Nice video. I have a 2008 EXT and this weekend I am doing the whole front end. CV axles, wheel bearing.hub assemblies and struts (shock and spring assy). My rear air ride leaks down so I am going to do the rear as well. My air pump works but the bellows on the shocks leak out. I have a new air tube kit already and planned to order these Vigor shocks. When I used to hook my boat or travel trailer the truck would self level. Now the boat and camper squat the rear end to the ground. This weekend the Caddy will be king of the road (and towing) again! LOL...Also, looks like the same tires I have, are those Nexan Rodian XP? FYI...you can go a little bigger in width. I have 305/40/22 on mine. Makes a nice fat footprint.
Thanks man ! Yep, it’s nice to have the air ride to lift up the trailer and level it back out for sure 👍. Mine took some work too on getting everything back in working order...I think I’ve changed dang near every gasket on the motor and also front axle seals, lol. Should be good for another 180k miles, lol. All the best ! Steve
Hey man ! Mine has (had) the Z55 suspension. I replaced the fronts already with standard shocks and bypassed the electronic sensors up front (there’s another video on the channel in the Escalade playlist that shows what I used), but mine already had air shocks in the back so it was a direct swap to the Vigor ones.
Excellent classification for the easy or hard scale. The install demonstration is perfectly clear and highlight key points which could be easy repeat. Just one thing, Does the vigor suspension really worth it after replacement for a while?
Thanks and glad the video looks helpful 👍. I do try to show every important part so folks can decide if they can do the work and have the tools and time to take on the project. If you haven’t seen it, there is also a video in the channel that compares these Vigor ones to some low cost ebay ones I had on the Escalade prior to them…here’s a link to that one if interested: ruclips.net/video/Um19LSaKUrE/видео.html . The Vigor ones have been on the vehicle for almost a year now so I was planning to do a follow up video to show how they have been holding up that might be interesting as well. So far they have done really good with no issues so I think they are a good option that isn’t as expensive as the OE ones, but designed better than the low cost ones being sold. Since I’m almost always the one driving, I don’t ride in the back seats of the vehicle, but my family members that ride in the back seats said that they are much smoother than the ones before. Since the vehicle is pretty heavy I found that it also helps the ride by keeping about 40 psi tire pressure in the tires so the shocks can absorb the bumps, but there’s less movement in the vehicle when turning corners. Thanks again and all the best ! Steve
@@StevesDIYs Thanks for timely response. Yeah, the comparison video I saw already, and thinking more about the original Z95 magnetic shocks. Curious how to block warning of suspension replaced no-magnetic. I previously thought find out a BMI shocks ,but over $400 price didn't sounds great for the vehicle over decade. If vigor longevity could hold on 2-3years more, it'll be really super one. The Tire pressure of 40psi little higher than suggested, does it cause tiny swelling contact of surface? In that case, it'll be little risk for slippery. BTW, I'am in CA and may escalade2010 milleage is 21-26L/km, which's much higher than 15mpg of Cadillac announced, wondering my car engine already aged or not. Have good day! Vincent
@@cuivincent9744 ah, sorry…I misunderstood the question on the comparison. I actually don’t know how these compare to the OE ones as, when I bought the vehicle used, the OE ones were already blown out and the compressor was not functioning. Compared to blown out ones, these are fantastic, lol. You are right that 40psi is a bit high, but since I pull my trailers and boat with the Escalade, I swapped out to a heavy duty tire with more sidewall plys that is rated for up to 55psi. This one has the 22” rims on it so I was worried that I might damage a rim by running a softer sidewall tire since the sidewall is not very tall. These aftermarket ones have a copper coil in the electrical connector (I cut one open to see) that seems to defeat the sensing of the original ride control. They don’t throw any suspension codes so I’m guessing it just tricks the computer into believing it still has the sensor. Thanks and have a good day too ! Steve
@@StevesDIYs Sure, you really did great research with nice solution. Some geeks used a bulky resister in driver side battery position. That's may not my choice. And still curious the mileage. Do you think 23+ liter/km is reasonable?
11:00 dude why not just relax the suspension. Support the weight of the truck by the frame and allow the axle to settle down. I have replaced a shit load of shocks over the years (regular shocks on older cars) and you always allow the suspension to relax. Makes for a much easier install.
👍. For sure would have been easier (on the lift it is super easy), but Vigor was wanting an install DIY video that most anyone could do with limited tools, so I did them by just removing one tire at a time vs. actually jacking up the vehicle. Makes installing the extended shock a bit tougher, but reduces the risk by only lifting one tire at a time. It’s a good tip though for folks with some wrenching experience 👍.
