KORE Off-Road Suspension
 

Right now I got a 6inch lift which will allow me to run 37's cleanly. I was looking into the KORE stuff, looks like fun. Is it true you can get the tires off the ground with that suspension?
-Does anyone on here own a KORE rig?
Any ways, it might be a waste of time if you don't live in the desert but who doesn't want to romp around in the sticks.
Any price info or testimonies would be great... Thanks

The KORE is one of the better systems out there but it's really expensive. I think I heard the race system with all the options is $7000+.

Hi Taylor,

I am sure you wil hear more than a few opinions on the KORE and some other options as well.

I have KORE's Race Series on my truck and I am very pleased thus far. For my uses it fit me to a tee. I wanted a functional suspensionand one that did not take the truck too high up in the air. I also wanted one that had the capability to pre-run/chase for motorcycle desert races. Furthermore, the suspension needed to be adept at handling my towing needs and ranch roads..

I am far and away impressed with the front suspension - very impressive and there is truth to being able to take roads at a much higher rate of speed with this suspension system. In the rear I still need to take the overload springs off as they are causing 'rebound'. We'll see from there on it...

In hindsight, I am debating whether I should have gone with the Unlimited and got the entire rear spring pack.

Overall I am very pleased with this system.

Michael,

Am I close with my price? If I'm way off I want to edit my post. I hate passing along false information. Thanks!

Passmore.....
Can you post us a photo of that RIG...!

Pauly, I think you are pretty close. I am not trying to play hot/cold here, but I did a lot at once to the truck and added some companents not included w/the Race Series so I would have to go look at my invoice. IIRC, the Unlimited was $10k'ish (?) and Race was north of $5k. Also, if IIRC, what drove it up from the Chase was the upgrade on the Fox's. At this point, I feel like my suspension is overbuilt and I may never use it to its limits but I prefer to have something in reserve and overbuild when I can. To re-iterate my previous post, you really need to send the truck down some knarly road to fully appreciate the engineering that went into this system.

Pics...

http://PASSMORE.smugmug.com/photos/102288950-M.jpg

http://PASSMORE.smugmug.com/photos/102287656-M.jpg

http://PASSMORE.smugmug.com/photos/102284351-M.jpg

You can see the rest here (suspension, etc.).

im sick of all these people cryin how KORE is so awesome, it gives a good ride but nothing better than my BDS suspension. (with upgraded shocks)

nf - I am sure your system works well, but I cannot comment on it in comparison to mine as I have not had the opprotunity to ride in and experience yours. Have you been able to drive/ride in a KORE Race equipped truck to compare directly?

I would also surmise that KORE is not for everyone as different regions have different terrain as different truck owners have different requirements for their vehicles.

I hope that my post did not come across as KORE being the second coming of Christ or anything. I merely think that KORE has a well engineered and performing product that I am pleased with.

;)

You're talking 2 completely different animals here. The difference will become quite apparent at 80 mph down a dirt road in the desert, if your BDS suspension could even get you to that speed.

aw hell, here we go [laugh]

nice calm response... i wish i could do that sometimes [duhhh] hahaha

btw, your trucks is on the money as far as stance and all - i like it alot!

KORE is overpriced, and the only "engineering" that went into it's design was the shock valving. The kit is nothing special, it's putting some high quality remote rezzy shocks on it, that's it. The coils are dual rate, but with only 9-10 inches of suspension travel that's kind of moot anyways. YES, it worked better than 100% of other kits out there, however there are other alternative companies out there as well. I pieced together parts from different companies and now have something better than the KORE RACE kit. I got the shock towers from Thurenfabrication, the 3" infinate rate coils from Lorenzindustries, and my custom valved KING 2.5 remote resovior shocks from thurenfabrication. I spent less than $3000 for all of this. The only thing I didn't get is the mini rear leafpack, but I'm just going to remove the overload spring. The entire heart and soul of the KORE kits are the shocks. If you go through the entire KORE race kit and price each part, he's charging like over twice as much for the shocks as you can buy them yourself from somebody else. Yeah yeah, they're custom valved.....you can send them to thurenfabrication and he'll custom valve them for $65! If you do buy the KORE system, you won't be dissapointed in performance, however you will be dissapointed that you could have spent less and gotten the same thing. Check out these other companies: lorenzindustries.com and thecarlisuspension (also at defianttruckproducts.com), and thurenfabrication.com

Also, I totally agree with ptgarcia, if you want to haul a$$ down fireroads, or through the desert, these previously listed kits are what you want. If you want to go mudding, or crawling, or even simply moderate trail riding, then save you money and get a BDS or Superlift or something like that.

