Struts for 4.4i with Sport package
 

I am having some trouble making up my mind what to buy for the 4.4i.

Monroes for 157 ea.?
Bilstein HDs for 280ea (Loved them on my M-Class)
OE for 380 ea?

I sprung for OE on the rear to match the air suspension but now I am wondering if the Monroes are noticably different from the OEs for the front. Are all Bilsteins as bad as some here claim? Or is it a mismatch between HD dampers and non-sport springs?

Any insights appreciated.

Lost of threads with comments shocks but rarely is there enough detail about which engine and whether sport package or not and so searching did not solve this for me.

No dif
 

I have a "00 4.4 with sport pkg, rear air only, and I changed out the fronts with Bilsteins when I was chasing down a front end clank (swaybar endlinks for the 2nd time). It made no difference at all. It was a waste of +$300.

Do you still have the Bilsteins on the car? What do you think of them? Many seem to think them too hard. That would probably my choice but trying to see what others think and if anybody has the Monroes?

Oh scratch that...sorry. I double-checked cause I did it so long ago, and they were actually KYB not Bilstein. My bad

Anybody else got Bilsteins on the front of a 4.4????

Where did you source your OE shocks for the rear? Did you get a deal?

Rears came from the dealer. GetBWMparts.com would get you a decent discount. I went OE for the rears as I think it is important to keep the shocks matched with the airsprings. For the fronts (no air) I will probably go with Sachs-Boge from Pelican or Autohaus.

Where did you get your prices on the Monroe's?
I'm in the same boat right now 2005 4.4 SPORT and I need the front Struts. Anyone ever use the Sachs?

Louis, did you end up replacing the front with Sachs or Bilstein HDs? I am having the same dilemma. No idea what to get.

For the rear I am tempting to go with Bilstein because the cost.

Somebody stated on another thread that if you have rear air spring in the back for the 00-03 models it means the X is equipped with sport suspension. Although my car has rear air springs I called the dealer to confirm and based on my vin the car has standard suspension. I am a bit confused but I guess I have to go with what the dealer says.