Product Review: OME Nitrocharger Sport Shocks on TJ

[1stDeuce]

Well, after years of getting the crap kicked out of me by whatever shocks I put on my jeep back when I built it in 2005, I finally bucked up and ordered some new shocks. I debated Bilstein and OME to great length, and ended up going with OME for two reasons:
1. More travel from the same length shock. (Monotube shocks always have a longer compressed length than twin tube shocks of the same extended length.)
2. Hopefully a better washboard road ride. (The old OME hydro shocks were AWESOME over rough roads!)

According to the marketing stuff I read, the OME "Sport" shocks are suppose to be an improvement on the old hydro shocks in terms of low speed (handling) response without the high speed harshness of "stiffer" valved shocks. (Hey, that's what digressive valving should do!!) I knew from experience that I like the ride of the old hydro shocks, but I was told they are no longer available, so I ordered 600046 and 600048 Sport shocks. (These are not the OME "heavy valving" versions, and not the "extended travel" versions either.)

In doing the install, I was pleased to see that they were about 3/4" longer than the shocks I was running front and rear, and my Jeep will appreciate that! (I'm about 1.5" lifted, with TJL springs on the back and XJ springs on the front with a spacer, all very similar to the OME spring rates.)
(Don't they look nice?!)


Initial ride quality was pleasant, but I figured they would firm up as the air worked out of the valving, and they did. After a few days of driving, they settled out at a ride quality that hasn't changed much in the month since I put them on.

So what do I think? The Nitrocharger Sport's are NOT a soft riding shock. The rear is slightly less stiff than whatever crappy shocks I was running, but the overall ride is very firm, particularly over abrupt inputs. I tried some washboard and found that they are fairly harsh there too. Big Disappointment. My Jeep weighs about 3900 lbs as daily driven. (Stockish with 125lbs of winch and mount on the front and 50lbs of tire carrier on the back, but soft top, no rear seat, manual trans.) That's not "light" as far as I'm concerned, considering that a normal length TJ weighs 200lbs less, and if you take off the winch and tire carrier, even less than that...



Thinking perhaps it was my heavy tires, I switched from my E-rated 285's (At 28psi) to some C-rated 265's (at 30psi). Nothing changed. (I'm running OE control arms, etc, so no poly to add harshness to the ride.)

The shocks had mfg dates of May 2013, so they are not from early in the history of this shock, which was rumored to have some excess harshness when first released, at least in the extended length version...

In summary, I think these shocks would be great on a Jeep weighing 4500-5000lbs, but they are not so sweet for a mild (ie. only slightly overweight) Jeep. I would be happy with the ride if I had ordered the "HD" valving, but I wanted a softer ride, and what I got is not soft, it's HD. I am really disappointed in OME right now. I'll probably give the shocks a little more time, and see if warmer weather improves the ride significantly, but it really shouldn't, and shocks don't really soften with age unless they're built pretty poorly.

I'm going to start looking for some old OME hydros and see if I can eventually sell these to someone with a heavier TJ I guess. Failing that, I may try some Bilstein 5100's, but I'm not excited about losing travel.

I'll see if I can contact OME and get a response from them too. I'll keep the list updated as I learn more...

Chris

 

[briboki]

I have the exact same thoughts with these shocks on my XJ. A little too harsh / stiff for my taste.

 

[Chi-Town]

Yeah I have to agree these are definitely not the OME shocks we've grown to love over the years. I wish they still offered both types.

The Bilsteins are a better ride quality aka less harshness over the new OME nitros, but I am still looking for a shock with decent off road capabilities and that Cadillac ride quality of the hydro OMEs.

 

[nwoods]

You might investigate KYB Monomax shocks.

 

[Weeds]

I left the OME shocks behind after 2 failed just after the warranty ended. I have had the Rancho 9000 adjustable shocks for 4 months. So far I like them. They are easy to adjust manually. I stiffen them for the highway and soften them for off road. With the weight of my rig I just thought I would give them a try. If you search the jeep web sites, you will find few bad reviews. They also have a life time warranty.

Good luck in your search.

