "35C-3" of the FSM.
 

Leeson

New member
The best thing to do would get correct spec coils for the rear per the weight. Get the axle weights of your truck. There are not aftermarket UCAs for the rear but folks are making adjustable trailing arms. Total Chaos is still making the front arms.

Another thing you should consider if you have a truck with traction control is resetting G-sensor and wheel angle sensor. This well help the VSC/Trac computer compensate for the new height. Any higher end scanner or MUTIII toolwill work. You can find it in "35C-3" of the FSM.
They are supposed to be the correct springs and weight range for the truck so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
It would kind of suck to go with a different spring because these are the somewhat pricey Dobinsons.
I have an '02, no traction control or vsc.
Do you know who makes an adjustable trailing arm? Custom job?
 

ChrisCosta416

Well-known member
They are supposed to be the correct springs and weight range for the truck so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
It would kind of suck to go with a different spring because these are the somewhat pricey Dobinsons.
I have an '02, no traction control or vsc.
Do you know who makes an adjustable trailing arm? Custom job?


In one of my previous posts I stated how Dobinsons takes the Aus models and then just slaps compatibly with the US model.


They are the correct springs for the Montero, but which version did they test it on in Australia? I would assume they tested them on diesel models, or made a stiff spring rate just to get the desired height. If you get your axle weights at a truck stop, itll help out trying to find what would work for you.

You could go with a progressive spring rate like King Australia which is about 2-300$ per pair shipped from Aus.


@Toasty and a few others on the Gen3 squad page used to make them or still make them
 

Leeson

New member
They do have different front springs for diesel or gas, and different rear springs for swb or lwb. I don't know what other differences the Australian models might have.
"Made a stiff spring rate just to get the desired ride height"
I don't doubt that.
 

ChrisCosta416

Well-known member
They do have different front springs for diesel or gas, and different rear springs for swb or lwb. I don't know what other differences the Australian models might have.
"Made a stiff spring rate just to get the desired ride height"
I don't doubt that.


Sadly for the Montero/Pajero most major mfgs like Dobinsons, OME and especially Ironman - they do not bother putting much money into making any differences especially since the Gen4 uses the same setup. My guess is they spent money revalving the shocks and rates for the coils for the heavier Gen4, then put compatible with the Gen3 since it "fits"
 

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