Old Man Emu Suspension

Hi Derek,

I upgraded the shocks on my Hilux to Monroe Magnums.

I did consider the Old Man Emu, but they are a very harsh ride.

Steer clear of the foam filled shocks, as the foam breaks down over time and renders them useless.

Goodluck, Will.

Derek over the years I have found OME an average suspension package at a slightly higher than average price. Travelling with convoys on many outback trips they have featured often in failures, more so than any other brand I've seen but that may be because they are popular due to their high profile. I am not however familiar with the current releases.
I believe there are better shocks available at a cheaper price like Procomp. Of course for superior handling and longivety you may step up in price range to Bilstiens, Koni or Fox.
The ATS suspension system for the 100IFS is excellent and would be difficult to beat & can include the diff drop kit & control arm reinforcement.
Cheers Craig........
HZJ105. Koni's/Lovells.

Bonus,no 4x4 needed to go to the rock :)
Have OME and i have found it ok
The climb to the top is worth it! You do need some fitness though,hope it's not windy like it was last time i was there!

I posted this 2 days ago

I have just got home from Darwin, and the ride in the TD 100 series is sooo much better.

Before I took it to my good friend and suspension specialist, the TD 100 series was a bit ordinary, so a set of heavy duty King springs on the rear and a 50mm adjustment on the torsion bars and what a difference it made.

The 50mm adjustment on the torsion bars was 20mm back to standard as they had drooped and then a 30mm hight adjustment.

A wheel alignment and all is good, all up cost was $450 had I needed shocks it would have been another $280 per set.

The shocks are EFS.

Cheers Steve

Hi Derek

I have ome torsion bars up front with bilstein shocks and a snake racing diff drop kit . I originaly whent with ome shocks but found that there was little difference from the original toyota shocks . The bilstiens make a huge difference to the handling on and off road , whilst the diff drop kit has allowed a 30mm lift to the front without stuffing the cv angles

In the rear i have 25mm 250kg ome springs with koni adjustable shocks set on a half turn of ajustment . This gives a bit of lift without stuffing the ride and improves articulation and load carrying

This set up is a bit more expensive but imho worth it .


Dave

Prior to CSR I put Tough Dogs on the back and later the front. I was very unimpressed (tough pussies)

After CSR, Cape York, Simpson and many other trips I put
Old Man Emu Torsion Bars
Nitrocharger front and back
Springs 600kgs
Shock Stone Guards
OME IFS kit
Polyair Kit

I have found the Polyairs to be excellent, but I tow a camper van
2 years ago cost around $2000

Derek l.

Have had the OME kit on my IFS 100 for three years now.
So far so good.
Very happy with black top handling and cross country work.
This year will test them.

Regards

I have used
Koni - Excellent
XGS TJM - Good
Rancho - faeces
OME- Excellent
Koni - Excellent

You will have no issues with OME at all. They havent been round with such a good reputation for no reason.

The trick is to get the CORRECT MATCHED shocks for your use. Tahts why people have failures with many many brands of shocks.

Also check www.lcool.org, you will get some good answers there too.

The IFS 100series is a peculiar beast - the front shocks are very short, and theres a lot of weight on the front end. They fail very easily.

I'd only take note of comments that are specific to the 100 IFS.

I have OME on the prado very happy with the ride compared to the standard shocks and springs that were in it (factory). Alot less body roll, the rear end doesnt hit the bump stops on the diff like it used to. Yes firmer ride empty but to be expected. The hilux I had prior was just short of 300,000k (replaced front springs around the 275k mark started to sag) and had done most of Australia, OME all round, shocks, leaf springs in rear/front (Dakkar) and for a hilux was suprised how well it rode didnt need a kindy belt when empty yet when full including a 170 litre water tank on board held the weight fantastic. BUT in saying this all this was/is on two totally different vehicles. I went OME in prado due to having it on hilux and having no issues. More then likely the other brands are just as good or in some cases better. I have heard Bilstein shocks ride like a go cart then other people say the best they have had ?? Regards Steve M

Derek L,
I have used OME suspensions on 5 vehicles now (NF Pajero, LC75 ute, LC80, LC100 live axle,LC100 IFS) and been very very happy with all except the IFS LC100. I still am a fan of OME gear but not the whole package the do for the IFS LC100. Having said this, the OME kit is still a massive upgrade from the std set up so it is a big improvemnt in its own right. If I were not venturing off road much (other than gravel roads and fairly tame tracks) I would reckon it would make you happy. I however could not live with it at all and had to do something (matter of fact I am still working on this). My current set up is pretty good, but is still being tweaked. It is Tough Dog 50mm rear coils with polyairs and OME shockies in rear and OME torsion bars, Bilstein shockies and ATS diff drop up front. This has given quite a resonable lift and handling is still very good. I am looking at getting more lift and may have to start all over again but if the lift isn't available I will keep the current set up except for the OME shockies.

I thoroughly recomend that you join the LCOOL forums and research LC100 IFS suspension there. The info on landcruisers on that site is outa this world.

Good luck