 

[reece146]

I have these on my built XJ (~4.5" lift, long arms, curb weight ~4200 lbs).

I find them firm but in a "sport sedan" sense more than jarring or hard riding. They are also great in high speed use. I've been known to do high speed runs (40 mi/h, 70 km/h) across the fresh plowed fields here on the property and they work great in that scenario. Same with corrugated gravel roads.

I think a lot of it depends on how the vehicle is set up and what is your expectation of the ride quality. I hate a soft, wallowing ride. I'm more a BMW M5 type versus say a Cadillac Fleetwood type if you follow my analogy. Most 4x4s are setup way too soft IME.

It takes a while to dial in a good shock and spring combination. The parts need to work together and in the 4x4 realm there is very little data out there to make an informed decision.

If good quality multi-adjustable shocks were available that would go a long way towards taking out the trial and error from getting a good setup. It also doesn't help that most aftermarket springs used in lifts are ridiculously soft. I run Rubicon express springs in the front of my XJ but ended up swapping out lifted XJ springs for ZJ V8 springs to get more rate on the spring. The ARB bar and Winch doesn't help I guess. Some will argue that I'm giving up articulation doing that but I've built an overlanding Jeep, not a ramp queen. The Jeep still out-flexes most any normal vehicle out there.

Anyway, I'm rambling on a lazy Sunday afternoon. Try some alternate shocks perhaps? Alternatively, try the OME springs that are meant for those shocks?

 

[1stDeuce]

Ok, time for a 7 month update... I moved to Farmington NM since installing these shocks, and was able to figure out that they are somewhat temperature dependent... It temps above about 55F, they seem to ride noticably better than at colder temps. I still think they are valved too harshly for my Jeep, even when it's 100F out. If I was a betting man, I'd bet these are "50/50" shocks, with as much compression damping as rebound. The are still very rough on washboard with an empty Jeep.

I have done a few trips loaded with camping gear and large dogs, and can report that by the time I add 3-400lbs to the rear of the Jeep, the harshness of the rear is much reduced! The weight of the front of the Jeep doesn't change much, so it stays about the same. I have been running most of the summer with the front swaybar disconnected, and that seems to be fine with these shocks. (My Jeep doesn't see speeds above 55 very often) That tells me that OME may have hit their intended mark of better controlling body roll, but I think it was at the expense of high speed damping that we all came to love.

I just found a set of barely used N66 Nitrochargers that I'm about to install on the front. I will report my findings after running them for a few trips. Hopefully this will prove to be a better combination for trips where I have some weight in the rear.

Unfortunately, I'm still going to recommend that most of you will want to pass on the Nitrocharger Sports. Unless you're into high speed blasting over the rough, these shocks are going to beat you up. At least on the TJ version.
Chris

 

[roamingaz]

Good to see a review on these as I am changing my entire suspension on my YJ and have pretty much settled on OME but with my tires the sport shocks wont fit so I need to find a different shock or down size my tires.

 

[1stDeuce]

I put the older Nitrochargers on the front Saturday. Just compressing and letting them extend showed a noticeable difference, and sure enough, the front is much less harsh now. If I could find some original rear Nitrochargers, I'd swap them out too. The Sports in the rear are still harsh for my empty jeep, but if I load for a trip, it felt better before.

So I am still not a fan of the Nitrocharger Sport shocks. I think OME really screwed up the valving by going too stiff... When you no longer need a swaybar because of the stock valving, the valving is too stiff. I also don't care for what I perceive to be 50/50 valving. Shocks should be much softer in compression, and stiffer in rebound. These are certainly too firm in compression, if not also in rebound.

For comparison, I have a Comanche pickup with Rancho RS5000's on it. They are older shocks, but not leaking. It rides like a Cadillac compared to my TJ.
Try Bilsteins. Skyjacker used to have a softride nitro shock of some kind that might be ok too.
If you have a lifted JK, buy a set of the Bilsteins that AEV tuned. I can attest that the valving of those shocks is supherb!!

I'm looking for a set of rear Nitrochargers, or I'm going to try something different, like perhaps Boss Shocks...
Chris