Suspension time, what to do?
 

The OEM shocks were great up until about 220K. Now they're so bad that when I stop the truck acts like a seesaw. I believe it also needs springs, the front sits about 3/4" lower on one side than the other. The rears seem to be ok, but if everything else is tired I assume they are as well. Is 245K a normal service life for springs in a 2nd gen 2500?

I was pretty happy with the ride/handling with the stock stuff while it was still good. I've priced Chrysler replacements, but I'm not convinced that's the best route for the money. I'm also not convinced that my uneven front end is because the springs are bad, and it would certainly save some money if they aren't. I know it's normal for the front axle to be off-center in these trucks, but could it have something to do with it sitting uneven too?
The truck has always been a work truck, towing and hauling in the summer and plowing snow all winter. This isn't likely to change. In light of that, I'd really (I think) like to put an Air Lift 5000 kit in the rear. If I do this, the rear springs will essentially become just control arms for the rear end, and the air bags would maintain the ride height/handle the load, yes? I'm thinking it could be an alternative to rear springs, and maybe rear shocks as well. Would it still be recommended to change the rear shocks? I guess that's what my real question here is.

I'm also wondering if, knowing I was happy with the ride quality in the stock dampers, would there be a better/more cost effective option than getting them from Dodge? I know I can get say, Monroe stock replacements for about a third of the price, but are they going to last as long as the stock stuff did? I've roamed over about 40 pages of topics here this afternoon, and didn't really see anything about any of this, so I figured I'd throw it out there.

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Wow, 86 views and... nothing? Huh. I figured someone in here would have some experience with this situation.

Just my opinion but if it was my truck i would do shocks all the way around, Helper bags are a good idea to help carry the load and take some of the stress off the springs but the shocks are whats going to tame the see-saw ride you are getting. With the front saggin you could probably get a leveling kit to bring it up but with the truck seeing plow duty i would replace the springs. My 96 has just about 300 rounds and sits level, but i can not tell you what the service life of the springs really are. Just thinking out loud, hope you find some food for thought in my rambling!

check out KORE Suspension, they have a replacement front spring/shock combo, its a 2" lift spring with bilstien shocks, they also have rear shocks too. you are correct on the rear springs and bags.

Thanks guys. I will most definitely be replacing at least the front shocks, but if I should do it even with the air bags in back I'll do them all. I know KORE makes great stuff, but I'm not looking to lift it and it's a little out of my price range anyway. I'm mainly wondering if I have to pay Chrysler prices to retain the stock ride and longevity, or if I can get away with something cheaper. Not necessarily looking to upgrade, except the Airlift, which is sort of a necessity since I run the truck overweight for work so often. I've never had a problem or been pulled over with say, a pallet of mortar mix in the bed (about 3300lbs), but I don't want to either. I figure it's a lot less likely to happen if the truck doesn't look completely retarded going down the road looking up at the sky.