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Guys... need help and advice on suspension design - 4-Link on Unique Build!
Guys, let me start off by saying I have a somewhat bad back (herniated disc) but haven't had surgery and I keep ahead of things with exercises and not lifting crap incorrectly. BUT, bumpy *** cars and trucks / uncompliant suspensions tends to make my back flare up. I LOVE short bed trucks and I want to build a brand new single cab 4WD to replace my last one that I sold. My question is, with front long front coilovers (ie custom raised strut mounts) and a rear 4-link with a bunch of rear suspension travel, can a short wheelbase truck ever be truly plush? I don't want to cut the back half of the frame off and go with a T-Bird IRS or anything crazy like some of these pro touring C10's do. I was thinking a properly designed and implemented 4-link with a PHB (or watts link) and possibly using rubber heim joint links instead of heim rod ends? The truck will be slightly lower than a factory height 2wd truck, obviously, since just pulling the blocks out brings the back of a new truck down by 1.5-2". But my goal is a 2/4" drop below a 2wd truck, heavily c-notched frame, and maybe cut into the bed to allow the use of a prerunner (lol) length coilover assembly with 14-16" springs and plenty of suspension travel to soak up the bumps. Knda like a lowered Raptor but not for jumping, just for soaking up bumps. With a few clicks of the coilovers, the back end can stiffen up and the truck will 60ft in the 1.6 range on street tires like my old truck did, and boom I'll have the complete package I'm looking for. Am I totally dreaming guys? I just can't seem to get away from short bed 4wd trucks... but I may be in denial about making a short wheelbase solid axle full frame truck into something that it's not.
All of my 1986 and older full size Chevys had a plush ride. My 2000 Ford E150 passenger van was plush before I ruined the ride with heavier springs. I rode in a Toyota pickup truck and it cruised over and I barely felt railroad tracks that I have to almost completely stop in my 2500. All have straight axles. Just a few examples, don't forget that almost all American cars used to have straight axles and Cadillacs and others were described as "riding on pillows". I think that the part that makes your idea a dream is being able to stiffen a set of smooth riding springs with only a preload adjustment. Just my opinion. Maybe have a spare set of coilovers for race day?
All of my 1986 and older full size Chevys had a plush ride. My 2000 Ford E150 passenger van was plush before I ruined the ride with heavier springs. I rode in a Toyota pickup truck and it cruised over and I barely felt railroad tracks that I have to almost completely stop in my 2500. All have straight axles. Just a few examples, don't forget that almost all American cars used to have straight axles and Cadillacs and others were described as "riding on pillows". I think that the part that makes your idea a dream is being able to stiffen a set of smooth riding springs with only a preload adjustment. Just my opinion. Maybe have a spare set of coilovers for race day?
Actually I know the stiffening part is very viable. A set of Viking or QA1 double adjustables can be made very firm indeed by just a twist of the ****. I'm mainly wondering about the compliance over uneven pavement with a 4-link. I've always wondered why no pickup trucks are factory manufactured with a 4-link. The 72 C10 was the last version of this, and anyone who has ridden in a trailing arm C10 vs a leaf spring C10 will tell you it's night and day. The trailing arms ride plush, the leafs ride harsh.
Actually I know the stiffening part is very viable. A set of Viking or QA1 double adjustables can be made very firm indeed by just a twist of the ****. .........
I did not know that. My only experience with coil overs is on dirty bikes, and they have a limited practical range of adjustment.
I know this doesn't answer your question but i find tire sidewall height affects ride more than the suspension components used. My 04 is bagged it had a pretty plush ride but its been 12 years since i've driven it.
which disc is herniated? I have 3, t4-5, t5-6, t7-8.
I know this doesn't answer your question but i find tire sidewall height affects ride more than the suspension components used. My 04 is bagged it had a pretty plush ride but its been 12 years since i've driven it.
which disc is herniated? I have 3, t4-5, t5-6, t7-8.
Mine is L4/L5. I wish I hadn't been an idiot and dragged bare iron blocks around the bed of my truck. Everything would be fine lol. But bad backs are bad news. I've heard terrible stories so I consider myself somewhat lucky, other than requiring old man ride quality.