And now I wait for all the KORE mafia to return fire!



BTW I'm not trying to bash KORE, I'm only trying to show that there are alternatives. I personally was given a ride by kent when he was still TREX engineering and he is an outstanding guy, took probably 3-4 hours out of his day to invite me to his house, show me about his kit and take me for a ride.

Im sure you have tried it with a BDS right? [duhhh]

And yes i have driven and jumped a truck with KORE, and of course it handles good but the BDS was the same way, Now i didnt try to jump curbs like i have read some people and done but thats just wrong to even do that with a 7500 lb truck, stupid IMO..[yuk]

I can see this getting a lock pretty quick.

Passmore...
Thanks for the photos...Truck looks Killer!

No, I haven't, but if it could be done people would be doing it and it would be posted here.

Drag racing a 7500 lb truck is stupid if you ask me. Running 41" tires and body lifts are stupid if you ask me. Stacks and tons of smoke is stupid if you ask me. But you know, nobody asked me!

I like the way you think[laugh]

Im talkin suspensions here, dont run and hide and change the subject

I'm not running or hiding from anything. You insinuated offroad racing suspensions are stupid on 7500-lb trucks. My point is nobody cares what you think is stupid.

offroad racing is fine , jumping curbs is stupid..

Nick,

You really need to get out in the desert...or mountains and open your eyes.

There are plenty of square edged rocks on a trail very similar to the "curb" in question. BDS suspension is nice...but it is nothing like the "race" kits. You are right about the shocks...it is the main difference, but there are others as well. Your 41's will never fit in your wheel wells...you if I were you...I would install rigid struts for your shocks to protect your friday and saturday night cruzing paint job. Your gearing and lack of engine mods will never turn those tires anyways...so you won't need to absorb anything. LOL

You should really try to listen to the masses on the DTR instead of trying to get run off like you did over at the TDR... XCUMMINSX! LOL

I would happy to provide you any truck build advice...if you ask nicely.

Oh...btw, how are you guys keeping these guys down to 7500 lbs? I tip the scales a hair under 9k. Chunky...

How did i get run off at tdr? I didnt think it was worth to re-subscribe..[dummy] [dummy]

Desertram - I don't doubt it one bit that you can assemble a very funtional and similar (if not better) system to the KORE Race for far less moolah. I enjoy doing this with my motorcycles.

However, I (and others) may not feel our time is well spent endeavoring to assemble the parts necessary as you did (or we just enjoy other aspects of tinkering) so the price is worth it. In my sace it was because I came away with a an exceelent system w/minimal research/time invested and no time lost due to something not working.

'Engineering' is what it is. It is not always computers, drawings, etc - it can take the form of testing, tinkering, etc till you get a funtional and workable product/design. This is what I am referring to when I speak of the engineering that seems to have gone into the KORE system I have on my vehicle as I doubt a bunch of parts got thrown together and presto, they worked as well as they do...

I do not have the experience in trucks that I do in bikes, but I still not get when you said a progressive rate spring is a moot issue w/ 'only' 9-10" of travel. IME, progressive is progressive no matter the travel and is desireable if applied correctly. did I just not get your jist on this?

BTW, sounds like you have a nice setup w/your suspension.

Thanks! It is built to work/play in the environment that I am most often in...

I was thinking last night how there really is no perfect truck... I was watching one of the Top Truck comps one of the mags puts on and they all had ther own forte' - not one truly dominated in every setting. I think the same applies here in this discussion. If I lived in another area of the country or had different needs/expectations of my truck I may not have gone with KORE's Race Series, but for where I am it is a terrific product and is serving me very well.

Cool. I was not aware that you had gotten seat time and could make the comparison that you are from an informed point of view - thanks for clarifying...

I do agree with pt when he mentioned what we individually think is stupid may not be material to this conversation. I am not a big fan of accumulating 'kills' on ricers, pulling, stacks, etc but I have respect for those who do and enjoy checking out the thought and engineering that goes into these different funtion specific trucks. As for curbs, yes - curb sized rocks will and do jump out at you (especially in the night) and even down unfamiliar rutted out ranch roads it is nice to not have to break speed when an unforeseen 'dip' in the road jumps out at you.

