- First Name
- Ryan
- Joined
- Jun 16, 2022
- Threads
- 9
- Messages
- 161
- Reaction score
- 226
- Location
- Southern California
- Vehicle(s)
- 2021 Black Diamond
- Your Bronco Model
- Black Diamond
- Thread starter
- #1
I was fortunate to have a connection with Eibach through a friend/shop owner locally here in Southern California. I got the Stage 1 prototype system in March. 2022. I have a MY2021 Black Diamond, 2 Door Manual non sasquatch. I had the Stage 1 system for approximately 10k miles.
Stage1
Pros:
Very cost effective solution
Excellent Valving and Spring rate
Springs are swappable down the line if you find yourself loading up heavy for overlanding.
Not overly stressing on suspension joints/bushings.
Cons:
Clip adjusting not as easy as the Stage 2 threaded body
Not a fully adjustable system (I.E. Fox, King, Radflow, Etc).
The Stage 1 system on my bronco was a fantastic upgrade. I live in Southern California and drove it to Flagstaff and Redmond for Overland Expo West & PNW. Drove basically from Mexico to Canada last summer, and back. It's seen about 1k offroading here in Southern California, Oregon, Washington, and Arizona.
If you're main goal is to have a better (slightly stiffer) ride, that is height adjustable, that won't break the bank, this is your lift. You can retain factory arms with no adverse wear. The lack of compression and rebound adjustment isn't a big deal. Most people don't know how to properly adjust these settings anyway. So for a full system (both axles) that is half the price of one axle setup of a fully adjustable set, it's a very reasonable tradeoff. I have the most time on the stage 1 and have thoroughly abused it, with no failures at all. It's been in the air in Johnson Valley, slow crawled up rocks, been daily driven, and on long road trips.
Stage2
Pros:
Threaded body adjustment with spanner.
Even better feel with spring/shock tuning
True coilover
Still very well priced
Retain factory components
Cons:
Not a fully adjustable system
I got the stage 2 system about 4k miles ago. I daily drive the Bronco, I've taken this system on a road trip to Peoria, up crown king, to Prescott and back home. Since I had a prototype system on the stage 1, this was a real nice upgrade. The stage 1 system has been revised and is even better than when I was testing originally. The stage 2 system I now have is very well done. It has a nice soft ride zone and is not jarring when driving on the road at all. I've got tons of miles on pogo stick lifts that are horrific, this is like riding on a cloud. Offroad wise, I only have a couple hundred miles on this setup, but its very good. Crawling over rocks, higher speed stuff, fire roads, it's easy to maintain control while not being harsh at all even when trying to abuse it by getting air at high speed over things on fire roads.
Recommendations:
Stage 2 if you have the budget for it. The ease of height adjustment is nice. Especially if you're going to be loading up for a a trip offroading for a few days or if you, like me, have a ton of gear/tools you bring. Being able to raise the ride height back to normal is nice.
Stage 1 if you're wanting to keep price more easy to swallow. If you're mostly doing shorter trips, have less gear, or aren't as heavily loaded. Clip height is more a set it and forget it deal.
Both systems are excellent. And I would not hesitate to run either one. I did get these systems for free, but I'll say what I want because it's not like Eibach can come take them back now haha.
If you have any questions let me know, if I can't answer it directly, I'll get the answer.
Stage 1 pics:
Stage 2 pics:
Stage1
Pros:
Very cost effective solution
Excellent Valving and Spring rate
Springs are swappable down the line if you find yourself loading up heavy for overlanding.
Not overly stressing on suspension joints/bushings.
Cons:
Clip adjusting not as easy as the Stage 2 threaded body
Not a fully adjustable system (I.E. Fox, King, Radflow, Etc).
The Stage 1 system on my bronco was a fantastic upgrade. I live in Southern California and drove it to Flagstaff and Redmond for Overland Expo West & PNW. Drove basically from Mexico to Canada last summer, and back. It's seen about 1k offroading here in Southern California, Oregon, Washington, and Arizona.
If you're main goal is to have a better (slightly stiffer) ride, that is height adjustable, that won't break the bank, this is your lift. You can retain factory arms with no adverse wear. The lack of compression and rebound adjustment isn't a big deal. Most people don't know how to properly adjust these settings anyway. So for a full system (both axles) that is half the price of one axle setup of a fully adjustable set, it's a very reasonable tradeoff. I have the most time on the stage 1 and have thoroughly abused it, with no failures at all. It's been in the air in Johnson Valley, slow crawled up rocks, been daily driven, and on long road trips.
Stage2
Pros:
Threaded body adjustment with spanner.
Even better feel with spring/shock tuning
True coilover
Still very well priced
Retain factory components
Cons:
Not a fully adjustable system
I got the stage 2 system about 4k miles ago. I daily drive the Bronco, I've taken this system on a road trip to Peoria, up crown king, to Prescott and back home. Since I had a prototype system on the stage 1, this was a real nice upgrade. The stage 1 system has been revised and is even better than when I was testing originally. The stage 2 system I now have is very well done. It has a nice soft ride zone and is not jarring when driving on the road at all. I've got tons of miles on pogo stick lifts that are horrific, this is like riding on a cloud. Offroad wise, I only have a couple hundred miles on this setup, but its very good. Crawling over rocks, higher speed stuff, fire roads, it's easy to maintain control while not being harsh at all even when trying to abuse it by getting air at high speed over things on fire roads.
Recommendations:
Stage 2 if you have the budget for it. The ease of height adjustment is nice. Especially if you're going to be loading up for a a trip offroading for a few days or if you, like me, have a ton of gear/tools you bring. Being able to raise the ride height back to normal is nice.
Stage 1 if you're wanting to keep price more easy to swallow. If you're mostly doing shorter trips, have less gear, or aren't as heavily loaded. Clip height is more a set it and forget it deal.
Both systems are excellent. And I would not hesitate to run either one. I did get these systems for free, but I'll say what I want because it's not like Eibach can come take them back now haha.
If you have any questions let me know, if I can't answer it directly, I'll get the answer.
Stage 1 pics:
Stage 2 pics:
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