@@StevesDIYs I just did this job on my Escalade and I want to apologize for my post suggesting you relax the suspension. I did relax the suspension on my truck and I still needed to "help" the bottom knuckle in. I put my jack under the shock then jacked it up a bit, only took maybe a 1/2 inch then I could tap it in. But it still wanted to press against the mount making it impossible to get the bolt in without lifting it further (shimming). So I ended up sliding a large flat head screw driver in then tapping the knuckle into the mount and I could then twist the screw driver to the precise height to make the bolt go in. I will admit I have never done the shocks on these trucks until now but I have done rear shocks on many older trucks and allowing the rear axle to relax is usually enough. This time a little more "finesse" was needed. Hell I even took the air line cap off, put my weight on the shock to compress it as much as I could, then recapping it, but it slowly extended to full length and I could not get it in fast enough. LOL
@@ScarabChris , hey man ! No need to apologize...you are right that letting the suspension drop down would make it easier vs. having to compress them as much as I had to do to at least get them up into the bottom perch 👍. It does seem like these Vigor shocks are just a bit longer when fully expanded than the suspension will drop so they still need some extra persuasion to get the bolt to line up. I’m like you that I don’t remember having to do that when I’ve had other trucks up on the lift (seems like I actually had to lift the suspension back up to put the bolt in for some). It’s good to know that you had to do the same and was a bit of a struggle to line up the bottom bolt as well...I was beginning to think my age was catching up to me and I needed to start working out or something as I don’t remember working that hard to line it up on other trucks before, lol ! All the best ! Steve
Hello, for mine, it wouldn’t come on until I started the vehicle and the computer registered that the alternator was putting out around 14 volts…did you try with it running? Also, if the compressor that was replaced had over loaded the system, it might have taken out the relay or fuse that I mentioned in the video. Might be worth it to check those if you didn’t. Other than that, it could be a bad wire going to the compressor as I noticed mine looked kind of bad as they are exposed to all of the road grime down there. Last thing I can think of might be the level sensors themselves (or the wires to them) might be bad, but they look pretty robust and I’ve not heard of any issues with these or possibly the control module for the suspension. Most times it’s the fuse, relay, or the wiring to the compressor though it seems. Hope this helps and all the best ! Steve
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Nice video. I have a 2008 EXT and this weekend I am doing the whole front end. CV axles, wheel bearing.hub assemblies and struts (shock and spring assy). My rear air ride leaks down so I am going to do the rear as well. My air pump works but the bellows on the shocks leak out. I have a new air tube kit already and planned to order these Vigor shocks. When I used to hook my boat or travel trailer the truck would self level. Now the boat and camper squat the rear end to the ground. This weekend the Caddy will be king of the road (and towing) again! LOL...Also, looks like the same tires I have, are those Nexan Rodian XP? FYI...you can go a little bigger in width. I have 305/40/22 on mine. Makes a nice fat footprint.
Thanks man ! Yep, it’s nice to have the air ride to lift up the trailer and level it back out for sure 👍. Mine took some work too on getting everything back in working order...I think I’ve changed dang near every gasket on the motor and also front axle seals, lol. Should be good for another 180k miles, lol. All the best ! Steve
What suspension package is on your Escalade. I have 2009 w/z95 and looking for replacement shocks that are not $400 each
Hey man ! Mine has (had) the Z55 suspension. I replaced the fronts already with standard shocks and bypassed the electronic sensors up front (there’s another video on the channel in the Escalade playlist that shows what I used), but mine already had air shocks in the back so it was a direct swap to the Vigor ones.
Excellent classification for the easy or hard scale. The install demonstration is perfectly clear and highlight key points which could be easy repeat. Just one thing, Does the vigor suspension really worth it after replacement for a while?
Thanks and glad the video looks helpful 👍. I do try to show every important part so folks can decide if they can do the work and have the tools and time to take on the project. If you haven’t seen it, there is also a video in the channel that compares these Vigor ones to some low cost ebay ones I had on the Escalade prior to them…here’s a link to that one if interested: ruclips.net/video/Um19LSaKUrE/видео.html . The Vigor ones have been on the vehicle for almost a year now so I was planning to do a follow up video to show how they have been holding up that might be interesting as well. So far they have done really good with no issues so I think they are a good option that isn’t as expensive as the OE ones, but designed better than the low cost ones being sold. Since I’m almost always the one driving, I don’t ride in the back seats of the vehicle, but my family members that ride in the back seats said that they are much smoother than the ones before. Since the vehicle is pretty heavy I found that it also helps the ride by keeping about 40 psi tire pressure in the tires so the shocks can absorb the bumps, but there’s less movement in the vehicle when turning corners. Thanks again and all the best ! Steve
@@StevesDIYs Thanks for timely response. Yeah, the comparison video I saw already, and thinking more about the original Z95 magnetic shocks. Curious how to block warning of suspension replaced no-magnetic.