A side bene of this system has been that it has proven to be a very stable platform for me to tow with. disclaimer - I try not to jump curbs while towing though... ;) LOL!

Thanks guys for all the info. My truck will prob stay a pavement pounder, might have to do some cheap-o mods to my existing lift to make it more bad ***.
I think that i need to invest that money in my drivetrain at this point.

Thanks again,
Taylor

By the way, im not a big fan of body lifts, but how do they look on our trucks, i just hate seeing frame rails...

wheels
 

http://PASSMORE.smugmug.com/photos/102284351-M.jpg

You can see the rest here (suspension, etc.).[/QUOTE]


Passmore, I love the truck, I NEED more info on those wheels. I really like them. I searched but couldnt find anything. Can you give me a hint???[dummy]

usedtostrokeit - I got them from Les Schwab (not sure if you have them in your locale?). According to Les Schwab they are "Allied Type 892 17x9" and they were the closest i could find to stock back spacing without going to Centerline/Weld. They are rated for 3400 lbs and were only $120/30ish a wheel - WAY better $ wise than the Weld/Centerlines and rated for 200 lbs more. I have had other guys ask about them and they called the Les Schwab I got them from and Pat shipped them to them... That help ya?

Taylor,

If you are sticking to the pavement primarily then I would not spend the bucks for KORE if I was you. I think you can get what you are looking for much more economically.

Good luck with it.

I am sure I could find a good use for the KORE goodies, we travel to the dunes and what not. At the point the off road that the truck sees is nothing worth $10K. I guess I could recognize the fact that Im 16 and if I baja-ed the truck it would probably be destroyed... lol

any way- enjoy your suspension.

unfortunately we dont have those tire stores down here, hmmm I guess I will try to search around on the internet. Thanks and i really dig ur truck.

I see your point there, I guess that's true for most products out there these days too. About the progressive rate not being important, I just meant that we're not dealing with trophy trucks here. 9-10" of wheel travel is not something to get excited about, and on a huge truck it means even less. a couple of inches travel on a bike is a huge difference! Even on my mountain bikes, the difference between the 4" travel shock and the 7" travel shock is gargantuan (I've never actually used that word before!). BTW carlisuspension isn't using progressive rate coils and if my memory serves me right he and lorenz both challenged kent (KORE) to a race in Glamis but Kent had excuses and couldn't show. [laugh] Also, just for your information, I'm going to be putting on some hydro bumpstops too, probably 4" ones! 8000+ lbs is too much to be trying to fly!!![duhhh]

PASSMORE, how would you feel about giving a ride in your truck? I am looking into the Race system for very similar reasons to you (chasing MC's in Baja and Nevada) and have a similar truck. I live nearby in Rancho and would love a chance to see how it rides before spending $7K+.

Thanks,
Jason

I also agree that KORE is nothing but fancy shocks on a premium lift kit. There are cheaper way's of building a race quality suspension. I have heard from people that have the KORE chase w/ 7100 Bilstiens and they were NOT impressed. That wasnt a big shocker to me.

I could never be happy spending 5 7 or 10 grand on a 2.5 inch lift.

KORE is great for the guys that bought a CTD instead of a Corvette and want to trick out there Diesel truck with Banks and KORE products and dont mind paying premium prices. If I was 50 years old and had the $$$ I would probably buy KORE. But im 27yo and wanted a taller lift and dont plan on jumping my truck so I bought a 4.5" Superlift w/ Bilstiens w/ Fox resi shox and a Smarty and saved about $10K

Life will be much easier if you think or KORE the same way you think of Banks.

Carli, Lorenz and KORE all make great stuff I just cant swallow KORE's prices.

P.S KORE/T-Rex had a great following in the beginning and then they rasied there prices through the roof and lost alot of followers and supporters.

I think Don Thuren's products are every bit as good as anyone else's out there, and at a better price. My setup will be every bit as capable as KORE's but it will cost me less than $3000...installed!

Anytime Jason!

I'll drop you a PM...

Actually to be 100% correct Kore does not have special valving. If you look at the rod end of the shock just below the rubber bump stop you will usually see 60/80 or 70/80 and both are Fox factory default valving setups nothing special at all. Carli and Thuren are the only ones I've dealt with that have a totally custom valving setup that's why their setups work so much better.

Yeah, Don's stuff kicks arse. When my Kings arrived from Don they had a tag from King that said "custom valving", or something like that. I wish my rear setup would hurry up and get here!