As far as sidewall height, yes that does make a difference, but not as much as suspension travel. Going from 22's to 17's will definitely help. But making sure spring rates are soft and suspension travel is ample is far more important from what I've seen. For instance, I had coilovers on the front of my 2005 Silverado that I sold 2 years ago. The springs were so short that they had to be 1100 in/lb to support the weight of the truck!!! To give some perspective, a Gen 2 Raptor runs 600 in/lb front springs because they are extremely long. And even a base model 2wd 2019 F150 will run a ~430 in/lb spring because the strut assembly allows for a very long spring, and lots of travel. Example of 2015+ F-Series front strut which is similar to new GM trucks as well:
The A body chevelle & el camino's are all 4 linked/a-arm suspension with a very similar wheelbase. If you've ever ridden in one of those you know how comfortable they can be. Start with a lowering spindle and go from there. As for the rear, a big notch is necessary. You're probably going to want to tub the front and rear sheet metal. The up travel will keep you off the bump stops.
I'm in the same situation as you. I love my 2015 RCSB 4X4 Silverado but herniated discs can make you sick at times with the ride quality. I'm currently looking into a 4-link setup to help it ride better with coilovers probably as I just don't know how I feel about airbags just yet on a daily.
I'm currently at a 4/5 drop right now and it hurts less than stock in my back's opinion but mine is a Z71 and the rancho struts we're horrible. Just by switching to Belltech, it helped a lot. I will be putting some Viking coilovers up front soon with Atomic brackets and will let you know how it rides.
On another note, I did laser spine surgery once and plan to do it again soon to see if they can get it all fixed up and make life a lot better. Good luck with yours.
Maybe I can help here. The newer rams have factory 4 links with panhard bars and coil springs in the rear.
So a couple options I'd realistically recommend. 1st, call Deaver springs https://deaverspring.com/ and they can put together a nice set of strings for your application and par those with a set of adjustable shocks like Pro Comps https://www.procompusa.com/mx6 or even Kings with the compression adjuster option King Shocks Performance Race Series Smoothie « King Off-Road Racing Shocks : kingshocks.com and if you got 10 or 12 inches of travel out of the rear you should be feeling pretty smooth.
You can do a 4 link with watts link but you probably won't want to go past the 12ish inch travel also and then you need coils and the adjustable shocks as well. The one pro would be, if you set up the link system correctly you would really need so much adjustment in shock compression. A lot of work... but done correctly it would be very nice.
On the front, King has some nice shocks that you can cut and raise your factory mounts like you said. https://www.thurenfabrication.com/pr...tom-kings.html and they offer different options based on the ride your looking for.
Maybe I can help here. The newer rams have factory 4 links with panhard bars and coil springs in the rear.
So a couple options I'd realistically recommend. 1st, call Deaver springs https://deaverspring.com/ and they can put together a nice set of strings for your application and par those with a set of adjustable shocks like Pro Comps https://www.procompusa.com/mx6 or even Kings with the compression adjuster option King Shocks Performance Race Series Smoothie « King Off-Road Racing Shocks : kingshocks.com and if you got 10 or 12 inches of travel out of the rear you should be feeling pretty smooth.
You can do a 4 link with watts link but you probably won't want to go past the 12ish inch travel also and then you need coils and the adjustable shocks as well. The one pro would be, if you set up the link system correctly you would really need so much adjustment in shock compression. A lot of work... but done correctly it would be very nice.
On the front, King has some nice shocks that you can cut and raise your factory mounts like you said. https://www.thurenfabrication.com/pr...tom-kings.html and they offer different options based on the ride your looking for.
A couple pics to show experience. Lol
Fab,
Are the photos above your personal work?
I love long travel suspension and would love to incorporate it into my 07 Tahoe. The fact that you can have a ton of travel with very little lift is what makes it more desirable. Especially getting older I don't want to be climbing in anything, that's why I've lowered my vehicles. Its easier to drop in than climb in haha.
What are your thoughts on a long travel set up in a Tahoe? And do you think it would be a pleasant ride for a daily?
Can this be done in a less radical fashion in an SUV? Because I'd like to keep my storage out back. IIRC jdfab did a pretty sick build on a Tahoe but it was completely caged. I'd like to something similar but less radical, if that makes sense.
02-17-2019, 12:26 AM
Guys... need help and advice on suspension design - 4-Link on Unique Build!