I previously thought find out a BMI shocks ,but over $400 price didn't sounds great for the vehicle over decade. If vigor longevity could hold on 2-3years more, it'll be really super one.
The Tire pressure of 40psi little higher than suggested, does it cause tiny swelling contact of surface? In that case, it'll be little risk for slippery.
BTW, I'am in CA and may escalade2010 milleage is 21-26L/km, which's much higher than 15mpg of Cadillac announced, wondering my car engine already aged or not.
Have good day! Vincent
@@cuivincent9744 ah, sorry…I misunderstood the question on the comparison. I actually don’t know how these compare to the OE ones as, when I bought the vehicle used, the OE ones were already blown out and the compressor was not functioning. Compared to blown out ones, these are fantastic, lol. You are right that 40psi is a bit high, but since I pull my trailers and boat with the Escalade, I swapped out to a heavy duty tire with more sidewall plys that is rated for up to 55psi. This one has the 22” rims on it so I was worried that I might damage a rim by running a softer sidewall tire since the sidewall is not very tall.
These aftermarket ones have a copper coil in the electrical connector (I cut one open to see) that seems to defeat the sensing of the original ride control. They don’t throw any suspension codes so I’m guessing it just tricks the computer into believing it still has the sensor. Thanks and have a good day too ! Steve
@@StevesDIYs Sure, you really did great research with nice solution. Some geeks used a bulky resister in driver side battery position. That's may not my choice. And still curious the mileage. Do you think 23+ liter/km is reasonable?
11:00 dude why not just relax the suspension. Support the weight of the truck by the frame and allow the axle to settle down. I have replaced a shit load of shocks over the years (regular shocks on older cars) and you always allow the suspension to relax. Makes for a much easier install.
👍. For sure would have been easier (on the lift it is super easy), but Vigor was wanting an install DIY video that most anyone could do with limited tools, so I did them by just removing one tire at a time vs. actually jacking up the vehicle. Makes installing the extended shock a bit tougher, but reduces the risk by only lifting one tire at a time. It’s a good tip though for folks with some wrenching experience 👍.
@@StevesDIYs I just did this job on my Escalade and I want to apologize for my post suggesting you relax the suspension. I did relax the suspension on my truck and I still needed to "help" the bottom knuckle in. I put my jack under the shock then jacked it up a bit, only took maybe a 1/2 inch then I could tap it in. But it still wanted to press against the mount making it impossible to get the bolt in without lifting it further (shimming). So I ended up sliding a large flat head screw driver in then tapping the knuckle into the mount and I could then twist the screw driver to the precise height to make the bolt go in. I will admit I have never done the shocks on these trucks until now but I have done rear shocks on many older trucks and allowing the rear axle to relax is usually enough. This time a little more "finesse" was needed. Hell I even took the air line cap off, put my weight on the shock to compress it as much as I could, then recapping it, but it slowly extended to full length and I could not get it in fast enough. LOL
@@ScarabChris , hey man ! No need to apologize...you are right that letting the suspension drop down would make it easier vs. having to compress them as much as I had to do to at least get them up into the bottom perch 👍. It does seem like these Vigor shocks are just a bit longer when fully expanded than the suspension will drop so they still need some extra persuasion to get the bolt to line up. I’m like you that I don’t remember having to do that when I’ve had other trucks up on the lift (seems like I actually had to lift the suspension back up to put the bolt in for some). It’s good to know that you had to do the same and was a bit of a struggle to line up the bottom bolt as well...I was beginning to think my age was catching up to me and I needed to start working out or something as I don’t remember working that hard to line it up on other trucks before, lol ! All the best ! Steve
I replaced my shocks and compressor and compressor isn’t coming on. 2008 Escalade ESV
Hello, for mine, it wouldn’t come on until I started the vehicle and the computer registered that the alternator was putting out around 14 volts…did you try with it running? Also, if the compressor that was replaced had over loaded the system, it might have taken out the relay or fuse that I mentioned in the video. Might be worth it to check those if you didn’t. Other than that, it could be a bad wire going to the compressor as I noticed mine looked kind of bad as they are exposed to all of the road grime down there. Last thing I can think of might be the level sensors themselves (or the wires to them) might be bad, but they look pretty robust and I’ve not heard of any issues with these or possibly the control module for the suspension. Most times it’s the fuse, relay, or the wiring to the compressor though it seems. Hope this helps and all the best ! Steve